Author: Brendan H

In the early summer of 1911, at the age of 74 and with the end of his career in sight, Brooklyn Whales’ manager and GM Marques Williams did something that shook the baseball world. He made a blockbuster of a trade. In June of that year, Brooklyn (42-25 at the time of the trade) was…

In 1908, Madigan Hall had agreed to end its conservatorship of the Whales and grant control of the franchise to a local businessman named George Bromwich. Bromwich, as much a dreamer as an empire builder, saw an opportunity with the Whales. A firm believer in never paying full price, he saw an opportunity to buy…

Sometimes, you have to take the long way to get back home. Two local boys who won a high school state championship in the shadow of the Field of the Whales will get the opportunity to live out their dream and play for the local pro club. The first is a clairvoyant wizard with the…

During the 1909 off-season, the GM/Manager of the Brooklyn Whales, Marques Williams, made the calculated decision to trade star centerfielder Hyman Rickward to the Western League. The decision may have made sense from a baseball perspective–CF Elroy Soame has dazzled with the glove in his debut as a regular starter in Brooklyn–but one group of…

HI Folks! It has been awhile but it is Harry Musgrave back once again to shed some light on 1909 St. Louis Reds. They had a surprisingly good season last year, one in which they finished with the second best record in the Western League but a quite a distance behind Cleveland. If it had…

It had been four straight years of playoff disappointment, but the streak looked like it could extend to half of a decade. For the second consecutive year, Brooklyn and Richmond had battled to a standstill in the Eastern League Cup 2-2. The Western League Champion–a familiar foe from 1901 and 1902–had already been declared with…

With the 16th pick of the 1908 amateur draft, the Brooklyn Whales selected 18 year old outfielder Erwin Ford. Ford, a tall and slender switch hitter with a sweet swing had proven himself to be an excellent hitter in the Legacy Baseball Academy League with a career slash line of .278/.409/.524 (152 wRC+) with 47…

by John M. It seemed strange leaving my team in mid-season, but I had received a summons- the kind of summons one could not refuse. A summons from Jack Vaughn, the owner of the Doves, to visit him and explain the direction the team was taking. Mr. Vaughn was currently residing at the famous sanitarium…

As the soft hues of dawn painted the sky, the newly minted Eastern League Most Valuable Player ventured out onto the streets of Brooklyn. It was the spring of 1908, and the early morning air held a crispness that invigorated Charlie Taylor’s senses, awakening in him the natural rhythm that had captivated fans across the…