Rockford Forest Citys
One-season National Association club from Rockford, Illinois.
They were among the earliest professional clubs and competed for a single season in the National Association's inaugural year. The team is distinct from the Cleveland Forest Citys, who also played in the same league.
Quick Facts
- City
- Rockford, Illinois
- Official name
- Forest City Club
- League
- National Association
- Seasons played
- 1
Facts from the source article.
1871 season
Rockford ended the 1871 season in last place with 4 wins and 21 losses, 15½ games behind the champion Philadelphia Athletics. Their poor record was partly due to player-manager Scott Hastings violating the league's "60 day rule," which required a player switching teams during the season to be benched for 60 days. Hastings had moved from the independent Lone Star club of New Orleans to the Forest Citys in the spring and began playing immediately. The league forced Rockford to forfeit four games they had won, including a June 15 contest that occurred one day before Hastings would have been eligible. Two of those forfeits were against the first-place Athletics, who finished two games ahead of both the Boston Red Stockings and the Chicago White Stockings, making Rockford's Hastings decision a significant factor in the pennant race. The team's star was Cap Anson, who batted .325 in 1871 and later became player-manager of the Chicago White Stockings for over 20 seasons; Anson was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1939.
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