The 1890 major league baseball season began on April 17, 1890. The

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

and newly-founded

Players' League The Players' National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs, popularly known as the Players' League (PL), was a short-lived but star-studded American professional baseball league of the 19th century. The PL was formed by the Brotherhood of Pr ...

regular seasons ended on October 4, with the

Boston Beaneaters Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and financial center of New England, a region of the Northeastern United States. It has an area of and a ...

and Boston Reds as the NL and PL pennant winners, respectively. The American Association regular season ended on October 15 and saw the

Louisville Colonels The Louisville Colonels were a Major League Baseball team that played in the American Association (AA) throughout that league's ten-year existence from 1882 until 1891. They were known as the Louisville Eclipse from 1882 to 1884, and as th ...

the winners of the AA pennant. The postseason between the AA and NL began with Game 1 of the seventh World's Championship Series on October 17 and ended with Game 7 on October 28. The series ended in a tie, with the Bridegrooms and Colonels each with three wins, and a tie game. The series was unique in that the Bridegrooms reached the series back-to-back, but with each season in a different league, a feat that has not been matched since. The Reds had floated a three-way Championship series with them and the AA & NL pennant winners, though the idea fell on deaf ears. This was the final season of a dual-league championship until the founding of the modern

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...

in between the National League and

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...

. The major league world was in turmoil in 1890, as many of the best players had jumped to the "outlaw"

. Although the Brotherhood only lasted the one season, it had a detrimental financial effect on the other two leagues, especially the Association, who would not survive the following season, merging into the National League in December 1891. Over the prior offseason, the Indianapolis Hoosiers and

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. They play their home games at Na ...

of the National League, and

Kansas City Cowboys Several sports team in Kansas City, Missouri have used the name Cowboys: *Kansas City Cowboys (Union Association), a major league baseball team in the Union Association in 1884 *Kansas City Cowboys (National League), a major league baseball team in ...

of the American Association folded. The Brooklyn Bridegrooms and

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� ...

(now Reds) transfer from the American Association to the National League, while the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) 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) East Division. As one of the America ...

departed the AA for the minor league Atlantic Association, leaving four vacancies in the American Association that would be filled by the Brooklyn Gladiators (who would fold in August, being replace by a returning Orioles team), Rochester Broncos, Syracuse Stars, and

Toledo Maumees The Toledo Maumees were a baseball team originally formed in 1888. The team was based in Toledo, Ohio, and formed part of the Tri-State League for one season. Their home games were played at Speranza Park in Toledo. In 1889, the Maumees moved to ...

. Following the 1890 season, the single season

disbanded during the offseason, with most teams either folding or merging with existing American Association and National League teams; the Boston Reds and

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, they became the Oakland ...

would join the AA for the 1891 season, with the latter replacing the financially struggling original AA

. The major-league status of the Federal League was confirmed by the Special Baseball Records Committee (as convened by then-

Commissioner of Baseball The commissioner of baseball is the chief executive officer of Major League Baseball (MLB) and the associated Minor League Baseball (MiLB) – a constellation of leagues and clubs known as " organized baseball". Under the direction of the commiss ...

William Eckert William Dole Eckert (January 20, 1909 – April 16, 1971) was a lieutenant general in the United States Air Force, and later the fourth commissioner of Major League Baseball from to . Personal life, career, and death William Eckert was born ...

) in 1969.

Schedule

The 1890 schedule consisted of 140 games for all teams in the American Association, National League, and Players' League, each of which had eight active teams (the

would finish the Brooklyn Gladiators' schedule once they folded following their last game on August 25). Each team was scheduled to play 20 games against the other seven teams of their respective league. This continued the format put in place by the American Association since the season and by the National League since the season. This format would last until . American Association Opening Day took place on April 17 featuring six teams, while National League and Players' League Opening Days took place on April 19, each featuring their eight teams. The American Association would see its final day of the regular season on October 15 with a doubleheader between the

and Rochester Broncos. The National League would see its final day of the season on October 4, with a doubleheader between the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...

and

Cleveland Spiders The Cleveland Spiders were an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. The team competed at the major league level from 1887 to 1899, first for two seasons as a member of the now-defunct American Association (AA), followe ...

. The Players' League would see its season end on the same day, with all eight teams playing. The 1890 World's Championship Series took place between October 17 and October 28.

Rule change

The 1890 season saw the following rule change: *Two substitutes may be used and may enter at any time. Previously, the rules was that a predesignated substitute may be used only at the end of a complete inning.

Teams

''A dagger (†) denotes a team that folded mid-season''
''A double dagger (‡) denotes a team joined mid-season''

Sunday games

Blue laws Blue laws (also known as Sunday laws, Sunday trade laws, and Sunday closing laws) are laws restricting or banning certain activities on specified days, usually Sundays in the western world. The laws were adopted originally for religious reasons ...

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 on

alcohol Alcohol may refer to: Common uses * Alcohol (chemistry), a class of compounds * Ethanol, one of several alcohols, commonly known as alcohol in everyday life ** Alcohol (drug), intoxicant found in alcoholic beverages ** Alcoholic beverage, an alco ...

, compared to the National and Players' Leagues) to play at ballparks in a different locality.

Standings

American Association

National League

Players' League

Postseason

Bracket

Managerial changes

Off-season

In-season

League leaders

Any team shown in indicates a previous team a player was on during the season.

American Association

National League

Players' League

Home field attendance

Only records for National League teams are available.

References

External links

1890 Major League Baseball season schedule at Baseball Reference
{{DEFAULTSORT:1890 Major League Baseball Season Major League Baseball seasons