1860 Excelsiors: The First to Take it on the Road

On June 30, 1860, the Excelsiors, led by pitcher James F. Creighton, who likely was the game’s first professional player, left South Brooklyn and headed north for Albany. While there is no way of knowing whether the Excelsiors realized it or not, by making an excursion across the team began a trend that would help the game of baseball grow into America’s National Pastime.

Ball clubs in the infancy of the game never strayed far from home. Instead, teams played other nines from their city or surrounding area. Road trips, as we now know them, did not exist. That is until the Brooklyn Excelsiors came to Albany.

The Excelsiors’ excursion that would take them across New York state was first announced publicly in the June 28, 1860 edition of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle in a small article which told of the team’s planned trip “to Niagara and other cities.” The article briefly described the trip to Albany, Troy and Buffalo, however, the itinerary then became uncertain. “From this point movements are rather uncertain, but it is not improbable the trip will be extended to Detroit to which place an invitation has been received by the club.”

Making the trip was team captain J.B. Leggett, who served as catcher; James Creighton, pitcher; J. Pearsall, first base; J. Holden, second base; William H. Young, third base; John Whiting, shortstop; Asa Brainard, right field; H. Polhemus, center field; and E. Russell, left field.

The First Road Game

More than 1,00 people gathered on July 2, 1860 in Albany at the Washington Parade Grounds, which is now known simply as Washington Park, to watch what was promised to be a “genuine exhibition of baseball.” The Excelsiors — dressed in blue caps, white merino shirts trimmed in blue, white belts, blue pants and white shoes — finished off the Albany club, 24-6, in three hours. The Albany Morning News described the game in its July 3 edition: “As we anticipated with such players against them, the Champions were beaten, their score being very low indeed, but their very fine play in the field prevented the Excelsiors from running up a very large one against them.” The Albany Evening Journal added, “At the conclusion of the game there was cheering on both sides and the ball was delivered to the winners. About 5 o’clock the Champions invited their guests to a glorious dinner at the Merchants Hotel where a happy time was had and the greatest good feeling was manifest.”

The Excelsiors, “who have pretty well reduced base ball to a science,” then took a train across the Hudson River to Troy to continue their “crusade through the province for the purpose of winning laurels, or losing them, with the different clubs,” according to the Daily Whig in Troy. The game, played at Weir’s Course, “was a splendid game, especially toward the close,” the Daily Whig reported in its July 4, 1860 edition. “The match was played under the eyes of quite one thousand spectators — many of them ladies, and much enthusiasm was manifested. The score 13 to 7 is a very fine one, and as in baseball low figures represent good play; this match will be called a first class match. The fielding of the Victorys was fully equal to that of the Excelsiors, but the skillful pitching of the latter club, resulting in the balls flying into the air and being caught, had most telling effect.”

As in Albany, festivities continued after the match when both teams enjoyed a fine supper at the Troy House where “speeches were made, songs were sung and the best of feeling prevailed,” the Daily Whig reported. “Dr. Hegeman, on behalf of the Victory, presented the Excelsior Club with a ball and also a regulation bat, suitably inscribed.”

Off to the Niagara Frontier

The Brooklynites continued by train to the western reaches of the state on July 4. Before a game was played, the host Niagaras took the Excelsiors to Nagara Falls and entertained them at a fine banquet at the Clifton House on the Canadian side of the falls. Unfortunately for the Niagaras, the Excelsiors did not return the hospitality as they beat the home team 50-19. Albert Spalding in his 1911 classic “America’s National Game,” said the Excelsior’s totals were “the highest score that had ever been recorded in a Base Ball match up to that date.”

“It is safe to say that no ball playing was ever before witnessed in Buffalo,” wrote the Daily Eagle on July 9, 1860. “The manner in which the Excelsiors handled the ball, the ease with which the caught it, under all circumstances, the precision with which they threw it to the bases, and the tremendous hits they gave it in to the long field made the optics of the Buffalo players glisten with admiration and protrude with amazement. The effect of their playing could not have a favorable effect upon the spirits and energies of the Niagaras, and some of them were, without doubt, a little discouraged. It was remarked by every one that they did not play with their usual skill and coolness.”

Each Excelsior scored at least three runs in the game, with Leggett leading the way with eight tallies. Five other teammates scored five times each.

The Brooklyn Daily Eagle added that “Brooklyn will soon be, if she is not now, able to boast of having the ‘first nine’ in the Union.”

The Excelsiors continued their trek across the state on July 7 by traveling to Rochester, where they encountered the Flour City nine. The Excelsiors won that game also, 21-1. The next day they defeated the Rochester Live Oaks, 27-9. The Daily Eagle reported that the game lasted nearly four hours because it was “much delayed by wind and rain.” The Live Oaks were able to put 10 Excelsiors out on the fly while third baseman Frank Whiting of the Excelsiors “made a clean score with six runs.”

The club surpassed their total of 50 runs accumulated during the Buffalo contest on July 11 in the excursion’s final game, which took place in Newburgh. The final score stood 59-14 as the Excelsiors defeated the Hudson River club to make their trip a perfect 6-0. In the six games, the Excelsiors outscored their opponents 194 to 56.

“The returning excursionists were met at Newburgh by a large delegation from this city,” the Daily Eagle reported on July 13, 1860. “The Club has been well received everywhere, and the trip had been in every sense a success. It should be stated that by the particular request of the Excelsior Club no wines or liquors were allowed on the grounds at any of the matches.”

Inspiring Other Teams

While it may be significant that the Excelsiors started a trend in teams traveling to other cities to face opponents, more importantly, the tour probably caused the formation of many new teams across the state. Spalding in his book wrote: “Always and everywhere on this great journey of conquest the Excelsiors were the recipients of the most gracious hospitality, a true sportsmanlike spirit possessing the hosts in every city visited. Moreover, at all points the game received fresh impetus, new clubs were organized, and word came from all over the State the Base Ball matches were being scheduled as never before.”

“The contests..had inspired the young men of those cities to emulate the example of the youth of New York and Brooklyn, and had begotten within them the hope that they might win for their cities a glory akin to that which had been achieved for the city on Long Island. As a result, clubs were organized by the hundreds, the fever spreading to all parts of the country, East, West, North and South, and matches, which developed strong new players, were scheduled everywhere,” Spalding continued.

The excursion through upstate New York proved so successful that the Excelsiors next headed south for another trip in late July. On July 22, the team defeated a picked nine from all the clubs from Baltimore, 51-6. On July 24, they beat a picked nine from all the clubs from Philadelphia, 15-4.

“Like the New York tour, this trip had a tremendous influence in promoting interest in the game in a new quarter,” wrote Spalding. “Upon their return, the Excelsiors found awaiting them an invitation from Boston, which they were compelled, reluctantly, to decline until a later date.”

The Excelsior’s trip across New York state was perhaps the first great push to spread the emerging sport of baseball.

In a short time, the Civil War would begin to rage and that too would help spread the game throughout the rest of the United States. Before long, the game was well on its way to becoming America’s National Pastime.