June 12, 1891: Kid Nichols strikes out 12 and has game-winning hit

In the history of major-league baseball, 24 pitchers have won 300 or more games. At the top of the list is Cy Young with 511 wins, and tied at 300 wins are Lefty Grove and Early Wynn. The oldest pitcher to win his 300th game was Phil Niekro, when he was 46 years old. The youngest pitcher to win his 300th game was Charles Augustus “Kid” Nichols, who won it on July 7, 1900, when he was just 30 years old.1

Nichols began his career on April 23, 1890, playing for the Boston Beaneaters. On June 12, 1891, he was on his way to his first 30-win season. He took the mound for the Beaneaters versus the Pittsburgh Pirates at the South End Grounds II in Boston. Boston (21-21) was in third place in the National League, 4½ games behind the first-place New York Giants. Nichols was opposed on the mound by Pirates right-hander Mark Baldwin, whose 33 wins had led the National League in 1890. That year had been the second in his own string of four consecutive 20-win seasons.

Boston batted first and sent up only three batters. Pittsburgh took a 1-0 lead in its first inning, even though Nichols ended up striking out the side.2 (In fact, seven of Pittsburgh’s first nine outs were strikeouts by Nichols.3) The Pirates scored their first-inning run on a hit, a passed ball, a wild throw, and a missed third strike.4

Boston scored a run in the second inning when third baseman Bill Nash hit a line drive that center fielder Al Maul lost sight of in the deep outfield grass.5 By the time the ball was retrieved, Nash had crossed the plate with a home run.6

The Pirates might have added one on the second but with runners on first and second and one out, third baseman Doggie Miller tried to steal third. He beat the throw but over slid the bag and was tagged out.

The Beaneaters scored another run in the third inning. Catcher Charlie Ganzel led off with a single. Nichols bunted for a single, putting runners at first and second with no outs. Pittsburgh first baseman Jake Beckley picked up Herman Long’s bunt and threw to shortstop Charlie Reilly, covering second. Reilly was upended by Nichols and Ganzel crossed the plate. However, Ganzel was sent back to third base and Nichols was called out. Reilly was out of the game and was replaced by Jocko Fields. Harry Stovey, the next batter, singled and Ganzel scored.

In the fourth inning, Boston added another run for a 3-1 lead when Tommy Tucker walked, stole second base, and was driven in by Ganzel’s single.7 There was no scoring the next two innings, but in the seventh Boston added a fourth run when Ganzel led off with a triple and scored on Nichols’ fly ball.

The eighth inning almost proved fatal to the Beaneaters. Nichols hit leadoff batter Tun Berger, and when a groundball by Fields bounced off second baseman Joe Quinn’s foot and bounded into right field, there were men on second and third base with no outs. Nichols struck out pitcher Baldwin on three pitches, but right fielder Fred Carroll hit a double to center field that scored both runners and made it a one-run game, 4-3.

The next batter, Pirates first baseman Jake Beckley, had struck out three times, but this time struck a groundball between shortstop and third base that neither shortstop Herman Long nor third baseman Billy Nash could get to. That ball scored Carroll with the run that tied the game at 4-4.

The Beaneaters came to bat in the top of the ninth with the score still tied. Tommy Tucker hit a fly ball to center fielder Carroll. Carroll muffed the ball, and Tucker reached second. Shortstop Fields bobbled Ganzel’s grounder but Tucker, who broke late for the plate, was trying easily thrown out trying to score. Up came Nichols, who had figured in scoring opportunities earlier for the Beaneaters. Nichols was quickly down two strikes, but then hit a groundball past the shortstop to give the Beaneaters a 5-4 lead.

For Pittsburgh in the bottom of the ninth, Berger reached first, but Nichols added two more strikeouts to his total and sealed the victory.

Each pitcher had allowed seven hits, but Nichols had struck out 12 while Baldwin had struck out none.

Nichols ended the season with 30 victories and 17 defeats. It was the first of seven seasons in which he won 30 or more games.

Pitcher Nichols and catcher were the stars of the win for the Beaneaters. Ganzel had three hits, scored two runs, and drove in one. Nichols struck out 12, including Jake Beckley three times and Pete Browning twice. Nichols also drove in what proved to be the winning run in the ninth inning.

The two clubs featured a total of five players or managers who would be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. For the Pirates, catcher Connie Mack was elected as a manager in 1937, first baseman Jake Beckley was elected in 1971, and outfielder Ned Hanlon was elected as a manger in 1996. For the Beaneaters there was the pitching duo of Nichols (elected in 1949) and John Clarkson (elected in 1963), both of whom won over 300 games (Nichols with 361, and Clarkson with 328).8

The Beaneaters, managed by Frank Selee, were tough all year, and finished the season in first place with a record of 87 wins and 51 losses. The Pirates, at 55-80, wound up in last place, 30½ games behind the Beaneaters.

Notes

1 Baseball-Almanac.com.

2 Pittsburgh Daily Post, “So Near and Yet So Far, After Winning the Game in the Eighth, Carroll Loses It in the Ninth,” June 13, 1891: 6.

3 Boston Post, “Boston League Wins,” June 13, 1891: 8.

4 Pittsburgh Daily Post.

5 T.H. Murnane, “Nichols Had His Inning,” Boston Globe, June 13, 1891: 5.

6 Ibid.

7 Ibid.

8 Baseballhall.org.