Cincinnati Reds - The Turn of the Century (1900-1909)

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1900

Decade

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Titles:

Top Reds Players of the Oughts

None

Pitchers:

Ballpark:

Noodles Hahn (37.74) - 70

Redland Field / League Park (1900-1901)

Bob Ewing (27.61) - 63

Palace of the Fans (1902-1909)

Bill Phillips (1.63) - 26

Jake Weimer (10.91) - 25

Team Name:

Jack Harper (3.6) - 18

Redlegs

Andy Coakley (6.75) - 18

Art Fromme (5.47) - 12

Owners:

Bob Spade(2.03) - 12

Consortium led by Garry Herrmann

Tom Walker (5.9) - 9

Ed Poole (4.91) - 8

General Managers:

Orval Overall (3.08) - 8

None

Chick Fraser (3.12) - 6

Managers:

Catchers:

Bob Allen (1900)

Heinie Peitz (8.49) - 25

Bid McPhee (1901-1902)

Admiral Schlei (5.62) - 25

Frank Bancroft (1902)

Larry McLean (5) - 14

Joe Kelley (1902-1905)

Bill Bergen (-2.61) - 12

Ned Hanlon (1906-1907)

John Grenzel (1908)

First Basemen:

Clark Griffith (1909)

Jake Beckley (14.94) - 33

John Ganzel (4.09) - 13

Hall of Famers:

Cozy Dolan (0.71) - 12

Ned Hanlon

Dick Hoblitzell (4.68) - 10

Amos Rusie

Clark Griffith

Second Basemen:

Jake Beckley

Miller Huggins (16.48) - 45

Miller Huggins

Dck Egan (3.61) - 12

Wahoo Sam Crawford

Joe Kelley

ShortStop:

Thomas Corcoran (3.72) - 30

No Hitters:

Noodles Hahn (1900)

Third Base:

Harry Steinfeldt (10.21) - 35

Notable Events:

Hans Lobert (9.83) - 22

1900 - Cincinnati enters the new century as a slightly above .500 team for the

Outfield:

previous couple seasons. They had been floundering in the bottom half of the

Cy Seymour (20.07) - 70

National League standings for most of the decade prior to that.

Mike Mitchell (8.86) - 30

Wahoo Sam Crawford (11.34) - 27

1900 - Owner John T. Brush deals twenty year old pitcher Christy Matthewson

Joe Kelley (6.31) - 24

to the Giants for aging ace Amos Rusie prior to the start of the season. In retrospect,

Fred Odwell (4.35) - 17

Brush probably had in the back of his mind that he was going to make a play to

Dode Paskert (2) - 16

buy the Giants in the not too distant future and was loading up New York in

Mike Donlin (6.96) - 14

anticipation. The Reds and the Giants will have many dealings in the first quarter

Bob Bescher (3.51) - 10

century starting with the Brush move to the Giants from the Reds in 1902.

Dummy Hoy (1.81) - 0

1900 - The Reds, who had been mediocre for the entire previous decade, has

Notable Events:

nothing much change in that regard in the Oughts. The 1900 Reds roster

didn't contain an excess of quality. Here's the good ones:

1903 - Garry Herrmann takes over as president of the club.

Sam Crawford, 20, Outfielder - future Hall of Famer - jumps to Detroit in 1903

Noodles Hahn , 21, lefthander - Reds ace first half of the decade

1903 - Future Hall of Famer, twenty three year old outfielder Sam Crawford,

Harry Steinfeldt, 22, third base - future star - dealt to the Cubs in 1906

jumps from the Reds to the AL Detroit Tigers. There were law suits flying

Jimmy Barrett, 25, outfield. Jumps to Detroit in 1901

around regarding players jumping teams and leagues and things were very

Topsy Hartsell, 26, reserve outfielder - future star - released to the Cubs in 1901

ugly between the two leagues at the time. There's nothing like affecting

Jake Beckley, 32, first base - Hall of Famer - sold to the Cards in 1904

another man's pocket book to make people's blood boil.

Reds owner Gary Herrmann was in the middle of all the controversey,

1901 - The American League is created. The Reds are hit much less hard in

but in a good way. Herrmann was a businessman first, baseball man

player raids from the AL than most other NL teams because they don't share their

a distant second. He knew it was good for business for the two leagues

city with an AL franchise and because there's not much to raid. The Reds improve

to cooperate rather than compete, despite all of the existing rancor.

to an above .500 team over the next few years mostly due to the attrition of other

In a concilliatory gesture, Herrmann allowed his best young player, by far, to

NL clubs. The only player of significance that the Reds lose in the raids is

be scooped up by Detroit as part of his newly created peace treaty with the

twenty five year old outfielder Jimmy Barrett to Detroit in 1901.

American League. Herrmann would show throughout the remainder of his

tenure as Reds owner that he was more concerned with the bigger issues

1901 - The Reds lose twenty six year old oldfielder Topsy Hartsell to the Cubs.

regarding the leagues than of his own team's success on the field.

He will later star for the A's for most of the decade. Hartsell, a late bloomer,

Herman, after all, was still a politician at heart.

was a gem that got away.

1904 - Thirty four year old future Hall of Famer, Jake Beckley, is sold to the

In 1900, the Redland Field grandstand burned down. In 1902 the Grandstand

Cards. He had one more good year left in him before he got old.

was rebuilt Opera House style. It had 19 large Fashion boxes on top for rich folks

(these guys were about eighty years ahead of their time) and below was a

1904 - Future Hall of Fame manager and second baseman, Miller Huggins,

standing room area for the rabble.

is purchased from St. Paul. He would be a mainstay in the Reds infield

for the rest of the decade

1902 - Cy Seymour, 29, is released by AL Baltimore and signed by the Reds.

He is a journeyman up to this point in his career (he spent several years as a sub

1905 - Ace lefthander Noodles Hahn, still only twenty six, hurts his arm and,

outfielder with the Giants). A late bloomer, Cy does his blossoming with the Reds.

loses his effectiveness. He will become a veternarian in 2006.

He comes out of nowhere to become one of the NL's leading hitters including a

batting title with a .377 average in 1905. After four nice years with the Cincinnati,

1906 - New Cubs owner Charles Murphy, who was looking to build a big

Seymour is sold to the Giants at the age of thirty three where he remains

winner in Chicago, steals two top young players from the Reds. Cincinnati

productive through age thirty seven.

trades twenty five year old righthander Orval Overall for pitcher Bob Wicker

and then they deal twenty seven year old third baseman Harry Steinfeldt for

1902 - Long Bob Ewing, 29, is signed as an amateur free agent by the Reds.

pitcher Jake Weimer. Unclear what Gary Herrmann's motiviation could

He had played a number of years in semipro ball in Toledo and Kansas City

have been in these trades as both players are key contributors to the Cub

somehow going unnoticed (at six foot six that was doubly hard to do in those

dynasty throughout the rest of the decade while Wicker and Weimer don't

days). Anyway, Cincinnati encountered his team in a barnstorming tour, noticed

amount to much with the Reds. The deals were one sided from the get-go.

he was better than just about everybody they had, and signed him. Ewing would

go on to be a mainstay of the Reds staff for the rest of the decade.

1907 - Twenty five year old outfielder Dode Paskert is purchased from

Atlanta. After three seasons with Cincinnati, he will go on to a lengthy and

1902 - A consortium led by politician George B. Cox, the Fleischmann family of

and productive career with the Phillies and Cards in the next decade

yeast fame, and Garry Herrmann, a lesser known politician, buys out Reds

being an effective player thru age thirty eight.

owner John T. Brush. Cox, the politician, induced Brush to sell by threatening to

build a street car line thru Redland Field if he didn't sell.

1908 - Twenty four year old outfielder Bob Bescher is purchased by the

Brush ends up buying the New York Giants with the proceeds

Reds from Dayton. He has a productive career with the Reds, Giants and

Cards thru the age of thirty two.