Orioles

Grays

Red Stockings

Blues

Colonels

Metropolitans

Athletics

Browns

Locations of teams for the 1887American Association season
American Association

Beaneaters

White Stockings

Wolverines

Hoosiers

Giants

Quakers

Alleghenys

Nationals

Locations of teams for the 1887National League season
National League

The1887 major league baseball season began on April 16, 1887. The regular season ended on October 10, with theDetroit Wolverines and theSt. Louis Browns as regular season champions of theNational League andAmerican Association, respectively. The postseason began with Game 1 of thefourth World's Championship Series on October 10 and ended with Game 15 on October 26, in what was abest-of-fifteen-playoff, played across 10 cities.^[1] The Wolverines defeated the Browns, ten games to five (and clinching on Game 11), capturing their first World's Championship Series.

TheLouisville Colonels set a Major League record which still stands for the mostbase on balls for a team in a game, with 19 against theCleveland Blues on 21 September.^[2]

Over the offseason, the National League'sKansas City Cowboys folded, and saw them replaced by the American Association'sPittsburgh Alleghenys. In place of the Alleghenys leaving the AA for the NL, theCleveland Blues were enfranchised. Meanwhile, theSt. Louis Maroons relocated toIndianapolis, Indiana as theIndianapolis Hoosiers.

The 1887 schedule consisted of 140 games for all American Association teams and 126 games for all National League, each of which had eight teams. Each AA team was scheduled to play 20 games against the other seven teams, while each NL team was scheduled to play 18 games against the other seven teams. Both the AA's 140-game format and NL's 126-game format were continued from their implementation theprevious season. The NL would adopt the AA's format thefollowing season, and each league would use this 140-game format until1892.

American Association Opening Day took place on April 16 featuring all eight teams, while National League Opening Day took place on April 27, featuring four teams. The American Association would see its final day of the regular season on October 10 with four teams, while the National League would see its final day of the season on October 8, featuring all eight teams.^[3] The1887 World's Championship Series took place between October 10 and October 26.

The 1887 season saw many radical changes which affected the game, as well as unity on rules by the American Association and National League.^[4] The following rule changes were made:

• The pitcher's box was reduced to 4 feet by5+1⁄2 feet.^[5]
• The ability for batters to call for high and low pitches was abolished. In lieu of this, the strike zone was doubled in size, and established to be between the shoulders and knees.^[5][4]
• The choice of who hits and pitches in each half of the inning is given to home team captain.^[5]
• Five balls became abase on balls, down from six in the AA and seven in the NL.^[5][6]
• Four "calledstrikes" were adopted for this season only, up from three.^[5][6]
• Bases on balls were recorded ashits for this season only (a change which would dramatically increase players' batting averages). The batting average as calculated in 1887 is very similar to the modernon-base percentage (OBP) (the difference being that OBP uses totalplate appearances as the denominator, which includeshit by pitches andsacrifice flies, the latter of which was not recorded and was implemented in1894).^[5][6]
• In the National League the batter was awarded first base when hit by a pitch.^[5] The change was already implemented by the American Association in 1884.^[6]
• Home plate was to be made of rubber only - dropping the marble type and was to be 12 inches square.^[5]
• The pitcher must now keep his back foot on the rear line of the pitcher's box (55+1⁄2 feet from middle of home plate).^[5]
• Coaches were recognized by the rules for the first time ever.^[5]
• First andthird base were repositioned to be entirely in fair territory.^[4]
• The reserve role was expanded so clubs controlled all 14 players on the roster (expanded from 12).^[7]

Blue laws restricted Sunday activities in several localities, causing several teams of the American Association (which was informally referred to as the "Beer & Whiskey League" due to its openness onalcohol, compared to the National League) to play at ballparks in a different locality.

*Denotes walk-off
†Denotes eighth win by Detroit, clinching series

In 1887,bases on balls (walks) were counted as hits by the major leagues in existence at the time. This inflated batting averages, with 11 players batting .400 or better, and the experiment was abandoned the following season. Historical statistics for the season were later revised, such that "Bases on balls shall always be treated as neither a time at bat nor a hit for the batter."^[12] This results in ambiguity for some players' season and career hits totals, notably withCap Anson.^[13] Anson was credited with a .421 average and theNational League batting title in 1887; however, the recalculation of averages with walks excluded lowered his average to .347 and retroactively gave the batting title toSam Thompson.^[13] The 1887 batting average and hits are included below, using contemporary data onBaseball Reference.^[14][15]

• 1887 Major League Baseball season schedule at Baseball Reference

• 1887 Major League Baseball season
• Major League Baseball seasons

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