
October 30, 1871: Berkenstock returns after 4-year absence to help Philadelphia win first league championship
Major League Baseball dates its inception to 1876, but nearly…

May 11, 1872: Ninth-inning comeback gives Red Stockings victory in home opener
Newspapers were full of superlatives following the Boston Red…

June 10, 1872: Boston Red Stockings win extra-inning game in controversial fashion
Boston’s Red Stockings were 11-1 when they arrived at Brooklyn’s…

June 12, 1872: Boston Red Stockings bury the Philadelphia Athletics
Wednesday, June 12, 1872, was a hot, sultry day at the South…

June 14, 1872: Early Baseball Encounters in the West: The Yeddo Royal Japanese Troupe Play Ball in America
Of the 13 members of the Yeddo Royal Japanese Troupe, eight…

July 20, 1872: Boston Red Stockings take a rest and then 19-game winning streak ends
On July 13, 1872, the New York Clipper reported as follows:…

July 29, 1872: Boston overcomes 7-run deficit to win in extra innings
The Boston Red Stockings burst out of the gate in 1872, winning…

August 9, 1872: Eckfords halt 3-month skid with help of familiar reinforcements
In major-league history, 10 teams have lost their first 11 regular-season…

September 20, 1872: In pre-championship exhibition, Red Stockings get best of Mutuals
One day before the final game in the championship series between…
September 21, 1872: Boston Red Stockings take finale of season series with Mutuals
Heading into the final 10 days of September 1872, the Boston…

April 23, 1873: Red Stockings get Whites-washed by Philadelphia
The Boston Red Stockings won the 1872 National Association championship…

June 2, 1873: Boston’s Al Spalding blanks Brooklyn
The Red Stockings started a 10-game road trip in early June with…

June 3, 1873: Boston Red Stockings escape with narrow 6-5 win over New York Mutuals
The champs of 1872 got off to a slow start in 1873. Matches were…

June 14, 1873: Philadelphia Athletics shut out Red Stockings in front of ‘great’ Boston crowd
Ace hurler John Dickson McBride stood in the pitcher’s box…

July 4, 1873: Boston Red Stockings bounce back with 32-3 blowout of Elizabeth Resolutes
After Mike and Hugh Campbell helped the upstart Irvington Club…

July 4, 1873: Elizabeth Resolutes spoil Boston Red Stockings’ parade in first professional doubleheader
After a win on June 17 over the Philadelphia White Stockings,…

July 26, 1873: Poor fielding leads to eight unanswered runs as Red Stockings lose to Baltimore Canaries
Boston lost a home game to the visiting Baltimore Canaries, 17-14,…

September 6, 1873: Red Stockings offense erupts in 23-1 trouncing of Brooklyn Atlantics
The Red Stockings were in third place with a record of 22-12.…

October 2, 1873: Red Stockings take over first place from Philadelphia White Stockings
In the early going of the 1873 season, the White Stockings of…

May 2, 1874: Cal McVey leads Red Stockings to an Opening Day victory
Mother Nature and Old Man Winter were not yet in a “base ball”…

June 18, 1874: Mutuals’ 38-1 win over Chicago White Stockings is the biggest blowout ever
The Chicago Cubs are the oldest pillar in big-league sports.…

July 4, 1874: Chicago declares its independence over Boston in surprising extra-inning slugfest
The Chicago White Stockings were struggling in their return to…

Summer 1874: New game in the Old Country: U.S. teams tour England
A scene from the 1874 London tour, Red Stockings vs. Athletics.
It…

September 22, 1874: Mutuals inch closer in pennant race after sloppy win
The race for the 1874 National Association pennant tightened…