The 1882 major league baseball season was contested from May 1 through October 2, 1882. It was the inaugural season for the American Association (AA) and seventh season for the National League (NL). The Cincinnati Red Stockings won the AA pennant, while the Chicago White Stockings won the NL pennant. There was no postseason.
The American Association was established as a six-team league in cities not represented by the National League. The AA was established with the expectation that it would have more of a "liberal policy" and better labor relations, threatening the puritanical NL, which itself had formal behavior codes with associated policies and procedures and a blacklist for players who did not comply to said rules. The AA also refused to recognize the NL's reserve lists.
Three of the six teams of the American Association survive to this day as National League teams; the Cincinnati Red Stockings, Pittsburgh Alleghenys, and St. Louis Brown Stockings are today's Cincinnati Reds, Pittsburgh Pirates, and St. Louis Cardinals.
The 1882 season was the last for the Troy Trojans and Worcester Worcesters.
The 1882 schedule consisted of 80 games for all teams in the six-team American Association, and 84 games for all teams in the eight-team National League. Each American Association team was scheduled to play 16 games against the other five teams, while each National League was scheduled to play 12 games against the other seven teams. The 80-game format was unique to the American Association's 1882 season. Meanwhile, the National League had been playing their 84-game schedule, since , though 1882 would be their last. The following season would see both leagues take on a 98-game format, playing 14 games each against their seven opponents.
National League Opening Day took place on May 1 featuring all eight teams, while American Association Opening Day took place on May 2, featuring all six teams. The National League would see its final day of the regular season on October 2 featuring a game between the Boston Red Caps and Providence Grays, while the American Association would see its final day of the regular season on October 1, featuring a game between the Louisville Eclipse and St. Louis Brown Stockings.
The 1882 season saw the following rule changes:
An asterisk (*) denotes the ballpark a team played the minority of their home games at
5 tie games (1 in AA, 4 in NL), which are not factored into winning percentage or games behind (and were often replayed again) occurred throughout the season (though in the National League, standings were determined by total wins, not winning percentage).
The Baltimore Orioles and Pittsburgh Alleghenys had one tie game each.
The Detroit Wolverines had three tie games. The Cleveland Blues and Troy Trojans had two tie games each. The Boston Red Caps had one tie game.
Any team shown in indicates a previous team a player was on during the season.
The 1882 season saw the formation of the American Association, and with it, saw six new major league teams in six ballparks:
The Troy Trojans leave Haymakers' Grounds (where they played for two seasons) and move to the Troy Ball Clubs Grounds, where they would play until they folded at the end of the season.
The Troy Trojans continue to host a few games at Riverside Park in nearby Greenbush, New York, playing their first three home games of the season, May 16âÂÂ18, as well as a fourth game on game 1 of a doubleheader May 30 at the park.
The 1882 season saw three teams play their final games at respective ballparks, before moving to new ballparks for the season.