Jim McCormick, baseball player, 1878-1887

Jim McCormick

Born: 11/3/1856 in Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland

Died: 3/10/1918 in Paterson, NJ, USA

MLB Debut: 1878-05-20 | Final Game: 1887-10-07

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 5'10" | Weight: 215 lbs

Full name: James McCormick

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Biography

Jim McCormick was a prominent pitcher in the late 19th century, known for his exceptional skill on the mound during a transformative era in baseball. Born in 1856, he played from 1878 until October 7, 1887, and established himself as one of the leading pitchers of his time. Over the course of his career, McCormick amassed a record of 265 wins and 214 losses, with an impressive earned run average (ERA) of 2.43. His ability to strike out batters was notable, as he recorded 1,704 strikeouts, showcasing his dominance in an era characterized by evolving batting techniques and strategies. McCormick's career took place during a period when baseball was transitioning into a professional sport, with the establishment of the National League in 1876 and the growing popularity of organized leagues. His contributions to the game helped to set the standard for future generations of pitchers. Despite the limited saves statistic of just 1, McCormick's overall performance and impact on the mound solidified his legacy as a key figure in baseball history, representing the early days of the sport when pitching prowess was vital to team success.

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
265 214 492 485 466 33 1 4275.7 4092 1155 82 749 1704 2.43 0

Career ERA 2.43 vs. league average 3.18 across their career seasons — 23.5% better 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
1878 IN1 NL 5 8 14 14 12 1 0 117.0 128 22 15 36 1.69 2.30 (+27%) -3.5
1879 CL2 NL 20 40 62 60 59 3 0 546.3 582 147 74 197 2.42 2.50 (+3%) 8.6
1880 CL2 NL 45 28 74 74 72 7 0 657.7 585 135 75 260 1.85 2.37 (+22%) 4767.0
1881 CL2 NL 26 30 59 58 57 2 0 526.0 484 143 84 178 2.45 2.77 (+12%) 2767.5
1882 CL2 NL 36 30 68 67 65 4 0 595.7 550 157 103 200 2.37 2.80 (+15%) -1929.2
1883 CL2 NL 28 12 43 41 36 1 1 342.0 316 70 65 145 1.84 3.22 (+43%) 1879.1
1884 CL2 NL 19 22 42 41 39 3 0 359.0 357 114 75 182 2.86 3.11 (+8%) -3485.0
1884 CNU UA 21 3 24 24 24 7 0 210.0 151 36 14 161 1.54 3.11 (+50%) 5413.8
1885 PRO NL 1 3 4 4 4 0 0 37.0 34 10 20 8 2.43 3.03 (+20%) -1296.5
1885 CHC NL 20 4 24 24 24 3 0 215.0 187 58 40 88 2.43 3.03 (+20%) -
1886 CHC NL 31 11 42 42 38 2 0 347.7 341 109 100 172 2.82 3.37 (+16%) -
1887 PIT NL 13 23 36 36 36 0 0 322.3 377 154 84 77 4.30 4.17 (-3%) -34.6

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
534 2082 246 491 66 22 4 178 10 22 127 0.236 0.244 0.294 0.538 -4224.2

Career AVG .236 vs. league average .252 across their career seasons — 6.3% below league average.

Career OBP .244 vs. league average .292 across their career seasons — 16.4% below league average.

Career SLG .294 vs. league average .337 across their career seasons — 12.6% below league average.

Career OPS 0.538 vs. league average 0.629 across their career seasons — 14.4% 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
1878 IN1 NL 15 56 5 8 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.143 .259 (-45%) .278 (-49%) .319 (-50%) .597 (-49%) -372.4
1879 CL2 NL 75 282 35 62 10 2 0 20 0 1 9 0.220 .255 (-14%) .270 (-18%) .328 (-18%) .599 (-18%) -775.0
1880 CL2 NL 78 289 34 71 11 0 0 26 0 5 5 0.246 .244 (avg) .267 (-3%) .319 (-11%) .586 (-8%) -301.8
1881 CL2 NL 70 309 45 79 9 4 0 26 0 5 16 0.256 .260 (-2%) .290 (-8%) .338 (-8%) .628 (-8%) -416.5
1882 CL2 NL 70 262 35 57 7 3 2 15 0 2 22 0.218 .248 (-12%) .275 (-19%) .329 (-12%) .605 (-15%) -644.5
1883 CL2 NL 43 157 21 37 2 2 0 13 0 2 14 0.236 .257 (-8%) .285 (-14%) .345 (-21%) .631 (-18%) -417.7
1884 CL2 NL 49 190 15 50 5 4 0 23 0 1 11 0.263 .243 (+8%) .278 (-4%) .327 (+1%) .606 (-1%) -84.0
1884 CNU UA 27 110 12 27 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0.245 .243 (+1%) .278 (-12%) .327 (-11%) .606 (-12%) -84.0
1885 PRO NL 4 14 2 3 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.214 — — — — 0.0
1885 CHC NL 25 103 13 23 1 4 0 16 0 1 18 0.223 .244 (-8%) .287 (-20%) .325 (-4%) .613 (-12%) 0.0
1886 CHC NL 42 174 17 41 9 2 2 21 1 2 30 0.236 .246 (-4%) .302 (-19%) .331 (+4%) .634 (-7%) -269.5
1887 PIT NL 36 136 12 33 7 0 0 18 9 2 0 0.243 .270 (-10%) .331 (-24%) .373 (-21%) .705 (-22%) -533.0

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
6 20 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.150

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1886 WS CHN 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.000
1885 WS CHN 5 17 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.176

Playoff Career Pitching

W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
3 3 6 6 0 44.0 40 14 8 23 2.86

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1886 WS CHN 0 1 1 1 0 8.0 13 6 2 4 6.75
1885 WS CHN 3 2 5 5 0 36.0 27 8 6 19 2.00

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 5 0 48 0 3 2
2B 1 0 2 3 1 0
3B 1 0 3 1 2 0
OF 52 0 68 12 17 3
P 492 0 263 922 99 28

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1878 IN1 OF 3 0 3 1 1 1
1878 IN1 P 14 0 6 32 2 2
1879 CL2 1B 4 0 38 0 1 0
1879 CL2 OF 13 0 20 1 5 0
1879 CL2 P 62 0 39 119 9 4
1880 CL2 OF 5 0 2 0 4 1
1880 CL2 P 74 0 36 135 22 3
1881 CL2 2B 1 0 2 3 1 0
1881 CL2 3B 1 0 3 1 2 0
1881 CL2 OF 10 0 16 7 2 0
1881 CL2 P 59 0 34 81 13 4
1882 CL2 OF 4 0 2 0 2 0
1882 CL2 P 68 0 43 100 13 1
1883 CL2 1B 1 0 10 0 2 2
1883 CL2 OF 1 0 0 0 1 0
1883 CL2 P 43 0 18 101 14 2
1884 CL2 OF 8 0 18 1 2 0
1884 CL2 P 42 0 18 67 0 4
1884 CNU OF 3 0 5 1 0 1
1884 CNU P 24 0 13 50 7 1
1885 PRO P 4 0 2 21 1 0
1885 CHN OF 1 0 1 0 0 0
1885 CHN P 24 0 20 54 4 3
1886 CHN OF 4 0 1 1 0 0
1886 CHN P 42 0 21 74 6 3
1887 PIT P 36 0 13 88 8 1

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 492
First Base 5
Second Base 1
Third Base 1
Left Field 12
Center Field 27
Right Field 13