| 1882 MLB season | |
|---|---|
| League | American Association (AA) National League (NL) |
| Sport | Baseball |
| Duration | May 2 – October 1, 1882 (AA) May 1 – October 2, 1882 (NL) |
| Games | 80 (AA) 84 (NL) |
| Teams | 14 (6 in AA, 8 in NL) |
| Pennant winner | |
| AA champions | Cincinnati Red Stockings |
| AA runners-up | Philadelphia Athletics |
| NL champions | Chicago White Stockings |
| NL runners-up | Providence Grays |
| MLB seasons | |
The1882 major league baseball season was contested from May 1 through October 2, 1882. It was the inaugural season for theAmerican Association (AA) and seventh season for theNational League (NL). TheCincinnati Red Stockings won theAA pennant, while theChicago White Stockings won theNL pennant. There was no postseason.
TheAmerican Association was established as a six-team league in cities not represented by theNational League. The AA was established with the expectation that it would have more of a "liberal policy" and better labor relations, threatening the puritanical NL, which itself had formal behavior codes with associated policies and procedures and a blacklist for players who did not comply to said rules. The AA also refused to recognize the NL'sreserve lists.
Three of the six teams of the American Association survive to this day as National League teams; the Cincinnati Red Stockings, Pittsburgh Alleghenys, and St. Louis Brown Stockings are today'sCincinnati Reds,Pittsburgh Pirates, andSt. Louis Cardinals.
The 1882 season was the last for theTroy Trojans andWorcester Worcesters.
The 1882 schedule consisted of 80 games for all teams in the six-team American Association, and 84 games for all teams in the eight-team National League. Each American Association team was scheduled to play 16 games against the other five teams, while each National League was scheduled to play 12 games against the other seven teams. The 80-game format was unique to the American Association's 1882 season. Meanwhile, the National League had been playing their 84-game schedule, since1879, though 1882 would be their last. Thefollowing season would see both leagues take on a 98-game format, playing 14 games each against their seven opponents.
National League Opening Day took place on May 1 featuring all eight teams, while American Association Opening Day took place on May 2, featuring all six teams. The National League would see its final day of the regular season on October 2 featuring a game between theBoston Red Caps andProvidence Grays, while the American Association would see its final day of the regular season on October 1, featuring a game between theLouisville Eclipse andSt. Louis Brown Stockings.
The 1882 season saw the following rule changes:
An asterisk (*) denotes the ballpark a team played the minority of their home games at
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati Red Stockings | 55 | 25 | .688 | — | 31–11 | 24–14 |
| Philadelphia Athletics | 41 | 34 | .547 | 11½ | 21–18 | 20–16 |
| Louisville Eclipse | 42 | 38 | .525 | 13 | 26–13 | 16–25 |
| Pittsburgh Alleghenys | 39 | 39 | .500 | 15 | 17–20 | 22–19 |
| St. Louis Brown Stockings | 37 | 43 | .463 | 18 | 24–20 | 13–23 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 19 | 54 | .260 | 32½ | 7–25 | 12–29 |
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago White Stockings | 55 | 29 | .655 | — | 35–10 | 20–19 |
| Providence Grays | 52 | 32 | .619 | 3 | 30–12 | 22–20 |
| Boston Red Caps | 45 | 39 | .536 | 10 | 27–15 | 18–24 |
| Buffalo Bisons | 45 | 39 | .536 | 10 | 26–13 | 19–26 |
| Cleveland Blues | 42 | 40 | .512 | 12 | 21–19 | 21–21 |
| Detroit Wolverines | 42 | 41 | .506 | 12½ | 24–18 | 18–23 |
| Troy Trojans | 35 | 48 | .422 | 19½ | 22–20 | 13–28 |
| Worcester Worcesters | 18 | 66 | .214 | 37 | 12–30 | 6–36 |
| Team | Former Manager | New Manager |
|---|---|---|
| Boston Red Caps | Harry Wright | John Morrill |
| Cleveland Blues | John Clapp | Jim McCormick |
| Providence Grays | Tom York | Harry Wright |
| Worcester Worcesters | Harry Stovey | Freeman Brown |
| Team | Former Manager | New Manager |
|---|---|---|
| Cleveland Blues | Jim McCormick | Fred Dunlap |
| Worcester Worcesters | Freeman Brown | Tommy Bond |
| Tommy Bond | Jack Chapman |
Any team shown insmall text indicates a previous team a player was on during the season.
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| AVG | Pete Browning (LOU) | .378 |
| OPS | Pete Browning (LOU) | .940 |
| HR | Oscar Walker (STL) | 7 |
| RBI | Hick Carpenter (CIN) | 67 |
| R | Ed Smartwood (PIT) | 87 |
| H | Hick Carpenter (CIN) | 120 |
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| W | Will White (CIN) | 40 |
| L | Doc Landis (BAL/PHA) | 29 |
| ERA | Denny Driscoll (PIT) | 1.21 |
| K | Tony Mullane (LOU) | 170 |
| IP | Will White (CIN) | 480.0 |
| SV | Eddie Fusselback (STL) | 1 |
| WHIP | Guy Hecker (LOU) | 0.769 |
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| AVG | Dan Brouthers (BUF) | .368 |
| OPS | Dan Brouthers (BUF) | .950 |
| HR | George Wood (DET) | 7 |
| RBI | Cap Anson (CHI) | 83 |
| R | George Gore (CHI) | 99 |
| H | Dan Brouthers (BUF) | 129 |
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| W | Jim McCormick (CLE) | 36 |
| L | Lee Richmond (WOR) | 33 |
| ERA | Larry Corcoran (CHI) | 1.95 |
| K | Charles Radbourn (PRO) | 201 |
| IP | Jim McCormick (CLE) | 595.2 |
| SV | John Ward (PRO) | 1 |
| WHIP | Larry Corcoran (CHI) | 0.967 |
