The Chase for the "Triples Crown"

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The Spring 2018 issue of the American Association Almanac was published a few weeks ago, the fiftieth edition of the publication which began as the American Association Newsletter in 2001. The subject for this hallmark issue revolves around the top triples hitting teams of the Association. Spanning the years of the "original" American Association, 1902 to 1962, this survey presents a detailed statistical view of the trends and highlights of triples production for the league as a whole. The content develops into a focus on the triples production for each team, highlighting the seasons during which each team led the circuit in three-baggers. Key player performances are illuminated allowing the reader to make connections between names both familiar and unfamiliar.

The cover for the Spring 2018 edition of the American Association Almanac features an interior view of Milwaukee's ancient Borchert Field, built in 1888, from a postcard originally published around 1950.


This 30,000-word issue contains a variety of highlights for fans of minor league baseball history. For example, three teams shared the spotlight as leaders of the league's "triples crown." These three teams led the league in triples production for 13 seasons, each with its own unique "footprint" which provides insight into the evolution of the team's offensive production. It was found that each of the league's eight clubs had its own phases, often distinct, which formed a pattern. These patterns are useful for historians to identify those "feast or famine" periods which can be studied. This Almanac breaks new ground with respect to the topic of triples production with respect to minor league history. The author is unaware of any previous such treatment covering the topic of triples production at the major league level.

The table of contents for the Spring 2018 edition of the American Association Almanac. The extensive use of graphics for this issue helps illuminate the statistical depth explored within its pages.


In order to get a better idea of the contents of this ground-breaking issue, a few sample pages are provided below. Each page shows a unique feature of the treatment for the subject matter and gives a sense of how the data are organized and presented. Most notable is the summary for each team's history as a triples hitter, shown in the final example of the team history for Columbus.

This sample provides an example of general content, allowing the reader to get a sense of how the layout is handled for the presentation of the subject matter. A total of 17 footnotes appear throughout this issue.





This sample provides examples of the numerous graphics, tables and charts, used for highlighting key information.


The sample shown here gives the reader an idea of how the subject matter introduces each team's triples-hitting history.

Notable here is the team history's summary of triples hitting employed for each team.

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The American Association Almanac is a one-man show. The entirety of its contents is written and researched by:

Rex Hamann
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