Earned Run Average : 1890 National League Top 25

Finding the American or National League leader in virtually every hitting & pitching statistic is easy-to-do. Finding the top 25 players during any given season is far more challenging. Baseball Almanac has taken away that difficult problem and is pleased to present the data you requested:

"Maybe I missed my routine and my game so much that I was trying to rationalize reasons for getting it back. I wanted those 162 games. I wanted all the suspense of the playoff and home run races. And I honestly didn't believe baseball would bend far enough to allow the possibility of games in November. I was wrong. And baseball was right." - Paul White in USA Today Baseball Weekly (September 14, 2001)
 

1890 Earned Run Average Leaders

Top 25 in the National League

Billy Rhines 1.95 (1.9510) Cincinnati Reds 1
Kid Nichols 2.23 (2.2288) Boston Beaneaters 2
Tony Mullane 2.24 (2.2392) Cincinnati Reds 3
Amos Rusie 2.56 (2.5589) New York Giants 4
Kid Gleason 2.63 (2.6324) Philadelphia Phillies 5
Bill Hutchinson 2.70 (2.7015) Chicago Colts 6
Tom Lovett 2.78 (2.7823) Brooklyn Bridegrooms 7
Jack Sharrott 2.89 (2.8859) New York Giants 8
Jesse Duryea 2.92 (2.9234) Cincinnati Reds 9
Adonis Terry 2.94 (2.9432) Brooklyn Bridegrooms 10
Mickey Welch 2.99 (2.9863) New York Giants 11
Bob Caruthers 3.09 (3.0900) Brooklyn Bridegrooms 12
Charlie Getzien 3.19 (3.1886) Boston Beaneaters 13
Pat Luby 3.19 (3.1943) Chicago Colts 14
John Clarkson 3.27 (3.2663) Boston Beaneaters 15
Tom Vickery 3.44 (3.4398) Philadelphia Phillies 16
Cy Young 3.47 (3.4740) Cleveland Spiders 17
Ed Stein 3.81 (3.8091) Chicago Colts 18
Ed Beatin 3.83 (3.8328) Cleveland Spiders 19
Lee Viau 3.88 (3.8832) Cincinnati Reds 20
Cleveland Spiders  
Frank Foreman 3.95 (3.9479) Cincinnati Reds 21
Phenomenal Smith 4.06 (4.0645) Philadelphia Phillies 22
Pittsburgh Alleghenys  
Dave Anderson 5.09 (5.0890) Philadelphia Phillies 23
Pittsburgh Alleghenys  
Jack Wadsworth 5.20 (5.1984) Cleveland Spiders 24
Kirtley Baker 5.60 (5.6019) Pittsburgh Alleghenys 25



The first player from the Angels franchise (they were the California Angels at the time) to wear the number twenty-five was Bob Perry.

Did you know that more than forty players have worn the number twenty-five for the Boston Red Sox — including Jack Clark, Denny Galehouse, Dizzy Trout and Tony Conigliaro.

Jose Cruz of the Houston Astros had his number twenty-five retired on October 3, 1992, and became the first Major League player with that particular retired number.