National Association

Philadelphia Centennials History

By Patrick Mondout

The Centennial Base-Ball Club of Philadelphia (or "Philadelphia Centennials") were a team that played during the last season of the old National Association (NA). The team was one of three franchises from Philly in the 1875 NA.

At a glance... PHILADELPHIA CENTENNIALS Franchise Facts Established 1875 Disbanded  1875 Located Philadelphia Executives E. Hicks Hayhurst Year by Year Results W L % 1875  2 12 .143 Affiliations National Association (1875) Postseason/Titles NA Titles (0) Nicknames Centennial of Philadelphia (1875) Ballparks Centennial Park (1875) Top Performances Single-Season Career

The December 6, 1874 Chicago Tribune summarizes the new team this way:

The third club of the Quakers is named the Centennial, like everything else in that city now. There are only two hitherto professionals in the nine, Bechtel and Craver, pitcher and catcher, the rest being made up from amateur clubs. The names are as follows: Abadie, McGinley, Trenwith, Somerville, Mason, Warner, Huston, Quinlan, and Timmons. The managers are in favor of the 25-cent admission fee. Well, they should be.

Three teams were just too many for all to be profitable, and not surprisingly the Centennials were the first to fail. The team mercifully disbanded in late May with a record of 1-12.

Bill Craver was the only noteworthy player, having finished 6th in batting, 1st in steals, and 2nd in slugging for the Athletic the previous season. He finished 3rd in slugging after rejoining the Athletic in June.

National Association sources/bibliography:
Baseball: The Early Years by Harold Seymour.
Baseball Before We Knew It: A Search For The Roots Of The Game by David Block.
Baseball in Blue and Gray: The National Pastime during the Civil War by George B. Kirsch.
Blackguards and Red Stockings by William J. Ryczek
The National Association of Base Ball Players, 1857-1870 by Marshall D. Wright.
Playing for Keeps: A History of Early Baseball by Warren Goldstein.
When Johnny Came Sliding Home: The Post-Civil War Baseball Boom, 1865-1870 by William J. Ryczek

David Nemec, the tireless 19th Century Baseball researcher, has also written a novel called Early Dreams, which takes place during this era and features real-life characters such as Cap Anson, George Wright, and Henry Lucas.

General Baseball History sources/bibliography:
Baseball: A History of America's Game by Benjamin G. Rader.
Baseball: A Film By Ken Burns (PBS DVD)
The Formation, Sometimes Absorption and Mostly Inevitable Demise of 18 Professional Baseball Organizations, 1871 to Present by David Pietrusza.
The Great 19th Century Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball, 2nd Edition by David Nemec.
Early Innings: A Documentary History of Baseball, 1825-1908 by Dean A. Sullivan.
Middle Innings: A Documentary History of Baseball, 1900-1948 by Dean A. Sullivan.
Late Innings: A Documentary History of Baseball 1945-1972 by Dean A. Sullivan
Past Time: Baseball as History by Jules Tygiel
America's National Game: Historic Facts Concerning the Beginning, Evolution, Development and Popularity of Baseball by Albert Spalding
Total Baseball: The Ultimate Baseball Encyclopedia by John Thorn, et al.