1894 Philadelphia Phillies season

In August 1894, the Phillies scored 312 runs, which still stands as the record in Major League Baseball for runs scored in a single month. Four of the team's outfielders hit over .400: Hall of Famers Sam Thompson, Ed Delehanty, and Billy Hamilton, plus reserve Tuck Turner.

The Phillies set the record for the highest team batting average for a single season, .349 according to Baseball Almanac or .350 according to Stathead.^[1][2]

On August 6, 1894, at 11:00 AM, while the players were practicing at the ballpark, a fire broke out in the pavilion. The players rushed to contain it but were quickly overwhelmed by the smoke. Within two hours, the fire had reduced the ballpark to charred wood and ashes.^[3] The grandstand and bleachers of the original stadium were destroyed inflicting $80,000 in damages, equivalent to $2.98 million in 2025, which was covered fully by insurance. The fire also spread to the adjoining properties, causing an additional $20,000 in damage, equivalent to $744,231 in 2025.^[4]

While the Phillies were playing a short road trip and staging six home games at the University of Pennsylvania Grounds at 37th and Spruce, a building crew worked around the clock erecting temporary bleachers. The makeshift stands were finished in time for the game on August 18. Following a fire which destroyed its ballpark on August 6, the Phillies played half a dozen home games at the University of Pennsylvania athletic field. The team was especially productive there, winning five of its six games, and outscoring its opponents 93 to 35, including one game it won 29 to 4.

The Phillies returned to Broad and Huntington for the August 18, 1894 game against Cleveland rebuilt with new bleachers. 5,500 fans paid admission of which 4,000 were seated in left field. The weather threatened rain otherwise a larger crowd would have been expected to see the Phillies win 11 to 6.^[5]