1926 International League season

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The 1926 International League season was the first one in eight years to feature a champion other than Baltimore. The Orioles did well still, winning 101, but Toronto won 37 of their last 43 games to surpass them. Toronto did it without one major superstar, but rather with a balanced attack, with offensive leaders including OF Herman Layne (.350, 16 3B, 32 SB, 107 R, 114 RBI), 3B Billy Mullen (.357, 95 R) and 1B Mickey Heath (.335, 94 BB, 115 RBI), while Lefty Stewart (18-9, 2.99), Jess Doyle (15-7, 3.06) and Ownie Carroll (21-8, 3.56) led the staff.

Meanwhile, Reading set the 20th Century IL mark for worst record. The team scored 529 runs, 126 fewer than any other team, and got hefty ERAs from their #2 (Jim Marquis, 5.83) and #3 Jim Beard, 7.26) hurlers. Bill Kelly set a record with 44 home runs, topping Al Wingo's four-year-old mark by 12. Kelly's record did not stand for long, typical in the 1920s and 1930s of the live ball era, as Joe Hauser would smack 60 in 1930.

Final standings - schedule

	W	L	Pct.	GB	Manager	Affiliation
Toronto Maple Leafs	109	57	.657	--	Dan Howley
Baltimore Orioles	101	65	.608	8	Jack Dunn
Newark Bears	99	65	.600	9.5	Fred Burchell
Buffalo Bisons	92	72	.561	16	Bill Clymer
Rochester Tribe	81	83	.494	27	George Stallings
Jersey City Skeeters	72	92	.439	36	Patsy Donovan
Syracuse Stars	70	91	.435	36.5	Burt Shotton
Reading Keystones	31	129	.194	75	Shag Shaughnessy/Byrd Lynn/Hooks Wiltse

League Leaders

Batting

• Batting Average Jimmy Walsh, Buffalo, .388
• Runs Scored Fresco Thompson, Buffalo, 150
• Hits Thompson, 217
• Doubles George Burns, Newark, 49
• Triples Herman Layne, Toronto & Blackie Carter, Newark, 16
• Home Runs Bill Kelly, Buffalo, 44
• Runs Batted In Kelly, 151
• Stolen Bases Burns, 38

Pitching

• Wins Jack Ogden, Baltimore, 24
• Earned Run Average Al Mamaux, Newark, 2.22
• Complete Games Charles Swaney, Reading, 28
• Shutouts Lefty Stewart, Toronto, 6
• Strikeouts Roy Chesterfield, Newark, 141

References

• The International League: Year-by-Year Statistics Marshall Wright. McFarland, 1998