The 1901 Cleveland Bluebirds season was a season in American baseball. It was the franchise's first in the majors, being one of the original franchises of the American League. Unofficially known as the Blues, the team finished seventh out of eight teams.
The Cleveland Spiders were dissolved after winning only 20 games and losing 134 in the 1899 season along with the Louisville Colonels, Baltimore Orioles, and the Washington Senators, leaving the National League with eight teams to begin the 1900 season. As a result, 1900 marked the first year since 1886 during which the city of Cleveland did not have a team affiliated with Major League Baseball.
1900: A new franchise
, president of the Western League, changed the league's name to the American League in 1900, bringing aboard a new team in Cleveland, then known as the Cleveland Lake Shores, along with new Baltimore and Washington franchises, which would be created with or without the approval of the National League. During this time, Cleveland had a minor league baseball team, known as the Bluebirds or Blues due to their all-blue uniforms, which finished their season with a 63–73 record and finished sixth.
1901: Major league once more
The American League became a major league before the 1901 season. As the American League made the jump to major league status, many players jumped ship, including Cy Young and Nap Lajoie, which led the National League to call them an "outlaw league" in November 1900. As the 1901 season came underway in April, and as the war between the two leagues erupted, the Cleveland franchise, now known as the Blues, began its first official season as a Major League Baseball team.
On May 9, 1901, Earl Moore threw the first no-hitter in the history of the franchise and the American League. The Blues lost to Chicago by a score of 4–2 despite allowing no hits. On May 23, Cleveland scored nine runs with the bases empty and two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning to beat Washington 14–13.
June
July
August
September
Season standings
Record vs. opponents
Roster
Player stats
Key
Batting
Starters by position
Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases
Pos
Player
G
AB
R
H
2B
3B
Avg.
HR
RBI
SB
C
98
346
45
101
23
3
.292
1
49
6
1B
133
548†
81
166
22
9
.303
1
75
11
2B
135
539
78
156
26
8
.289
6†
79†
7
3B
133
516
95
151
28†
13†
.293
1
55
15
SS
93
329
33
70
11
3
.213
0
38
3
LF
86
343
60
110
14
7
.321†
0
32
9
CF
137†
547
102†
169†
25
6
.309
0
40
36†
RF
92
375
54
106
14
5
.286
0
39
13
Other batters
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases
Player
G
AB
R
H
2B
3B
Avg.
HR
RBI
SB
45
170
21
60
5
5
.353
1
24
15
39
139
13
31
5
0
.223
0
14
2
37
121
13
17
3
1
.140
0
6
2
26
101
15
23
5
0
.228
0
9
3
19
75
4
17
2
2
.227
0
10
0
18
71
9
18
3
1
.254
0
5
1
18
69
4
16
2
0
.232
0
3
0
5
19
2
4
0
0
.211
0
3
0
5
18
2
3
0
1
.167
0
2
0
3
7
0
1
0
0
.143
0
0
0
1
5
0
3
0
0
.600
0
0
0
1
4
0
0
0
0
.000
0
0
0
2
4
0
0
0
0
.000
0
0
0
1
4
2
2
0
0
.500
0
0
0
1
4
0
0
0
0
.000
0
0
0
1
2
0
0
0
0
.000
0
0
0
Note: pitchers' batting statistics not included
Pitching
Starting pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned Run Average; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks SO = Strikeouts
Player
G
GS
IP
W
L
ERA
R
ER
BB
K
33§
30*
256.1§
11
22
3.86
160§
110§
104
99*
31
30*
251.1
16§
14
2.90
129
81
107§
99*
20
19
157.2
7
11
3.77
109
66
57
48
17
16
124.2
6
6
4.40
82
61
38
23
12
12
100
4
8
6.21
94
69
31
18
12
10
85.1
5
5
4.43
68
42
30
15
6
6
48.1
1
5
4.84
42
26
30
12
4
3
32
1
2
4.78
28
17
15
1
1
1
8
0
1
5.63
13
5
6
0
Other pitchers
Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned Run Average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks SO = Strikeouts
Player
G
GS
IP
W
L
SV
ERA
R
ER
BB
K
16
10
99
3
8
3§
4.55
78
50
35
19
2
1
11.1
0
0
0
7.94
11
10
5
0
Relief pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned Run Average; IP = Innings pitched; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks SO = Strikeouts
