Kid Gleason

Born: 10/26/1865 in Camden, NJ, USA

Died: 1/2/1933 in Philadelphia, PA, USA

MLB Debut: 1888-04-20 | Final Game: 1912-08-27

Bats: B | Throws: R | Height: 5'7" | Weight: 158 lbs

Full name: William J. Gleason

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Biography

Kid Gleason, born in 1865, was a notable pitcher who made his mark in Major League Baseball from 1888 until his retirement in 1912. Throughout his career, he compiled a record of 138 wins and 131 losses, showcasing a competitive spirit on the mound. With an earned run average (ERA) of 3.79, Gleason demonstrated his ability to manage games effectively, while his 744 strikeouts reflected his skill in overpowering batters during an era that was transitioning from the deadball style of play to a more offensive-focused game. Gleason's career spanned a significant period in baseball history, witnessing the sport's evolution through the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He also contributed six saves, indicating his reliability in critical game situations. His playing style was characterized by a strategic approach that prioritized control, making him a respected figure among his contemporaries. After concluding his playing days, Gleason remained involved in baseball, leaving a lasting legacy that highlighted the importance of pitching in the development of the game.

Career Pitching Statistics

W	L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	SO	ERA	Pitcher PIV
138	131	299	266	240	10	6	2389.3	2552	1007	76	906	744	3.79	0

Career ERA 3.79 vs. league average 3.95 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Year	Team	Lg	W	L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA	Lg ERA	Pitcher PIV
1888	PHI	NL	7	16	24	23	23	0	0	199.7	199	63	53	89	2.84	2.95 (+4%)	-2297.2
1889	PHI	NL	9	15	29	21	15	0	1	205.0	242	127	97	64	5.58	3.93 (-42%)	-2726.2
1890	PHI	NL	38	17	60	55	54	6	2	506.0	479	148	167	222	2.63	3.88 (+32%)	7940.1
1891	PHI	NL	24	22	53	44	40	1	1	418.0	431	163	165	100	3.51	3.52 (avg)	-1648.5
1892	STL	NL	20	24	47	45	43	2	0	400.0	389	148	151	133	3.33	3.28 (-1%)	-
1893	STL	NL	21	22	48	45	37	1	1	380.3	436	195	187	86	4.61	4.66 (+1%)	-
1894	STL	NL	2	6	8	8	6	0	0	58.0	75	39	21	9	6.05	5.33 (-14%)	-
1894	BLN	NL	15	5	21	20	19	0	0	172.0	224	85	44	35	4.45	5.33 (+16%)	3902.8
1895	BLN	NL	2	4	9	5	3	0	1	50.3	77	39	21	6	6.97	4.77 (-46%)	-1316.7

Career Batting Statistics

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
1968	7459	1022	1946	216	81	15	824	329	501	408	0.261	0.311	0.318	0.628	-11383.5

Career AVG .261 vs. league average .264 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .311 vs. league average .327 across their career seasons — 5.1% below league average.

Career SLG .318 vs. league average .349 across their career seasons — 8.9% below league average.

Career OPS 0.628 vs. league average 0.676 across their career seasons — 7.0% 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
1888	PHI	NL	24	83	4	17	2	0	0	5	3	3	16	0.205	.238 (-14%)	.290 (-20%)	.319 (-28%)	.610 (-24%)	-290.5
1889	PHI	NL	30	99	11	25	5	0	0	8	4	8	12	0.253	.263 (-4%)	.334 (-8%)	.357 (-15%)	.691 (-12%)	-188.4
1890	PHI	NL	63	224	22	47	3	0	0	17	10	12	21	0.210	.260 (-19%)	.336 (-26%)	.351 (-36%)	.687 (-31%)	-1226.5
1891	PHI	NL	65	214	31	53	5	2	0	17	6	20	17	0.248	.254 (-3%)	.331 (-4%)	.343 (-16%)	.675 (-10%)	-347.6
1892	STL	NL	66	233	35	50	4	2	3	25	7	34	23	0.215	.244 (-12%)	.316 (-1%)	.327 (-12%)	.644 (-7%)	-174.4
1893	STL	NL	59	199	25	51	6	4	0	20	2	19	8	0.256	.279 (-8%)	.356 (-8%)	.379 (-14%)	.735 (-11%)	-416.8
1894	STL	NL	9	28	3	7	0	1	0	1	0	2	1	0.250	—	—	—	—	0.0
1894	BLN	NL	26	86	22	30	5	1	0	17	1	7	2	0.349	.309 (+13%)	.379 (+5%)	.435 (-1%)	.814 (+2%)	0.0
1895	BLN	NL	112	421	90	130	14	12	0	74	19	33	18	0.309	.296 (+4%)	.361 (+1%)	.399 (avg)	.761 (+1%)	16.7
1896	NY1	NL	133	541	79	162	17	5	4	89	46	42	13	0.299	.290 (+3%)	.354 (-1%)	.387 (-4%)	.741 (-2%)	-251.1
1897	NY1	NL	132	543	86	172	16	4	1	106	44	27	24	0.317	.291 (+9%)	.354 (avg)	.387 (-5%)	.741 (-3%)	-345.0
1898	NY1	NL	150	570	78	126	8	5	0	62	21	39	28	0.221	.270 (-18%)	.333 (-17%)	.347 (-27%)	.680 (-22%)	-2458.7
1899	NY1	NL	147	580	73	154	14	5	0	60	29	24	28	0.266	.282 (-6%)	.343 (-14%)	.366 (-16%)	.710 (-15%)	-1905.0
1900	NY1	NL	111	420	60	104	11	3	1	29	23	17	19	0.248	.279 (-11%)	.338 (-17%)	.366 (-19%)	.705 (-18%)	-1543.7
1901	DET	AL	135	547	82	150	16	12	3	75	32	41	25	0.274	.271 (+1%)	.326 (avg)	.359 (+1%)	.686 (+1%)	38.0
1902	DET	AL	118	441	42	109	11	4	1	38	17	25	12	0.247	.266 (-7%)	.321 (-9%)	.343 (-14%)	.665 (-11%)	-940.9
1903	PHI	NL	106	412	65	117	19	6	1	49	12	23	19	0.284	.261 (+9%)	.316 (+3%)	.345 (+6%)	.662 (+5%)	298.6
1904	PHI	NL	153	587	61	161	23	6	0	42	17	37	36	0.274	.246 (+11%)	.300 (+6%)	.321 (+4%)	.622 (+5%)	526.1
1905	PHI	NL	155	608	95	150	17	7	1	50	16	45	45	0.247	.248 (-1%)	.307 (-2%)	.322 (-6%)	.629 (-4%)	-431.3
1906	PHI	NL	135	494	47	112	17	2	0	34	17	36	29	0.227	.247 (-8%)	.307 (-9%)	.315 (-15%)	.622 (-12%)	-1030.7
1907	PHI	NL	36	126	11	18	3	0	0	6	3	7	12	0.143	.245 (-42%)	.304 (-34%)	.308 (-46%)	.613 (-40%)	-745.0
1908	PHI	NL	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1912	CHW	AL	1	2	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.500	—	—	—	—	0.0

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1B	7	4	57	2	1	3
2B	1585	466	3887	4776	571	585
3B	16	1	27	26	10	1
OF	45	0	65	3	5	0
P	299	0	163	476	66	16
SS	19	2	38	41	19	4

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1888	PHI	OF	1	0	0	0	0	0
1888	PHI	P	24	0	6	31	7	1
1889	PHI	2B	2	0	5	3	1	0
1889	PHI	OF	3	0	2	0	0	0
1889	PHI	P	29	0	12	44	9	1
1890	PHI	2B	2	0	2	7	3	0
1890	PHI	P	60	0	24	95	8	4
1891	PHI	OF	9	0	17	0	0	0
1891	PHI	P	53	0	22	73	11	2
1891	PHI	SS	4	0	8	5	4	1
1892	SLN	1B	1	0	4	0	0	0
1892	SLN	2B	9	0	20	24	1	0
1892	SLN	OF	10	0	12	2	3	0
1892	SLN	P	47	0	42	100	10	4
1893	SLN	OF	11	0	21	1	1	0
1893	SLN	P	48	0	30	87	12	3
1893	SLN	SS	1	0	2	3	3	0
1894	SLN	1B	1	0	13	1	0	0
1894	SLN	P	8	0	7	16	3	0
1894	BLN	1B	1	0	6	0	0	1
1894	BLN	P	21	0	15	21	4	1
1895	BLN	2B	85	0	205	250	51	32
1895	BLN	3B	12	0	22	18	8	1
1895	BLN	OF	4	0	2	0	0	0
1895	BLN	P	9	0	5	9	2	0
1896	NY1	2B	130	0	329	397	48	38
1896	NY1	3B	3	0	4	7	2	0
1896	NY1	OF	1	0	1	0	0	0
1897	NY1	2B	130	0	312	396	53	43
1897	NY1	SS	3	0	5	8	3	1
1898	NY1	2B	144	0	366	468	55	57
1898	NY1	SS	6	0	17	20	5	1
1899	NY1	2B	147	0	404	472	50	61
1900	NY1	2B	111	0	321	326	48	51
1900	NY1	SS	1	0	2	1	3	0
1901	DET	2B	135	0	334	457	64	67
1902	DET	2B	118	0	320	349	42	66
1903	PHI	2B	102	0	236	280	22	30
1903	PHI	OF	4	0	6	0	1	0
1904	PHI	2B	152	152	379	463	52	44
1904	PHI	3B	1	1	1	1	0	0
1905	PHI	2B	155	155	365	457	46	49
1906	PHI	2B	135	133	215	358	32	39
1907	PHI	1B	4	4	34	1	1	2
1907	PHI	2B	26	26	72	67	3	8
1907	PHI	OF	1	0	2	0	0	0
1907	PHI	SS	4	2	4	4	1	1
1908	PHI	2B	1	0	1	1	0	0
1908	PHI	OF	1	0	2	0	0	0
1912	CHA	2B	1	0	1	1	0	0