Candy Nelson

Born: 3/14/1849 in Portland, ME, USA

Died: 9/4/1910 in Brooklyn, NY, USA

MLB Debut: 1872-06-11 | Final Game: 1890-08-25

Bats: L | Throws: R | Height: 5'6" | Weight: 145 lbs

Full name: John W. Nelson

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Biography

Candy Nelson, born in 1849, was a prominent position player in Major League Baseball during the late 19th century. His career spanned from 1872 until his retirement on August 25, 1890. Nelson played a total of 817 games, accumulating 833 hits and achieving a batting average of .253. Known for his speed on the bases, he recorded 68 stolen bases, showcasing his ability to impact the game both offensively and defensively. Throughout his career, he contributed 208 RBIs and hit 3 home runs, making him a reliable player during an era when offensive production was evolving. Nelson's playing style reflected the transitional nature of baseball during the post-Civil War period, as the sport began to gain popularity and evolve from its origins. His contributions on the field came during a time when players were still adapting to the modern game, and his ability to steal bases and get on base was a valuable asset to his teams. While he may not have been a household name, Candy Nelson's impact on the game and his role as a player in the burgeoning era of professional baseball remains a notable part of the sport's rich history.

Career Batting Statistics

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
817	3294	648	833	93	27	3	208	68	352	45	0.253	0.330	0.300	0.630	2368.0

Career AVG .253 vs. league average .256 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .330 vs. league average .301 across their career seasons — +9.6% above league average.

Career SLG .300 vs. league average .340 across their career seasons — 11.7% below league average.

Career OPS 0.630 vs. league average 0.641 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
1872	TRO		4	20	2	7	0	0	0	4	0	0	2	0.350	—	—	—	—	0.0
1872	BR1		18	76	12	19	5	1	0	9	1	2	3	0.250	.285 (-12%)	.296 (-9%)	.347 (-2%)	.644 (-5%)	0.0
1873	NY2		36	168	28	55	4	1	0	22	2	1	2	0.327	.290 (+13%)	.304 (+9%)	.357 (+2%)	.661 (+5%)	141.7
1874	NY2		65	297	55	73	7	5	0	31	6	9	5	0.246	.273 (-10%)	.282 (-5%)	.333 (-9%)	.615 (-7%)	-308.4
1875	NY2		70	276	28	55	7	1	0	23	4	9	0	0.199	.253 (-22%)	.260 (-14%)	.309 (-25%)	.570 (-20%)	-731.4
1878	IN1	NL	19	84	12	11	1	0	0	5	0	5	11	0.131	.259 (-50%)	.278 (-35%)	.319 (-55%)	.597 (-46%)	-506.8
1879	TRN	NL	28	106	17	28	7	1	0	10	0	8	4	0.264	.255 (+3%)	.270 (+17%)	.328 (+6%)	.599 (+11%)	197.5
1881	WOR	NL	24	103	13	29	1	0	1	15	0	5	6	0.282	.260 (+8%)	.290 (+9%)	.338 (-5%)	.628 (+1%)	46.8
1883	NY4	AA	97	417	75	127	19	6	0	0	0	31	0	0.305	.257 (+18%)	.285 (+23%)	.345 (+10%)	.631 (+16%)	1269.9
1884	NY4	AA	111	432	114	110	15	3	1	0	0	74	0	0.255	.243 (+5%)	.278 (+34%)	.327 (-5%)	.606 (+13%)	1621.4
1885	NY4	AA	107	420	98	107	12	4	1	30	0	61	0	0.255	.244 (+4%)	.287 (+23%)	.325 (-5%)	.613 (+8%)	982.3
1886	NY4	AA	109	413	89	93	7	2	0	23	14	64	0	0.225	.246 (-9%)	.302 (+10%)	.331 (-24%)	.634 (-8%)	-193.7
1887	NY4	AA	68	257	61	63	5	1	0	24	29	48	11	0.245	.270 (-9%)	.331 (+15%)	.373 (-27%)	.705 (-7%)	-20.6
1887	NY1	NL	1	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0.000	—	—	—	—	-20.6
1890	BR4	AA	60	223	44	56	3	2	0	12	12	35	0	0.251	.260 (-4%)	.336 (+8%)	.351 (-20%)	.687 (-6%)	-64.2

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
3	10	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0.100

Playoff Batting by Year

Year	Round	Team	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
1884	WS	NY4	3	10	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0.100

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1B	1	0	2	0	0	0
2B	137	58	303	320	113	29
3B	35	3	53	70	36	1
C	1	0	2	1	0	0
OF	100	9	175	16	24	8
SS	560	15	668	1680	346	134

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1872	TRO	OF	3	3	7	0	0	0
1872	TRO	SS	1	1	1	2	2	0
1872	BR1	2B	8	7	13	23	7	3
1872	BR1	3B	4	3	5	7	4	0
1872	BR1	OF	8	6	19	0	6	0
1873	NY2	1B	1	0	2	0	0	0
1873	NY2	2B	27	0	58	53	17	4
1873	NY2	3B	6	0	7	13	10	0
1873	NY2	C	1	0	2	1	0	0
1873	NY2	OF	6	0	4	0	1	0
1874	NY2	2B	51	51	115	105	47	8
1874	NY2	OF	1	0	1	1	1	0
1874	NY2	SS	14	14	17	37	16	3
1875	NY2	2B	49	0	109	139	42	14
1875	NY2	3B	23	0	41	50	22	1
1875	NY2	OF	1	0	2	0	0	0
1875	NY2	SS	2	0	1	0	0	0
1878	IN1	SS	19	0	19	50	13	1
1879	TRN	OF	4	0	5	1	0	0
1879	TRN	SS	24	0	37	89	25	8
1881	WOR	SS	24	0	20	94	13	6
1883	NY4	SS	97	0	98	232	47	18
1884	NY4	2B	1	0	7	0	0	0
1884	NY4	SS	110	0	113	292	56	16
1885	NY4	3B	1	0	0	0	0	0
1885	NY4	SS	107	0	153	370	63	33
1886	NY4	OF	36	0	56	3	6	2
1886	NY4	SS	73	0	103	216	54	17
1887	NY4	2B	1	0	1	0	0	0
1887	NY4	OF	37	0	74	11	10	6
1887	NY4	SS	32	0	46	100	17	12
1887	NY1	3B	1	0	0	0	0	0
1890	BR4	OF	4	0	7	0	0	0
1890	BR4	SS	57	0	60	198	40	20