Tully Sparks, baseball player, 1897-1910

Tully Sparks

Born: 12/12/1874 in Etna, GA, USA

Died: 7/15/1937 in Anniston, AL, USA

MLB Debut: 1897-09-15 | Final Game: 1910-06-08

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 5'10" | Weight: 160 lbs

Full name: Thomas Frank Sparks

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Biography

Tully Sparks was a professional baseball pitcher who made his mark in the Major Leagues from 1897 until 1910. Born in 1874, Sparks played during a transitional era in baseball, where the game was beginning to evolve with the introduction of more strategic pitching styles. Over the course of his career, he accumulated a record of 121 wins and 137 losses, showcasing his resilience on the mound despite the challenges of competition in the early 20th century. Sparks finished his career with an impressive earned run average (ERA) of 2.82, demonstrating his ability to limit opposing teams' scoring opportunities. He recorded a total of 780 strikeouts, reflecting his effectiveness as a strikeout pitcher during a time when such feats were becoming increasingly valuable. Additionally, he contributed to his teams with 8 saves, highlighting his versatility and importance in high-pressure situations. Tully Sparks remains a notable figure in baseball history, remembered for his contributions to the sport during a formative period in its development.

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
121 137 314 270 203 19 8 2343.7 2250 734 33 630 780 2.82 0

Career ERA 2.82 vs. league average 2.95 across their career seasons — near 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
1897 PHI NL 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 8.0 12 9 4 0 10.12 — 0.0
1899 PIT NL 8 6 28 17 8 0 0 170.0 180 73 82 53 3.86 3.85 (avg) -732.9
1901 MLA AL 7 17 29 26 18 0 0 210.0 228 82 93 62 3.51 3.49 (-1%) -3787.2
1902 NY1 NL 4 10 16 14 12 0 1 123.0 142 57 41 42 4.17 3.17 (-31%) -387.7
1902 BOS AL 7 9 17 15 15 1 0 142.7 151 55 40 37 3.47 3.17 (-9%) -1219.2
1903 PHI NL 11 15 28 28 27 0 0 248.0 248 75 56 88 2.72 3.10 (+12%) 867.6
1904 PHI NL 7 16 26 25 19 3 0 200.7 208 59 43 67 2.65 2.66 (avg) 663.5
1905 PHI NL 14 11 34 26 20 3 1 259.7 217 63 73 98 2.18 2.82 (+23%) 11.9
1906 PHI NL 19 16 42 37 29 6 3 316.7 244 76 62 114 2.16 2.68 (+19%) 1477.1
1907 PHI NL 22 8 33 31 24 3 1 265.0 221 59 51 90 2.00 2.50 (+20%) 1722.7
1908 PHI NL 16 15 33 31 24 2 2 263.3 251 76 51 85 2.60 2.40 (-8%) 662.2
1909 PHI NL 6 11 24 16 6 1 0 121.7 126 40 32 40 2.96 2.55 (-16%) -1025.7
1910 PHI NL 0 2 3 3 0 0 0 15.0 22 10 2 4 6.00 2.79 (-115%) -588.4

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
314 801 45 92 16 4 0 41 0 52 203 0.115 0.172 0.145 0.317 -5652.6

Career AVG .115 vs. league average .256 across their career seasons — 55.2% below league average.

Career OBP .172 vs. league average .315 across their career seasons — 45.6% below league average.

Career SLG .145 vs. league average .332 across their career seasons — 56.4% below league average.

Career OPS 0.317 vs. league average 0.648 across their career seasons — 51.1% 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
1897 PHI NL 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 — — — — 0.0
1899 PIT NL 28 62 8 8 2 1 0 5 0 9 20 0.129 .282 (-54%) .343 (-30%) .366 (-47%) .710 (-39%) -406.2
1901 MLA AL 29 71 3 12 2 1 0 4 0 5 14 0.169 .271 (-38%) .326 (-25%) .359 (-37%) .686 (-32%) -359.5
1902 NY1 NL 16 40 3 6 1 0 0 1 0 5 10 0.150 — — — — 0.0
1902 BOS AL 17 52 2 8 2 0 0 5 0 4 7 0.154 .266 (-42%) .321 (-33%) .343 (-44%) .665 (-39%) 0.0
1903 PHI NL 28 92 7 10 2 0 0 5 0 5 26 0.109 .261 (-58%) .316 (-51%) .345 (-62%) .662 (-57%) -817.8
1904 PHI NL 26 76 6 8 1 0 0 2 0 2 14 0.105 .246 (-57%) .300 (-57%) .321 (-63%) .622 (-60%) -673.8
1905 PHI NL 34 94 8 12 2 1 0 5 0 4 21 0.128 .248 (-49%) .307 (-47%) .322 (-47%) .629 (-47%) -684.3
1906 PHI NL 42 104 6 16 4 1 0 9 0 7 20 0.154 .247 (-38%) .307 (-33%) .315 (-33%) .622 (-33%) -535.3
1907 PHI NL 33 89 1 3 0 0 0 2 0 3 33 0.034 .245 (-86%) .304 (-75%) .308 (-89%) .613 (-82%) -1074.7
1908 PHI NL 33 77 1 4 0 0 0 2 0 6 27 0.052 .240 (-78%) .298 (-60%) .306 (-83%) .605 (-72%) -790.7
1909 PHI NL 24 36 0 5 0 0 0 1 0 2 9 0.139 — — — — 0.0
1910 PHI NL 3 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 — — — — 0.0

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
P 314 169 107 544 46 20

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1897 PHI P 1 0 0 3 0 0
1899 PIT P 28 0 5 41 8 1
1901 MLA P 29 0 6 60 8 1
1902 NY1 P 16 0 6 42 3 3
1902 BOS P 17 0 7 42 2 1
1903 PHI P 28 0 14 59 8 0
1904 PHI P 26 25 11 35 4 3
1905 PHI P 34 26 9 45 0 3
1906 PHI P 42 37 20 66 3 4
1907 PHI P 33 31 10 50 4 1
1908 PHI P 33 31 15 65 6 3
1909 PHI P 24 16 4 31 0 0
1910 PHI P 3 3 0 5 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 314

College History

School Name City State Years Attended
University of Georgia Athens GA 1897