1880 Boston Red Caps

1880 Boston Red Caps / Franchise: Atlanta Braves / BR Team Page

Record: 40-44-2 ; Finished 6th in National League (1880 NL)

• Manager: Harry Wright

• Ballpark: South End Grounds

History, Comments, Contributions

After a very successful decade on the field in the 1870s, the 1880 Boston Red Caps, in the franchise's tenth season, finished with an unexpected losing record. They were also known as the Red Stockings or the Bostons, not having an official name.

The 1879 season saw more financial difficulties for the Red Stockings, who lost $3,346.90 and were down to just under $20,000, but they were not alone. The Cincinnati Red Stockings and Syracuse Stars were two of the National League teams who lost the most money and because of this were forced to drop out of the league. A large part of the league’s problems was because the nation was in a mini-depression or "financial panic". A major decision to come out of the league’s winter meeting was in the introduction of the Reserve Clause. Originally, the Reserve Clause was designed so that teams could designate five players who would be prevented from signing with another team when their contracts expired. This would help struggling teams from losing their star players to the highest-bidding teams. It has been said that Red Stockings' owner, Arthur Soden was the author of the Reserve Clause, though it was a collaborative effort by team owners; however, the critics of the Reserve Clause would not see it that way.

Writer Harold Kaese, in his history of the Boston Braves, wrote that "The reserve rule should be known as Soden's Stabilizer, for that is what it proved to be for organized professional baseball." Never mind the fact that it was not until 1893 that the league’s membership would finally stabilize. In addition, within a decade of the rule's introduction, two rival leagues that would spring up in protest of the Reserve Clause.

During the off-season, manager Harry Wright re-tooled the team's lineup, signing players to replace those that left the team: Catcher Pop Snyder decided not to play with the club for the upcoming season and to replace him, Phil Powers, who had last played in 1878 with the Chicago White Stockings, was signed; Powers had spent the previous season umpiring baseball games. First baseman Ed Cogswell left for the Troy Trojans and was replaced by team captain John Morrill. Jim O'Rourke returned to the club. It should be noted that while George Wright who was still signed to the Providence Grays club, he managed to play in one game for Boston on May 29th before Providence protested. John Richmond was signed from Syracuse to play shortstop.

For the fifth straight season, the Red Stockings opened the season on the road against the Providence Grays. This was the second time in three seasons that the two clubs played each other in a season-opening series. Boston was “Chicago-ed” 8-0. The club rebounded by winning their first home game against Providence, 4-3, on May 4th. Providence won the opening series, two games to ne and defeated Boston in both games by a combined score of 9-0. By the end of the month, the club was 6-9-1 and 8 games back of first place when its other big rival, the Chicago White Stockings, came to town. This year, Boston won the first series match-up by taking two out of three games. The Reds spent the early part of the season a couple of games below .500. They did not get back to .500 until June 28th, but could not get over the hump of moving above .500. Moreover, they only spent five days in fourth before dropping down to fifth place. The Reds then spent the second half of the season in either fifth or sixth place with at merely days in late July in fourth. The team finished the season with an overall record of 40-44-2. The club's home record was 25-17-1 and, 15-27-1 on the road. It was the first time in club history or in Harry Wright’s managerial history that a Wright-managed club did not win at least half of its games. The team only posted winning records against the Buffalo Bisons (9-3-1), Cincinnati (7-5) and Troy (7-5). Part of Boston's problems was due to the holes in the infield and not having good pitching. Pitcher Tommy Bond's career was nearly through while Curry Foley was only in his second year.

Jim O’Rourke led the team in runs (71), hits (100), triples (11), home runs (6) RBIs (45), and walks (21); his older brother John O'Rourke led the club in doubles (22), and Charley Jones led in batting average (.300)

At a meeting on October 4, 1880, held at the Osburn House in Rochester, New York, the owners debated whether to retain the five-man reserve rule. After a first vote, three clubs, the Red Stockings, the Buffalo Bisons and the Cincinnati Red Stockings, were opposed to renewing it. After much discussion, Boston and Cincinnati came around to supporting its renewal, with Buffalo as the lone holdout. On December 15th, the annual stockholders meeting of the Boston Baseball Association was held. It was announced that the club had lost $3,315.90 the previous year. The stockholders then held elections for club officers and board directors. Owner James Billings was elected to the board, while director Allan Chase was elected treasurer replacing Frederick Long. From this point forward Billings would move from being a passive owner to an active owner. Along with Team President Arthur Soden, Billings would increase his shares in the organization. The third member of the triumvir, William Conant, was still not an active participant, but would become one at the end of the season.

Further Reading

• Charles Bevis: James Billings
• Edmund P. Edmonds: Arthur Soden's Legacy: The Origins and Early History of Baseball's Reserve System, 5 Alb. Gov't L. Rev. 38 (2012) Reserve System
• Harold Kaese: Boston Braves: 1871-1953, Northeastern University Press, Boston, MA 2004. ISBN 978-1555536176. Originally published in 1948.
• Bob Le Moine: “Boston Braves team ownership history” Boston Owners
• Dennis Pajot: “1879 Winter Meetings: 50-Cent Admission Price Main Issue of Sessions”
• Dennis Pajot: “1880 Winter Meetings: The Most Harmonious of all the League Meetings”, SABR 1880