1872 Preview - Baltimore Canaries

It's a little surprising how little there is online about one of the National Association's more stable teams. The Canaries were referred to as Lord Baltimore in box scores of the time, and were also called the Yellow Stockings, which should give a pretty good indication of where "Canaries" came from. It's not completely clear whether they were a team formed to play in the 1872 NA, or whether they were a leading local club that just decided to put up the entry fee in 1872. Since few clubs of the 1870s were actually formed just to join the National Association (instead, the Association simply was something that existing clubs chose to enter), it seems like they'd been around before. However, unlike other teams of the era, there's not a clear record of other teams playing them on tours. (For example, both the Olympic and National clubs of DC hosted the 1869 Red Stockings when they visited, but there's no record of the Canaries doing so.)

At any rate, Baltimore was one of the more stable teams of the early 1870s, and one of the few new National Association teams to actually complete its schedule. Historically, they were quite good, finishing second in the Association. This was because they picked up quite a few established top players for the season, including Scott Hastings, Lip Pike, George Hall, Bill Craver, and Bobby Mathews. In the simulation, things turned out differently - Baltimore's pickups tended to be a lot more marginal, which will probably hurt their chances of competing in 1872.

P - Cherokee Fisher - Fisher, a drinking man, pitched for Rockford in 1871, and historically he did indeed end up in Baltimore for the 1872 campaign, where he again quickly wore out his welcome.
C - Tom Foley - Foley was the center fielder for the ill-fated Chicago club of 1871. Historically, he never played pro ball again. In the simulation, he hit only .248 for the season, so he was not particularly sought after in the offseason. However, for Baltimore he's the best of some mediocre choices as catcher.
1B - Denny Mack - He hit .321 in part-time duty with Rockford in 1871 in the simulation. Historically, he played for Philadelphia for 1872-74. He was also involved in alleged game-fixing, but for whatever reason he and the other players were not expelled from the league, and he went on to play through the mid-1880s, ultimately serving in the NA, the National League, and the American Association. He died at the age of 37 in 1888 after being "seized with a fit," according to the New York Times. That could mean a lot of things - epilepsy and/or alcoholism seem to be the most common in newspapers of the day.
2B - Bub McAtee - Historically, he returned to play for his hometown of Troy in 1872 (after spending 1871 in Chicago) for his final pro season. Hit .317 for Chicago in 1871 in the simulation, and was a solid player. He was strictly a first baseman, but Baltimore has no one better to play second, so he'll be learning a new position.
3B - Henry Kohler - He didn't play much as a professional, so little is known about him, but he was a Baltimore native who headed west to play for the Kekionga club in 1871. He didn't play much (in reality or the simulation), and returned home to Baltimore in 1872. (Again, this is true in both reality and the simulation.)
SS - Mart King - A native of Troy who played for Chicago in 1871, then historically returned home to Troy after the Fire of 1871. In the simulation, he managed to catch on with Baltimore, although it's not clear how well he'll do at shortstop, a position he did not play in reality.
LF - Al Barker - In reality he played in one game for Rockford in 1871. In the simulation he got into four. This is the quality of player Baltimore appears to be stuck with in 1872.
CF - Bob Armstrong - Last season, knowing nothing about him except his hometown of Baltimore, I inferred that he was one of the easterners lured to play for the Kekionga club. This sort of fits with his return to Baltimore. In the simulation he hit .263 for Kekionga.
RF - Joe Simmons - In reality he was a mediocre National Association outfielder who spent 1871 in Chicago, then played for a couple other teams over the next few years. He never played in Baltimore in reality, but he seems like a good fit for the club, in that he's adequate but really not very good. Hit .238 in 1871 in the simulation.

This club looks very, very weak for the 1872 season. Instead of finishing second as they did in reality, look for them to be at or near the bottom of the standings.