Bram Stoker's groundbreaking horror novel "Dracula" was published. Although not the first vampire tale, Stoker's version became the blueprint for all those that have followed. Dracula was seven long years in the writing, from first notes to finished book and it sold reasonably well when it was published, even though the critics were not so generous. A popular bestseller in Victorian England, Stoker's hypnotic tale of the bloodthirsty Count Dracula, whose nocturnal feedings are symbolic of an evil both old and new, still endures as the greatest story of suspense and horror ever written to date.
The Chicago Colts set a Major League record after scoring thirty-six runs on thirty hits against the Louisville Colonels on June 29th.
On June 18th, Chicago's player / manager Cap Anson became the first Major League player to reach three-thousand hits after tapping a single off the Baltimore Orioles for a 6-3 win.
Philadelphia's rookie sensation Napoleon Lajoie hit .361 and led the National League with nine home runs and a .569 slugging average.
"A hard-driving disciplinarian, (Cap) Anson was perhaps the most influential player in the nineteenth century." - Palmer, Pete. Author. Total Baseball. The 400 Greatest Ballplayers. Page 158.
1897 National League Player Review |
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Statistic | Name(s) | Team(s) | # | Top 25 |
Base on Balls | Billy Hamilton | Boston | 105 | Top 25 |
Batting Average | Willie Keeler | Baltimore | .424 | Top 25 |
Doubles | Jake Stenzel | Baltimore | 43 | Top 25 |
Hits | Willie Keeler | Baltimore | 239 | Top 25 |
Home Runs | Hugh Duffy | Boston | 11 | Top 25 |
On Base Percentage | John McGraw | Baltimore | .471 | Top 25 |
RBI | George Davis | New York | 136 | Top 25 |
Runs | Billy Hamilton | Boston | 152 | Top 25 |
Slugging Average | Nap Lajoie | Philadelphia | .569 | Top 25 |
Stolen Bases | Bill Lange | Chicago | 73 | Top 25 |
Total Bases | Nap Lajoie | Philadelphia | 310 | Top 25 |
Triples | Harry Davis | Pittsburgh | 28 | Top 25 |
Statistic | Name(s) | Team(s) | # | Top 25 |
1897 N.L. History | Year-by-Year History |
1897 National League Pitcher Review |
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Statistic | Name(s) | Team(s) | # | Top 25 |
Complete Games | Red Donahue | St. Louis | 38 | Top 25 |
Clark Griffith | Chicago | |||
Frank Killen | Pittsburgh | |||
ERA | Amos Rusie | New York | 2.54 | Top 25 |
Games | Red Donahue | St. Louis | 46 | Top 25 |
Kid Nichols | Boston | |||
Win Mercer | Washington | |||
Cy Young | Cleveland | |||
Saves | Kid Nichols | Boston | 3 | Top 25 |
Win Mercer | Washington | |||
Shutouts | Doc McJames | Washington | 3 | Top 25 |
Win Mercer | ||||
Strikeouts | Doc McJames | Washington | 156 | Top 25 |
Winning Percentage | Fred Klobedanz | Boston | .788 | Top 25 |
Wins | Kid Nichols | Boston | 31 | Top 25 |
Statistic | Name(s) | Team(s) | # | Top 25 |
1897 N.L. History | Year-by-Year History |
1897 National LeagueTeam Standings |
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Team | Roster | W | L | T | WP | GB |
Boston Beaneaters | 93 | 39 | 3 | .705 | 0 |
Baltimore Orioles | 90 | 40 | 6 | .692 | 2 |
New York Giants | 83 | 48 | 7 | .634 | 9½ |
Cincinnati Reds | 76 | 56 | 2 | .576 | 17 |
Cleveland Spiders | 69 | 62 | 1 | .527 | 23½ |
Washington Senators | 61 | 71 | 4 | .462 | 32 |
Brooklyn Bridegrooms | 61 | 71 | 3 | .462 | 32 |
Pittsburgh Pirates | 60 | 71 | 4 | .458 | 32½ |
Chicago Colts | 59 | 73 | 6 | .447 | 34 |
Philadelphia Phillies | 55 | 77 | 2 | .417 | 38 |
Louisville Colonels | 52 | 78 | 6 | .400 | 40 |
St. Louis Browns | 29 | 102 | 2 | .221 | 63½ |
Team | Roster | W | L | T | WP | GB |
1897 National League Team Standings |
1897 National League Team ReviewHitting Statistics League Leaderboard |
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Statistic | Team | # |
Base on Balls | Baltimore | 437 |
Batting Average | Baltimore | .325 |
Doubles | Baltimore | 243 |
Hits | Baltimore | 1,584 |
Home Runs | Boston | 45 |
On Base Percentage | Baltimore | .394 |
Runs | Boston | 1,025 |
Slugging Average | Boston | .426 |
Stolen Bases | Baltimore | 401 |
Triples | Pittsburgh | 108 |
Statistic | Team | # |
1897 National League Team ReviewPitching Statistics League Leaderboard |
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Statistic | Team | # |
Complete Games | Chicago | 131 |
ERA | New York | 3.47 |
Fewest Hits Allowed | New York | 1,214 |
Fewest Home Runs Allowed | Baltimore | 18 |
Cincinnati | ||
Fewest Walks Allowed | Cleveland | 289 |
Saves | Boston | 7 |
Shutouts | Boston | 8 |
New York | ||
Strikeouts | New York | 456 |
Statistic | Team | # |
On April 22, 1897, Wee Willie Keeler hit a single and double. This was game one of a forty-four consecutive game batting streak that went unmatched until Joe DiMaggio broke the record during the "streak" in 1941.
In a highly unusual feat, catcher Duke Farrell of Washington threw out eight Orioles who attempted to steal second, but the Senators lost 6-3.
Cap Anson hit what some baseball historians consider hit number three-thousand on July 18, 1897. However, in that total were sixty base on balls which during the 1887 season were counted as hits. Those hits were counted at first, removed by Major League Baseball, then restored again in 2001.