1889 Major League Baseball season

The 1889 major league baseball season began on April 17, 1889. The regular season ended on October 15, with the New York Giants and the Brooklyn Bridegrooms as regular season champions of the National League and American Association, respectively. The postseason began with Game 1 of the sixth World's Championship Series on October 18 and ended with Game 9 on October 29, in what was a best-of-eleven-playoff. The Giants defeated the Dodgers, six games to three, capturing their second consecutive World's Championship Series.

Over the offseason, the National League's Detroit Wolverines folded, and saw them replaced by the American Association's Cleveland Blues, renamed to the Cleveland Spiders. In Cleveland's AA place, the Columbus Solons were enfranchised. This was the final season of the NL's Indianapolis Hoosiers & Washington Nationals, and the AA's Kansas City Cowboys.

The 1889 schedule consisted of 140 games for all teams in the American Association and National League, each of which had eight teams. 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 1886 season and by the National League since the previous season. This format would last until 1892.

American Association Opening Day took place on April 17 featuring four teams, while National League Opening Day took place on April 24, featuring all eight teams. The American Association would see its final day of the regular season on October 15 with four teams playing, while the National League would see its final day of the season on October 5, featuring all eight teams.^[1] The 1889 World's Championship Series took place between October 18 and October 29.

The 1889 season saw the following rule changes:

• The sacrifice hit is now statistically recognized.^[2][3]
• Four balls is now considered a base on balls (BB); previously, five balls were considered base on balls.^[2][3]
• One predesignated substitute may be used at the end of any complete inning.^[2]
• A batted ball striking the umpire stationed behind the pitcher would count as a single for the batter and any baserunner would be allowed to move up one base.^[3]
• The foul tip was abolished.^[3]
• No assist awarded to a pitcher on a strikeout.^[3]

An asterisk (*) denotes the ballpark a team played the minority of their home games at

Blue laws 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, compared to the National League) to play at ballparks in a different locality.

26 tie games (13 in AA, 13 in NL), which are not factored into winning percentage or games behind (and were often replayed again), occurred throughout the season.

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

• Pete Browning (LOU):
  • Browning hit for his second cycle and second in franchise history, on June 7 against the Philadelphia Athletics.^[11]
• Jack Glasscock (IND):
  • Glasscock hit for his first cycle and first in franchise history, on August 8 against the New York Giants.^[11]
• Larry Twitchell (CLE):
  • Twitchell hit for his first cycle and first in franchise history, on August 15 against the Boston Beaneaters.^[11]

• Louisville Colonels:
  • Set a Major League record for highest losing streak at 26, beginning with a defeat against the Baltimore Orioles on May 22 and ending on June 23 with a victory over the St. Louis Browns.

The Columbus Solons join the American Association and play at Recreation Park in Columbus, Ohio.

Following their eviction from the original Polo Grounds in New York, New York over the offseason, the New York Giants would play at several ballparks while waiting for their next home further uptown, also called the Polo Grounds, to finish construction. The team would play at Oakland Park in Jersey City, New Jersey for two games on April 24 and 25, before beginning play at the St. George Cricket Grounds in St. George, New York, the former home of the New York Metropolitans, where they played from April 29 through June 14. Following a road trip, the team would begin play at the new Polo Grounds on July 8.

A fire at Washington Park, home of the Brooklyn Bridegrooms occurred on May 17 while the team was on a road trip. The burnt down grandstand and fencing were rebuilt in time for the team to play their next scheduled home game, on May 30.^[12]

Two teams of the American Association hosted Sunday games:

• Brooklyn Bridegrooms played 14 games at Ridgewood Park in Ridgewood, New York on May 5, June 2, 9, 16, 23, July 21, 28, August 4, September 8, a doubleheader on September 15, September 22, 29, and October 6.^[13] It would be the last of three seasons that the team played Sunday games there, as they joined the National League (which forbid Sunday baseball) the following season.
• Philadelphia Athletics played 14 games at Gloucester Point Grounds in Gloucester City, New Jersey on April 21, May 26, June 2, 9, 16, 23, 30, August 4, September 1, 8, 15, 22, 29, and October 13.^[14]

• 1889 in baseball (Events, Births, Deaths)

• 1889 Major League Schedule at Baseball Reference