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Charlton's Baseball Chronology - 1866
April
| April 30 |
The champion Atlantics have their first practice game of the year. Some differences in this year's team are the addition of bob Ferguson‚ from the Enterprise club‚ and the absence of Pearce and Norton‚ who now play for the Excelsiors. |
June
| June 12 |
Leading 26-22 going into the 9th inning at Morrisania‚ the visiting Eureka Club of Newark seem headed for their 3rd straight win over the Unions. But the Unions rally for 6 runs and win‚ 28-26. |
| June 16 |
At Morrisania‚ the Union Club defeats the Enterprise Club of Brooklyn by the score of 42-16. The Unions led all the way and‚ according to the New York Times‚ "did some tall batting after the third inning. The fielding of the Enterprise nine was very loose‚ while the Unions‚ although‚ they were short Abrams at third and Austin at right‚ fielded very well. The attendance was quite large‚ the belles of Morrisania gracing the scene with their presence in unusual numbers. At the conclusion of the game the Brooklyn boys were nicely entertained by the victors." |
| June 20 |
At Morrisania‚ the Mutuals play their first match of the year before 7‚000 fans. The Mutes score 2 runs in the 9th and beat the Unions‚ 25-23. |
July
| July 2 |
At the Philadelphia depot‚ the Athletics greet the National Club of Washington and escort them to lunch and the game at the grounds at 15th street and Columbia. A crowd of 12‚000 encircles the field and the ladies stand is completely filled. The Athletics win‚ 22-6. In the evening there is a dinner at Augustin's. |
| July 16 |
Lipman Pike of the Athletics of Philadelphia hits 6 HRs‚ 5 in succession‚ against the Alert Club of Philadelphia. Final score is 67-25. |
| July 23 |
The Cincinnati Baseball Club is organized. |
| July 26 |
The Olympics of Louisville lure Rochester P Ives to join them for a key game. Three years later Ives will join the Kentucky club and will profit from a special "benefit" game honoring him and two recent Cincinnati transfers. Baseball is growing rapidly in Louisville. |
August
| August 14 |
The Excelsior club‚ missing 5 of their regulars‚ loses to a strong Mutual club‚ 32-13. The Excelsiors use 17-year-old William "Candy" Cummings‚ the pitcher for the Star Juniors‚ a team of young players the Excelsiors are training. |
| August 15 |
At Newark‚ the champion Atlantics get soundly whipped‚ 36-10‚ by the Eureka Club‚ the worst defeat for the Atlantics since 1860. Bergen subs in CF for the Atlantics‚ his first appearance with the team since 1857. |
| August 28 |
Young Candy Cummings subs for Asa Brainard and leads the Excelsiors to a 24-2 whipping of the Eurekas. Chadwick writes‚ "the pitching and general play of young Cummings in this match marks him as a future Excelsior player of note." |
September
| September 13 |
At Hoboken‚ a crowd of 15‚000 watch the Mutuals take a14-3 lead on the Atlantics after 6 innings‚ only to lose 17-15. Dicky Pearce is back at SS for the champions. |
| September 14 |
Enterprise has little trouble hitting Cummings‚ handing the young Candy and the Excelsiors an 18-16 defeat. Enterprise scores 5 in the 9th. |
| September 17 |
The Excelsiors play the first match of their southern tour against the National team in Washington‚ winning 33-28. The game starts at 4 p.m. President Johnson watches the game for a brief time. His carriage parks behind the right fielder. The Excelsiors will beat Union on the 19th‚ 40-23 and on the 20th‚ beat the Pastime Club of Baltimore‚ 28-19. They will wind up the tour on the 21st with an 18-18 tie against the Keystones of Philadelphia. |
| September 27 |
At the Capitoline grounds‚ the Visiting Eureka Club take a lead‚ 15-11‚ after 5 innings‚ before losing 30-20. |
October
| October 1 |
In Philadelphia‚ the greatest crowd in baseball history‚ 30‚000‚ gather to watch the first match in a home-and-home series between the champion Atlantics from Brooklyn and the Athletics of Philadelphia. Batting first‚ the A's score a pair but the press of the crowd makes play impossible and the game is called. |
| October 11 |
The visiting Star Club loses to the Atlantic Club by a 46-18 score. The game is played in one hour‚ 50 minutes‚ with not a ball or a strike called. According to the rules of the day‚ the ump must warn the batter before calling a strike. |
| October 15 |
Before a crowd of 18‚000‚ the Atlantics host the Athletics‚ beating them‚ 27-17‚ behind pitcher Tom Pratt and hitter Joe Start. Start scores 6 runs. Game stats include Errors of Fielding show that the Atlantics make 10 errors while the Athletics have 44! |
| October 22 |
In Philadelphia‚ 20‚000 show up for the rematch between the Atlantics and the Athletics. This time the A's overwhelm the visitors‚ 31-1`2‚ in a rain-shortened 7 innings. Because of a disagreement over dividing the gate receipts‚ no rubber game is played. |
| October 27 |
In Philadelphia‚ the Unions of Morrisania‚ with George Wright playing shortstop‚ upset the Athletics‚ 42-29. |
| October 29 |
The final championship match of the season is between the Irvington (NJ) club and host Atlantics‚ with the 2 clubs playing a rubber match to determine the champion of 1866. The Atlantics break a 5-5 tie by scoring 7 in the 10th inning and winning‚ 12-6 to keep the Championship. |
November
| November 24 |
The first ever board version of a baseball game is offered for sale. A description of "Sebring's Parlor Base Ball game" is published in Wilkes Spirit of the Times (as noted by historians Ted Hathaway and John Thorn). Sebring is Francis Sebring‚ a noted pitcher for the Empire Nine. A patent application is made on February 4‚ 1868. |
December
| December 12 |
The 10th annual convention of the National Association of Base Ball Players is held at Clinton Hall in NYC with a record 202 clubs sending delegates. Rule changes include the introduction of called balls‚ after a warning of course‚ with 3 called balls allowing the batter to 1B. This session introduces the pitcher's box‚ an area 6 feet wide and 4 feet deep‚ from which the pitcher must deliver the ball. |
