Season for the American League baseball team the Baltimore Orioles (now New York Yankees)
Major League Baseball team season
The 1902
Baltimore Orioles
season finished with the Orioles in 8th place in the
American League
(AL) with a record of 50?88. The team was managed by
John McGraw
and
Wilbert Robinson
. The team played at
Oriole Park
in
Baltimore, Maryland
.
During the season,
Andrew Freedman
, principal owner of the
National League
's (NL)
New York Giants
, with the financial backing of
John T. Brush
, principal owner of the NL's
Cincinnati Reds
, purchased the Orioles from
John Mahon
, who was deeply in debt. They raided the Orioles roster, releasing several of Baltimore's better players so that they could sign them to the Giants and Reds. AL president
Ban Johnson
seized control of the Orioles the next day and restocked their roster with players received on loan from other AL teams.
The Orioles' second season in Baltimore would ultimately prove to be their last, as after the season the team was replaced by the New York Highlanders, now known as the
New York Yankees
.
Season
[
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]
Offseason
[
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]
Players of the
American League
with league president
Ban Johnson
in the center, 1902
Knowing that placing a franchise in New York City was key to the success of the
American League
(AL),
AL president
Ban Johnson
secretly met with principal owner
John Mahon
and
player-manager
John McGraw
, who was also a part-owner, before the season about relocating to New York. However, the transfer did not occur when they could not find a suitable venue for the team.
[1]
In March,
Mike Donlin
went on a drinking binge in Baltimore, during which he was arrested for urinating in public and assaulting two chorus girls. The Orioles released Donlin when he was sentenced to six months in prison.
[2]
Notable players jumped to the Orioles from the rival
National League
(NL). In December 1901,
Joe Kelley
jumped from the Brooklyn Superbas. Later in the offseason,
Jimmy Sheckard
also jumped from Brooklyn.
[3]
Kip Selbach
and
Jim Jackson
jumped from the
New York Giants
,
Ernie Courtney
jumped from the Boston Beaneaters,
Tom Hughes
jumped from the Chicago Orphans, and
Dan McGann
jumped from the
St. Louis Cardinals
. The Orioles signed
Bill Keister
as a free agent.
[4]
With these transactions, the Orioles were seen as a contender in the AL pennant going into the 1902 season.
[1]
Regular season
[
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]
The Orioles drew over 10,000 fans on
Opening Day
.
[1]
Three players returned to the NL in April 1902.
Jack Dunn
and
Steve Brodie
jumped to the Giants in April.
[4]
Sheckard changed his mind about playing for the Orioles after four games, returning to Brooklyn.
[3]
Johnson openly feuded with McGraw. Many Orioles found themselves suspended by Johnson by midseason, including McGraw and Kelley. In early July, McGraw resigned from the team and signed with the
New York Giants
of the NL.
[5]
At this point, the Orioles had a 26?31 record. Kelley and
Wilbert Robinson
succeeded McGraw as player-managers.
[6]
Billy Gilbert
's 1902 baseball card.
The franchise began to fall into significant debt by July. Kelley, son-in-law of part-owner
John Mahon
, reported that the team owed as much as $12,000 ($422,585 in current dollar terms).
[7]
Unable to afford that debt, Mahon purchased shares of the team from Kelley and McGraw. With this, Mahon became the majority shareholder, owning 201 of the team's 400 shares.
[5]
On July 17, 1902, Mahon sold his interest in the Orioles to
Andrew Freedman
, principal owner of the Giants, and
John T. Brush
, principal owner of the
Cincinnati Reds
, also of the NL. The transaction was reported to have been in the range of $20,000 ($704,308 in current dollar terms).
[1]
That day, Freedman and Brush released Kelley,
Joe McGinnity
,
Roger Bresnahan
,
Jack Cronin
,
Cy Seymour
, and
Dan McGann
from their Oriole contracts. Brush then signed Kelley and Seymour to the Reds, while Freedman signed McGinnity, Bresnahan, Cronin, and McGann, joining McGraw, his new player-manager, on the Giants.
[8]
Though
Kip Selbach
and
Jimmy Williams
were both pressed to agree to relocate as well, they refused to leave Baltimore, saying they would honor their two-year contracts.
[9]
McGinnity allegedly attempted to contact Johnson that night, offering to stay with the Orioles if he could receive Johnson's personal assurance that he was welcome to stay. McGinnity did not hear back from Johnson, who had left his phone off the hook that night to avoid being contacted, and joined his teammates with the Giants.
[10]
On that day, the Orioles were forced to forfeit their game against the
St. Louis Browns
, as Baltimore lacked the minimum number of players required to compete.
[7]
Johnson used a league rule to join the Orioles' minority owners to seize control of the team. Now running the Orioles, Johnson sought to restock the team. He requested players from the other AL franchises to fill the Orioles' roster.
[7]
Sport McAllister
was loaned to the Orioles from the
Detroit Tigers
for three games, but the Tigers requested McAllister back, as the Orioles came to Detroit to play the Tigers.
[5]
The Orioles received
Pop Dillon
from the Tigers, but released him after using him in two games.
[11]
Snake Wiltse
was sent to the Orioles from the
Philadelphia Athletics
on July 19, but he struggled for the Orioles.
[12]
The Orioles also received
Lew Drill
on loan from the
Washington Senators
, sold
Charlie Shields
to the
St. Louis Browns
and purchased
Jack Thoney
from the
Cleveland Bronchos
.
[4]
Season results
[
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The Orioles finished the season with a 50?88 record, good for last place in the AL. For their final game at
Oriole Park
, the team drew only 138 fans. During the owners meetings in late 1902, the franchise was transferred to New York.
[1]
MLB would not return to Baltimore until the former Browns moved to Baltimore in 1954.
[13]
Season standings
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Record vs. opponents
[
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]
Sources:
[1]
[2]
[3]
[4]
[5]
[6]
[7]
[8]
|
Team
|
BLA
|
BOS
|
CWS
|
CLE
|
DET
|
PHA
|
SLB
|
WSH
|
Baltimore
|
?
|
4?16
|
8?11?1
|
9?11
|
10?10
|
6?13
|
2?18?1
|
11?9?1
|
Boston
|
16?4
|
?
|
12?8
|
6?14
|
11?7?1
|
9?11
|
15?5
|
8?11
|
Chicago
|
11?8?1
|
8?12
|
?
|
12?7
|
12?7?1
|
10?10
|
9?9?1
|
12?7?1
|
Cleveland
|
11?9
|
14?6
|
7?12
|
?
|
8?10
|
8?12
|
9?10?1
|
12?8
|
Detroit
|
10?10
|
7?11?1
|
7?12?1
|
10?8
|
?
|
4?16
|
5?15
|
9?11
|
Philadelphia
|
13?6
|
11?9
|
10?10
|
12?8
|
16?4
|
?
|
9?10?1
|
12?6
|
St. Louis
|
18?2?1
|
5?15
|
9?9?1
|
10?9?1
|
15?5
|
10?9?1
|
?
|
11?9
|
Washington
|
9?11?1
|
11?8
|
7?12?1
|
8?12
|
11?9
|
6?12
|
9?11
|
?
|
Roster
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1902 Baltimore Orioles
|
Roster
|
Pitchers
|
|
Catchers
Infielders
|
|
Outfielders
Other batters
|
|
Manager
|
Player stats
[
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]
Batting
[
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Starters by position
[
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]
Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
Other batters
[
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]
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
Pitching
[
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]
Starting pitchers
[
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]
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
Other pitchers
[
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]
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
References
[
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]
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
Baltimore Morning Herald ? Google News Archive Search
- ^
Mike Donlin
at the
SABR Baseball Biography Project
, by Michael Betzold, Retrieved November 9, 2013.
- ^
a
b
Jimmy Sheckard
at the
SABR Baseball Biography Project
, by Don Jensen, Retrieved November 9, 2013.
- ^
a
b
c
1902 Baltimore Orioles Trades and Transactions ? Baseball-Reference.com
- ^
a
b
c
Sport McAllister
at the
SABR Baseball Biography Project
, by Jimmy Keenan, Retrieved November 9, 2013.
- ^
"M'graw Has Release"
.
The Sun
. July 9, 1902.
- ^
a
b
c
Joe Kelley
at the
SABR Baseball Biography Project
, by Jimmy Keenan, Retrieved March 24, 2012.
- ^
Dewey, Donald; Acocella, Nicholas (2005).
Total Ballclubs: The Ultimate Book of Baseball Teams
. Sportclassic Books. p. 37.
ISBN
1-894963-37-7
.
- ^
"LATEST BASEBALL DEAL; Freedman Practically Buys Baltimore American League Team. PLAYERS TO JOIN NEW YORKS Ban Johnson to Organize Another Club to Take Place of McGraw's Former Combination"
(PDF)
.
The New York Times
. July 17, 1902.
- ^
The Pittsburgh Press ? Google News Archive Search
- ^
Pop Dillon
at the
SABR Baseball Biography Project
, by Brian McKenna, Retrieved November 9, 2013.
- ^
Snake Wiltse
at the
SABR Baseball Biography Project
, by Mike Piazzi, Retrieved November 9, 2013.
- ^
"50,000 To See Orioles' Home Opener Today"
.
Chicago Daily Tribune
. April 15, 1954.
External links
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American League
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National League
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