 By 1883, Gilligan had become the Grays starting catcher. Despite breaking his finger and missing two weeks in May, Gilligan led the National League in assists as a catcher, while his team finished third in the NL. He continued his tenure with the Grays the following season. Gilligan played in a career-high 82 games, while also recording career highs in RBI (38), strikeouts (41), and on-base percentage (.325) and leading MLB in defensive games as a catcher (81). After finishing at the top of the NL, the Grays played in the 1884 World Series against the New York Metropolitans of the American Association. Gilligan went 4 – for – 9 over the three-game series, with the Grays defeating the Metropolitans three games to none.
