DAN BROUTHERS
First Baseman, 1886-1888
"Big Dan"
-- Detroit Wolverines --
--Class of 1890--
Bats - Left
Throws - Left
Born - 5/8/1858
Died - 8/2/1932
Biography:
After five years of ineptitude, glory on the diamond was brought to Detroit in the only way they knew how: cold hard cash. For $8,000, the Detroit Wolverines likely purchased themselves the city's first and only N.L. pennant in the fall of 1885. For that tidy sum, Detroit president Fredrick Kimball Stearns purchased the entire Buffalo club, with first baseman Dan Brouthers being the crown jewel of the franchise. Brouthers didn't disappoint. He batted .338 with a .543 slugging percentage during his three-year career in the pre-Motor City, slugging 32 homers and driving in 239 in the process. He led the National League with 40 doubles, 11 home runs, and a .581 slugging percentage in 1886. He followed up that magical season with a .338 batting average, .562 slugging percentage, and an N.L.-leading 153 runs scored and 36 doubles to help lead the Wolverines to the city's first ever World Championship. He was sidelined for much of the 15-game World Series that season due to an ankle injury, but despite that setback the Wolverines beat the American Association's St. Louis Browns 10 games to five. Credited for coining the phrase "keep your eye on the ball," Brouthers once reportedly knocked out a fan with a home run shot. "Big Dan" was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1945.
Hitting:
Code:
Year Ag Tm Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ TB SH HBP
1886 28 DTN NL 121 489 139 181 40 15 11 72 21 66 16 .370 .445 .581 206 284
1887 29 DTN NL 123 500 153 169 36 20 12 101 34 71 9 .338 .426 .562 169 281 6
1888 30 DTN NL 129 522 118 160 33 11 9 66 34 68 13 .307 .399 .464 174 242 12
YR From To G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG SB CS OPS+
TOTALS 3 1886 1888 373 1511 410 510 109 46 32 239 205 38 .338 .423 .534 89 0 182