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legendsport · 05-18-2009, 08:49 AM

The 1901 season is in the books!

The Boston Beaneaters and Philadelphia Athletics each ended up winning their respective League's pennants with relative ease. Rumors of a post-season series between the two were quickly squashed by officials from the National League which refuses to acknowledge the legitimacy of the "upstart" American circuit, leaving fans to wonder just which team is the true champion.

The Beaneaters had a tremendous campaign in winning their third consecutive National League pennant. Boston finished with 94 wins in its 140 games, good for a twelve-game cushion over the second-place Pittsburgh Pirates. Stanley Sweetwater, Boston's ace pitcher, also had a momentous season, winning his 200th career game on October 1st (a 9-2 win over Pittsburgh) less than a month after throwing a no-hit, no-walk game against the same Pittsburgh club, missing out on a perfect game by a pair of fielding errors. For his career, Sweets is 200-84 with a 2.75 earned run average.

Boston's always potent lineup also produced in tremendous fashion in '01. Heinie Staudenmaier hit .349 to lead the club and was 5th in the National League (Floyd Dill of Cincinnati was the batting champion at .365). Mick O'Halloran had the best season of his five-year career, scoring 132 runs and hitting .340 for the year. Rocky Hennessey, the English-born outfielder who came over after the Cleveland Spiders were folded in 1899, followed a .341 campaign in 1900 by hitting .333 in 1901. And Claude Martin, the "California Kid," was plucked from an orange field in southern California and hit .331 in his first professional baseball since 1899.

The American League champion Phildelphia club also dominated their loop. The Athletics won 88 contests, ten better than their nearest competition (the Boston Americans) to win the first American League pennant. The club was led by Slim Jim Larson, a talented 25-year-old outfielder who jumped from Pittsburgh of the National League. Larson had been a backup for the Pirates, but given a chance in Philadelphia, he shone with a league-best .367 average. Other standouts were catcher Stumpy Walker (.304) and shortstop Larry Patterson (101 runs, .299 average).

The Athletics also sported some great pitching, with Jim Kirby leading the way. The slow-talking, tobacco-chewing Alabaman was dubbed "Southern Comfort" by his team mates and he provided a lot of comfort, leading the league in earned run average at 2.10 and posting a 20-12 record in his first season outside the Southern Association. Kirby's young protege, 21-year-old Bob Batts (who earned the moniker the California Cannon for his speed ball), also showed he's ready for the big-time, winning 24 games and striking out 152 batters.

The Erie club was the toast of the Eastern League, winning 81 and losing just 39 to leave second-place Providence 13 games behind.

05-18-2009, 08:49 AM	#106 (permalink)
legendsport All Star Starter Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Behind The Lens Posts: 1,985 Thanked 1x in 1 post	October 7, 1901 Update The 1901 season is in the books! The Boston Beaneaters and Philadelphia Athletics each ended up winning their respective League's pennants with relative ease. Rumors of a post-season series between the two were quickly squashed by officials from the National League which refuses to acknowledge the legitimacy of the "upstart" American circuit, leaving fans to wonder just which team is the true champion. The Beaneaters had a tremendous campaign in winning their third consecutive National League pennant. Boston finished with 94 wins in its 140 games, good for a twelve-game cushion over the second-place Pittsburgh Pirates. Stanley Sweetwater, Boston's ace pitcher, also had a momentous season, winning his 200th career game on October 1st (a 9-2 win over Pittsburgh) less than a month after throwing a no-hit, no-walk game against the same Pittsburgh club, missing out on a perfect game by a pair of fielding errors. For his career, Sweets is 200-84 with a 2.75 earned run average. Boston's always potent lineup also produced in tremendous fashion in '01. Heinie Staudenmaier hit .349 to lead the club and was 5th in the National League (Floyd Dill of Cincinnati was the batting champion at .365). Mick O'Halloran had the best season of his five-year career, scoring 132 runs and hitting .340 for the year. Rocky Hennessey, the English-born outfielder who came over after the Cleveland Spiders were folded in 1899, followed a .341 campaign in 1900 by hitting .333 in 1901. And Claude Martin, the "California Kid," was plucked from an orange field in southern California and hit .331 in his first professional baseball since 1899. The American League champion Phildelphia club also dominated their loop. The Athletics won 88 contests, ten better than their nearest competition (the Boston Americans) to win the first American League pennant. The club was led by Slim Jim Larson, a talented 25-year-old outfielder who jumped from Pittsburgh of the National League. Larson had been a backup for the Pirates, but given a chance in Philadelphia, he shone with a league-best .367 average. Other standouts were catcher Stumpy Walker (.304) and shortstop Larry Patterson (101 runs, .299 average). The Athletics also sported some great pitching, with Jim Kirby leading the way. The slow-talking, tobacco-chewing Alabaman was dubbed "Southern Comfort" by his team mates and he provided a lot of comfort, leading the league in earned run average at 2.10 and posting a 20-12 record in his first season outside the Southern Association. Kirby's young protege, 21-year-old Bob Batts (who earned the moniker the California Cannon for his speed ball), also showed he's ready for the big-time, winning 24 games and striking out 152 batters. The Erie club was the toast of the Eastern League, winning 81 and losing just 39 to leave second-place Providence 13 games behind. __________________ Dynasty Thread: Baseball in a world where the South won the American Civil War The Baseball Chronicle - Fake Players, Real Excitement! (Dynasty Thread) - Website Other Leagues: Alternate Universe Football (1988)