Atlantic League (1896–1900)
The Atlantic League was a minor league baseball league that operated between 1896 and 1900 in the Northeastern United States. It was the successor of the Pennsylvania State League, which had operated from 1892 to 1895. The name has subsequently been reused twice, for another short-lived league in 1914, and for a contemporary independent minor league.
History
League champions
Source:Teams
Notes:Source:
Results by season
Teams denoted in italics disbanded during the season.;1896
April 23–September 13
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
| Newark | 82 | 61 | .573 | — |
| Hartford | 73 | 56 | .566 | 1 |
| Paterson | 74 | 60 | .552 | 3.5 |
| New York / Philadelphia | 57 | 69 | .452 | 13 |
| Wilmington | 58 | 79 | .423 | 20 |
| Lancaster | 26 | 30 | .464 | N/A |
| New Haven | 21 | 38 | .356 | N/A |
;1897
April 26–September 19
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
| Lancaster | 90 | 45 | .667 | — |
| Newark | 89 | 52 | .631 | 4 |
| Hartford | 78 | 55 | .586 | 11 |
| Richmond | 71 | 59 | .546 | 16.5 |
| Norfolk | 66 | 72 | .478 | 25.5 |
| Paterson | 68 | 79 | .463 | 28 |
| Philadelphia | 49 | 89 | .355 | 43 |
| Reading | 40 | 100 | .286 | 51 |
;1898
April 25–September 10
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
| Richmond | 77 | 44 | .636 | — |
| Lancaster | 82 | 50 | .621 | 0.5 |
| Reading | 72 | 56 | .563 | 8.5 |
| Paterson | 65 | 70 | .481 | 19 |
| Allentown | 55 | 67 | .451 | 25.5 |
| Newark | 58 | 71 | .450 | 26 |
| Hartford | 57 | 76 | .429 | 29 |
| Norfolk | 47 | 79 | .373 | 35.5 |
;1899
April 27–August 6
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
| Richmond | 63 | 25 | .716 | — |
| Wiles-Barre | 49 | 37 | .570 | 13 |
| Lancaster | 51 | 42 | .548 | 14.5 |
| Reading | 46 | 40 | .535 | 16 |
| Allentown | 37 | 47 | .440 | 24 |
| Newark | 42 | 54 | .438 | 25 |
| Scranton | 25 | 38 | .397 | N/A |
| Paterson | 21 | 51 | .292 | N/A |
played for Allentown in 1900 and led the Atlantic League in batting with a.469 average.
;1900
April 30–June 14
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
| Scranton | 26 | 7 | .788 | — |
| Wiles-Barre | 24 | 13 | .649 | 4 |
| Reading | 16 | 16 | .500 | 9.5 |
| Allentown | 14 | 20 | .412 | 12.5 |
| Philadelphia / Harrisburg | 10 | 17 | .370 | 13 |
| Elmira | 11 | 19 | .367 | 13.5 |
| Newark | 8 | 12 | .400 | N/A |
| Jersey City | 7 | 12 | .368 | N/A |
Soby Cup
The Soby Cup, made of silver, was given to the league by tobacco businessman Charles Soby of Hartford, Connecticut, in September 1896. In its first season, the cup was to be awarded to the winner of a postseason series between the league's top two teams; in subsequent years, the holder of the cup would play a series against the league's top finishing team.Standings at the end of the 1896 season, which had Newark finishing first, were formally protested by the Paterson team, claiming that some of Newark's games were actually exhibitions. With that protest pending, the next two teams in the standings—Paterson and Hartford—arranged to play a series for the Soby Cup. Paterson won the seven-game series, four games to two. The protested standings were not ruled upon until the league's annual meeting in late November; despite inconsistencies in record-keeping, Newark was declared the pennant winner.
Following the 1897 season, the Soby Cup series should have been contested between Lancaster, that year's top team, and Paterson, who had won the cup in 1896. However, league officials decided to have the top two teams of 1897—Lancaster and Newark—play for the cup. After Lancaster and Newark could not agree to terms for a series, the Soby Cup was awarded to Lancaster, the pennant winner.
Prior to the 1898 season, the league abolished the postseason Soby Cup series, and returned to the cup to its donor. By 1951, the cup was at the Baseball Hall of Fame, where it remains as of 2019.