Highlighted Year: Charlie “Kid” Nichols, 1901

Pitcher, Boston Beaneaters

 

Age: 32 (Sept. 14)

12^th season with Beaneaters

Bats – Both, Throws – Right

Height: 5’10” Weight: 175 

Prior to 1901:

A native of Madison, Wisconsin, Charles Nichols first began playing baseball there along with his brothers. Moving to Kansas City with his family, around 1885 he began to play regularly for amateur teams prior to joining the Kansas City Cowboys of the Western League in 1887 where the 17-year-old pitcher posted an 18-12 record and 3.37 ERA with 30 complete games and 65 strikeouts over 269.2 innings. Looking young and physically unimpressive with a slender physique, he received the enduring nickname “Kid” from his older teammates. Despite his mound success, the Cowboys didn’t seek to re-sign him for 1888, and he joined the Memphis Grays of the Southern League where he produced a 11-8 tally and 2.28 ERA before the league dissolved in June. The next month he returned to Kansas City and joined the city’s other Western League club, the Blues, where he finished out the season by going 16-2 with a 1.14 ERA and 89 strikeouts over 158.1 innings. Signing with Omaha of the Western Association in 1889, Nichols produced an outstanding 39-8 record and 1.75 ERA with 47 complete games, 8 shutouts, and 368 strikeouts over 438 innings pitched. Moving along to the Boston Beaneaters along with manager Frank Selee in 1890, Nichols continued to perform impressively in his rookie major league season by compiling a 27-19 tally and 2.23 ERA with 47 complete games, 7 shutouts, and 222 strikeouts over 424 innings. Relying on a fastball and curve delivered with excellent control from a simple windup, Nichols excelled again in 1891 with a 30-17 record and 2.39 ERA with 45 complete games, 5 shutouts, and 240 strikeouts over 425.1 innings. The Beaneaters prospered by winning three straight pennants from 1891 to ’93 and Nichols contributed 30-win seasons in each of those years. He went 35-16 in 1892 and 34-14 in 1893, a season in which the modern pitching distance of 60 Feet, 6 inches was established, which proved to be the downfall of many pitchers but had no effect on Nichols’ effectiveness, although his ERA rose to 3.52. He achieved his fourth consecutive thirty-win season in 1894, posting a 32-13 record, albeit with a 4.75 ERA (the league average was 5.33 that year) along with 40 complete games, 3 shutouts, and 113 strikeouts over 407 innings (it was also his fifth, and last, 400-inning season). His 1895 tally was 27-16 with a 3.41 ERA and 148 strikeouts over 390.2 innings. Nichols reached 30 wins in 1896-97-98 with tallies of 30-14, 31-11, and 31-12 respectively. He also topped the NL with 368 innings pitched in 1897. His record dipped somewhat in 1899 to 21-19 although with a respectable 2.99 ERA and 108 strikeouts over 343.1 innings. He entered 1900 as the winningest NL pitcher of the 1890s at 298-151, and he then endured a 1900 season in which he was hindered by injuries for the first time in his career and finished at 13-16 with a 3.07 ERA.  

1901 Season Summary

Appeared in 55 games

P – 38, 1B – 5, PH – 5, LF – 4, CF – 2, RF – 1

 [Bracketed numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]

Pitching

Games – 38 [7, tied with Frank Kitson, Willie Sudhoff & Vic Willis]

Games Started – 34 [10, tied with Bill Dinneen]

Complete Games – 33 [5, tied with Jack Powell, Vic Willis & Red Donahue]

Wins – 19 [11, tied with Jack Powell & Frank Kitson]

Losses – 16 [12, tied with Rube Waddell & Togie Pittinger]

PCT - .543 [14]

Saves – 0

Shutouts – 4 [7, tied with Jesse Tannehill & Luther Taylor]

Innings Pitched – 321 [6]

Hits – 306 [9]

Runs – 146 [10]

Earned Runs – 115 [5]

Home Runs – 8 [7, tied with Luther Taylor & Bill Dinneen]

Bases on Balls – 90 [8]

Strikeouts – 143 [6]

ERA – 3.22 [18]

Hit Batters – 10 [16, tied with five others]

Balks – 0

Wild Pitches – 8 [10, tied with Jay Hughes]

Midseason Snapshot: 8-9, ERA - 3.38, SO - 68 in 149 IP

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Most strikeouts, game – 9 (in 12 IP) at Cincinnati 6/12

10+ strikeout games – 0

Fewest hits allowed, game (min. 7 IP) – 2 (in 8 IP) at Cincinnati 9/27

Batting

PA – 175, AB – 163, R – 16, H – 46, 2B – 8, 3B – 7, HR – 4, RBI – 28, BB – 8, SO – 39, SB – 0, CS – N/A, AVG - .282, GDP – N/A, HBP – 0, SH – 4, SF – N/A

Fielding (P)

Chances – 100

Put Outs – 27

Assists – 69

Errors – 4

DP – 1

Pct. - .960

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The Beaneaters went 69-69 to finish fifth in the NL, 20.5 games behind the pennant-winning Pittsburgh Pirates. The pitching staff led the league in fewest hits allowed (1196). The Beaneaters were out of the first division by May and were stuck in fifth for the remainder of the season despite a good September performance. 

Aftermath of 1901:

In 1902 Nichols took the opportunity to become co-owner and manager of the Kansas City Blue Stockings of the Class A Western League. He pitched for the Blue Stockings as well, posting a 26-7 record and 1.82 ERA. Returning as player/manager in 1903, he produced a 21-12 tally and 2.51 ERA. Nichols returned to the National League in 1904 as player/manager of the St. Louis Cardinals and had a fine season on the mound for the fifth-place club with a 21-13 record and 2.02 ERA. Falling out of favor with team ownership in 1905, Nichols was relieved of his managerial duties in May but retained as a pitcher until released in July with a 1-5 tally and 5.40 ERA. Picked up by the Philadelphia Phillies, he went 10-6 the rest of the way for an overall record of 11-11 with a 3.12 ERA. Nichols returned to the Phillies in 1906, but suffering from pleurisy he retired after four appearances. For his major league career, Nichols compiled a 362-208 record and 2.96 ERA with 532 complete games, 48 shutouts, and 1881 strikeouts over 5067.1 innings. He won 30 games a record seven times. With the Beaneaters his record was 330-183 with a 3.00 ERA, 476 complete games, 44 shutouts, and 1680 strikeouts over 4549 innings. A good hitting pitcher, Nichols batted .226 with 58 doubles, 24 triples, 16 home runs, and 278 RBIs. He pitched and managed in the minor leagues and with semipro clubs after leaving the major leagues. He also scouted for a time and became an accomplished bowler. An outstanding player who was popular and highly respected during his career, Nichols was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1949, four years before his death at age 83.

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Highlighted Years feature players who led a major league in one of the following categories: batting average, home runs (with a minimum of 10), runs batted in, or stolen bases (with a minimum of 20); or pitchers who led a major league in wins, strikeouts, earned run average, or saves (with a minimum of 10). Also included are participants in annual All-Star Games between the National and American Leagues since 1933. This category also includes Misc. players who received award votes, were contributors to teams that reached the postseason, or had notable seasons in non-award years.