A Ball Players Career | Page 8

New York proved victorious, winning the first and third
games by the respective scores of 22 to 18, and 29 to 18, while
Brooklyn won the second contest by 29 to 8. In October, 1861, another
contest took place between the representative nines of New York and
Brooklyn for the silver ball presented by the New York Clipper, and
Brooklyn easily won by a score of 18 to 6. The Civil war materially
affected the progress of the game in 1861, '62 and '63 and but little
base-ball was played, many wielders of the bat having laid aside the ash
to shoulder the musket.
The Atlantic and Eckford Clubs of Brooklyn were the chief contestants
for the championship in 1862, the Eckfords then wresting the
championship away from the Atlantics, and retaining it also during the
succeeding season, when they were credited with an unbroken
succession of victories. The champion nine of the Eckford Club in 1863
were Sprague, pitcher; Beach, catcher; Roach, Wood and Duffy on the
bases; Devyr, shortstop; and Manolt, Swandell and Josh Snyder in the
outfield.

The championship reverted back to the Atlantics in 1864, and they held
the nominal title until near the close of 1867, their chief competitors
being the Athletics of Philadelphia and the Mutuals of New York City.
The Athletics held the nominal championship longer than any other
club, and also claims the credit of not being defeated in any game
played during 1864 and 1865, the feat of going through two successive
seasons without a defeat being unprecedented at that time in base-ball
history. The Eckfords of Brooklyn, however, went through the season
of 1863 without losing a game, and the Cincinnati Reds, under the
management of the late Harry Wright, accomplished a similar feat in
1869, the latter at the time meeting all of the best teams in the country,
both East and West.
The Atlantic's champion nine in 1864 and 1865 were Pratt, pitcher;
Pearce, catcher; Stark, Crane and C. Smith, on the bases; Galvin,
shortstop; and Chapman, P. O'Brien and S. Smith in the outfield. Frank
Norton caught during the latter part of the season and Pearce played
shortstop.
The Athletics in 1866 played all of the strongest clubs in the country
and were only twice defeated, once by the Atlantics of Brooklyn, and
once by the Unions of Morrisania. The first game between the Atlantics
and Athletics for the championship took place October 1st, 1866, in
Philadelphia, the number of people present inside and outside the
inclosed grounds being estimated as high as 30,000, it being the largest
attendance known at the baseball game up to that time. Inside the
inclosure the crowd was immense, and packed so close there was no
room for the players to field. An attempt was made, however, to play
the game, but one inning was sufficient to show that it was impossible,
and after a vain attempt to clear the field both parties reluctantly
consented to a postponement.
The postponed game was played October 22d, in Philadelphia.
The price of tickets was placed at one dollar and upwards, and two
thousand people paid the "steep" price of admission, the highest ever
charged for mere admission to the grounds, while five or six thousand

more witnessed the game from the surrounding embankment. Rain and
darkness obliged the umpire to call the game at the end of the second
inning, the victory remaining with the Athletics, by the decisive totals
of 31 to 12. A dispute about the gate money prevented the playing of
the decisive game of the season.
The Unions of Morrisiana, by defeating the Atlantics in two out of
three games in the latter part of the season of 1867, became entitled to
the nominal championship, which during the next two seasons was
shifted back and forth between the leading clubs of New York and
Brooklyn. The Athletics in 1868, and the Cincinnatis in 1869, had,
however, the best records of their respective seasons, and were
generally acknowledged as the virtual champions.
The Athletics of Philadelphia in 1866 had McBride, pitcher; Dockney,
catcher; Berkenstock, Reach and Pike on the bases; Wilkins, shortstop;
and Sensenderfer, Fisler and Kleinfelder in the outfield. Their nine
presented few changes during the next two seasons, Dockney,
Berkenstock and Pike giving way to Radcliff, Cuthbert and Berry in
1867, and Schafer taking Kleinfelder's place in 1868.
The Cincinnati nine in 1869 were Brainard, pitcher; Allison, catcher;
Gould, Sweasy and Waterman on the bases; George Wright, shortstop,
and Leonard, Harry Wright and McVey in the outfield.
In 1868 the late Frank Queen, proprietor and editor of the New York
Clipper, offered a series of prizes to be contested for by the leading
clubs of the country, a gold ball being offered for the champion club,
and a gold badge