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Tim Keefe won 342 games during his 14-year Major League career. He was the second 300-game winner in big league history and retired #2 on the all-time wins list. He broke into the majors in 1880 along with fellow rookie and eventual 300-game winner Mickey Welch.

The Troy roster was stocked with five future Hall of Famers. In addition to the pair of aces, the Trojans boasted three position players who wound up in cooperstown.

Five-time batting champion Dan Brouthers held down first base; across the diamond at third was baseball’s career home run leader from 1895-1921 Roger Connor. Behind the plate was the greatest catcher of the 19^th century Buck Ewing.

Keefe and Welch not only broke in during the same year, they also entered the 300-win club together. Keefe won his 300^th game in June of 1890, while Welch tallied his a month later.

In the collection is this letter from Troy Trojans team president and owner Gardner Earl. Dated October 12, 1880, the same year as the pitchers debuted, the letter was sent to National League President William Hulbert, himself a Cooperstown man. Baseball correspondence from the 1800s remain difficult to find. Such documents involving team owners and Hall of Famers remain absorbed into collections and are rarely seen or available.

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With Hall of Famer Harry Wright as their manager, the Boston Red Stockings faced the Troy Trojans on 9/29/1881. On the hill was Hall of Fame pitcher Tim Keefe on the hill.

In the collection is Wright’s scorecard from that day filled out entirely in his hand. He has also penned his initials “HW” in the space provided to identify the scorekeeper. Along with Keefe who batted eighth in the Troy lineup is Roger Connor who was the career home run leader before the emergence of Babe Ruth.

Born before the start of the US Civil War, Keefe’s signature remains elusive for even the most advanced collectors. His autograph is not yet in the collection.

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Turning to the Boston side of Harry Wright’s scorecard we see the Red Stockings lineup. Wright guided his club to a 10-3 win over the Trojans with Hall of Fame pitcher Tim Keefe taking one of his 27 losses that season.

Keefe quickly turned things around as he averaged more than 35 wins per season from 1883-1889, posting a total of 250 wins during the seven-year run.

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Leading the league in wins, ERA and strikeouts is no small feat. Since the National League was founded in 1876, just 16 hurlers have done so to earn the pitching Triple Crown.

Tim Keefe is one of five twirlers to accomplish the feat in the 19th century. Keefe’s 1888 season was masterful. He posted league-leading totals in wins (35), ERA (1.74), strikeouts (335), shutouts (8), WHIP (0.937).

The third NL pitcher to capture the pitching crown, Keefe was preceded only by Tommy Bond (1877), and Hoss Radbourn (1884).

Shown here is the the sterling silver lifetime pass issued to Bond. A serious candidate for Cooperstown, Bond is the only man to tally three consecutive 40-win seasons. He finished his career with 234 victories and a 2.14 ERA.

Cy Young earned the first pitching triple crown in AL history; Tommy Bond was first in NL

In the American League’s inaugural season Cy Young topped all hurlers in wins (33), ERA (1.62), and strikeouts (158). By doing so, he became the Junior Circuit’s first winner of the pitching triple crown.

Though it was the AL’s first, the National League already had five such seasons under its belt. Before Cy’s performance, Tommy Bond earned the first NL crown in 1877 followed by Old Hoss Radbourn (1884), Tim Keefe (1888), John Clarkson (1889), Amos Rusie (1894).

Shown here is Tommy Bond’s lifetime pass to all big league games.

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When Tim Keefe retired in 1893, his 342 career wins were second all-time. Only Pud Galvin had more. Today more than a century after Keefe threw his last pitch, his win total remains in the top-10 in big league history. One of the pitchers now ahead of Keefe’s on the list is the great Christy Mathewson.

In the collection is this letter written by Mathewson’s primary catcher, Chief Myers. It’s dated May 19, 1914 the same day Matty won his 342nd game to tie Keefe. On Goldsmith’s Sons Sporting Goods letterhead, Meyers writes, “In the game today, with the Cincinnati club with Mathewson pitching, I used the Model C.M. Catcher’s Mitt, made for me by your firm yesterday”

“In my many years of experience, I have never had a Catchers Mitt that I could use without extensive breaking in.

“The perfect balance, deep pocket, and excellent leather make it The Finest Mitt I have ever caught with.”

Working on three days rest, Matty threw a complete game – his fourth in the last 23 days – to gain the decision. By the time he retired, Mathewson would tally 373 victories – a total equaled by Pete Alexander and surpassed only by Cy Young (511), and Walter Johnson (417).