1885 St. Louis Browns season
St. Louis, Missouri | ||
|---|---|---|
| Record | 79–33 (.705) | |
| League place | 1st | |
| Owner | Chris von der Ahe | |
| Manager | Charlie Comiskey | |
| Stats | ESPN.com Baseball Reference | |
| ||
The 1885
Regular season
Manager
The team was built on daring baserunning, clutch hitting, and the best pitching in the league. The team as a whole led the league in both earned run average (ERA) and overall runs allowed by a healthy margin over second-best Louisville.[1] Individually, Dave Foutz was outstanding, as he won 33 of the 46 games he started and ranked fifth in ERA. His teammate Bob Caruthers was even better, compiling league-leading totals in wins (40), ERA (2.07) and winning percentage (a stellar .755).[2]
The Browns took over first place to stay in the second week of May, but they made a joke of the race in July. On successive home stands, they had winning streaks of 17 and 12 games, combining for a major-league record 27-game winning streak at home that still stands as the best ever.[3] They finished games laps ahead of the second-place Cincinnati Red Stockings and earned a berth in the World Series against the National League champion Chicago White Stockings.
Season standings
Record vs. opponents
Sources: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | BAL | BR | CIN | LOU | NY | PHI | PIT | STL | |||||||||
| Baltimore | — | 7–9 | 6–10 | 7–9 | 7–6 | 6–10–1 | 6–10 | 2–14 | |||||||||
| Brooklyn | 9–7 | — | 5–11 | 10–6 | 8–8 | 11–5 | 6–10 | 4–12 | |||||||||
| Cincinnati | 10–6 | 11–5 | — | 8–8 | 10–6 | 9–7 | 9–7 | 6–10 | |||||||||
| Louisville | 9–7 | 6–10 | 8–8 | — | 9–7 | 8–8 | 6–10 | 7–9 | |||||||||
| New York | 6–7 | 8–8 | 6–10 | 7–9 | — | 5–11 | 8–7 | 4–12 | |||||||||
| Philadelphia | 10–6–1 | 5–11 | 7–9 | 8–8 | 11–5 | — | 10–6 | 4–12 | |||||||||
| Pittsburgh | 10–6 | 10–6 | 7–9 | 10–6 | 7–8 | 6–10 | — | 6–10 | |||||||||
| St. Louis | 14–2 | 12–4 | 10–6 | 9–7 | 12–4 | 12–4 | 10–6 | — | |||||||||
Roster
| 1885 St. Louis Browns | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roster | |||||||||
| Pitchers | Catchers
Infielders |
Outfielders | Manager | ||||||
Player stats
Batting
Starters by position
Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Pos | Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Doc Bushong | 85 | 300 | 80 | .267 | 0 | 21 |
| 1B | Charlie Comiskey | 83 | 340 | 87 | .256 | 2 | 44 |
| 2B | Sam Barkley | 106 | 418 | 112 | .268 | 3 | 53 |
| SS | Bill Gleason | 112 | 472 | 119 | .252 | 3 | 53 |
| 3B | Arlie Latham | 110 | 485 | 100 | .206 | 1 | 35 |
| OF | Curt Welch | 112 | 432 | 117 | .271 | 3 | 69 |
| OF | Yank Robinson | 78 | 287 | 75 | .261 | 0 | 35 |
| OF | Hugh Nicol | 112 | 425 | 88 | .207 | 0 | 45 |
Other batters
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tip O'Neill | 52 | 206 | 72 | .350 | 3 | 38 |
| Dan Sullivan | 17 | 60 | 7 | .117 | 0 | 3 |
| Mike Drissel | 6 | 20 | 1 | .050 | 0 | 0 |
| Cal Broughton | 4 | 17 | 1 | .059 | 0 | 1 |
Pitching
Starting pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bob Caruthers | 53 | 482.1 | 40 | 13 | 2.07 | 190 |
| Dave Foutz | 47 | 407.2 | 33 | 14 | 2.63 | 147 |
| Jumbo McGinnis | 13 | 112.0 | 6 | 6 | 3.38 | 41 |
World Series
- Game 1 (October 14): Darkness ends game one after 8 innings‚ with the teams tied 5–5.
- Game 2 (October 15): With Chicago leading 5–4 in the sixth inning, Browns manager Charles Comiskey calls his team off the field to protest a ruling made by umpire Dave Sullivan. The game is forfeited to Chicago.
- Game 6 (October 23): The series moves from Pittsburgh to Cincinnati‚ setting a record for the series played in the most cities. (It was also played in New York and St. Louis.) Chicago takes a 3–2 series lead by beating the Browns 9–2.
- Game 7 (October 24): Behind pitcher Dave Foutz, St. Louis defeats Chicago 13–4 in the 7th and last game. The Browns claim the game 2 forfeit didn't count and therefore claim the championship. The two clubs split the $1000 prize.[3]