The 1902

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

season finished with the Orioles in 8th place in the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

(AL) with a record of 50–88. The team was managed by

John McGraw John Joseph McGraw (April 7, 1873 – February 25, 1934) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) player and manager who was for almost thirty years manager of the New York Giants. He was also the third baseman of the pennant-winning 1890 ...

and

Wilbert Robinson Wilbert Robinson (June 29, 1864 – August 8, 1934), nicknamed "Uncle Robbie", was an American catcher, coach and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in MLB for the Philadelphia Athletics, Baltimore Orioles, and St. Louis Cardinal ...

. The team played at

Oriole Park Oriole Park, often referred to as Terrapin Park, opened in 1914 and closed after a fire on July 3–4, 1944. "Oriole Park" was the name of multiple baseball parks in Baltimore, Maryland, all built within a few blocks of each other. Oriole Par ...

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

. During the season,

Andrew Freedman Andrew Freedman (September 1, 1860 – December 4, 1915) was an American businessman who is primarily remembered as the owner of the New York Giants professional baseball team of the National League from 1895 to 1902. He also briefly owned the ...

, principal owner of the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

's (NL)

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

, with the financial backing of

John T. Brush John Tomlinson Brush (June 15, 1845 – November 26, 1912) was an American sports executive who is primarily remembered as the principal owner of the New York Giants franchise in Major League Baseball from late in the 1902 season until his death ...

, principal owner of the NL's

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

, 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 Byron Bancroft Johnson (January 5, 1864 – March 28, 1931) was an American executive in professional baseball who served as the founder and first president of the American League (AL). Johnson developed the AL—a descendant of the mino ...

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 The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

Season

Offseason

Knowing that placing a franchise in New York City was key to the success of the

(AL), AL president

secretly met with principal owner John Mahon and

player-manager A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the sq ...

, 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. In March,

Mike Donlin Michael Joseph Donlin (May 30, 1878 – September 24, 1933) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) outfielder and actor. As a professional baseball player, his MLB career spanned from 1899 to 1914 in which he played mainly in the National L ...

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. Notable players jumped to the Orioles from the rival

(NL). In December 1901,

Joe Kelley Joseph James Kelley (December 9, 1871 – August 14, 1943) was an American left fielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) who starred in the outfield of the Baltimore Orioles teams of the 1890s. Making up the nucleus of the Orioles along with Joh ...

jumped from the Brooklyn Superbas. Later in the offseason,

Jimmy Sheckard Samuel James Tilden Sheckard (November 23, 1878 – January 15, 1947) was an American left fielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Brooklyn Bridegrooms/Superbas (1897–98, 1900–01, 1902–05), Baltimore Orioles (NL) (1899), Balt ...

also jumped from Brooklyn.

Kip Selbach Albert Karl (Kip) Selbach (March 24, 1872 – February 17, 1956) was a left fielder in Major League Baseball. From 1894 through 1906, he played for the Washington Senators (NL), Cincinnati Reds, New York Giants, Baltimore Orioles, Washington ...

and Jim Jackson jumped from the

Ernie Courtney Edward Ernest (Ernie) Courtney (January 20, 1875 – February 29, 1920) was a third baseman in Major League Baseball who played for the Boston Beaneaters (), Baltimore Orioles (), New York Highlanders (), Detroit Tigers () and Philadelphia Philli ...

jumped from the Boston Beaneaters, Tom Hughes jumped from the Chicago Orphans, and

Dan McGann Dennis Lawrence "Dan" McGann (July 15, 1871 – December 13, 1910) was an American professional baseball first baseman and second baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1896 to 1910, and won the World Series in 1905 with the New ...

jumped from the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals hav ...

. The Orioles signed

Bill Keister William Hoffman Keister (August 17, 1871 – August 19, 1924) was a professional baseball player who played infielder and outfielder in the Major Leagues from 1896 to 1903. He would play for the Baltimore Orioles (NL), Boston Beaneaters, St. Loui ...

as a free agent.1902 Baltimore Orioles Trades and Transactions – Baseball-Reference.com
/ref> With these transactions, the Orioles were seen as a contender in the AL pennant going into the 1902 season.Baltimore Morning Herald – Google News Archive Search
/ref>

Regular season

The Orioles drew over 10,000 fans on

Opening Day Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent years ...

. Three players returned to the NL in April 1902. Jack Dunn and Steve Brodie jumped to the Giants in April. Sheckard changed his mind about playing for the Orioles after four games, returning to Brooklyn. 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

of the NL. At this point, the Orioles had a 26–31 record. Kelley and

succeeded McGraw as player-managers. 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 $12,000 ($ in current dollar terms). 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. On July 17, 1902, Mahon sold his interest in the Orioles to

, principal owner of the Giants, and

, principal owner of the

, also of the NL. The transaction was reported to have been in the range of $20,000 ($ in current dollar terms). That day, Freedman and Brush released Kelley,

Joe McGinnity Joseph Jerome McGinnity (March 20, 1871 – November 14, 1929) was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the late 19th and early 20th century. McGinnity played in MLB for ten years, pitching for the National League's ...

Roger Bresnahan Roger Philip Bresnahan (June 11, 1879 – December 4, 1944), nicknamed "The Duke of Tralee", was an American player and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). As a player, Bresnahan competed in MLB for the Washington Senators (1897), Chicago ...

Jack Cronin John J. Cronin (May 26, 1874 – July 12, 1929) was a Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher. He played professionally from 1895 through 1912. His MLB career included stints with the Brooklyn Grooms (1895), Pittsburgh Pirates (1898), Cincinna ...

Cy Seymour James Bentley "Cy" Seymour (December 9, 1872 – September 20, 1919) was an American professional baseball center fielder and pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from to for the New York Giants (1896–; –), Baltimore Orioles ( ...

, and

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. Though

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. 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.The Pittsburgh Press – Google News Archive Search
/ref> On that day, the Orioles were forced to forfeit their game against the

St. Louis Browns The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they ...

, as Baltimore lacked the minimum number of players required to compete. 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.

Sport McAllister Lewis William "Sport" McAllister (July 23, 1874 – July 17, 1962) was a professional baseball player. He played seven seasons in Major League Baseball with the Cleveland Spiders (1896–1899), Detroit Tigers (1901–1903), and Baltimore ...

was loaned to the Orioles from the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

for three games, but the Tigers requested McAllister back, as the Orioles came to Detroit to play the Tigers. The Orioles received

Pop Dillon Frank Edward Dillon (October 17, 1873 – September 12, 1931), known in later years as Pop Dillon, was an American baseball player and manager. He played 22 seasons in professional baseball from 1894 to 1915, including five years in Major League ...

from the Tigers, but released him after using him in two games.

Snake Wiltse Lewis DeWitt "Snake" Wiltse (December 5, 1871 – August 25, 1928) was a pitcher in Major League Baseball. He played for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Philadelphia Athletics, Baltimore Orioles, and New York Highlanders from 1901 to 1903. His brother w ...

was sent to the Orioles from the

Philadelphia Athletics The Philadelphia Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Philadelphia from 1901 to 1954, when they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, and became the Kansas City Athletics. Following another move in 1967, the team became the Oaklan ...

on July 19, but he struggled for the Orioles. The Orioles also received

Lew Drill Lewis L. Drill (May 9, 1877 – July 4, 1969) was an American baseball player, baseball manager, and lawyer. He played professional baseball as a catcher for eight years from 1902 to 1909, including four years in Major League Baseball with the ...

on loan from the Washington Senators, sold Charlie Shields to the

and purchased

Jack Thoney John Thoney or John Thoeny 'Bullet Jack''(December 8, 1879 – October 24, 1948) was a reserve outfielder / infielder in Major League Baseball who played from 1902 through 1911 for the Cleveland Bronchos (1902–1903), Baltimore Orioles (1902), ...

from the

Cleveland Bronchos The Cleveland Guardians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since 1994, they have played in Progressive Field. The Cleveland team originated in 190 ...

Season results

The Orioles finished the season with a 50–88 record, good for last place in the AL. For their final game at

, the team drew only 138 fans. During the owners meetings in late 1902, the franchise was transferred to New York. MLB would not return to Baltimore until the former Browns moved to Baltimore in 1954.

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Roster

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

''Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in''

Other batters

''Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in''

Pitching

Starting pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Other pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

References

External links

1902 Baltimore Orioles team page at Baseball ReferenceBaltimore Orioles team page at www.baseball-almanac.com
{{1902 MLB season by team Baltimore Orioles season 1902 in sports in Maryland