Elmer Smith, baseball player, 1886-1901

Elmer Smith

Born: 3/23/1868 in Pittsburgh, PA, USA

Died: 11/3/1945 in Pittsburgh, PA, USA

MLB Debut: 1886-09-10 | Final Game: 1901-06-15

Bats: L | Throws: L | Height: 5'11" | Weight: 178 lbs

Full name: Elmer Ellsworth Smith

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Biography

Elmer Smith was a professional baseball pitcher born in 1868, whose career spanned from 1886 to 1901. Smith made his mark during a transitional period in baseball, as the sport was evolving from the deadball era into a more modern game. Over his career, he accumulated a record of 75-57 and finished with a 3.35 earned run average (ERA). Smith was known for his durability on the mound, amassing a total of 525 strikeouts, which underscored his effectiveness as a pitcher during his time. Smith played for several teams throughout his career, showcasing his abilities in an era when pitching styles were beginning to diversify. Although he did not record any saves, his contributions to his teams were significant, as he often took on the role of a workhorse starter. Elmer Smith's legacy is remembered for his competitive spirit and the role he played in the early development of pitching in professional baseball.

Negro Leagues Career Statistics

Batting

PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB BA OBP SLG OPS
4.0 4.0 0 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.250 0.250 0.250 0.500

Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Batting

Season PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB BA OBP SLG OPS
1931 4.0 4.0 0 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.250 0.250 0.250 0.500

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
75 57 149 136 122 9 0 1210.3 1167 450 20 422 525 3.35 0

Career ERA 3.35 vs. league average 3.76 across their career seasons — 10.9% 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
1886 CN2 AA 4 4 9 9 8 0 0 72.7 57 30 44 40 3.72 3.37 (-10%) -1385.1
1887 CN2 AA 34 17 52 52 49 3 0 447.3 400 146 126 176 2.94 4.17 (+30%) 7819.6
1888 CN2 AA 22 17 40 40 37 5 0 348.3 309 106 89 154 2.74 2.95 (+7%) 2628.9
1889 CN2 AA 9 12 29 22 16 0 0 203.0 253 110 101 104 4.88 3.93 (-24%) -1856.3
1892 PIT NL 6 7 17 13 12 1 0 134.0 140 54 58 51 3.63 3.28 (-10%) 330.9
1894 PIT NL 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 4.0 6 2 1 0 4.50 — 0.0
1898 CIN NL 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1.0 2 2 3 0 18.00 — 0.0

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
1237 4693 913 1456 197 136 37 665 233 639 258 0.310 0.398 0.434 0.831 15573.6

Career AVG .310 vs. league average .272 across their career seasons — +14.0% above league average.

Career OBP .398 vs. league average .335 across their career seasons — +18.5% above league average.

Career SLG .434 vs. league average .365 across their career seasons — +18.9% above league average.

Career OPS 0.831 vs. league average 0.700 across their career seasons — +18.7% above 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
1886 CN2 AA 9 28 6 8 1 1 0 2 0 9 0 0.286 — — — — 0.0
1887 CN2 AA 52 186 26 47 10 6 0 23 5 11 16 0.253 .270 (-7%) .331 (-10%) .373 (-1%) .705 (-5%) -228.5
1888 CN2 AA 40 129 15 29 4 1 0 9 2 20 22 0.225 .238 (-6%) .290 (+13%) .319 (-15%) .610 (-2%) 60.5
1889 CN2 AA 29 83 12 23 3 1 2 17 1 7 18 0.277 .263 (+5%) .334 (+4%) .357 (+15%) .691 (+10%) 128.3
1892 PIT NL 138 511 86 140 16 14 4 63 22 82 43 0.274 .244 (+12%) .316 (+18%) .327 (+17%) .644 (+18%) 1908.9
1893 PIT NL 128 518 121 179 26 23 7 103 26 77 23 0.346 .279 (+24%) .356 (+22%) .379 (+38%) .735 (+30%) 3317.9
1894 PIT NL 126 490 128 175 33 19 6 74 34 68 12 0.357 .309 (+15%) .379 (+16%) .435 (+24%) .814 (+20%) 2297.9
1895 PIT NL 125 484 89 146 15 12 1 81 34 55 25 0.302 .296 (+2%) .361 (+5%) .399 (-3%) .761 (+1%) 190.9
1896 PIT NL 122 484 121 175 21 14 6 94 33 74 18 0.362 .290 (+24%) .354 (+28%) .387 (+29%) .741 (+29%) 3160.0
1897 PIT NL 123 467 99 145 19 17 6 54 25 70 32 0.310 .291 (+6%) .354 (+15%) .387 (+19%) .741 (+17%) 1819.9
1898 CIN NL 123 486 79 166 21 10 1 66 20 69 17 0.342 .270 (+26%) .333 (+27%) .347 (+25%) .680 (+26%) 2655.8
1899 CIN NL 88 343 65 101 13 6 1 24 10 47 12 0.294 .282 (+4%) .343 (+11%) .366 (+3%) .710 (+7%) 541.1
1900 CIN NL 29 111 14 31 4 4 1 18 5 18 2 0.279 .279 (avg) .338 (+15%) .366 (+13%) .705 (+14%) 301.1
1900 NY1 NL 85 312 47 81 9 7 2 34 14 24 10 0.260 .279 (-7%) .338 (-7%) .366 (-4%) .705 (-5%) 301.1
1901 PIT NL 4 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0.000 — — — — 0.0
1901 BSN NL 16 57 5 10 2 1 0 3 2 6 8 0.175 .271 (-35%) .326 (-22%) .359 (-32%) .686 (-27%) 0.0

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
OF 1089 0 2211 143 200 35
P 149 0 22 172 38 2

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1886 CN2 OF 1 0 1 0 0 0
1886 CN2 P 9 0 0 3 2 0
1887 CN2 OF 2 0 2 0 0 0
1887 CN2 P 52 0 7 67 13 2
1888 CN2 OF 2 0 0 0 0 0
1888 CN2 P 40 0 4 58 12 0
1889 CN2 P 29 0 2 21 5 0
1892 PIT OF 124 0 223 15 31 0
1892 PIT P 17 0 9 23 6 0
1893 PIT OF 128 0 271 20 25 7
1894 PIT OF 126 0 276 18 21 8
1894 PIT P 1 0 0 0 0 0
1895 PIT OF 124 0 255 16 31 2
1896 PIT OF 122 0 302 14 18 6
1897 PIT OF 123 0 245 19 28 1
1898 CIN OF 123 0 280 15 16 5
1898 CIN P 1 0 0 0 0 0
1899 CIN OF 88 0 181 12 16 3
1900 CIN OF 27 0 63 3 5 1
1900 NY1 OF 83 0 91 10 5 2
1901 PIT OF 1 0 2 0 0 0
1901 BSN OF 15 0 19 1 4 0

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 149
Left Field 927
Center Field 39
Right Field 123