1881 Season

8 teams competing in 2 leagues

The 1881 Major League Baseball season was played by 8 teams. Dan Brouthers led with 8 home runs, Cap Anson led with 82 RBI, and Cap Anson led with 137 hits. This page carries the 1881 standings, league leaders, and a link to every team's season.

W (Wins):
Games credited to a pitcher whose team took a lead it never surrendered while he was the pitcher of record.
L (Losses):
Games charged to the pitcher of record when the opposing team took a lead it never surrendered.
Win% (Winning Percentage):
Wins divided by games decided.
GB (Games Back):
How far a team trailed the division or league leader.

Data updated

📂 Quick Links

📊 Full Leaders 📋 Standings ⚾ Batting 🎯 Pitching

⏳ Browse Seasons

1871 1876 1880 1881 1882 1886 1891

⚾ Batting Leaders

1881 Home Run Leaders

Top 10 — click a bar to view the player.

Batting average and OPS list qualified hitters only: 3.1 plate appearances per team game — 260 plate appearances at 84 team games. Home runs, RBI, hits, runs and stolen bases are counting totals and list every player.

Batting Average qualified

1 Cap Anson .399 2 Joe Start .328 3 Fred Dunlap .325 4 Abner Dalrymple .323 5 King Kelly .323

OPS qualified

1 Cap Anson .952 2 Dan Brouthers .902 3 Charlie Bennett .819 4 Fred Dunlap .802 5 Tom York .790

Home Runs all players

1 Dan Brouthers 8 2 Charlie Bennett 7 3 Jack Farrell 5 4 Tom Burns 4 5 Lew Brown 3

RBI all players

1 Cap Anson 82 2 Charlie Bennett 64 3 King Kelly 55 4 Hardy Richardson 53 5 John Ward 53

Hits all players

1 Cap Anson 137 2 Abner Dalrymple 117 3 Buttercup Dickerson 116 4 Fred Dunlap 114 5 King Kelly 114

Runs all players

1 George Gore 86 2 King Kelly 84 3 Abner Dalrymple 72 4 Jim O'Rourke 71 5 Jack Farrell 69

Stolen Bases all players

1 Cap Anson 0 2 Ross Barnes 0 3 Charlie Bennett 0 4 Tommy Bond 0 5 George Bradley 0
View Complete Batting Stats →

🎯 Pitching Leaders

1881 Strikeout Leaders

Top 10 — click a bar to view the player.

ERA and WHIP list qualified pitchers only: 1 inning pitched per team game — 84 innings at 84 team games. Wins, strikeouts and saves are counting totals and list every pitcher.

ERA qualified

1 George Weidman 1.80 2 John Ward 2.13 3 George Derby 2.20 4 Larry Corcoran 2.31 5 Pud Galvin 2.37

WHIP qualified

1 George Weidman 1.04 2 Jim McCormick 1.08 3 Fred Goldsmith 1.13 4 Old Hoss Radbourn 1.15 5 John Ward 1.15

Wins all pitchers

1 Larry Corcoran 31 2 Jim Whitney 31 3 George Derby 29 4 Pud Galvin 28 5 Jim McCormick 26

Strikeouts all pitchers

1 George Derby 212 2 Jim McCormick 178 3 Jim Whitney 162 4 Lee Richmond 156 5 Larry Corcoran 150

Saves all pitchers

1 Bobby Mathews 2 2 John Morrill 1 3 Tommy Bond 0 4 George Bradley 0 5 Larry Corcoran 0
View Complete Pitching Stats →

📋 Standings

National League

Chicago White Stockings ★ 56-28 Providence Grays 47-37 Buffalo Bisons 45-38 Detroit Wolverines 41-43 Troy Trojans 39-45 Boston Red Caps 38-45 Cleveland Blues 36-48 Worcester Ruby Legs 32-50

The 1881 season in brief

The best record in the 1881 standings belonged to the Chicago White Stockings, who finished 56-28. The Worcester Ruby Legs finished at the bottom of the 1881 table at 32-50. In the 1881 standings, the Chicago White Stockings owned the National League with a 56-28 mark, the Providence Grays next at 47-37. No postseason series are recorded for 1881, so the page has no bracket. Dan Brouthers led the majors with 8 home runs, ahead of Charlie Bennett with 7. Cap Anson's .399 is the best average on the qualified board, with Joe Start next at .328. That 1881 rate board needs 260 plate appearances (84 team games times the per-game rule). The batting tiles keep returning to Cap Anson, first in batting average, OPS, RBI, hits, and stolen bases. Among qualified pitchers, George Weidman had the lowest ERA, 1.80; John Ward followed at 2.13. The other 1881 pitching tiles are led by Larry Corcoran in wins (31) and George Derby in strikeouts (212). Full batting and pitching tables are on the 1881 leaders page.

1881 MLB Season: Frequently Asked Questions

How many teams played in 1881?
8 teams played in the 1881 major league season.
Who led MLB in home runs in 1881?
Dan Brouthers led with 8 home runs in 1881.
Who led MLB in RBI in 1881?
Cap Anson led with 82 RBI in 1881.
Who led MLB in hits in 1881?
Cap Anson led with 137 hits in 1881.
All Seasons