New York Mutuals

History

The New York Mutuals began as a team made up of firefighters from the city's Mutual Hook and Ladder Company Number One. In 1864, political boss William "Boss" Tweed took over the club and ran it until his arrest after the deadly riots of 1871 and the subsequent exposure of his corruption. Tweed is credited with inventing spring training; he sent the Mutuals to New Orleans to prepare for the 1869 season. The team originally played at Elysian Fields in Hoboken alongside the New York Knickerbockers and other Manhattan clubs, but moved to the enclosed Union Grounds in Brooklyn in 1868. Despite being called "New York," they never played a home game in Manhattan, which was then considered the entirety of New York City. The Mutuals embraced open professionalism in 1869–70 after the National Association of Base Ball Players relaxed its rules. They joined the National Association from 1871 to 1875. In 1876, the Chicago White Stockings founded the National League, recruiting teams from west to east partly to challenge Eastern control of professional baseball. The Mutuals were one of eight charter members, six of whom came from the National Association. The club was weak, finishing sixth with a 21–35 record, and was cash-strapped. It refused to finish its scheduled games in the West and was expelled. On May 13, 1876, the Mutuals turned the first triple play in major-league history against the Hartford Dark Blues. Union Grounds owner William Cammeyer, often listed as the Mutuals' owner, signed the Hartford Dark Blues to play at his ballpark in 1877. That team effectively replaced the defunct Mutuals for one season and was sometimes called "Hartford of Brooklyn."