1915 Chicago Whales
Record: 86-66 in
Federal League
Manager: Joe
Tinker
The Chicago Whales had finished just a game and a half behind Federal League champion Indianapolis in 1914, The next year, the last one for the Federal League, the Indianapolis franchise moved to Newark for financial reasons.
In its first season, the Federal League had developed a following with a tight pennant race. The same could be said for 1915. The race for the championship in 1915 turned into a three-way battle among Chicago, St. Louis and Pittsburgh.
Dutch Zwilling and Max Flack led the offensive surge for the Whales. Manager Joe Tinker found some pitching surprises in George McConnell, 37, and Three-Finger Brown, 38. McConnell led the league with 25 wins. Zwilling led all hitters with 94 runs batted in and Les Mann led the league with 19 triples.
At the end of the season, the Chicago Whales finished with a .001 percent victory over second-place St. Louis and a .004 percent lead over third place Pittsburgh. The Whales had played two fewer games during the season because of rainouts.
A "peace treaty" between organized baseball and the Federal League ended the FL after the 1915 season. That treaty was brokered by Judge Kennesaw Mountain Landis, the future commissioner of baseball.
Part of the treaty allowed the owner of the Chicago Whales to purchase the Chicago Cubs. That allowed some former Whales to appear with the Cubs.
Following the Federal League breakup, Tinker became manager of the Chicago Cubs in 1916. McConnell pitched for the Cubs in 1916, and finished his last season in baseball with a 4-12 record and 2.58 earned run average.
After playing in the Federal League in the 1914 and 1915 seasons, Flack went on to play in Major League Baseball until 1925. He hit .278 for his career with 25 home runs, 391 runs batted in and 200 stolen bases. Zwilling's career effectively ended in 1916 when he appeared in just 10 games for the Cubs.
Three-Finger Brown pitched in 48 innings for the Cubs in 1916. His career ended after that year. Joe Tinker was replaced as Cubs' manager in 1917