Charlie Buffington went 48-16 at age 23, his third professional season

     Fair to say most of us do not know much about professional baseball before 1900. The major leagues are only counted since the turn of the 20th century from the 19th. A lot of people know little about the game in general, or do not know much before the year 2000. Hank Aaron passed away not too long ago; he was a seminal figure who made big baseball history in 1974, before most people on the planet currently were born, now into the third decade of the 21st century. The United States and Canada baseball are a part of our lives, whether we participate or pay attention or not. If you did not consider Henry Aaron, Hammerin' Hank, a large part of American history, and who we are as a people, then I suggest that we read a little more American history. Ruth, Aaron, Bonds. The last one introduces the modern day conundrum of chemicals and cheating. Befitting the 21st century, all the intrigue and greed.

Baseball has never been bereft of cheating, graft, hate, or racism. But much of it has been pure, nonetheless.

 

    Baseball defines America, in my opinion; we have a lot of other foreign partners in the sport now. Baseball is not the flashiest nor the fastest paced sport, but it allows us to focus on a few things, and prosper. Throw hard. Swing wisely. Be in the right position. Practice. Smile and have a good time, win or lose. Smell the grass, enjoy the outdoors. Enjoy the family time, or pore over stats in your own quite hours...

Root, root, root! for the home team.

    Americana. Some will eat, some will drink, some bring their gloves to catch a fly ball. Organs chortle and public announcers emit their comments over loudspeakers or on the radio. Entertainers makes us play silly games between innings, or give away free prizes. Fireworks ensue on warm, late nights. The minor leagues have their own world, as well as the college venues.

Millions dream of the big time majors, where millions of dollars and fame and fortune are at stake.

Fields of dreams lie across the continent, and now the world. The Far East is dotted with diamonds and traditions and amazing talent, as well as the Caribbean and parts of Mexico, Central America, and into Colombia and Venezuela. Parts of Europe have tried to develop their clubs and teams. Some Asian Indians have been scouted and played America's pastime. 

We play it across the American landscape, especially in the suburbs.

Even some girls go far in the sport of boys, where some push the talent into the world of the grown up men.

History beckons us with the voices, sights, sounds, of baseball. Memories and statistics, legends and songs. Joe Dimaggio, Lou Gehrig, the Babe, the Mick, Willie Mays and Roberto Clemente. These names resonate with us over the decades and centuries. Clemente, an angelic Puerto Rican Black man dying while delivering aid to Nicaragua. Gehrig, with a rare disease named for him. Dimaggio, made more famous through folk music of Simon and Garfunkel. Eternalized, these baseball giants, their names and mentions evoking poetry and nostalgia. We all deeply empathize with Mighty Casey, at the bat, but he did not even exist. He is us, like Charlie Brown pitching from the mound and losing all his clothes. We empathize with ball players, even from one hundred years ago.

In 1884, long before most of us knew or cared about a game with a leather ball and wooden bats, there was a young man named Charlie Buffington who accomplished a rather astounding feat: he won 48 games that year. He also lost 16, appearing in 67 total that season. 5 no-decisions.

1884.

 

   A decade before some of my long, lost great grandparents were born, close to 20 years after the tragic U.S. Civil War, and before all the segregation of the Black players from America's game (there was a Black player that played with the rest in the 1800s, I think), in a decade when most of us Americans would be hard pressed to name a single U.S. president or personality from those years. Cleveland? Edison? Twain? Likely those three, although Thomas Edison would still wait to be better known. Maybe Samuel Clemens was not as popular by then as well. 

 

   The northeast United States had its first paid baseball teams in industrial cities like Boston and Philadelphia, with colorful nicknames like the Cincinnati Red Stockings. Boston's team, would eventually become the Braves, but were first baptized the Beaneaters.

Buffington was a Beaneater, and he won 48 games. In one calendar year.

That is hard to beat. I have to do more research, but that might be the record.

48 wins!

Growing up in the 1970s and 80s, I observed baseball at the major league level and sometimes an ace thrower might win somewhere in the mid-twenties, and might have the chance to win 30 by the end of the season. But inevitably it would not happen. A modern day pitcher is lucky to get 40 starts in a season, let alone close to forty wins. I don't know the last time a major leaguer won 30 decisions in a season. Pitchers as starters do not pitch as much per game as they used to, and earn less wins and losses because of it. Middle relievers and other closers have become the norm. A starter, even a great one, can go weeks without pitching into the 8th, let alone the 9th inning. And he can still receive no decisions if the game is tied as he leaves.

I scanned around the other major game winners of the all time list, some having many more career wins than Buffington, some with much more popular names: Cy Young, Warren Spahn, Walter John,Christy Mathewson. The most wins that I saw for any of them at their best years were 37 wins. 37 is a ton.

A far cry from 48.

Buffington was done with baseball by 1892, at the decent age of 31. His 233 career wins, with about six teams, over 11 years may not have paid many of life's bills; he probably had to get some real 33s birth year was 1861, the first year of the Civil War. Born where he died, perhaps the same house?

Charlie, the record breaker.

Another American in the sport of legends, the game of hot summers and cool autumns, of popcorn and ice cream, leather gloves and long fly balls.

And history.