1871 Rockford Forest Citys

1871 Rockford Forest Citys / Franchise: Rockford Forest Citys / BR Team Page

Record: 4-21, Finished 9th in National Association (1871 NA)

Managed by Scott Hastings

Ballpark: Agricultural Society Fair Grounds

History, Comments, Contributions

Rockford was not the worst team in the National Association. How, then, did they end up with only four wins? The answer is that they had to forfeit half of their wins due to the "60 day rule." The rule, set up with honorable intentions, was to prevent teams from stealing other teams players in the middle of the season. (That behavior was, of course, condoned in the fall.) The rule stated that a player could not play for two different teams in the same 60 day period. Therefore, if you wanted to sign another team's players, you'd have to sit him for two months before he could take the field. Rockford's catcher and manager, Scott Hastings, had played in the spring for a team in Louisiana, and left that team to join the new major league for Rockford. When the season ended, a protest was brought to the league, and all games (including four wins, two of which were against the Red Stockings) in the 60 day window that Scott Hastings played in were forfeited.