Results from my Baseball History League

[Eckstein 4 Prez]

I've decided to post some of the results from my baseball history league, which was started in 1871 using real players, real teams, real schedules and real parks. I've got free agency on, although at this point (September 1874) no one's put in enough time to get there. (However, I've had a number of teams disband, which has put players into the FA pool each year.) All players start their careers with their real teams.

Here's what I got for the 1871 season:

Cleveland Forest Citys 18-11
Chicago White Stockings 17-11
Philadelphia Athletics 17-11
New York Mutuals 19-14
Troy Haymakers 14-15
Fort Wayne Kekiongas 8-11
Boston Red Stockings 13-18
Washington Olympics 13-19
Rockford Forest Citys 8-17

Using the Win Shares system, my Most Valuable Hitter was third baseman Ezra Sutton of the Cleveland club, with 0 home runs, 21 runs batted in, a .402 batting average, 6 steals in 7 attempts, and a .955 OPS.

The Cartwright Award for best pitcher went to George Zettlein of the Chicago White Stockings, who went 17-11 with a 4.02 ERA. In 253 2/3 innings, he gave up 5 home runs, 344 hits and 27 walks, striking out 18 batters.

The overall Most Valuable Player was Zettlein, pitching all of Chicago's games and bringing them to within a half-game of the pennant.

The best players by position in 1871 were:

1B - Joe "Old Reliable" Start, New York Mutuals
2B - Bob "Death to Flying Things" Ferguson, New York Mutuals
SS - Dickey Pearce, New York Mutuals (the game chose him as MVH, which is actually not a bad choice)
3B - Ezra Sutton, Cleveland Forest Citys
LF - Charlie Pabor, Cleveland Forest Citys
CF - Lip Pike, Troy Haymakers
RF - Al Reach, Philadelphia Athletics
C - Charlie Hodes, Chicago White Stockings

For the 1872 season, there were some changes to the league's alignment. New teams were added: the Middletown Mansfields, Brooklyn Atlantics, Brooklyn Eckfords, Baltimore Canaries and Washington Nationals. However, the league lost most of its western entries as Fort Wayne and Rockford disbanded due to lack of interest and Chicago due to the devastating fire that nearly destroyed the city in October 1871. The league in 1872 would be centered around New York City and the nation's capital, with six of the eleven teams hailing from one of the boroughs, Washington or Baltimore.

[Fallschirmjager]

How can you get real results when the rules are so different than they are now? Or are you going for accuracy?

[Eckstein 4 Prez]

Originally Posted by Fallschirmjager

How can you get real results when the rules are so different than they are now? Or are you going for accuracy?

Well, I obviously can't make them pitch underhand or not use gloves, but I've edited all of the players' fielding percentages and I use league totals to come up with results that I think are pretty realistic - about as close as I can get with the current game engine. I've currently played up to late September 1874, and my career home run leader has six homers. Also, no pitcher has more than about 70-75 career strikeouts, and most have a lot less than that. The walk totals are similar.

It's not perfect, but it's about the best I can do with the current engine.

[Fallschirmjager]

Originally Posted by Eckstein 4 Prez

Well, I obviously can't make them pitch underhand or not use gloves, but I've edited all of the players' fielding percentages and I use league totals to come up with results that I think are pretty realistic - about as close as I can get with the current game engine. I've currently played up to late September 1874, and my career home run leader has six homers. Also, no pitcher has more than about 70-75 career strikeouts, and most have a lot less than that. The walk totals are similar.

It's not perfect, but it's about the best I can do with the current engine.

I was thinking more of the art of bunting a ball down the first base line and having it roll foul. Some guys compiled .400 seasons doing that. 9 balls for a walk was also a rule that hyper inflated BA.
Sounds like a good idea though.
Where did you get the roster set from or did you make it yourself?

[Eckstein 4 Prez]

Originally Posted by Fallschirmjager

I was thinking more of the art of bunting a ball down the first base line and having it roll foul. Some guys compiled .400 seasons doing that. 9 balls for a walk was also a rule that hyper inflated BA.
Sounds like a good idea though.
Where did you get the roster set from or did you make it yourself?

Right, and although I can't change the rules, I can do what I can to make the results similar. My league has a TON of singles and errors, a moderate amount of doubles and triples, and almost no home runs, walks or strikeouts. This is fairly similar to what things actually looked like in the 1870s.

The roster set is just the vanilla Lahman import, with each player's fielding rating and percentages edited to be more in line with their actual career performance. I also edit players who seem to import incorrectly - such as great hitters who import with poor talent ratings for some reason - but pretty rarely, and only when it looks like the result comes from an error in the way OOTP looks at the Lahman database. For the most part, I don't touch the hitting ratings.

So far, most of the actual stars of the 1870s have fared quite well. Guys like Cap Anson, Ezra Sutton, Deacon White and Joe Start have been stars, with a few surprises that I rather enjoy. Right now I'm playing out a big game of the 1874 season, but after that I'll post the 1872 results.

[Fallschirmjager]

Originally Posted by Eckstein 4 Prez

Right, and although I can't change the rules, I can do what I can to make the results similar. My league has a TON of singles and errors, a moderate amount of doubles and triples, and almost no home runs, walks or strikeouts. This is fairly similar to what things actually looked like in the 1870s.

The roster set is just the vanilla Lahman import, with each player's fielding rating and percentages edited to be more in line with their actual career performance. I also edit players who seem to import incorrectly - such as great hitters who import with poor talent ratings for some reason - but pretty rarely, and only when it looks like the result comes from an error in the way OOTP looks at the Lahman database. For the most part, I don't touch the hitting ratings.

So far, most of the actual stars of the 1870s have fared quite well. Guys like Cap Anson, Ezra Sutton, Deacon White and Joe Start have been stars, with a few surprises that I rather enjoy. Right now I'm playing out a big game of the 1874 season, but after that I'll post the 1872 results.

Sounds good. I thought Lahman just went back to 1900 though.

[Eckstein 4 Prez]

Originally Posted by Fallschirmjager

Sounds good. I thought Lahman just went back to 1900 though.

Nope. 1871. OOTP can only directly input from 1901, though, so I had to use a workaround - started a fictional league in 1870, simmed through a season, deleted all players and records, then imported real rookies for 1871.

[Fallschirmjager]

Originally Posted by Eckstein 4 Prez

Nope. 1871. OOTP can only directly input from 1901, though, so I had to use a workaround - started a fictional league in 1870, simmed through a season, deleted all players and records, then imported real rookies for 1871.

I will be keeping up with this then. Looks interesting.
I am wanting to do a historical dynasty here soon but I don't know enough about the game to adjust the engine and financials to make it realistic

[treedom]

Man, I'm glad that I prefer fictional cause this historical stuff sounds like a lot of work to setup.

That's some infield the Mutuals have.

And, the season is really that short? Isn't there a prob with development when you have so few games?

[Eckstein 4 Prez]

The 1872 season was marked by numerous franchise shifts, as the National Association's center of gravity shifted from west to east. In keeping with that theme, the 1871 champion Cleveland Forest Citys could not compete at all with the eastern entries who snapped up many of the best players from the former Rockford, Fort Wayne and Chicago teams. The final standings for 1872:

Boston Red Stockings 32-16
Brooklyn Eckfords 19-10
Troy Haymakers 16-9
New York Mutuals 31-25
Washington Olympics 5-4
Philadelphia Athletics 24-23
Washington Nationals 4-7
Baltimore Canaries 27-31
Middletown Mansfields 10-14
Cleveland Forest Citys 7-15
Brooklyn Atlantics 8-29

According to Win Shares, Jimmy Wood, second baseman for the Baltimore Canaries, was the Most Valuable Hitter. Wood batted .342 with two home runs, 50 runs scored and 36 batted in. He was 16 for 21 on stolen base attempts and struck out only once in 240 at-bats. His OPS for the year was .840.

The system identified Al Spalding of the pennant-winning Boston Red Stockings as the best pitcher of the year. Spalding went 31-16 with a 2.84 ERA and pitched 415 1/3 innings for the Bostonians. He yielded 485 hits and 36 walks, while striking out 20 batsmen.

Because Spalding also hit .362 and drove in 36 runs, he was an easy choice for the overall Most Valuable Player.

The Rookie of the Year was pitcher Phonney Martin of the Troy Haymakers, who debuted with a 9-5 record and a 2.25 ERA. The leading vote-getter amond position players was 17-year-old center fielder Frank McCarton of the Middletown Mansfields, who managed to hit a robust .352.

The top players by position:

1B - Joe "Old Reliable" Start, New York Mutuals (second straight appearance)
2B - Jimmy Wood, Baltimore Canaries
SS - John Radcliff, Philadelphia Athletics
3B - Adrian "Cap" Anson, New York Mutuals (converted to 3B because the Mutuals already had Start at first)
LF - Steve King, Troy Haymakers
CF - Harry Wright, Boston Red Stockings
RF - Al Reach, Philadelphia Athletics (second straight appearance)
C - Charlie Hodes, Brooklyn Eckfords (second appearance with second team)

For the 1873 season, several of the weaker teams dropped from the scene. The Eckfords, Mansfields and Washington Nationals had too small a following and dropped from the NA, the Washington Olympics actually stopped play in mid-1872, and second-year clubs Troy and Cleveland also fell by the wayside. This left only five established clubs remaining for 1873: the New York Mutuals, the Boston Red Stockings, the Brooklyn Atlantics, the Philadelphia Athletics and the Baltimore Canaries. Joining them were four new clubs: the Baltimore Marylands, the Philadelphia Whites, the Elizabeth Resolutes, and the Washington Blue Legs. These nine clubs would compete for the crown in the National Association's third season.

[Eckstein 4 Prez]

Originally Posted by treedom

Man, I'm glad that I prefer fictional cause this historical stuff sounds like a lot of work to setup.

That's some infield the Mutuals have.

And, the season is really that short? Isn't there a prob with development when you have so few games?

The work isn't really all that much: maybe 1-2 hours per season at this point, a little more later. And I love this stuff, so I hardly consider it work. The Mutuals' infield remains their strength, although Death to Flying Things has moved on after having been released by New York, and Dickey Pearce is now far past his prime, since he was 35 years of age in 1871 - the oldest everyday player.

The season really is that short - I'm using the actual schedules from Retrosheet. As for the development, you can be the judge of that - my general feeling is that (a) historical players don't tend to need as much development since they appear in the database as of the year of their actual debut and (b) since the schedule still runs from May to October (actually early November in some of these years in the 1870s) there's still ample time for talent increases and decreases. I'm now in the 1874 season, which is up around 60 games. By the early 1880s, schedules aren't that much shorter than they are today, so it shouldn't be a lingering problem. A far greater issue is how one hot or cold streak can make a player look like a superstar or a total loser. Cap Anson had one year where he struggled to get above .250 - and about half of the top players have had a season like that.

[Eckstein 4 Prez]

This is a preview of the 1873 season I wrote up before it started:

BALTIMORE CANARIES: This team finished strongly in 1872, and could be a surprise contender in 1872. However, they look more like a third or fourth place finisher. The additions of such players as outfielders Deacon White and Paul Hines should really upgrade this squad.

1B Denny Mack (last season .260, 23 runs)
2B Jimmy Wood (last season .342, 50 runs)
SS Tom Carey (last season .253, 33 runs)
3B Fred Waterman (last season .275, 7 runs with Wash. Olympics)
LF Harry Deane (last season .246, 32 runs)
CF Paul Hines (last season .289, 7 runs with Wash. Nationals)
RF Deacon White (last season .326, 12 runs with Cleveland)
C Doug Allison (last season .250, 2 runs with Wash. Olympics)

P George Zettlein (career 44-41)
P Al Pratt (career 25-26, last season 7-15 with Cleveland)

BALTIMORE MARYLANDS: There is some doubt whether this club has the resources to remain at the association level. Look for them to either win early and be a success or to fold by mid-season. Fortunately for them, they have the nucleus of a solid Troy team from last year.

1B Bub McAtee (last season was a reserve with New York, in 1871 hit .301 with Chicago)
2B Joe Miller (last season .205, 1 run with Wash. Nationals)
SS Dickie Flowers (last season .293, 16 runs with Troy)
3B Mike McGeary (last season .366, 19 runs with Troy)
LF Steve King (last season .340, 14 runs with Troy)
CF George Popplein (32-year-old rookie)
RF Joe Simmons (last season was a reserve with Olympics, in 1871 hit .257 with Chicago)
C Mike Hooper (23-year-old rookie)

P Asa Brainard (career 12-16, last season 4-2 with Wash. Olympics)

BOSTON RED STOCKINGS: The rich just continue to get richer, as the Red Stockings added even more top players by buying up most of the top players from the defunct Middletown club, and are expected to easily win their second straight NA crown.

1B Charlie Gould (last season .270, 30 runs)
2B Ross Barnes (last season .372, 38 runs)
SS George Wright (last season .333, 31 runs)
3B Chick Fulmer (last season .268, 18 runs with Mansfields)
LF "Orator Jim" O'Rourke (last season .282, 15 runs with Mansfields)
CF Harry Wright (last season .309, 29 runs)/Frank McCarton (last season .352, 14 runs with Mansfields)
RF Eddie Booth (last season .309, 18 runs with Mansfields)
C Cal McVey (last season .308, 29 runs)

P Cherokee Fisher (career 13-15, last season 6-2 with Troy)
P Al Spalding (career 44-34, last season 31-16)

BROOKLYN ATLANTICS: They should be better than they were in the dismal 1872 campaign, but still resemble a team cobbled together from spare parts. Brooklyn management has at least tried to corner the market on young players by buying up dozens of contracts. It remains to be seen whether this innovative arrangement will be successful.

1B Jim Foran (.305, 19 runs)
2B "Black Jack" Burdock (.306, 22 runs)
SS Frank Selman (.280, 23 runs with Eckfords)/Ham Allen (.286, 16 runs with Middletown)
3B Ed Pinkham (.305, 18 runs)
LF Ed Mincher (.296, 1 run in limited duty)/Jim Tipper (.308, 7 runs with Middletown in limited duty)
CF Tipper/Tom Foley (.257, 23 runs)
RF Herm Doscher (.353, 12 runs)/John Clapp (.315/15 runs with Middletown)
C Clapp/Tom Barlow (.320, 25 runs)

P Cy Bentley (4-12 as rookie with Middletown)
P Jim Britt (8-28 last season as rookie)

ELIZABETH RESOLUTES: New Jersey's finest do not have a lot of big stars, but they do have some decent role players. Don't expect them to challenge Boston this season.

1B Tim Murnane (.264, 16 runs with Middletown)
2B Dick Hunt (.297, 22 runs with Eckfords)
SS Ed Duffy (.286, 16 runs with Middletown)
3B John Bass (.205, 8 runs with Cleveland)/Joe Doyle (.238, 5 runs with Wash. Nationals)
LF Tommy Beals (7 for 11 lifetime)/Gat Stires (.346, 8 runs with Cleveland)
CF Henry Austin (29-year-old rookie)
RF Stires/Elmer White (.362, 3 runs with Cleveland)
C White/Beals

P Hugh Campbell (27-year-old rookie)

NEW YORK MUTUALS: If any team is to challenge Boston for supremacy, it must be either the Mutuals or the Philadelphia Athletics. Of the two, the Mutuals appear the better club, but they still seem to lack the top-to-bottom offense to challenge the Red Stockings.

1B Joe Start (.363, 37 runs)
2B Bob "Magnet" Addy (.065 in limited duty with Olympics, hit .343 for Rockford in 1871)
SS Jim Snyder (.278, 19 runs with Eckfords)
3B Adrian "Cap" Anson (.347, 39 runs) - was named the team captain just before the season began, taking the honor from his infield mate Start.
LF George Hall (.194, 7 runs with Olympics)/John Hatfield (.258, 29 runs)
CF Henry Burroughs (lifetime 7 for 16)/Hall
RF Dick Higham (.326, 44 runs)
C Charlie Hodes (.389, 19 runs with Eckfords)

P Rynie Wolters (lifetime 28-24, last season 19-14)
P Candy Cummings (7-10 as rookie)

PHILADELPHIA WHITES: A collection of castoffs for the most part, this team doesn't even have a prayer of being the best in its own city.

1B Clipper Flynn (.347, 16 runs with Troy)
2B Bob "Death to Flying Things" Ferguson (.203, 24 runs with New York, was waived after poor 1872 season)
SS "Wee Davy" Force (.471, 5 runs with Olympics)
3B Charlie Smith (0 for 2 in 1872, hit .273 for New York in 1871) - he was claimed by Boston off of waivers and then traded to the Whites for Ed Beavens.
LF Andy Leonard (.324, 7 runs with Olympics)
CF John Glenn (.300, 1 run with Olympics)
RF Jim Devlin (24-year-old rookie)
C Paddy Quinn (2 for 13 lifetime, was claimed off of waivers from the Athletics)

P Bill Stearns (lifetime 6-7 with Olympics)

PHILADELPHIA ATHLETICS: The team has decided to experiment with a three-man rotation this season. If the experiment is successful, they could challenge for the top spot; however, a battle with the Canaries for third place seems more likely.

1B Everett Mills (.316, 6 runs with Olympics)
2B Al Reach (.291, 18 runs)
SS John Radcliff (.336, 40 runs)
3B Ezra Sutton (.253, 16 runs with Cleveland)
LF Charlie Pabor (.287, 13 runs with Cleveland)
CF George Bird (.243, 20 runs)
RF George Heubel (.235, 2 runs in limited duty)
C Fergy Malone (.275, 16 runs)/Scott Hastings (.241, 22 runs)

P Dick McBride (career 22-21, last season 12-14)
P Phonney Martin (9-5 with Troy as rookie)
P Bobby Mathews (career 27-21, last season 19-10 with Eckfords)

WASHINGTON BLUE LEGS: Like the other new teams, they have some good players, some spare parts. Even among the newcomers, they seem a relatively weak club and may finish last.

1B Andy Allison (career 2 for 3)
2B Bill Craver (.301, 16 runs with Troy)
SS Pony Sager (.319, 27 runs with Eckfords)
3B Marty Swandell (3 for 12 lifetime)/Candy Nelson (.298, 12 runs with Troy)
LF Tom York (.243 lifetime as Troy reserve)
CF Lip Pike (.327, 23 runs with Troy)
RF Nelson/Jack McDonald (4 for 14 lifetime)
C Pop Snyder (18-year-old rookie)

P John Greason (20-year-old rookie)

ODDS OF WINNING CHAMPIONSHIP:

Boston Red Stockings 1-1
New York Mutuals 7-2
Philadelphia Athletics 5-1
Baltimore Canaries 8-1
Brooklyn Atlantics 30-1
Philadelphia Whites 30-1
Elizabeth Resolutes 40-1
Washington Blue Legs 75-1
Baltimore Marylands 75-1

[Eckstein 4 Prez]

1873 Season

Boston's expected competition for the NA crown, the New York Mutuals, never really came together at all, as subpar seasons by many regulars (including, most prominently, Adrian "Cap" Anson) caused the team to collapse into the second division. Instead, it was the surprising Baltimore Canaries, led by Deacon White and Jimmy Wood, who gave the Red Stocking a run for their money. In the end, the depth of the Boston club was just too much for Baltimore and the rest of the Association:

Boston Red Stockings 40-20
Baltimore Canaries 35-22
Philadelphia Athletics 30-22
Brooklyn Atlantics 26-29
Baltimore Marylands 1-5
Philadelphia Whites 24-29
Washington Blue Legs 16-23
Elizabeth Resolutes 8-15
New York Mutuals 19-34

According to Win Shares, Deacon White of Baltimore was the Most Valuable Hitter by a wide margin. White hit 4 home runs, batted .367 on the year, scored 41 runs, drove in 44, and struck only once all season. After spending two years in relative obscurity in Cleveland, White made himself known in a big way.

For the second time, pitcher George Zettlein captured both the Cartwright Award and the Most Valuable Player award. This time, he did it as a member of the Baltimore Canaries, as he went 24-12 with a 3.43 ERA. In 336 innings, he gave up 384 hits and 18 walks. He also struck out 17 batters and pitched two shutouts.

The Rookie of the Year award went to pitcher Hugh Campbell of the Elizabeth Resolutes. Campbell went 8-15 with a 2.84 ERA for the new Resolutes ball club.

The top players by position:

1B - Charlie Gould, Boston Red Stockings
2B - Jimmy Wood, Baltimore Canaries (second straight appearance)
SS - George Wright, Boston Red Stockings
3B - Fred Waterman, Baltimore Canaries
LF - "Orator Jim" O'Rourke, Boston Red Stockings
CF - Lip Pike, Washington Blue Legs (second overall appearance)
RF - Deacon White, Baltimore Canaries
C - Cal McVey, Boston Red Stockings

Three of the four new teams for 1873 would not be around for the 1874 season. Elizabeth, Washington, and the Baltimore Marylands all folded up shop at the close of the season. To fill their place, the National Association would turn to one old team and one new one. The new club was the Dark Blues of Hartford, Connecticut. The old one was the Chicago White Stockings, who returned to the Association after two years' absence due to the Great Chicago Fire. It was expected that both new teams would have some trouble competing on an equal footing with the more established clubs, at least for a season or two.

[Eckstein 4 Prez]

Here's a preview to the 1874 season that I wrote before things started:

BALTIMORE CANARIES: These guys were the surprise contenders of 1873, and gave Boston a real run before settling for second place. They have essentially the same roster as last year, so look for them to possibly slide from their second-place finish into third or even fourth.

1B Denny Mack (last season .219, 32 runs)
2B Jimmy Wood (last season .324, 34 runs)
SS Tom Carey (last season .263, 32 runs)
3B Fred Waterman (last season .301, 51 runs)
LF John Hatfield (last season .226, 8 runs with New York/Elizabeth)
CF Paul Hines (last season .219, 25 runs)
RF Deacon White (last season .367, 41 runs)
C Doug Allison (last season .274, 27 runs)

P George Zettlein (career 68-53, last season 24-12)
P Al Pratt (career 36-36, last season 11-10)

BOSTON RED STOCKINGS: The Red Stockings won their second consecutive championship in 1873, and kept their entire team intact for the 1874 season. It remains to be seen whether any of the other NA teams can prevent them from taking a third straight crown.

1B Charlie Gould (last season .307, 47 runs)
2B Ross Barnes (last season .300, 43 runs)
SS George Wright (last season .351, 50 runs)
3B Harry Schafer (last season .293, 8 runs)
LF "Orator Jim" O'Rourke (last season .362, 53 runs)
CF Frank McCarton (last season .313, 31 runs)
RF Eddie Booth (last season .282, 26 runs)
C Cal McVey (last season .336, 46 runs)

P Cherokee Fisher (career 33-25, last season 20-10)
P Frank Buttery (career 13-5, last season 7-3)
P Al Spalding (career 54-40, last season 10-6)

BROOKLYN ATLANTICS: The Atlantics continue to tinker with their lineup, and may actually have something this year. Expect a solid season from them this year, as they may not be ready to challenge Boston yet, but could finish as high as second or third if their young players do well. The additions of Nelson and Stires should help.

1B Jim Foran (.288, 36 runs)
2B Jim Hall (11 for 26 career)/“Black Jack” Burdock (.294, 35 runs)
SS Candy Nelson (.325, 31 runs with Washington)/Ham Allen (.251, 19 runs)
3B Herm Doscher (.321, 35 runs)
LF Jim Tipper (.247, 15 runs)
CF Allen/Nelson
RF Gat Stires (.264, 10 runs with Elizabeth)/John Clapp (.319, 37 runs)
C Clapp/Tom Barlow (.331, 26 runs)

P Jim Britt (26-47 career, 18-19 last season)
P Cy Bentley (12-22 career, 8-10 last season)
P Tommy Bond (rookie)

CHICAGO WHITE STOCKINGS: After two years, the White Stockings are back in the National Association. However, they do not expect to be a contender this season, as their team is entirely put together from spare parts. Expect them to be at the bottom of the standings this year and probably for years to come.

1B Bub McAtee (6 for 27 with Marylands)
2B John Peters (rookie)
SS Pony Sager (.396, 24 runs with Washington)
3B Warren White (2 for 12 lifetime)
LF Harry Berthrong (.327 AAA hitter with Boston)
CF Count Sensenderfer (2 for 14 last two years with Athletics)
RF Elmer White (.313, 13 runs with Elizabeth)
C NFN Gilroy (rookie)

P Bill Kelly (never pitched before)

HARTFORD DARK BLUES: Professional baseball comes to Hartford with the arrival of the Dark Blues. Like Chicago, their team is put together entirely from spare parts and the only real suspense will be in determining which of the two new clubs will finish last. The smart money says that Chicago will be slightly better than Hartford.

1B Orator Shaffer (rookie)
2B Bob “Magnet” Addy (.213, 8 runs with New York)
SS Ed Duffy (.247, 7 runs with Elizabeth)
3B Marty Swandell (.221, 13 runs with Washington)
LF Tommy Beals (.213, 3 runs with Elizabeth)
CF Lip Pike (.408, 36 runs with Washington)
RF Steve Brady (rookie)
C Billy Barnie (rookie)

P George Popplein (never pitched before)

NEW YORK MUTUALS: The Mutuals had a disastrously bad 1873 campaign, and look to recover this year. Of course, almost anything would be an improvement to last year, as many of their players are coming off disappointing years. The team made some small acquisitions, but not really anything that would cause them to have a huge leap in the standings. Look for a mediocre season from the Mutuals.

1B Joe Start (.358, 41 runs)
2B Bill Boyd (lifetime .214 hitter)
SS Dickie Flowers (11 for 29 last year with Marylands)
3B Adrian "Cap" Anson (.258, 34 runs)
LF George Hall (.349, 38 runs)/Fred Treacey (.305, 14 runs)
CF Treacey/Dave Eggler (7 for 27 last year)
RF Dick Higham (.299, 32 runs)
C Charlie Hodes (.276, 21 runs)

P Asa Brainard (lifetime 13-21, last season 1-5 with Marylands)
P Rynie Wolters (lifetime 40-44, last season 12-20)
P Candy Cummings (lifetime 13-22, last season 6-12)

PHILADELPHIA WHITES: Looking for a dark horse contender? This could be the team, as they were already a solid team, and upgraded significantly with the additions of Craver, McGeary, and McMullin. The 1873 midseason acquisition of Charlie Mills helped as well.

1B Clipper Flynn (.332, 27 runs)
2B Bill Craver (.394, 25 runs with Washington)
SS "Wee Davy" Force (.301, 33 runs)
3B Mike McGeary (10 for 27 last year with Marylands)
LF Andy Leonard (.326, 41 runs)
CF Ned Cuthbert (.366, 22 runs)
RF John Glenn (.284, 22 runs)
C Charlie Mills (.275, 17 runs)

P John “Lefty” McMullin (30-37 lifetime, last season 16-22 with Washington)
P Bill Stearns (30-36 lifetime, 24-29 last season)

PHILADELPHIA ATHLETICS: The Athletics were already one of the league’s best teams last year, and have added another significant player in Steve King. This could be the year they challenge Boston for the top spot.

1B Everett Mills (.309, 34 runs)
2B Al Reach (.284, 29 runs)
SS John Radcliff (.354, 46 runs)
3B Ezra Sutton (.341, 43 runs)
LF Steve King (9 for 26 last year with Marylands)
CF George Bird (.344, 36 runs)
RF George Heubel (.273, 46 runs)
C Scott Hastings (.345, 21 runs)

P Phonney Martin (24-10 lifetime, 15-5 last season)
P Dick McBride (35-33 lifetime, 13-12 last season)
P Bobby Mathews (career 28-23, last season 1-2)

ODDS OF WINNING CHAMPIONSHIP:

Philadelphia Athletics 2-1
Boston Red Stockings 5-2
Philadelphia Whites 3-1
Baltimore Canaries 7-1
Brooklyn Atlantics 7-1
New York Mutuals 20-1
Chicago White Stockings 150-1
Hartford Dark Blues 150-1

[Carlton]

Did you check for accurate passed balls and HBP Eck?

I saw quite a variance last time I checked on bball ref

For example Jack Manning was na OBP God, yet never walked...he was usually plunked every 6th pitch...probably a lean in because he was a poor hitter and knew it...or just a jerk...who knows.

And alot of PB...crazy...but then again...most C's I don't think wore gloves and crouched rather than squatted behind the plate

[Eckstein 4 Prez]

I tried to do accurate passed balls back in OOTP4, and it was an unmitigated disaster. The OOTP engine seems to have no idea what to do when you put in a number like "47" for passed balls.

As for HBP, to the best of my knowledge that data isn't available in the 1870s. I know it's there for the 1890s, because in past replays I've had guys rack up 40-50 of them a season. Right now, my league leaders are probably around 5-6 HBP, so I'd say they're more common than home runs, less common than triples.

Also, OOTP isn't perfect when it comes to modeling fielding percentage, but because I'm using real fielding percentages I'm typically seeing an average of around 6 errors per team per game. That's actually well below the accurate numbers, but it looks like it's the best it can do.

Generally, I think that within the limitations of the game engine and the Lahman database, this is pretty close to the best results I can get. I'm not thrilled about the low PB numbers, but I also don't want to spend ten test sims just to try to get the number exactly right.

[sporr]

This is interesting stuff Eck. It's nice to know that the game engine can somewhat come up with realistic results even though some areas that you mentioned are obviously pushing the envelope on the game's sim abilities.

[Tiger Fan]

Originally Posted by sporr

This is interesting stuff Eck. It's nice to know that the game engine can somewhat come up with realistic results even though some areas that you mentioned are obviously pushing the envelope on the game's sim abilities.

Absolutely. Very interesting.

[Eckstein 4 Prez]

Well, I just finished the 1874 season, and it was a real dogfight. Three teams were almost tied with about a month to go - the Boston Red Stockings, the Philadelphia Athletics, and the surprising New York Mutuals. Boston seemed to have the upper hand, but then went on a sudden six-game losing streak, which allows New York to lead by 2 1/2 games at one point. Then Boston came alive at just the right moment, and with a strong October managed to win their third straight National Association crown:

Boston Red Stockings 46-25
New York Mutuals 41-24
Philadelphia Athletics 33-22
Baltimore Canaries 25-22
Philadelphia Whites 29-29
Brooklyn Atlantics 26-30
Chicago White Stockings 18-41
Hartford Dark Blues 14-39

Unsurprisingly, Win Shares pegged Ross Barnes of the Boston Red Stockings as the Most Valuable Hitter. In 69 games, Barnes batted .386, with 62 runs scored and an amazing 77 batted in. Barnes had 33 doubles, 10 triples and 2 home runs on the year, proving himself to be the league's first slugging threat.

The somewhat odd choice for the Cartwright Award was Phonney Martin of the Philadelphia Athletics. Although Phonney was only 13-14 for the Athletics, he still did an excellent job with a 2.97 ERA, narrowly earning him the award over George Zettlein and Asa Brainard.

Martin was also considered the overall Most Valuable Player, although I'd probably argue that Barnes deserved it more.

Somewhat by default, the Rookie of the Year was John Peters of the Chicago White Stockings, who batted .286 as the Chicagos' regular second baseman.

The top players by position:

1B - Joe "Old Reliable" Start, New York Mutuals (third overall appearance)
2B - Ross Barnes, Boston Red Stockings
SS - George Wright, Boston Red Stockings (second straight appearance)
3B - Adrian "Cap" Anson, New York Mutuals (second overall appearance)
LF - "Orator Jim" O'Rourke, Boston Red Stockings (second straight appearance)
CF - Candy Nelson, Brooklyn Atlantics
RF - Dick Higham, New York Mutuals
C - Cal McVey, Boston Red Stockings (second straight appearance)

For the 1875 season, several new teams decided to try their hands at the Association, including several from the west as base ball regained its national flavor. There would be two new teams from St. Louis, one from Keokuk, one from Philadelphia, one from Washington, and one from New Haven. Meanwhile, the three-year-old Baltimore franchise was disbanding, and its players were to be scattered to the winds.

Note: since I'm now up to date with my league as it stands, I'll probably post some career leader stats as of the end of 1874 to keep things going for a while.

[Eckstein 4 Prez]

Through the end of 1874, here are my career leaders in hits:

(1) 328 - Joe Start, New York Mutuals
(2) 297 - Ross Barnes, Boston Red Stockings
(3) 295 - George Wright, Boston Red Stockings
(4) 294 - Cal McVey, Boston Red Stockings
(5) 293 - Adrian "Cap" Anson, Rockford Forest Citys-New York Mutuals
(6) 287 - Charlie Gould, Boston Red Stockings
(7) 270 - Dick Higham, New York Mutuals
(8) 257 - John Radcliff, Philadelphia Athletics
(9) 244 - George Hall, Washington Olympics-New York Mutuals
(10) 242 - Jimmy Wood, Chicago White Stockings-Baltimore Canaries
(11) 226 - "Orator Jim" O'Rourke, Middletown Mansfields-Boston Red Stockings
(12) 224 - Jim Foran, Fort Wayne Kekiongas-Brooklyn Atlantics
(13) 217 - George Bird, Rockford Forest Citys-Philadelphia Athletics
(13) 217 - Clipper Flynn, Troy Haymakers-Philadelphia Whites
(15) 216 - Pony Sager, Rockford Forest Citys-Brooklyn Eckfords-Washington Blue Legs-Chicago White Stockings
(16) 212 - Ezra Sutton, Cleveland Forest Citys-Philadelphia Athletics
(17) 211 - Al Reach, Philadelphia Athletics
(17) 211 - Deacon White, Cleveland Forest Citys-Baltimore Canaries
(19) 210 - Andy Leonard, Washington Olympics-Philadelphia Whites
(20) 208 - Charlie Hodes, Chicago White Stockings-Brooklyn Eckfords-New York Mutuals
(21) 207 - Tom Carey, Fort Wayne Kekiongas-Baltimore Canaries
(22) 206 - Lip Pike, Troy Haymakers-Washington Blue Legs-Hartford Dark Blues
(23) 204 - Davy Force, Washington Olympics-Philadelphia Whites
(24) 203 - Harry Schafer, Boston Red Stockings
(24) 203 - Bill Craver, Troy Haymakers-Washington Blue Legs-Philadelphia Whites