# 1899 Major League Baseball season

The 1899 major league baseball season was contested from April 14 through October 15, 1899, and saw the Brooklyn Superbas as the pennant winner of the National League. There was no postseason.
The 1899 was the final season of a stable 12-team, eight-season run which saw no expansion or contraction of teams. Following the end of the season, the National League contracted from 12 to 8 teams, eliminating the Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Spiders, Louisville Colonels, and Washington Senators. The elimination of major-league baseball from these cities prompted the minor league Western League to position themselves as a major league in 1901, by beginning a transition from a Midwest-focused league to the nation-wide focused American League.
The 1899 season is famous for the Cleveland Spiders finishing with the worst single-season record of all time (minimum 120 games), finishing at a dismal 20–134 (.130), largely due to the fact that the Spiders-owning Robison family bought the St. Louis Perfectos prior to the 1899 season, then proceeded to move all Cleveland talent to St. Louis, leaving the Spiders a talent-depleted team. The only other major-league team of the 19th century with a worse record was the 1884 Wilmington Quicksteps, who entered the unstable single-season Union Association as a late-season replacement for the Philadelphia Keystones and played only 18 games, with a record of 2–16 (.111).
The Brooklyn Bridegrooms and St. Louis Browns renamed as the Brooklyn Superbas and St. Louis Perfectos, respectively.

## Schedule

The 1899 schedule consisted of 154 games for the twelve teams of the National League. Each team was scheduled to play 14 games against the other eleven teams in the league. This format had previously been used by the National League in 1892 and the previous season. This would be the final season which saw this format, due to the reduction of teams the following season.
Opening Day took place on April 14 featuring four teams. The final day of the season on October 15, featuring five teams play in four games (Chicago hosted Louisville and St. Louis hosted Chicago, while Cincinnati hosted Cleveland in a doubleheader).

## Rule changes

The 1899 season saw the following rule changes:
* Home plate is required to be a 12" × 12" square, positioned such that opposite corners point towards the pitcher and catcher.
* As a result of catcher's interference, a batter is now awarded first base.

## Teams

| League | Team | City | Stadium | Capacity | Manager |
| National League | Baltimore Orioles | Baltimore, Maryland | Union Park | 11,000 | John McGraw |
| National League | Boston Beaneaters | Boston, Massachusetts | South End Grounds | 6,600 | Frank Selee |
| National League | Brooklyn Superbas | New York, New York | Washington Park | 12,000 | Ned Hanlon |
| National League | Chicago Orphans | Chicago, Illinois | West Side Park | 13,000 | Tom Burns |
| National League | Cincinnati Reds | Cincinnati, Ohio | League Park (Cincinnati) | 9,000 | Buck Ewing |
| National League | Cleveland Spiders | Cleveland, Ohio | League Park (Cleveland) | 9,000 | Lave Cross |
| National League | Cleveland Spiders | Cleveland, Ohio | League Park (Cleveland) | 9,000 | Joe Quinn |
| National League | Louisville Colonels | Louisville, Kentucky | Eclipse Park | 6,400 | Fred Clarke |
| National League | New York Giants | New York, New York | Polo Grounds | 16,000 | John Day |
| National League | New York Giants | New York, New York | Polo Grounds | 16,000 | Fred Hoey |
| National League | Philadelphia Phillies | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | National League Park | 18,000 | Bill Shettsline |
| National League | Pittsburgh Pirates | Allegheny, Pennsylvania | Exposition Park | 6,500 | Bill Watkins |
| National League | Pittsburgh Pirates | Allegheny, Pennsylvania | Exposition Park | 6,500 | Patsy Donovan |
| National League | St. Louis Perfectos | St. Louis, Missouri | League Park (St. Louis) | 14,500 | Patsy Tebeau |
| National League | Washington Sentaors | Washington, D.C. | Boundary Field | 6,500 | Arthur Irwin |

## Standings
### National League

vteNational League :
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
| Brooklyn Superbas | 101 | 47 | .682 | — | 61‍–‍16 | 40‍–‍31 |
| Boston Beaneaters | 95 | 57 | .625 | 8 | 53‍–‍26 | 42‍–‍31 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 94 | 58 | .618 | 9 | 58‍–‍25 | 36‍–‍33 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 86 | 62 | .581 | 15 | 51‍–‍24 | 35‍–‍38 |
| St. Louis Perfectos | 84 | 67 | .556 | 18½ | 50‍–‍33 | 34‍–‍34 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 83 | 67 | .553 | 19 | 57‍–‍29 | 26‍–‍38 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 76 | 73 | .510 | 25½ | 49‍–‍34 | 27‍–‍39 |
| Chicago Orphans | 75 | 73 | .507 | 26 | 44‍–‍39 | 31‍–‍34 |
| Louisville Colonels | 75 | 77 | .493 | 28 | 33‍–‍28 | 42‍–‍49 |
| New York Giants | 60 | 90 | .400 | 42 | 35‍–‍38 | 25‍–‍52 |
| Washington Senators | 54 | 98 | .355 | 49 | 35‍–‍43 | 19‍–‍55 |
| Cleveland Spiders | 20 | 134 | .130 | 84 | 9‍–‍33 | 11‍–‍101 |

## Managerial changes
### Off-season

| Team | Former Manager | New Manager |
| Baltimore Orioles | Ned Hanlon | John McGraw |
| Brooklyn Superbas | Charles Ebbets | Ned Hanlon |
| Cleveland Spiders | Patsy Tebeau | Lave Cross |
| New York Giants | Cap Anson | John Day |
| St. Louis Perfectos | Tim Hurst | Patsy Tebeau |

### In-season

| Team | Former Manager | New Manager |
| Cleveland Spiders | Lave Cross | Joe Quinn |
| New York Giants | John Day | Fred Hoey |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | Bill Watkins | Patsy Donovan |

## League leaders
### National League

Hitting leaders :
| Stat | Player | Total |
| AVG | Ed Delahanty (PHI) | .410 |
| OPS | Ed Delahanty (PHI) | 1.046 |
| HR | Buck Freeman (WSH) | 25 |
| RBI | Ed Delahanty (PHI) | 137 |
| R | Willie Keeler (BKN) John McGraw (BAL) | 140 |
| H | Ed Delahanty (PHI) | 238 |
| SB | Jimmy Sheckard (BAL) | 77 |
Pitching leaders :
| Stat | Player | Total |
| W | Jay Hughes (BKN) Joe McGinnity (BAL) | 28 |
| L | Jim Hughey (CLE) | 30 |
| ERA | Vic Willis (BOS) | 2.50 |
| K | Noodles Hahn (CIN) | 145 |
| IP | Sam Leever (PIT) | 379.0 |
| SV | Sam Leever (PIT) | 3 |
| WHIP | Cy Young (STL) | 1.116 |

## Home field attendance

| Team name | Wins | %± | Home attendance | %± | Per game |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 94 | 20.5% | 388,933 | 46.5% | 4,686 |
| St. Louis Perfectos | 84 | 115.4% | 373,909 | 146.5% | 4,298 |
| Chicago Orphans | 75 | −11.8% | 352,130 | −17.0% | 4,143 |
| Brooklyn Superbas | 101 | 87.0% | 269,641 | 120.1% | 3,457 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 83 | −9.8% | 259,536 | −22.8% | 2,949 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 76 | 5.6% | 251,834 | 66.9% | 2,963 |
| Boston Beaneaters | 95 | −6.9% | 200,384 | −12.6% | 2,505 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 86 | −1.2% | 121,935 | −2.5% | 1,584 |
| New York Giants | 60 | −22.1% | 121,384 | −54.3% | 1,597 |
| Louisville Colonels | 75 | −15.2% | 109,319 | 6.2% | 1,735 |
| Washington Senators | 54 | −16.3% | 86,392 | −15.3% | 1,094 |
| Cleveland Spiders | 20 | −91.4% | 6,088 | −88.3% | 145 |