Year In Review : 1894 National League
Off the Field…
Thomas Edison’s corporation established the first motion-picture studio, featuring his newest invention, "The Kinetograph". Soon after, the first peephole Kinetoscope parlor opened at 1155 Broadway in New York City where spectators could watch Edison’s short films for 25˘. A few years later, people watched movies in theaters on big movie screens using a modern projector approach. To this day, the motion picture is still considered one of Edison’s top three contributions to society along with his electric light system and the phonograph.
In the National League…
On May 30th, Boston Beaneater Bob Lowe became the first player ever to hit four home runs in a single game. All four were hit over the wall off Cincinnati’s Elton Chamberlain as Boston went on to a 20-11 victory. Teammate Hugh Duffy capped off a phenomenal season (under modern rules) after posting a .440 batting average, a .690 slugging average, eighteen home runs, one-hundred forty-five runs batted in, fifteen triples and fifty-one doubles. Unfortunately his team finished in third place behind the Baltimore Orioles and New York Giants.
In a game between Princeton and Yale, George Case and Dutch Carter invented the squeeze play eight years before it debuted in the major leagues.
The Philadelphia Phillies outfield finished the season with a cumulative .400 batting average – the best ever from a single team. Sam Thompson hit .404, Ed Delahanty posted an even .400 and Billy Hamilton followed close behind with a .399. The next best outfield came from the Detroit Tigers in 1925 who combined for a .380 average.
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