Rod Caborn has finished his 1883 NL replay!

Rod Caborn sends us a big update on his fascinating 1883 NL replay.  He’s finished it! 

Here’s his great recap which includes standings and leaderboards: 

Boston Beaneaters win 1883 National League replay

                          Win final six games of season edge Providence Grays

           Boston  pitcher-OF Jim Whitney named MVP;

 Grays’ Hoss Radbourn honored as Pitcher of the Year

The Boston Beaneaters eked out the 1883 National League pennant over the determined Providence Grays and the surging Buffalo Bisons.  This was my 16^th season replay and took me approximately six months (392 games) to play.

After being tied with Buffalo with six games to go, the the Beaneaters won their last six games of the season to win by two games over Providence, who lost a pair to Buffalo before winning their final four contests. The two losses to the Bisons turned out to be the difference in the pennant race.

Providence and Boston were tied for the lead at the end of August and dueled down to the final two series of the season. Buffalo, given up for dead by the end of August, went 15-3 in September, lifting themselves into third place by season’s end.

1883 National League Replay

Final Standings

Beaneaters P-OF Jim Whitney was selected as MVP in the replay, a reflection of his versatility as a pitcher and batter.  Offensively, playing RF and CF when not pitching, Whitney hit .356, third in the league.  His 132 base hits ranked fourth overall among batters. On the mound, Whitney led the league with a 1.88 ERA and 10 shutouts. Whitney’s 38 wins ranked him third in the NL, behind Radbourn and durable Bisons righthander Pud Galvin (45-29). Whitney struck out 254 batters, also third in the NL.

The Pitcher of the Year  was Providence’s Hoss Radbourn (no Cy Young award…Cy Young would not appear in the major leagues until 1890.) The strong-armed Grays righthander was second in ERA (1.89) to Boston’s Whitney and his 46-24

record led the league in wins and winning percentage. Radbourn threw eight shutouts and struck out 271 batters, second to Galvin. Radbourn’s pitching down the stretch in August and September kept Providence in the race until the Grays’final two series of the season.

Some of the offensive standouts in the replay included:

Cleveland 2b Fred Dunlap, who led the NL in batting (.373) , OBP (.435) and 42 BB (22 of them intentional, when opposing teams began pitching around him, which led to Cleveland’s fall in the standings).

Buffalo 1b Dan Brouthers, who led the league in RBIs with 69, and was runner up in batting (.359) and OBP (.390), led the league in base hits at 149, and hit six home runs, fourth in the league. Brouthers led the NL in runs scored with 73.

Chicago 3b Ned Williamson, who hit an astounding 54 doubles in 98 games, and drove in 63 runs.

New York C Buck Ewing, whose 11 HR led the National League. Ewing hit .355, was fourth in OBP at .386, and drove in 51 runs.

New York 1b Roger Connor, who hit .355, had .386 OBP, ranked second in base hits with 143 hits, and hit 15 triples, third in the league.

Other pitchers who shone in the replay included:

Steel-armed Buffalo righty Pud Galvin (45-29, 2.57), who led the league with an astounding 668 innings. Galvin led the NL with 314 strikeouts, threw seven shutouts, games appeared and started (75 each),  and complete games (62). Galvin’s pitching was a key reason Buffalo was able to remain in the race throughout the season.

Cleveland’s Hugh Daily (28-16, 2.21), who fanned 156 batters and was the ace of Cleveland’s staff, particularly in the early going, when Cleveland led the league a considerable part of the summer.

Boston’s Charlie Buffinton (24-17, 2.40), the other half of Boston’s mound duo, with Whitney. Buffinton won three of Boston’s final six games, helping to keep the Beanies ahead of the Providence Grays.

1883 National League replay

Batting Leaders

Congrats, Rod!  Thanks for the detailed summary!!