Early in the season, Baltimore sold Brouthers to the Louisville Colonels for $500, as his skills seemed to have diminished, and he only played in 24 of Louisville's games that season; he came back to hit .309 for them, ending the year with a .300 overall mark. Following the season, Louisville sold him to the Philadelphia Phillies for $500, where he played in 57 games in , batting .344. It was his last season in the majors until he appeared for the New York Giants, where he was hitless in a two-game stint before retiring.