Art Croft, baseball player, 1875-1878

Art Croft

Born: 1/23/1855 in St. Louis, MO, USA

Died: 3/16/1884 in St. Louis, MO, USA

MLB Debut: 1875-05-04 | Final Game: 1878-09-13

Full name: Arthur F. Croft

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Biography

Art Croft was a professional baseball player born in 1855, who played from 1875 to 1905. As a position player, he participated in 133 games during his career, primarily in the early years of baseball when the sport was still developing its identity and style. Croft recorded 101 hits, contributing 45 RBIs and demonstrating an ability to get on base despite finishing his career with a batting average of .195. His tenure coincided with a transformative period in baseball, as the game was shifting from the rough-and-tumble days of the deadball era towards a more organized and strategic format. Although Croft did not hit any home runs, he was known for his speed on the bases, accumulating 5 stolen bases throughout his career. His contributions, while modest in the context of modern statistics, reflected the evolving nature of the game and the increasing emphasis on base running. Croft's career spanned a time of significant change in baseball, marking the transition from its formative years to a more established professional sport, and he remains a part of the rich tapestry of baseball history.

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
133 517 50 101 14 2 0 45 5 6 40 0.195 0.205 0.230 0.435 -2154.9

Career AVG .195 vs. league average .260 across their career seasons — 24.7% below league average.

Career OBP .205 vs. league average .272 across their career seasons — 24.9% below league average.

Career SLG .230 vs. league average .319 across their career seasons — 27.9% below league average.

Career OPS 0.435 vs. league average 0.592 across their career seasons — 26.5% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1875 SL1 19 75 5 15 3 0 0 2 5 0 2 0.200 .253 (-21%) .260 (-23%) .309 (-23%) .570 (-23%) -222.7
1877 SL3 NL 54 220 23 51 5 2 0 27 0 1 15 0.232 .271 (-14%) .289 (-19%) .337 (-19%) .626 (-19%) -643.6
1878 IN1 NL 60 222 22 35 6 0 0 16 0 5 23 0.158 .259 (-39%) .278 (-37%) .319 (-42%) .597 (-40%) -1288.6

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 79 0 824 15 30 29
2B 1 0 2 2 1 0
OF 53 0 90 4 23 0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1875 SL1 OF 19 0 24 0 6 0
1877 SL3 1B 28 0 290 7 9 10
1877 SL3 2B 1 0 2 2 1 0
1877 SL3 OF 25 0 48 3 13 0
1878 IN1 1B 51 0 534 8 21 19
1878 IN1 OF 9 0 18 1 4 0

Career Games by Position

Position Games
First Base 79
Second Base 1
Left Field 44
Center Field 8
Right Field 3