Kid Nichols (1949)


Date of Birth: 9/14/1869
Date of Death: 4/11/1953
Birthplace: Madison, Wisconsin

Kid Nichols started his professional baseball career in the minor leagues in 1887, playing for Kansas City in the Western League. The following year, he played for Memphis in the Southern League and for Kansas City in the Western Association. In 1889, he continued in the Western Association, playing for Omaha.

Boston Beaneaters/Braves

Nichols signed with the Boston Beaneaters/Braves in 1889. In 1890, his first season in the major leagues, Nichols pitched in 48 games with a 27-19 record, 222 strikeouts to 112 walks, and a 2.23 ERA. He led the National League in shutouts with seven.

In 1891, Nichols struck out a career high 240 batters and he walked 103. He had 30 wins and 17 losses and a 2.39 ERA in 425.1 innings in 52 games.

Nichols had highs in games played, innings pitched, and wins in 1892. He finished the season with 35 wins and 16 losses, 187 strikeouts to 121 walks, and a 2.84 ERA in 453.0 innings in 53 games.

Nichols' ERA went up to 3.54 in 1893 and to 4.75 in 1894. He had a 34-14 record in 425.0 innings in 52 games in 1893. That year, he walked more batters than he struck out (94 strikeouts to 118 walks). He led the NL in shutouts in 1894 with three. He finished the season with 32 wins and 13 losses in 407.0 innings in 50 games. He again walked more batters than he struck out (113 strikeouts to 121 walks).

In 1895, Nichols had more control of his pitches, striking out 140 batters while walking 86. He had 26 wins and 16 losses and a 3.41 ERA in 379.2 innings in 47 games.

Nichols led the NL in wins in 1896, 1897, and 1898. He finished the 1896 season with 30 wins and 14 losses, 102 strikeouts to 101 walks, and a 2.83 ERA in 372.1 innings in 49 games. He had an even better season in 1897, leading the NL in wins and innings pitched. He finished the season with 31 wins and 11 losses, 127 strikeouts to 68 walks, and a 2.64 ERA in 368.0 innings in 46 games. He kept improving and in 1898, he led the NL in wins and games played. He again had 31 wins (to 12 losses), 138 strikeouts to 85 walks, and a 2.13 ERA in 388.0 innings in 50 games.

Nichols numbers weren't as good in 1899, when he finished with 21 wins and 19 losses, 108 strikeouts to 82 walks, and a 2.99 ERA in 343.1 innings in 42 games. The following year, his ERA went up to 3.07 with 13 wins and 16 losses in 231.1 innings in 29 games. He had control issues, walking 72 batters and striking out just 53. He led the NL in shutouts in 1900 with four.

In 1901, his last season with the Beaneaters, Nichols had a 3.22 ERA in 321.0 innings in 38 games. He had 19 wins and 16 losses, and he struck out 143 batters and walked 90. He left the Beaneaters in 1902 to become a pitcher, manager, and part owner of a minor league team.

Final Years as a Player

After two seasons in the minors, Nichols returned to the majors in 1904 as player-manager with the St. Louis Cardinals. That year he had a career low ERA of 2.02.

In 1905, after pitching in seven games, Nichols was placed on waivers by the Cardinals and claimed by the Philadelphia Phillies. He ended his career with the Phillies, playing in 17 games with them in 1905 and in just 4 games in 1906, his last season in the major leagues.

MLB Records

  • Led the NL in wins (3 times)
  • Led the NL in shutouts (3 times)

Career Statistics

Statistics for Nichols in 15 seasons (1890-1901, 1904-1906) in the major leagues include:

  • 11 seasons with over 20 wins, with highs of 34 in 1893 and 35 in 1892
  • 3 seasons with over 150 strikeouts, with a high of 240 in 1891
  • 8 seasons with an ERA under 3.00, with a low of 2.02 in 1904

Career pitching statistics for Nichols include:

  • 620 games played
  • 5,056.1 innings pitched
  • 361-208 win-loss record
  • 1,868 strikeouts to 1,268 walks
  • 2.95 ERA

Post Playing Years

After retiring as a major league player, Nichols, who was a champion bowler, owned bowling alleys in the Kansas City area. He died from cancer on April 11, 1953.

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Kid Nichols
ESPN - Kid Nichols
Baseball Reference - Kid Nichols

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