Weeks before the season starts, Alton Emch announces he will not play for Boston. “I refuse to play in a city where the sporting press imagines they understand the game better than those on the field of play.” Emch has changed his personal theory of hitting over the three years of the EL, turning from a pure line drive hitter to a fly ball hitter. His average has dropped significantly, but Emch maintains he is responsible for driving in more of his teammates home (RBI were not an official statistic until 1920, and only unofficially counted since the 1880s). “The long hit is the future of the game,” Emch states, “Teams failing to adopt this style will fall by the wayside.” Norman Lent being named field captain by Boston instead of him also personally hurts Emch. Boston’s owner Mick Avery tells Emch if he can find a team who wants him, he is free to make a deal. Chicago quickly signs him to anchor their new roster for the unheard of salary of $1,000.00 a season.
There is outrage from the other owners over the salary openly paid to Emch, though many have paid players “under the table” in excess of the league mandated maximum for years. “We stand to average less than 1,000 souls a game,” Saint Louis owner Petre Goethe states without a sense of irony. “The era of the $1,000.00 player will kill the teams in the smaller cities.”
“If we paid all players such salaries,” Cincinnati’s Max Von Schriber cries, “only New York, Boston and Chicago will get the best talent.” Von Schriber predicts the first $1,500.00 player is around the bend and “will be the ruination of the league.”
Browns’ owner McCormick is resolute, “if we want the best players, we have to pay the best salaries. The moment we undervalue our talent is the moment a rival will appear. I want to assure my investment succeeds—whether the Empire League survives or not.”
Emch can only help the Browns to a 9th place finish; the pitching was too young to win.
Hartford’s Mac Tomehak pitches in 50 of his teams’ 72 games and is credited with 24 losses.
Darryl Weisenburger is one of 3 .400 hitters, and the first non-Boston player to win the crown.
New York and Boston are the only clubs to hit over .300 for the season, .326 and .321 respectively. Without those two clubs, the league batting average drops from .291 to .282. Brooklyn, playing in the same park as New York (The Brooklyn Union Grounds) manages a .295 average. There is increased clamor for provisions in contracts to allow player movement to end New York and Boston’s stranglehold on the top spots in the league.
Boston Shortstop Steve Alves is the first player to score 200 career runs, achieve the feat in 209 games.
Cleveland is contending until young hurler Antoine Kane ruptures a muscle in his arm. The Eries’ pitching quickly slips them out of contention.
The Cincinnati press demands the removal of Tory Claessens as field captain. “While Mr. Claessens was important in putting the Queen City on the Base Ball map, his disinterest in games he is not playing in cost our team a chance at the pennant. Until someone who take the game seriously whether they are on or off the field leads this squad, there will be no champions along the Ohio River.” The Kings outscore their opponents 383-294, but finish two games under .500.
New York becomes the first club other than Boston to win the title. While loath to admit it, the Boston press points to the lack of “timely long hits, such as Alton Emch used to provide” as a major reason for the Unions lost season.
Code:
Team W L PCT GB Home Away XInn 1Run
New York 49 23 .681 - 28-10 21-13 2-3 11- 8
Boston 45 27 .625 4.0 20-14 25-13 1-3 13-14
Brooklyn 42 30 .583 7.0 21-15 21-15 6-1 11- 7
Saint Louis 40 32 .556 9.0 22-14 18-18 2-2 11- 5
Philadelphia 38 34 .528 11.0 15-21 23-13 3-4 10-12
Cincinnati 35 37 .486 14.0 20-16 15-21 2-0 9-12
Cleveland 32 40 .444 17.0 17-19 15-21 1-4 8-10
Washington 29 43 .403 20.0 16-20 13-23 5-2 11-12
Chicago 27 45 .375 22.0 15-22 12-23 1-4 11- 9
Hartford 23 49 .319 26.0 9-26 14-23 2-2 5-11