August 21, 1883: Baseball's Biggest Blowout

Charles "Old Hoss" Radbourn

August 21, 1883: The biggest blowout in the history of what would be called Major League Baseball occurs.

The Providence Grays had won the National League Pennant in 1879, and were still considered a good team in 1883, led by a pitcher named Charles Radbourn, a.k.a. "Old Hoss." I'll get to what he did in 1884 later.

The Philadelphia Quakers were founded in 1883, replacing the defunct Worcester Ruby Legs of Massachusetts. They weren't very good. This set up the blowout in question: Grays 28, Quakers 0, at the Messer Street Grounds in Providence, Rhode Island.

Unfortunately, this game is so far back, Baseball-Reference.com doesn't have a box score, or even a linescore, to tell us how many runs were scored in which innings. But some things are known. Radbourn was the winning pitcher. The losing pitcher was Art Hagan, started by Philadelphia player-manager Bob Ferguson -- whose outfield skill had once gotten him the nickname "Death to Flying Things" -- because he was a Rhode Island native, and the hope was that a big crowd would show up for him. That plan worked. But he gave up all 28 runs, and it was hardly his fault, as, depending on which newspaper's record you believe, the Quakers made between 20 and 27 errors. It should be noted that, in 1883, walks, passed balls, and wild pitches were recorded as defensive errors.

Hagan was soon dispatched to the Buffalo Bisons, and he made his last major league appearance with them the following season. His career record was 2-18.

In 1884, the Grays won the NL Pennant, with Radbourn winning more games in a single season than any pitcher ever had. The exact number is disputed, because of the way the rule of when to credit a pitcher with a win. So some sources say Radbourn won 59 games that season, and some say 60.

But that led to the Grays wanting bigger salaries, and the owner, C.T. Gardner, couldn't really afford it. After the 1885 season, Gardner sold all the Grays' players, including Old Hoss, to the nearby Boston Beaneaters, ironically the Grays biggest rivals.

In 1890, the Quakers changed their name to the Phillies. So, unlike the Grays, the Quakers still exist. Although, given what the Phillies have done to their fans at certain times over the next 132 years, there have been times when the people of the Delaware Valley wished they didn't.

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August 21, 1883 was a Tuesday. These other National League games were played that day:

* The New York Gothams lost to the Boston Beaneaters, 15-8 at the South End Grounds in Boston. The Gothams became the Giants in 1886, and the Beaneaters became the Braves in 1912.

* The Buffalo Bisons beat the Detroit Wolverines, 6-4 at Riverside Park in Buffalo. The Bisons also went out of business after the 1885 season, although the name would be adopted by one of the more successful minor-league teams. The Wolverines won the Pennant in 1887, but followed the same pattern as the 1884-85 Providence Grays: The Pennant led to big salary demands, which led to the team owner losing money, and they were defunct after the 1888 season.

* The Cleveland Blues beat the Chicago White Stockings, 6-5 at Kennard Street Park in Cleveland. The Blues went out of business after the 1884 season. The White Stockings became the Cubs in 1903.

In the American Association:

* The New York Metropolitans beat the Columbus Buckeyes, 4-2 at the original Polo Grounds in Manhattan. Yes, the Metropolitans were called the Mets for short, and this was given as one of the reasons why the expansion team of 1962 was named the Mets. But those original Mets went out of business after the 1887 season. The Buckeyes went out of business after the 1884 season.

* The Philadelphia Athletics beat the Cincinnati Red Stockings, 11-9 at the Jefferson Street Grounds in Philadelphia. This version of the A's went out of business after the 1890 season, due to the "Players' League War," and bears no connection to the team that began with the American League in 1901, and has been playing in Oakland since 1968. The Red Stockings became the Reds in 1890, and joined the NL in 1892.

* The St. Louis Browns beat the Baltimore Orioles, 1-0 at the original Oriole Park in Baltimore. These Orioles joined the NL in 1892; won the Pennant in 1894, 1895 and 1896; and then had their players sold off by their owners, and were contracted out of existence after the 1899 season. The Browns also joined the NL in 1892, and became the Cardinals in 1900. There would be a new St. Louis Browns in the AL in 1902, but in 1954, they moved to become... the Baltimore Orioles.

* And the Louisville Eclipse and the Pittsburgh Alleghenys were not scheduled to play. The Eclipse became the Louisville Colonels in 1885. The Alleghenys became the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1891. Both teams joined the NL in 1892. After the 1899 season, the Eclipse were contracted out of the NL, and Pirates owner Barney Dreyfuss bought the Colonels' assets, including manager-right fielder Fred Clarke and shortstop Honus Wagner, both Hall-of-Famers.