August 21, 1886: Jack Rowe hits for the cycle as Wolverines extend first-place lead over White Stockings
The Chicago White Stockings had won the 1885 National League…
September 23, 1886: Chippy McGarr hits for the cycle as Athletics upset first-place Browns
At close of play on September 20, 1886, the St. Louis Browns…
October 3, 1886: Matt Kilroy, strikeout king
In 1886 the pitcher’s box was made a foot deeper and the rule…
October 18, 1886: Chicago’s John Clarkson ‘calcimines’ the Browns in World Series opener
The 1886 Chicago White Stockings successfully defended their…
October 23, 1886: Curt Welch’s winning slide
After the 1885 season the two major-league pennant winners, the…
April 16, 1887: Mike Griffin becomes first major-league player to homer in his first at-bat — or does he?
The American Association commenced its sixth season as a major…
April 16, 1887: George Tebeau stakes a claim to being first major-league player to homer in his first at-bat
For more than a century, the correct answer to the baseball trivia…
April 30, 1887: Tip O’Neill homers twice and hits for the cycle as St. Louis Browns bash Cleveland Blues
The American Association was already two weeks into its 1887…
May 2, 1887: The first African-American battery
Catchers have been prized from baseball’s beginning, as evidenced…
May 2, 1887: Pittsburgh’s Fred Carroll completes natural cycle in first four at-bats of the season
On April 30, 1887, their Opening Day and National League debut…
July 3, 1877: Louisville’s Charley Snyder becomes first major leaguer to wear a catcher’s mask
Invented by Harvard College baseball nine captain Fred Thayer,…
July 14, 1887: The color line is drawn in baseball
On the morning of July 15, 1887, the New York Herald boldly titled…
August 6, 1887: Bud Fowler joins the Montpelier Capital Citys
Black baseball pioneer and 2022 Hall of Famer Bud Fowler played…
August 9, 1887: Radbourn, Beaneaters receive a pummeling by Pittsburgh
The Pittsburgh Alleghenys had a terrible first three months of…
August 10, 1887: Dave Orr hits for second career cycle, but Orioles prevail in walk-off win
Down by a run in the final inning, the Baltimore Orioles “succeeded…
August 24, 1887: Phillies edge Hoosiers amid ‘base ball fever’ in Philadelphia
“The base ball fever was never more contagious than it is at…
August 26, 1887: Bid McPhee hits for the cycle as Cincinnati, Baltimore combine for 30-run ‘fusillade’
On August 26, 1887, the Baltimore Orioles started a three-game…
October 21, 1887: Sam Thompson’s triple trouble
Sam Thompson may have been the best hitter in baseball in 1887.…
May 15, 1888: Philadelphia’s Harry Stovey hits for the cycle
Harry Stovey had the power to lead his league in home runs five…
May 27, 1888: Bridegroom Adonis Terry no-hits Louisville on a Sunday in Queens
Early in the fall of 1887, Brooklyn Grays pitcher Will Terry…
June 13, 1888: Sam Barkley hits for the cycle but Kansas City Cowboys lose to Cincinnati Reds
The Kansas City Cowboys joined the American Association in 1888,…
June 21, 1888: George Van Haltren tosses rain-shortened no-hitter for Chicago
Largely overlooked today, George Van Haltren was a speedy center…
July 28, 1888: Jimmy Ryan hits for cycle as Chicago White Stockings win 21-17 slugging match
The Detroit Wolverines visited Chicago’s West Side Park to…
August 10, 1888: Tim Keefe outduels rookie Harry Staley for 19th consecutive victory
In 1888 Tim Keefe of the New York Giants was recognized as one…