OTD 9/26/1914: Dick "Cannonball" Redding and Joe "Cyclone" Williams Lead New York Lincoln Giants in Twin Bill Over Brooklyn Royal Giants and Camden City

From the desk: DEM BARNSTORMERS

The Morning Post (Camden, NJ), Friday, September 25, 1914

On Saturday, September 26, 1914, in the first game of a three-corner doubleheader, the New York Lincoln Giants and the Brooklyn Royal Giants met for the championship of colored teams at Camden City, N.J.

Philadelphia (PA) Inquirer, Sunday, September 27, 1914

BROOKLYN ROYAL GIANTS vs. NEW YORK LINCOLN GIANTS

Right-hander Dick "Cannonball" Redding toes the rubber for the Lincoln Giant and is opposed by Lefty Harvey for Brooklyn.

The kings of Harlem put up five runs in the second, and when Brooklyn answers with two in the fourth, the Lincolns tally three more in the home half of the frame for an 8-2 lead.  The Royal Giants add one in the sixth, then rally late with four runs in the top of the eighth to pull within one.  That is until the Lincolns put the game out of reach with three more runs in the home eighth en route to an 11-7 victory at the Camden City grounds, New Jersey. 

Winning pitcher Dick Redding strikes out eight (catcher putouts), and Brooklyn's Lefty Harvey takes the loss.

Royal Giant second baseman Bill Handy wields two hits and scored three runs while leading the infield with five assists.  Right fielder Charles Earle and first baseman Phil Bradley also collect two hits.

Catcher Louis Santop leads the Lincoln Giants with three hits.  Left fielder Blainey Hall and third baseman Johnny Pugh also wield two hits, and Cannonball Redding helps himself with a base hit and two runs scored.

GAME TWO

Philadelphia (PA) Inquirer, Sunday, September 27, 1914

Future Hall of Fame pitcher Smokey Joe Williams holds Camden City to a pair of runs with ten strikeouts for the win in an abbreviated eight-inning game.

OTD 9/22/1912: New York Lincoln Giants Sweep Twin Bill From Ridgewood Baseball Club at Wallace's Grounds

From the desk: THE KINGS OF HARLEM

The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Monday, September 23, 1912

On Sunday, September 22, 1912, the Ridgewood Baseball Club hosted the New York Lincoln Giants at Wallace's Ridgewood Grounds, Halsey Street, and Irving Avenue.

NEW YORK LINCOLN GIANTS

GAME ONE features future Hall of Famer Joe "Cyclone" Williams for the Lincoln Giants pitted against Wilson for Ridgewood.  Smokey Joe holds the home team scoreless through the first five innings.  Then yields single runs late in the sixth and eighth innings on ten total hits (only one for extra bases) and no walks with five strikeouts for the win.  Leadoff batter and center fielder Spottswood Poles tops the Giants with three hits, including a triple. Left fielder Judy Gans and catcher Pete Booker collects two hits each, and first baseman Bill Pettus homers for the Giants.  Shortstop John Henry Lloyd singled and scored and kickstarted one of two double plays.  

The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Monday, September 23, 1912

GAME TWO - New York knocks Ridgewood starter Doc Scanlan out of the box in the fifth after yielding ten runs on ten hits while further compromising his cause with seven walks and two wild pitches.  In relief of Scanlan, Smith allows three more runs on three hits over the final two innings of a seven-inning game.  The Lincoln Giants amass 13 hits.  Catcher Louis Santop and three others wield two each.  Judy Gans doubles, triples, and steals a base, and Spottswood Poles hit two home runs.  Ben Taylor enters the game as a late defensive replacement in right field.

The 1912 New York Lincoln Giants feature four future members of the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Once Upon A Summer 9/22/1918: Brooklyn Royal Giants Stage Doubleheader Versus New York Giant Players at Jersey City

From the desk: DEM BARNSTORMERS & THE DONALDSON NETWORK

Jersey Journal, Jersey City (NJ), via THE DONALDSON NETWORK

On Sunday, September 22, 1918, members of the New York Giants, playing under "Jersey City," hosted the Brooklyn Royal Giants in a doubleheader at the Culver Avenue and West Side Avenue ballpark, Hudson County, New Jersey. 

 

Jersey Journal, Jersey City (NJ), via THE DONALDSON NETWORK

This is the first time in the history of the Brooklyn Royal Giants they have faced a major league team.

• Jersey City Giants: Hal Chase, Art Fletcher, Larry Doyle, Jay Kirke, Joe Wilhoit, George Burns, Ollie O'Mara, Lew Wendell, Red Causey, Al Demaree.

• Brooklyn Royal Giants: John Henry "Pop" Lloyd, Louis Santop.

The first contest features midwestern star John Donaldson opposed by right-hander Al Demaree for the Giants.  Brooklyn is limited to no runs on just three hits.  John Donaldson yields seven runs on ten hits for the loss.

Game two is a more tightly contested affair pitting Irvin Brooks for Brooklyn versus rookie Red Causey for Jersey City.  In a seven-inning contest, Brooklyn and Causey duel through six scoreless innings.  The Jersey City hosts score in the top of the seventh, but the Royal Giants do not answer.  Right-hander Red Causey is the victor in a seven-inning shutout performance.  Irvin Brooks takes the hard-luck loss.

Jersey Journal, Jersey City (NJ), 

via THE DONALDSON NETWORK

⚾

Saturday, September 21, 1918

Kingsbridge Athletics vs. Brooklyn Royal Giants

DYCKMAN OVAL

The New York Herald, Friday, September 20, 1918

UNRESOLVED

⚾

BROOKLYN ROYAL GIANTS

ONCE UPON A SUMMER, 1918: JOHN DONALDSON'S LONE SEASON WITH THE BROOKLYN ROYAL GIANTS

• 6/28 - Brooklyn Royal Giants Acquire Midwest Pitching Great, John Donaldson
• 6/30 - John Donaldson Loses Brooklyn Royal Giants Debut To New York Lincoln Giants
• 7/3 - John Donaldson Poised To Make Brooklyn/Queens Debut At Dexter Park
• 7/4 - John Donaldson Twirls Shutout Over Cuban Stars In Dexter Park Debut
• 7/7 - Joe Williams Wins Second Straight Decision Over John Donaldson; Lincoln Giants and Royal Giants Split Twin Bill
• 7/13 - Brooklyn Royal Giants Defeat Glendale at Farmer's Oval, Queens
• 7/14 - John Donaldson Defeats Bushwick; Royal Giants Split Twin Bill At Dexter Park
• 7/15 - Brooklyn Royal Giants Take Series Opener From Atlantic City Bacharach Giants
• 7/16 - Brooklyn Royal Giants Take Game Two from Bacharach Giants; John Donaldson Earns The Victory
• 7/17 - Brooklyn Royal Giants Wrap Up Series With Bacharach Giants at Atlantic City
• 7/18 - N.Y. Ship League Team Defeat Brooklyn Royal Giants at Camden, New Jersey
• 7/21 - Cuban Stars Double-Up Brooklyn Royal Giants; John Donaldson Takes Loss at Dexter Park
• 7/24 - Brooklyn Royal Giants Bow To Stan Baumgartner and Bethlehem Steel at Allentown, PA
• 7/27 - Brooklyn Royal Giants Defeat Camp Dix Soldiers*
• 7/28 - Silk Sox Clout John Donaldson's Offerings; Brooklyn Royal Giants Fall at Doherty's Oval
• 8/3 - Brooklyn Royal Giants Defeat Prospect Heights at Hackensack*
• 8/4 - Brooklyn Royal Giants Forfeit Game To Glendale at Farmer's Oval
• 8/7 - Bethlehem Steel Team Hosts a Scoreless Tie Against Brooklyn Royal Giants
• 8/11 - New York Lincoln Giants and Royal Giants Split Twin Bill at Olympic Field; Joe "Cyclone" Williams Wins Opener, John Donaldson Wins Game Two
• 8/17 - New York Ship Wins Second Contest Against Brooklyn Royal Giants at Camden, N.J.
• 8/18 - The Tietjen & Lang Shipyard Nine Defeat John Donaldson and the Brooklyn Royal Giants, North Bergen, N.J.
• 8/24 - Morse Dry Dock BBC Defeat Royal Giants in John Donaldson's True Brooklyn Debut
• 8/25 - Irvin Brooks Twirls Shutout; Brooklyn Royal Giants Defeat Glendale at Farmer Oval, Queens
• 9/1 - New York Lincoln Giants Sweep Twin Bill From Royal Giants at Olympic Field; Joe "Cyclone" Williams Earns Dual Victory, John Donaldson Suffers Loss in Second Tilt
• 9/2 - Brooklyn Royal Giants and Cuban Stars Split Games of a Doubleheader at Dexter Park
• 9/4 - Southpaw John Donaldson Hands Camp Mills Their First Loss This Season; Brooklyn Royal Giants Win, 7 to 6
• 9/8 - John Donaldson's Return Match Against Morse Dry Dock Along Brooklyn Waterfront Likely Rained Out
• 9/12 - Brooklyn Royal Giants Defeat Glendale in Eleven Innings at Farmer's Oval, Queens
• 9/14 - Brooklyn Royal Giants Defeat Tietjen and Lang Club; John Donaldson and the Backdrop of WWI
• 9/15 - Bushwick Sweeps Both Ends of Doubleheader Against Brooklyn Royal Giants at Dexter Park

LHP - JOHN DONALDSON'S PITCHING RECORD w/ BROOKLYN:

1. 6/30/1918 - (L) 9 innings, 2 runs, 7 hits, 2 W, 2 K (Lincoln Giants; Olympic Field)
2. 7/4/1918 - (W) 9 innings, 0 RUNS, 5 hits, 1 W, 6 K (Cuban Stars; Dexter Park)
3. 7/7/1918 - (L) 9 innings, 3 runs, 9 hits, 2 W, 2 K (Lincoln Giants; Olympic Field)
4. 7/14/1918 - (W) 9 innings, 1 run, 7 hits, 1 W, 5 K (Bushwick; Dexter Park)
5. 7/16/1918 - (W) 9 innings, 4 runs, 14 hits, (?) W, 6 K* (Atlantic City; Bacharach Park, N.J.)
6. 7/21/1918 - (L) 9 innings, 6 runs, 10 hits, 4 W, 1 K (Cuban Stars; Dexter Park)
7. 7/28/1918 - (L) 9 innings, 9 runs, 16 hits, 2 W, 3 K (Silk Sox; Doherty's Oval, N.J.)
8. 8/11/1918 - (W) 9 innings, 2 runs, 13 hits, (?) W, (?) K (Lincoln Giants; Olympic Field)
9. 8/18/1918 - (L) 9 innings, 5 runs, 5 hits, (?) W, 4 K (Tietjen & Lang; Nurge's Field, N.J.)
10. 8/24/1918 - (L) 9 innings, 8 runs, 19 hits, 1 W, 2 K (Morse Dry Dock; Brooklyn)
11. 9/1/1918 - (L) 9 innings, 4 runs, 14 hits, (?) W, (?) K (Lincoln Giants; Olympic Field)
12. 9/2/1918 - (L) 2 innings, 1 run, 2 hits, 0 W, 1 K (Cuban Stars; Dexter Park)
13. 9/4/1918 - (W) 9 innings, 6 runs, 7 hits, (?) W, (?) K (Camp Mills, Garden City, NY)
14. 9/14/1918 - (W) No game account vs. Tietjen and Lang Ship Club (Nurge's Field, N.J.)
15. 9/22/1918 - (L) 9 innings, 7 runs, 10 hits, (?) W, (?) K (New York Giants, Jersey City)

• LINE: 119 innings, 58 runs, 138 hits, 13 walks, 31 strikeouts, 4.38 ERA 

BEDFORD & SULLIVAN PODCAST:

Restoring Baseball Great John Donaldson's Lost Legacy With Negro Leagues Historian and Founder of The Donaldson Network, Peter Gorton.

Minnesota native Peter Gorton leads a group of historians dedicated to discovering the lost legacy of John Wesley Donaldson.  In this episode, we discuss the man, baseball career, and life of one of the more incredible and inspiring athletes to ever play the game, and how his amazing legacy became lost to a nation, most particularly Baseball's Hall of Fame.  

Original airdate: March 13, 2021

  

Once Upon A Summer 6/30/1918: John Donaldson Loses Brooklyn Royal Giants Debut To New York Lincoln Giants

From the desk: DEM BARNSTORMERS & THE DONALDSON NETWORK

The Evening World (New York, New York), 

Saturday, June 29, 1918

New York Herald (New York, New York),

 Sunday, June 30, 1918

On Sunday, June 30, 1918, John Donaldson makes his much anticipated Brooklyn Royal Giants debut.  He is opposed by New York Lincoln Giants' starter Cyclone Joe Williams in the first game of a doubleheader at Olympic Field, Harlem.

GAME ONE - In an effective albeit losing effort, John Donaldson allows just one run on seven hits and two walks with two strikeouts through nine innings pitched and wields a hit at the plate.

Lincoln Giants' second baseman Sam Mongin and Joe Williams himself lead New York with two hits apiece, and as fate would have it, Smokey Joe also scores the lone run of the game.  Williams hurls a gem on the mound, surrendering just two hits and one walk with four strikeouts over nine scoreless innings pitched for the win.

Brooklyn's third baseman Oliver Marcell, first baseman Eddie Douglass, and John Henry "Pop" Lloyd account for the Royal Giants' only other hits.  Catcher Louis Santop twice reaches safely and steals two bases.

Brooklyn Royal Giants vs. New York Lincoln Giants

New York Herald (New York, New York), 

Monday, July 1, 1918

GAME TWO - Brooklyn's Irvin Brooks holds the Lincoln Giants to a single run in the fifth.  The Royal Giants score once in the first, twice in the second, and one last time in the third en route to a 4-1 victory.  With today's twin bill split, John Henry Lloyd's team holds a commanding five games to one series advantage against manager Joe Williams' Lincoln Giants.

• ICYMI: Once Upon A Summer 1918: Brooklyn Royal Giants Acquire Midwest Pitching Great, John Donaldson

BEDFORD & SULLIVAN PODCAST: Restoring Baseball Great John Donaldson's Lost Legacy With Negro Leagues Historian and Founder of The Donaldson Network, Peter Gorton.

Minnesota native Peter Gorton leads a group of historians dedicated to discovering the lost legacy of John Wesley Donaldson.  In this episode, we discuss the man, baseball career, and life of one of the more incredible and inspiring athletes to ever play the game, and how his amazing legacy became lost to a nation, most particularly Baseball's Hall of Fame.  

Original airdate: March 13, 2021.

OTD 6/9/1918: Brooklyn Royal Giants Sweep Double Header From Bushwick at Dexter Park

From the desk: DEM BARNSTORMERS & BROOKLYN SEMIPROS

The Brooklyn Citizen, Sunday, June 10, 1918

On Sunday, June 9, 1918, the Brooklyn Royal Giants swept a double-header from Bushwick at Dexter Park.

GAME ONE - Brooklyn Royal Giants' right-hander Tom Williams faces off against Van Essen for Bushwick.  Each offers a fine performance.  All runs are scored in the fourth inning.  With two on base in the top of the frame, Giants' right fielder Johnny Pugh doubles home two runs.  Otherwise, Van Essen yields seven hits on three walks with four strikeouts in a losing effort.  Tom Williams limits Bushwick to one run in the bottom of the frame scored by the right fielder, Crist.  Otherwise, Williams allows seven hits and four walks with four strikeouts for the win.  Shortstop Joe Hewitt accounts for three of Brooklyn's hits.

BROOKLYN ROYAL GIANTS

The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, June 10, 1918

GAME TWO - Royal Giants starter Irvin Brooks limits Bushwick to no runs and hits through the fifth.  That is until Bushwick erupts for six runs in the sixth to grab a 6-5 lead.  Brooklyn ties the game in the seventh.  The score remains unchanged through the tenth.  The Royal Giants then seize an 8-6 lead when center fielder Tom Fiall triples, driving home two runs.  Brooks allows four hits and five walks with four strikeouts in a six-inning effort for the win.  Right fielder Louis Santop lashes two hits with a stolen base; he played catcher in game one.

Times Union (Brooklyn, New York)

OTD 6/5/1917: Brooklyn Royal Giants Split Twin Bill With New York Lincoln Giants at Ridgewood Field

From the desk: DEM BARNSTORMERS

The Standard Union (Brooklyn, New York)

On Tuesday, June 5, 1917, the Brooklyn Royal Giants and New York Lincoln Giants split games of a doubleheader at Ridgewood Park, Irving Avenue at Halsey Street.

Game One features Cyclone Joe Williams pitching for New York pitted against String Bean Williams for Brooklyn.  No mound artistry in this game, as both teams join together for 31 total hits.  Joe Williams highlights New York's offensive by hitting for the cycle.  Center fielder and leadoff batter Spottswood Poles also connects on four hits, one for a double, with two runs scored.  Catcher Doc Wiley wields three hits.  Right fielder Blainey Hall and second baseman Ted Kimbro also register multiple hits.  All told, String Bean Williams allows 13 runs on 18 hits and no walks and no strikeouts in a losing effort.  Smokey Joe Williams allows Brooklyn eleven runs on 13 hits and seven walks with one strikeout for the chaotic win.  Center fielder Charles Earle leads Brooklyn with three runs scored.  Pearl Webster has two hits, including a double; second baseman Bill Handy and third baseman Bill Kindle also post multiple hits, including a triple each.

New York Lincoln Giants

Brooklyn Royal Giants

Game Two has New York right-hander Lee Wade opposed by Brooklyn's Lefty Harvey in a seven-inning affair.  The Royal Giants' southpaw limits the Lincoln Giants to just four hits.  After yielding three runs in the first, including extra-base hits from shortstop Dick Wallace and Ted Kimbro, Harvey hurls a gem over the final six innings, walking six and twice striking out Spottswood Poles for the win.  Brooklyn musters nine runs on ten hits and two base-on-balls facing Harvey, who strikes out four in a losing effort.  Playing first base, Louis Santop has a hit, a stolen base, and two runs scored.  Bill Kindle also scores two runs.  Pearl Webster, right fielder Johnny Pugh, and catcher Ernest Gatewood each post two hits apiece.