Frank Isbell, baseball player, 1898-1909

Frank Isbell

Born: 8/21/1875 in Delevan, NY, USA

Died: 7/15/1941 in Wichita, KS, USA

MLB Debut: 1898-05-01 | Final Game: 1909-10-03

Bats: L | Throws: R | Height: 5'11" | Weight: 190 lbs

Full name: William Frank Isbell

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Biography

Frank Isbell was a professional baseball pitcher whose career spanned from 1898 to 1909, marking his presence in the early days of Major League Baseball. Born in 1875, Isbell played during a transformative period in baseball, which was characterized by the evolution of pitching strategies and the increasing popularity of the sport. Throughout his career, he demonstrated his prowess on the mound, finishing with a record of 4-7 and an earned run average (ERA) of 3.46. His ability to control the game was further highlighted by his 19 strikeouts and a single save, showcasing both his skill and versatility as a pitcher. Isbell's contributions to the game were part of a larger narrative in baseball history, reflecting the competitive spirit of the early 20th century. Despite not being among the most celebrated players of his time, his performances and dedication to the sport helped lay the groundwork for future generations of pitchers. His career, which concluded on October 3, 1909, left an indelible mark on the teams he played for and contributed to the rich tapestry of baseball's early history.

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
4 7 17 9 7 0 1 88.3 92 34 0 43 19 3.46 0

Career ERA 3.46 vs. league average 3.04 across their career seasons — 14.0% worse than 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
1898 CHC NL 4 7 13 9 7 0 0 81.0 86 32 42 16 3.56 3.59 (+1%) -
1901 CHW AL 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1.0 2 1 0 0 9.00 — -
1902 CHW AL 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 4.0 3 1 1 1 2.25 — -
1906 CHW AL 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2.0 1 0 0 2 0.00 — -
1907 CHW AL 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0.3 0 0 0 0 0.00 — -

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
1119 4219 501 1056 158 62 13 455 253 190 352 0.250 0.289 0.326 0.616 -4000.6

Career AVG .250 vs. league average .254 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .289 vs. league average .312 across their career seasons — 7.2% below league average.

Career SLG .326 vs. league average .327 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OPS 0.616 vs. league average 0.639 across their career seasons — near 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
1898 CHC NL 45 159 17 37 4 0 0 8 3 3 13 0.233 .270 (-14%) .333 (-25%) .347 (-26%) .680 (-25%) -688.8
1901 CHW AL 137 556 93 143 15 8 3 70 52 36 37 0.257 .271 (-5%) .326 (-5%) .359 (-8%) .686 (-7%) -726.1
1902 CHW AL 137 515 62 130 14 4 4 59 38 14 28 0.252 .266 (-5%) .321 (-14%) .343 (-7%) .665 (-11%) -1165.4
1903 CHW AL 138 546 52 132 25 9 2 59 26 12 65 0.242 .261 (-8%) .316 (-16%) .345 (-4%) .662 (-10%) -1221.5
1904 CHW AL 96 314 27 66 10 3 1 34 19 16 37 0.210 .246 (-15%) .300 (-15%) .321 (-16%) .622 (-15%) -835.7
1905 CHW AL 94 341 55 101 21 11 2 45 15 15 28 0.296 .248 (+19%) .307 (+9%) .322 (+36%) .629 (+23%) 1144.7
1906 CHW AL 143 549 71 153 18 11 0 57 37 30 34 0.279 .247 (+13%) .307 (+5%) .315 (+12%) .622 (+9%) 745.1
1907 CHW AL 125 486 60 118 19 7 0 41 22 22 36 0.243 .245 (-1%) .304 (-8%) .308 (+1%) .613 (-3%) -438.4
1908 CHW AL 84 320 31 79 15 3 1 49 18 19 40 0.247 .240 (+3%) .298 (avg) .306 (+5%) .605 (+2%) 86.0
1909 CHW AL 120 433 33 97 17 6 0 33 23 23 34 0.224 .244 (-8%) .306 (-14%) .312 (-7%) .618 (-10%) -900.4

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
6 26 4 8 4 0 0 4 0 6 0.308

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1906 WS CHA 6 26 4 8 4 0 0 4 0 6 0.308

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 619 225 6663 455 99 337
2B 351 343 758 1023 99 104
3B 23 0 27 58 19 2
C 2 1 4 2 0 0
OF 103 66 146 10 9 1
P 17 0 7 24 6 3
SS 15 3 24 36 10 8

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1898 CHN 2B 3 0 2 8 5 0
1898 CHN 3B 3 0 2 7 3 1
1898 CHN OF 28 0 40 3 2 0
1898 CHN P 13 0 7 19 6 2
1898 CHN SS 2 0 3 6 3 2
1901 CHA 1B 137 0 1387 101 31 79
1901 CHA 2B 2 0 1 2 0 0
1901 CHA 3B 1 0 0 2 1 0
1901 CHA P 1 0 0 1 0 0
1901 CHA SS 1 0 1 1 0 0
1902 CHA 1B 133 0 1401 93 21 97
1902 CHA C 1 0 0 2 0 0
1902 CHA P 1 0 0 3 0 0
1902 CHA SS 4 0 4 7 1 3
1903 CHA 1B 117 0 1180 87 20 57
1903 CHA 2B 2 0 3 3 0 0
1903 CHA 3B 19 0 25 49 15 1
1903 CHA OF 1 0 3 0 0 0
1903 CHA SS 1 0 0 0 0 0
1904 CHA 1B 57 56 599 48 9 22
1904 CHA 2B 27 27 53 80 11 6
1904 CHA OF 5 3 5 0 0 0
1904 CHA SS 4 2 6 17 5 1
1905 CHA 1B 9 7 68 14 1 4
1905 CHA 2B 43 42 76 112 7 18
1905 CHA OF 41 38 65 5 4 1
1905 CHA SS 2 1 10 5 1 2
1906 CHA 2B 132 132 292 363 35 36
1906 CHA C 1 1 4 0 0 0
1906 CHA OF 14 10 17 0 1 0
1906 CHA P 1 0 0 0 0 0
1907 CHA 2B 119 118 276 384 30 41
1907 CHA OF 5 5 9 1 0 0
1907 CHA P 1 0 0 1 0 1
1907 CHA SS 1 0 0 0 0 0
1908 CHA 1B 65 62 824 46 9 30
1908 CHA 2B 18 19 40 58 9 0
1909 CHA 1B 101 100 1204 66 8 48
1909 CHA 2B 5 5 15 13 2 3
1909 CHA OF 9 10 7 1 2 0

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 17
Catcher 2
First Base 618
Second Base 354
Third Base 23
Shortstop 15
Left Field 16
Center Field 32
Right Field 55