The Temple Cup was a trophy awarded to the winner of a post-season Major League Baseball Championship Series that was conducted for four seasons of the National League during the 1890s.

The cup was donated by William Chase Temple, one-time owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates. There was only one major league at the time, so the Series was played between the first- and second-place teams. Interest in the Series faded quickly, as it seemed artificial, especially with the second-place team winning too often. It would be nearly 100 years before a non-title winner would be allowed to participate in a major league post-season series, with the introduction of the wild card qualifiers in 1994.

Summary of Temple Cup Series:

• 1894: Baltimore 1st, New York 2nd - New York won Series, 4 games to 0
• 1895: Baltimore 1st, Cleveland 2nd - Cleveland won Series, 4 games to 1
• 1896: Baltimore 1st, Cleveland 2nd - Baltimore won Series, 4 games to 0
• 1897: Boston 1st , Baltimore 2nd - Baltimore won Series, 4 games to 1

Resource

• Glory Fades Away, by Jerry Lansche, 1991, Taylor Publishing, ISBN 0-87833-726-1

Baseball awards and trophies