The Topeka Golden Giants, also known as Goldsby's Golden Giants, was a minor league baseball team located in

Topeka, Kansas Topeka ( ; Kansa language, Kansa: ; iow, Dópikˀe, script=Latn or ) is the Capital (political), capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the County seat, seat of Shawnee County, Kansas, Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the ...

. The team, which lasted for just one season, played in the Western League. The Golden Giants posted a 90-25 record (.783) in their one season of operation, winning the Western League title by 15 games over the second-place

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincol ...

Tree-Planters. On April 10, 1887, the Golden Giants also won an exhibition game from the defending

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...

champions, 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 p ...

(the present-day Cardinals), by a score of 12-9. 1887 Topeka Golden Giants

Notable players

The Western League of that era is classified as a minor league circuit, but the Golden Giants' players had significant major league experience. The roster included the player-manager

Walt Goldsby Walton Hugh Goldsby (December 31, 1861 – January 11, 1914), also spelled Walten Hugh Goldsby, was a baseball player who played as an outfielder for parts of three seasons in top professional leagues in 1884, 1886, and 1888. He was a member of fi ...

, an outfielder who played in the majors in 1886 and returned to the majors for the 1888 season (with the

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 ...

). First baseman

Dan Stearns Daniel Eckford Stearns (October 17, 1861 – June 28, 1944), commonly known as "Ecky" Stearns, was a Major League Baseball first baseman from -. He played for the Buffalo Bisons, Detroit Wolverines, Kansas City Cowboys, Baltimore Orioles, and Cinc ...

led the league in hits, and

Jimmy Macullar James F. Macullar (January 16, 1855 – April 8, 1924), also known as "Little Mac", was an American Major League Baseball player from Boston, Massachusetts. He played mostly at shortstop, but did play many games in center fielder, center fi ...

led the league in batting average. Both Stearns and Macullar had previously played for the Baltimore Orioles through 1885, and had also teamed up on the championship 1882

Cincinnati Red Stockings The Cincinnati Red Stockings of were baseball's first all-professional team, with ten salaried players. The Cincinnati Base Ball Club formed in 1866 and fielded competitive teams in the National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP) 1867� ...

. A number of other players had major league experience including: outfielder Bug Holliday, who led the league in home runs; pitcher Tom Sullivan, who led the league in wins with 36; Jim Conway; Perry Werden; Joe Gunson; Joe "Old Hoss" Ardner; and Buster Hoover.Topeka Baseball
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References

{{Reflist

External links

*Team history a
Baseball Reference
Defunct minor league baseball teams Sports in Topeka, Kansas Defunct baseball teams in Kansas Baseball teams established in 1887 Baseball teams disestablished in 1887 1887 establishments in Kansas 1887 disestablishments in Kansas Professional baseball teams in Kansas