- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Chicago
- Team: White Stockings
- League: National League
William Ashley Sunday (1862-1935) was born into extreme poverty and rose to become a beloved pro player making a handsome salary. In 1891 he gave that all up to pursue Christian ministry, cutting his income by two-thirds. Al Spalding had signed Sunday to his Chicago White Stockings on the recommendation of Cap Anson in 1883. His speed was his greatest asset.
- In ’85 Chicago held an exhibition with Sunday racing the speediest AA player. Billy won easily.
- His integrity and popularity led Anson to name Sunday the team’s business manager
- Sunday was recruited for the Players’ League in 1890, but remained loyal to his employer
- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Chicago
- Team: White Stockings
- League: National League
Martin C. Sullivan (1862-1894) played outfield for four teams over five years from 1887-91. His first two seasons were with the Chicago White Stockings where he got into 190 games and even pitched in relief in one. He moved on to the Indianapolis Hoosiers in 1889, spent part of the next two seasons with the Beaneaters before ending his ML tenure with one game for the Cleveland Spiders.
- His lifetime BA is variously reported as .256, .273 and .288 showing the variance in data in that era
- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Chicago
- Team: White Stockings
- League: National League
James Edward Ryan (1863-1923) was one of the stand-out players of the 19th century. When he retired in 1903 after 18 ML seasons Ryan ranked in the top 10 in most offensive stats. The first veteran’s committee of the Hall of Fame convened in 1936 and did not elect a single player from that era. Ryan got no votes despite ranking among the best of his day. Ryan was no shrinking violet. He was known as a battler who would punch a reporter or a conductor who wouldn’t find him a berth. In 1888 he led the NL in HRs, hits, doubles, total bases and slugging percentage.
- Career .306 hitter with 118 lifetime home runs when few were hit
- Despite his success, Ryan soured on the game. After his retirement he counseled against making a career in pro-ball, pointing to the few players who made it past age 35
- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Chicago
- Team: White Stockings
- League: National League
Nathaniel Frederick Pfeffer (1860-1932). Nicknamed Dandelion, Pfeffer played for 7 teams over a good 16 year career. A good baserunner (at least 400 SBs) and league-average hitter (94 OPS+), Pfeffer was one of the best defensive second basemen of his era, dominating the defensive leaderboards for his position in the 1880s.
- 1st in PO at 2B from 1884-1891
- 1st in As at 2B: 1884-85, 1888-89
- 1st in DPs at 2B: 1884-1889, 1891
- 1st in RF at 2B: 1884-85, 1888-90
- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Chicago
- Team: Maroons
- League: Western Association
James Adelbert McCauley (1863-1930) was a catcher for four major league teams in a brief career that spanned three seasons from 1884-1886. This New Yorker came out of Union College in Schenectady to sign with the St Louis Browns in the AA, but appeared in only one game. Most of his time in a sporadic tenure was with the Buffalo Bisons in ’85 and the Trolley Dodgers in ’86 where he ended his ML stint.
- Career BA of .189 spoke to the brevity of his work in the majors
- In 30 games for Brooklyn, McCauley had an OBP of .439 showing a good eye with 11 walks
- Although the Old Judge series features five known poses of Jim McCauley, I could not find one of suitable quality for this project. This image is taken from a cabinet photo produced by the Gehrig Studio in Chicago. The Gehrig Studio cabinet also features a Goodwin copyright stamp for 1888 and it is clear that this photo was taken in the same studio at the same time as McCauley's five known OJ poses. It is therefore plausible that this pose may constitute a sixth as-of-yet undiscovered OJ pose for McCauley.
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