1894 by Edward Drobinski - HTML preview
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Page 47
National League with several other strong American Association franchises, the powerful, scrappy Baltimore teams continued their winning ways from the old Association, capturing three National League pennants in a row, 1894–1896, and winning the Temple Cup in 1896 and 1897. Owner/manager Ned Hanlon, a Baltimorean and one of the most talented baseball men of the sport's early era, ran the team with talented players like "Wee Willie" Keeler, Wilbert Robinson, and John McGraw.
The lack of enthusiasm on the part of the players set the tone.
Their apathy was shared by the fans, few of whom attended Temple Cup games in later years. Interest in the series faded quickly, as it seemed farcical, with the second place team winning three of the four series’. The last Temple Cup series was played in 1897. It was not until 1901 that another major baseball league emerged. Meaningful post season play would commence in 1903, and continue until inter-league play and the playoff system appealed to “modern” fans and owner’s pocketbooks.
1894