November 3, 1873
Brooklyn and Boston squared off on October 17th with 2.5 games separating them in the standings for 1st and 2nd place. While Brooklyn would score 11 runs in the first two innings and go on to win 22-10, the victory was bittersweet. Star left fielder Bob Brose, batting .385 with a league leading 4 home runs on the year was forced to leave the game with a torn abdominal muscle, and would remain out for the rest of the season.
Boston would struggle down the stretch, losing to the Canaries and splitting 2-game sets against the Blue Legs and Athletics. Meanwhile, Brooklyn would finish the year going 2-1, and wind up in a virtual tie with Boston. Despite the identical winning percentage, Boston would be awarded the NA championship after winning more games than the Atlantics.
Standings
Code:
W L PCT GB
Boston Red Stockings 36 24 .600 -
Brooklyn Atlantics 33 22 .600 .5
New York Mutuals 29 24 .547 3.5
Washington Blue Legs 22 17 .564 3.5
Baltimore Marylands 3 3 .500 6.0
Elizabeth Resolutes 11 12 .478 6.5
Philadelphia Athletics 25 27 .481 7.0
Baltimore Canaries 23 34 .404 11.5
Philadelphia White Stockings 17 36 .321 15.5
League Leaders
Average
.485 Joe Bonetti (MAR)
.434 George Gower (ELI)
.409 John Nero (NY)
Total Bases
153 John Nero (NY)
141 Bob Polansky (ATL)
140 Bob Brose (ATL)
Stolen Bases
21 John Nero (NY)
20 John Arend (ATL)
15 Ed Buteau (PWS)
ERA
2.80 Will Svoboda (BOS)
2.97 Jack Anderson (ATL)
3.11 Bill McManis (NY)
Wins
20 Will Svoboda (BOS)
13 Jack Anderson (ATL)
12 Charlie Calmus (PHA)
Strikeouts
14 Jack Anderson (ATL)
13 Charlie Calmus (PHA)
11 Jack Wheeler (BAL)