In 1884 the team joined the American Association (AA) as the Brooklyn Bridegrooms. The teams ambiguous future shattered instantaneously when they won the American Association in 1889.
The AA folded in 1890 and the team switched to the NL as the Brooklyn Superbas. Under Ned Hanlon, the Superbas won the NL pennants in 1899 and 1900, becoming the only franchise in MLB history to win pennants in different leagues in successive years.
From 1901 until 1916, the team saw various ups and downs. Hanlons desire to own the team never materialized. He put himself heavily in debt and even invested heavily for the construction of Ebbets Field, which would become the Dodgers’ home in 1913.
Under Manager Wilbert Robinson, popularly known as “Uncle Robbie, the Dodgers won pennants in 1916 and 1920 with the line-up featuring players like pitcher Jeff Pfeffer and outfielder Zack Wheat. The club lost both World Series, to Boston and Cleveland, respectively.
In the late 1920s the team became known as the “Daffiness Boys” for their distracted, error-ridden style of play, probably because of Robinsons helplessness to focus on the field after he...