1887 Detroit Wolverines season

Offseason

On March 13, after training in Macon, Georgia‚ the Wolverines began a six-week exhibition tour through the South and Midwest.

Catchers: Charlie Ganzel and Charlie Bennett

Catching duties were divided between Charlie Ganzel (51 games at catcher) and Charlie Bennett (45 games at catcher). Both were good defensive catchers, though neither hit particularly well. Bennett had a better fielding percentage than Ganzel (.951 to .913), but Ganzel was stronger in range factor (6.78 to 5.64) and fielding runs (9 to 2). Bennett's career in baseball ended when he lost both his legs in a train accident. When the Detroit Tigers opened their new ballpark in 1896, they named it Bennett Park in his honor. It remained Bennett Park until 1912, when the newly built stadium on the same site was named Navin Field.

Infield: Brouthers, Dunlap, Rowe, Twitchell and White

First baseman Dan Brouthers was the first of four future Hall of Famers to play for the 1887 Wolverines. Brouthers won five batting titles and seven slugging titles, and his career batting average of .342 is the 9th highest in major league history. Brouthers was a key to the Wolverines offensive output in 1887 as he led the National League in runs (153), doubles (36), extra base hits (68), on-base percentage (.426), times on base (246), and OPS (.988). He was also among the league leaders with a .338 batting average (3rd in the NL), .562 slugging percentage (2nd in the NL), 20 triples, 12 home runs (5th in the NL), 101 RBIs (4th in the NL), 71 walks (4th in the NL), and an at-bat-to-strikeout ratio of 55.6 (2nd in NL).

The second baseman duties were split between Fred Dunlap and Hardy Richardson. Dunlap played 65 games at second base but missed two months due to an injury. As a result, Richardson played 64 games at second base in addition to 58 games as the left fielder. Richardson was a big contributor to the 1887 Wolverines, as he hit for a .327 average with 51 extra base hits, 131 runs scored, 178 hits and 94 RBIs. Richardson was also a good fielder both at second base and in left field.

Jack Rowe played 124 games at shortstop for the 1887 Wolverines. Rowe was part of “The Big Four” (along with Dan Brouthers, Deacon White, and Hardy Richardson) that Detroit owner Fred Stearns purchased from the Buffalo Bisons for $7,000 before the 1886 season. The purchase of four of the best players in baseball all at one time drew wide attention. Rowe had a big year for the Wolverines, with a .318 batting average, 135 runs scored (2nd in the NL), 171 hits (4th in the NL), 96 RBIs (6th in the NL), 30 extra base hits (7th in the NL), and 239 total bases (9th in the NL). Rowe hit for the cycle for the Wolverines on August 21, 1886. Rowe later suffered a nervous breakdown and died at age 54.

Third baseman Deacon White was also part of "The Big Four" acquired from Buffalo before the 1886 season, and is the second of four future Hall-of-Famers on the team. White won two batting crowns earlier in his career but was 39 years old in 1887. He still hit for a .303 batting average and had 11 triples, 75 RBIs and 20 stolen bases. White was a nonsmoking, Bible-toting, church-going deacon. According to Lee Allen in The National League Story (1961), White was one of the last people to believe that the earth is flat.

Outfield: Thompson, Hanlon, Richardson and Twitchell

Right fielder Sam Thompson, known as “Big Sam,” was the third future Hall of Famer on the 1887 Detroit team. Thompson was in his prime in 1887 and had a tremendous year. He was the National League batting champion with a .372 average, and he also led the league in slugging percentage (.571), hits (203), total bases (311), triples (23), RBIs (166), and runs created (127). His 1887 total of 166 RBIs stood as a major league record for 40 years until Lou Gehrig broke it in 1927. He was No. 2 on the all-time home run list at the time of his retirement.

Center fielder Ned Hanlon was the fourth future Hall of Famer on the 1887 Detroit team. Though inducted into the Hall of Fame based on his later performance as a manager, Hanlon was a good fielding center fielder who had tremendous speed and range. In 1887, he stole 69 bases for the Wolverines. He also hit .291 with seven stolen bases and 4 RBIs in the 1887 World Series.

The left fielder duties were split between second baseman/outfielder Hardy Richardson, and pitcher/outfielder Larry Twitchell. In addition to pitching 15 games for the Wolverines, Twitchell played 44 games in left field and 9 games in center field. Twitchell had a .333 batting average and collected 51 RBIs in just 264 at bats. In his 15 games as a pitcher, Twitchell had a record of 11–1.

Pitching: Getzien, Baldwin, Weidman, Conway and Twitchell

The Wolverines’ #1 pitcher in 1887 was Charlie Getzien. Getzien had a record of 29–13 for the 1887 team. Getzien started 42 games, pitched 41 complete games, and had an ERA of 3.73. He was among the league leaders in wins, win percentage (.690), inning pitched (366.2), and strikeouts (135). He was also first in the league with 24 home runs allowed. In the 1887 World Series, Getzien had a record of 4–2 with a 2.48 ERA.

Detroit’s #2 starter was Charles B. "Lady" Baldwin. Baldwin played four seasons with the Wolverines. In 1886, Baldwin had a record of 42–13 (the most wins ever by a Detroit pitcher) with a 2.24 ERA in 487 innings pitched, striking out 323 of 1936 batters faced. Baldwin also completed 55 of 56 games, seven of which were shutouts. In 1887, Baldwin’s appearances were reduced from 56 games to 24, and from 487 innings to 211. He won only 13 games in the regular season for the 1887 Wolverines, but in World Series play, Baldwin pitched 5 complete games for a 4–1 record and a 1.50 ERA.

The Wolverines’ #3 pitcher was George Edward “Stump” Wiedman. Wiedman led the National League with a 1.80 ERA for Detroit in 1881. In 1887, Wiedman returned to the Wolverines, where he went 13–7. By late July, Wiedman fell out of favor with manager William Watkins who considered Wiedman to be a malcontent. The Wolverines sold Wiedman to the New York Metropolitans on August 5, 1887.

The Wolverines #4 pitcher was Pete Conway. Despite his 8–9 record in 1887, Conway had the lowest ERA (2.90) among the Detroit starters.

Season summary

The 1887 Wolverines finished the season with a record of 79–45. They outscored their opponents by more than 250 runs—969 to 714. They also led the National League in team batting average, runs scored and slugging. Wolverines batters dominated the National League leader board:

Season highlights

Batting

Starters by position

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

Other batters

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

Note: pitchers' batting statistics not included

Pitching

Starting pitchers

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

Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

World Series summary

The Detroit Wolverines defeated the St. Louis Browns in the 1887 World Series, 10 games to 5.

After the Wolverines won the National League pennant, owner Fred Stearns challenged the American Association champion St. Louis Browns. The Wolverines and the Browns would play "a series of contests for supremacy" of the baseball world. This early "world series" consisted of fifteen games – played in Pittsburgh, Brooklyn, New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Washington, Baltimore and Chicago, as well as Detroit and St. Louis. The Wolverines claimed their eighth victory – and thus the championship – in the eleventh game.

Batting

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

Pitching

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

League leaders

Players ranking among top 100 of all time at position

The following members of the 1887 Detroit Wolverines are among the Top 100 of all time at their positions, as ranked by The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract in 2001: