Ed Somerville, baseball player, 1875-1876

Ed Somerville

Born: 3/1/1853 in Philadelphia, PA, USA

Died: 10/1/1877 in London, ON, CAN

MLB Debut: 1875-04-21 | Final Game: 1876-10-05

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

Full name: Edward G. Somerville

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Biography

Ed Somerville, born in 1853, was a professional baseball player who played as a position player during the early years of organized baseball. His career spanned from 1875 to 1876, a time marked by the transition from the rough-and-tumble days of the sport's infancy to a more structured form of play. Over the course of his brief career, Somerville appeared in 111 games, where he accumulated 90 hits and achieved a batting average of .200. Though he did not hit any home runs, he contributed 27 RBIs and showcased his speed on the basepaths with 2 stolen bases. Playing in an era when offensive statistics were not as inflated as they would later become, Somerville's contributions to his teams were significant in the context of the game at that time. His playing style reflected the gritty nature of 19th-century baseball, where strategy and skill were paramount, and power hitting was not yet a central focus. While his time in the league was relatively short, Ed Somerville remains a part of the rich tapestry of baseball history, representing a foundational era that set the stage for the future of the sport.

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
111 449 49 90 13 1 0 27 2 3 12 0.200 0.206 0.234 0.440 -1598.5

Career AVG .200 vs. league average .259 across their career seasons — 22.5% below league average.

Career OBP .206 vs. league average .268 across their career seasons — 23.2% below league average.

Career SLG .234 vs. league average .315 across their career seasons — 25.7% below league average.

Career OPS 0.440 vs. league average 0.582 across their career seasons — 24.5% 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
1875 PH3 14 57 6 13 3 0 0 6 1 1 3 0.228 .253 (-10%) .260 (-7%) .309 (-9%) .570 (-9%) -58.9
1875 NH1 33 136 14 29 5 0 0 7 1 1 3 0.213 .253 (-16%) .260 (-16%) .309 (-19%) .570 (-18%) -58.9
1876 LS1 NL 64 256 29 48 5 1 0 14 0 1 6 0.188 .265 (-29%) .277 (-31%) .320 (-33%) .598 (-32%) -1224.0

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 1 0 5 0 1 0
2B 107 0 346 412 146 37
3B 2 0 7 2 1 0
SS 2 0 0 1 1 0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1875 PH3 2B 14 0 38 36 22 2
1875 PH3 SS 1 0 0 0 0 0
1875 NH1 1B 1 0 5 0 1 0
1875 NH1 2B 29 0 98 125 55 13
1875 NH1 3B 2 0 7 2 1 0
1875 NH1 SS 1 0 0 1 1 0
1876 LS1 2B 64 0 210 251 69 22

Career Games by Position

Position Games
First Base 1
Second Base 107
Third Base 2
Shortstop 2