The Eastern Championship Association was an independent
minor baseball league that played in the 1881 season, as an early minor league. The league franchises were based in
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
,
Pennsylvania and
Washington D.C. Teams were permitted to play non-league games. The
New York Metropolitans won the league championship.
History
The Eastern Championship Association was founded on April 11, 1881 at a meeting in New York City. Present at the meeting were William W. White of the Nationals of Washington, Louis H. Mahn of the “new Boston nine,”
William Barnie of the Atlantics of Brooklyn,
John Kelly John or Jack Kelly may refer to:
People Academics and scientists
* John Kelly (engineer), Irish professor, former Registrar of University College Dublin
*John Kelly (scholar) (1750–1809), at Douglas, Isle of Man
*John Forrest Kelly (1859–1922) ...
of the New York team, and
James Mutrie of the Metropolitans of New York. The Athletic club of Philadelphia sent a message endorsing the Association and pledging to join the league.
The league set the following parameters at the inaugural meeting: The league schedule would run from April 20 through October 1. Applications for membership would be accepted until May 15, 1881. Association teams would play 12 total games against each other, six at each home ballpark. If a franchise left the league before the season concluded, none of the games it played against other Association members would count in determining the champion. So long as doing so did not prevent them from fulfilling their 12—game obligation to the league, member teams could also play games against
National League opponents, college teams, independent clubs or "commercial nines." The "Mahn dead ball" was adopted for use in all games between Association teams.
The league members were the
Brooklyn Atlantics,
New York Metropolitans,
New York New Yorks,
New York Quicksteps,
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 ...
and
Washington Nationals / Albany.
During the season, the league teams fluctuated. The Washington Nationals folded and were replaced by the Albany team.
A second 1881 Philadelphia team, called the "Phillies" played briefly in the Eastern Championship Association before relocating. The Phillies began the season with a 1–1 Eastern Championship Association record before moving to
Baltimore, Maryland
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was ...
.
Baseball Hall of Fame
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball-r ...
member
Dan Brouthers played for both the Brooklyn Atlantics and New York New Yorks in 1881.
The Eastern Championship Association played one season. After the 1881 season, the New York Metropolitans and Philadelphia Athletics sought major league status. In November 1881, the
American Association (1882–1891) was formed.
Cities represented
*
Albany, New York: Albany (1881)
*
Brooklyn, New York:
Brooklyn Atlantics (1881)
*
New York City, New York:
New York Metropolitans,
New York New Yorks,
New York Quicksteps (1881)
*
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania:
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 ...
,
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...
(1881)
*
Washington D.C.:
Washington Nationals (1881)
Yearly standings
1881 Eastern Championship Association
References
{{reflist
External links
Baseball Reference
Defunct minor baseball leagues in the United States
Baseball leagues in New York (state)
Baseball leagues in Pennsylvania
Sports leagues established in 1881
Sports leagues disestablished in 1881