1915 Major League Baseball season

This article is about the 1915 Major League Baseball season only. For information on all of baseball, see 1915 in baseball.
1915 MLB season
League
SportBaseball
DurationRegular season:
  • April 14 – October 7, 1915 (AL, NL)
  • April 10 – October 3, 1915 (FL)
World Series (AL vs. NL):
  • October 8–13, 1915
Games154
Teams24 (8 per league)
Pennant winners
AL championsBoston Red Sox
  AL runners-upDetroit Tigers
NL championsPhiladelphia Phillies
  NL runners-upBoston Braves
FL championsChicago Whales
  FL runners-upSt. Louis Terriers
World Series
ChampionsBoston Red Sox (AL)
  Runners-upPhiladelphia Phillies (NL)
Locations of teams for the 1915–1922 American League seasons
American League
Locations of teams for the 1915 National League season
National League
Locations of teams for the 1915 Federal League season
Federal League

The 1915 major league baseball season began on April 10, 1915. The Federal League regular season ended on October 3, and saw the Chicago Whales winning the Federal League pennant. The regular season for the National League and American League ended on October 7, with the Philadelphia Phillies and Boston Red Sox as the regular season champions of the National League and American League, respectively. The postseason began with Game 1 of the 12th World Series on October 8 and ended with Game 5 on October 13. The Red Sox defeated the Phillies, four games to one, capturing their third championship in franchise history, since their previous in 1912. Going into the season, the defending World Series champions were the Boston Braves from the 1914 season. The World Series had again featured the cities of Boston and Philadelphia, though this time with their opposite-league counterparts.

The Indianapolis Hoosiers relocated to Newark, New Jersey as the Newark Peppers. The Buffalo Buffeds, Chicago Federals, and Cleveland Naps renamed as the Buffalo Blues, Chicago Whales, and Cleveland Indians, respectively.

The Federal League brought an antitrust lawsuit against the National and American Leagues prior to the 1915 season. The parties eventually reached a settlement and the Federal League disbanded after the season.

The major-league status of the Federal League was confirmed by the Special Baseball Records Committee (as convened by then-Commissioner of Baseball William Eckert) in 1969.[1]

Schedule

See also: Major League Baseball schedule

The 1915 schedule consisted of 154 games for all teams in the American League, National League, and Federal League, each of which had eight teams. Each team was scheduled to play 22 games against the other seven teams of their respective league. This continued the format put in place for the 1904 season, and which lasted until the 140-game schedule of 1919. Most teams played more than 154 games, due to tie games (called on account of darkness or weather) that had to be replayed;[2] tie games are excluded from team standings, but the statistics of individual players are included in their season totals. The Federal League had its Opening Day on April 10, featuring all eight teams.[3] Opening Day for the American and National Leagues was on April 14, featuring the 16 teams of those two leagues,[4] as had been scheduled the season prior. The Federal League had the final day of its regular season on October 3.[5] The final day of the regular season for the National and American Leagues was October 7.[6] The World Series took place between October 8 and October 13.[7]

Rule change

The National League established that player-managers would count against the player limit, so the bench manager would be unable to insert himself in any game during the season without forfeiting the right to carry one of the players on his roster. The penalty for violating the rule was forfeiture of the game.[8]

Teams

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

League Team City Ballpark Capacity Manager[9]
American League Boston Red Sox Boston, Massachusetts Fenway Park 27,000 Bill Carrigan
Braves Field* 40,000*
Chicago White Sox Chicago, Illinois Comiskey Park 28,000 Pants Rowland
Cleveland Indians Cleveland, Ohio League Park 21,414 Joe Birmingham
Lee Fohl
Detroit Tigers Detroit, Michigan Navin Field 23,000 Hughie Jennings
New York Yankees New York, New York Brush Stadium 34,000 Bill Donovan
Philadelphia Athletics Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Shibe Park 23,000 Connie Mack
St. Louis Browns St. Louis, Missouri Sportsman's Park 18,000 Branch Rickey
Washington Senators Washington, D.C. National Park 27,000 Clark Griffith
National League Boston Braves Boston, Massachusetts Fenway Park 27,000 George Stallings
Braves Field* 40,000*
Brooklyn Robins New York, New York Ebbets Field 30,000 Wilbert Robinson
Chicago Cubs Chicago, Illinois West Side Park 16,000 Roger Bresnahan
Cincinnati Reds Cincinnati, Ohio Redland Field 20,696 Buck Herzog
New York Giants New York, New York Brush Stadium 34,000 John McGraw
Philadelphia Phillies Philadelphia, Pennsylvania National League Park 18,000 Pat Moran
Pittsburgh Pirates Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Forbes Field 25,000 Fred Clarke
St. Louis Cardinals St. Louis, Missouri Robison Field 21,000 Miller Huggins
Federal League Baltimore Terrapins Baltimore, Maryland Terrapin Park 16,000 Otto Knabe
Brooklyn Tip-Tops New York, New York Washington Park 18,800 Lee Magee
John Ganzel
Buffalo Blues Buffalo, New York Federal League Park 20,000 Larry Schlafly
Walter Blair
Harry Lord
Chicago Whales Chicago, Illinois Weeghman Park 15,000 Joe Tinker
Kansas City Packers Kansas City, Missouri Gordon and Koppel Field 12,000 George Stovall
Newark Peppers Newark, New Jersey Harrison Park 21,000 Bill Phillips
Bill McKechnie
Pittsburgh Rebels Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Exposition Park 16,000 Rebel Oakes
St. Louis Terriers St. Louis, Missouri Handlan's Park 15,000 Fielder Jones

Standings

American League

American League
Team W L Pct. GB Home Road
Boston Red Sox 101 50 .669 — 55‍–‍20 46‍–‍30
Detroit Tigers 100 54 .649 2½ 51‍–‍26 49‍–‍28
Chicago White Sox 93 61 .604 9½ 54‍–‍24 39‍–‍37
Washington Senators 85 68 .556 17 50‍–‍29 35‍–‍39
New York Yankees 69 83 .454 32½ 37‍–‍43 32‍–‍40
St. Louis Browns 63 91 .409 39½ 35‍–‍38 28‍–‍53
Cleveland Indians 57 95 .375 44½ 27‍–‍50 30‍–‍45
Philadelphia Athletics 43 109 .283 58½ 19‍–‍53 24‍–‍56

National League

National League
Team W L Pct. GB Home Road
Philadelphia Phillies 90 62 .592 — 49‍–‍27 41‍–‍35
Boston Braves 83 69 .546 7 49‍–‍27 34‍–‍42
Brooklyn Robins 80 72 .526 10 51‍–‍26 29‍–‍46
Chicago Cubs 73 80 .477 17½ 42‍–‍34 31‍–‍46
Pittsburgh Pirates 73 81 .474 18 40‍–‍37 33‍–‍44
St. Louis Cardinals 72 81 .471 18½ 42‍–‍36 30‍–‍45
Cincinnati Reds 71 83 .461 20 39‍–‍37 32‍–‍46
New York Giants 69 83 .454 21 37‍–‍38 32‍–‍45

Federal League

Federal League
Team W L Pct. GB Home Road
Chicago Whales 86 66 .566 — 44‍–‍32 42‍–‍34
St. Louis Terriers 87 67 .565 — 43‍–‍34 44‍–‍33
Pittsburgh Rebels 86 67 .562 ½ 45‍–‍31 41‍–‍36
Kansas City Packers 81 72 .529 5½ 46‍–‍31 35‍–‍41
Newark Peppers 80 72 .526 6 40‍–‍39 40‍–‍33
Buffalo Blues 74 78 .487 12 37‍–‍40 37‍–‍38
Brooklyn Tip-Tops 70 82 .461 16 34‍–‍40 36‍–‍42
Baltimore Terrapins 47 107 .305 40 24‍–‍51 23‍–‍56

Tie games

31 tie games (10 in AL, 13 in NL, 8 in FL), which are not factored into winning percentage or games behind (and were often replayed again) occurred throughout the season.

American League

  • Boston Red Sox, 4
  • Chicago White Sox, 1
  • Cleveland Indians, 2
  • Detroit Tigers, 2
  • New York Yankees, 2
  • Philadelphia Athletics, 2
  • St. Louis Browns, 5
  • Washington Senators, 2

National League

  • Boston Braves, 5
  • Brooklyn Robins, 2
  • Chicago Cubs, 3
  • Cincinnati Reds, 6
  • New York Giants, 3
  • Philadelphia Phillies, 1
  • Pittsburgh Pirates, 2
  • St. Louis Cardinals, 4

Federal League

  • Brooklyn Tip-Tops, 1
  • Buffalo Blues, 1
  • Chicago Whales, 3
  • Newark Peppers, 3
  • Pittsburgh Rebels, 3
  • St. Louis Terriers, 5

Postseason

The postseason began on October 8 and ended on October 13 with the Boston Red Sox defeating the Philadelphia Phillies in the 1915 World Series in five games. The National and American Leagues refused a postseason against the Federal League.

Bracket

World Series
   
AL Boston Red Sox 4
NL Philadelphia Phillies 1

Managerial changes

Off-season

Team Former Manager New Manager
Brooklyn Tip-Tops Bill Bradley Lee Magee
Chicago Cubs Hank O'Day Roger Bresnahan
Chicago White Sox Jimmy Callahan Pants Rowland
New York Yankees Roger Peckinpaugh Bill Donovan
Philadelphia Phillies Red Dooin Pat Moran

In-season

Team Former Manager New Manager
Brooklyn Tip-Tops Lee Magee John Ganzel
Buffalo Blues Larry Schlafly Walter Blair
Walter Blair Harry Lord
Cleveland Indians Joe Birmingham Lee Fohl
Newark Peppers Bill Phillips Bill McKechnie

League leaders

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

American League

Hitting leaders[10]
Stat Player Total
AVG Ty Cobb (DET) .369
OPS Ty Cobb (DET) .973
HR Braggo Roth (CLE/CWS) 7
RBI Sam Crawford (DET)
Bobby Veach (DET) 		112
R Ty Cobb (DET) 144
H Ty Cobb (DET) 208
SB Ty Cobb (DET) 96
Pitching leaders[11]
Stat Player Total
W Walter Johnson (WSH) 27
L Weldon Wyckoff (PHA) 22
ERA Smoky Joe Wood (BOS) 1.49
K Walter Johnson (WSH) 203
IP Walter Johnson (WSH) 336.2
SV Carl Mays (BOS) 7
WHIP Walter Johnson (WSH) 0.933

National League

Hitting leaders[12]
Stat Player Total
AVG Larry Doyle (NYG) .320
OPS Gavvy Cravath (PHI) .902
HR Gavvy Cravath (PHI) 24
RBI Gavvy Cravath (PHI) 115
R Gavvy Cravath (PHI) 89
H Larry Doyle (NYG) 189
SB Max Carey (PIT) 36
Pitching leaders[13]
Stat Player Total
W Grover Alexander1 (PHI) 31
L Dick Rudolph (BSN)
Pete Schneider (CIN) 		19
ERA Grover Alexander1 (PHI) 1.22
K Grover Alexander1 (PHI) 241
IP Grover Alexander (PHI) 376.1
SV Tom Hughes (BSN) 9
WHIP Grover Alexander (PHI) 0.842

1 National League Triple Crown pitching winner

Federal League

Hitting leaders[14]
Stat Player Total
AVG Benny Kauff (BKF) .342
OPS Benny Kauff (BKF) .955
HR Hal Chase (BUF) 17
RBI Dutch Zwilling (CWH) 94
R Babe Borton (SLT) 97
H Jack Tobin (SLT) 184
SB Benny Kauff (BKF) 55
Pitching leaders[15]
Stat Player Total
W George McConnell (CWH) 25
L Jack Quinn (BAL) 22
ERA Earl Moseley (NWK) 1.91
K Dave Davenport (SLT) 229
IP Dave Davenport (SLT) 392.2
SV Hugh Bedient (BUF) 10
WHIP Dave Davenport (SLT) 0.991

Milestones

Batters

Cycles

See also: List of Major League Baseball players to hit for the cycle

Pitchers

No-hitters

See also: List of Major League Baseball no-hitters
  • Rube Marquard (BRO/NYG):
    • Marquard threw his first career no-hitter and sixth no-hitter in franchise history as a part of the New York Giants, by defeating the Brooklyn Robins 2–0 on April 15. Marquard walked two and struck out two.[17][18]
  • Frank Allen (PRB):
    • Allen threw his first career no-hitter and first no-hitter in franchise history, by defeating the St. Louis Terriers 2–0 on April 24. Allen walked four and struck out two.[19][20]
  • Claude Hendrix (CWH):
    • Hendrix threw his first career no-hitter and first no-hitter in franchise history, by defeating the Pittsburgh Rebels 10–0 on May 15. Hendrix walked three and struck out three.[21][22]
  • Alex Main (KC):
    • Main threw his first career no-hitter and first-no hitter in franchise history, by defeating the Buffalo Blues 5–0 on August 16. Main walked one and struck out seven.[23][24]
  • Jimmy Lavender (CHC):
    • Lavender threw his first career no-hitter and sixth no-hitter in franchise history, by defeating the New York Giants 2–0 in game 1 of a doubleheader on August 31. Lavender walked one and struck out eight.[25][26]
  • Dave Davenport (SLT):
    • Davenport threw his first career no-hitter and first no-hitter in franchise history, by defeating the Chicago Whales 3–0 in game 1 of a doubleheader on September 7. Davenport walked two and struck out three.[27][28]

Other pitching accomplishments

Home field attendance

Team name Wins %± Home attendance %± Per game
Boston Red Sox[30] 101 11.0% 539,885 12.2% 7,104
Chicago White Sox[31] 93 32.9% 539,461 15.0% 6,829
Detroit Tigers[32] 100 25.0% 476,105 14.4% 6,183
Philadelphia Phillies[33] 90 21.6% 449,898 224.9% 5,920
New York Giants[34] 69 -17.9% 391,850 7.6% 5,156
Boston Braves[35] 83 -11.7% 376,283 -1.7% 4,824
Brooklyn Robins[36] 80 6.7% 297,766 142.7% 3,818
New York Yankees[37] 69 -1.4% 256,035 -28.8% 3,122
St. Louis Cardinals[38] 72 -11.1% 252,666 -1.3% 3,119
Pittsburgh Pirates[39] 73 5.8% 225,743 61.7% 2,858
Cincinnati Reds[40] 71 18.3% 218,878 117.2% 2,771
Chicago Cubs[41] 73 -6.4% 217,058 7.2% 2,819
Washington Senators[42] 85 4.9% 167,332 -31.4% 2,092
Cleveland Indians[43] 57 11.8% 159,285 -14.4% 2,069
St. Louis Browns[44] 63 -11.3% 150,358 -38.6% 1,978
Philadelphia Athletics[45] 43 -56.6% 146,223 -57.8% 1,976

Note: Attendance data for Federal League teams is unavailable.

Venues

With the relocation of the Indianapolis Hoosiers from Indianapolis, Indiana to Newark, New Jersey as the Newark Peppers, they leave Federal League Park and move into Harrison Park.

The Boston Braves would play their last game at Fenway Park on July 26, having shared the park with the Boston Red Sox since the middle of 1914, and opened Braves Field on August 18, playing their final 26 of 78 home games and where they would go on to play for 38 seasons through 1952.

The Chicago Cubs would play their final game at West Side Park on October 3 against the St. Louis Cardinals, moving into the home of the Chicago Whales (who would fold before the 1916 season), Weeghman Park for the start of the 1916 season.

For games 3 and 4 of the World Series, the Boston Red Sox use the Boston Braves home of Braves Field due to its larger capacity over their home at Fenway Park (40,000 to 27,000). This was the first year in a row where a World Series winning Red Sox used Braves Field.

See also

References

  1. ^ Thorn, John (May 4, 2015). "Why Is the National Association Not a Major League … and Other Records Issues". Our Game. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
  2. ^ "The 1915 Season". Retrosheet. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  3. ^ "Events of Saturday, April 10, 1915". Retrosheet. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  4. ^ "Events of Wednesday, April 14, 1915". Retrosheet. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  5. ^ "Events of Sunday, October 3, 1915". Retrosheet. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  6. ^ "Events of Thursday, October 7, 1915". Retrosheet. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  7. ^ "The 1915 Post-Season Games". Retrosheet. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  8. ^ Stern, Travis. "1914 Winter Meetings: Wars at Home and Abroad – Society for American Baseball Research". Retrieved March 28, 2025.
  9. ^ "1915 Major League Managers". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  10. ^ "1915 American League Batting Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  11. ^ "1915 American League Pitching Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  12. ^ "1915 National League Batting Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  13. ^ "1915 National League Pitching Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  14. ^ "1915 Federal League Batting Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  15. ^ "1915 Federal League Pitching Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  16. ^ "Cycles". Retrosheet.org. Archived from the original on June 29, 2018. Retrieved September 10, 2011.
  17. ^ "Marquard Stars In No Hit Performance". Washington Times. April 16, 1915.
  18. ^ "Brooklyn Dodgers vs New York Giants Box Score: April 15, 1915". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 13, 2026.
  19. ^ "Pitches No Hit Games". Washington Herald. April 25, 1915.
  20. ^ "Pittsburgh Rebels vs St. Louis Terriers Box Score: April 24, 1915". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 13, 2026.
  21. ^ "At Pittsburgh". The Sun (New York). May 16, 1915.
  22. ^ "Chicago Whales vs Pittsburgh Rebels Box Score: May 15, 1915". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 13, 2026.
  23. ^ "Not A Run Or Hit Off Main". The Sun (New York). August 17, 1915.
  24. ^ "Kansas City Packers vs Buffalo Blues Box Score: August 16, 1915". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 13, 2026.
  25. ^ "Nary A Hit Can Giants Get Off Jim Lavender". The Sun (New York). September 1, 1915.
  26. ^ "Chicago Cubs vs New York Giants Box Score: August 31, 1915". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 13, 2026.
  27. ^ "Federal League". The Sun (New York). September 8, 1915.
  28. ^ "Chicago Whales vs St. Louis Terriers Box Score: September 7, 1915". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 13, 2026.
  29. ^ Randhawa, Manny (May 10, 2020). "300-game winners in MLB history". MLB.com. Retrieved March 9, 2026.
  30. ^ "Boston Red Sox Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  31. ^ "Chicago White Sox Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  32. ^ "Detroit Tigers Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  33. ^ "Philadelphia Phillies Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  34. ^ "San Francisco Giants Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  35. ^ "Atlanta Braves Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  36. ^ "Los Angeles Dodgers Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  37. ^ "New York Yankees Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  38. ^ "St. Louis Cardinals Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  39. ^ "Pittsburgh Pirates Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  40. ^ "Cincinnati Reds Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  41. ^ "Chicago Cubs Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  42. ^ "Minnesota Twins Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  43. ^ "Cleveland Guardians Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  44. ^ "Baltimore Orioles Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  45. ^ "Oakland Athletics Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
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