Theodore Breitenstein

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1891-1901)

Theodore Breitenstein was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1891 to 1901 for the St. Louis Browns, the St. Louis Cardinals, and the Cincinnati Reds, a span of 11 seasons. Across 380 career appearances, he went 160-170 with a 4.03 ERA and 893 strikeouts. He also batted .216 with 4 home runs. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 5798.8.

W (Wins):
Games credited to a pitcher whose team took a lead it never surrendered while he was the pitcher of record.
ERA (Earned Run Average):
Earned runs allowed per nine innings pitched: (ER × 9) ÷ IP. The primary measure of pitching effectiveness.
SO (Strikeouts):
For a batter, times retired on a third strike; for a pitcher, batters retired on a third strike.
WHIP (Walks and Hits per Inning Pitched):
Baserunners allowed per inning: (BB + H) ÷ IP. Under 1.00 is elite.

Data updated

W–L 160–170
ERA 4.03
WHIP 1.45
SO 893
Pitcher PIV 5798.8
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
L / L
Height / Weight
5'9" / 167 lb
Born
6/1/1869 in St. Louis, MO, USA
Died
5/3/1935 in St. Louis, MO, USA
MLB Debut
1891-04-28
Last Game
1901-05-09

Full name: Theodore J. Breitenstein

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Career Pitching Statistics

Theodore Breitenstein — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
160 170 380 342 301 12 3 2973.1 3,101 1,331 79 1,207 893 4.03 5798.8

Career ERA 4.03 vs. league average 4.03 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Theodore Breitenstein Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1891 SL4 AA 2 0 6 1 1 1 1 28.2 15 7 14 13 2.20 3.52 (+38%) -335.0
1892 SLN NL 9 19 39 32 28 1 0 282.1 280 147 148 126 4.69 3.28 (-43%) -1854.2
1893 SLN NL 19 24 48 42 38 1 1 382.2 359 135 156 102 3.18 4.66 (+32%) 4095.3
1894 SLN NL 27 23 56 50 46 1 0 447.1 497 238 191 140 4.79 5.33 (+10%) 2133.4
1895 SLN NL 19 30 55 51 47 1 1 438.2 468 213 182 131 4.37 4.77 (+8%) -286.4
1896 SLN NL 18 26 44 43 37 1 0 339.2 376 169 138 114 4.48 4.36 (-3%) 135.2
1897 CIN NL 23 12 40 39 32 2 0 320.1 345 129 91 98 3.62 4.30 (+16%) 4661.7
1898 CIN NL 20 14 39 37 32 3 0 315.2 313 120 123 68 3.42 3.59 (+5%) -718.8
1899 CIN NL 13 9 26 24 21 0 0 210.2 219 84 71 59 3.59 3.85 (+7%) 1151.5
1900 CIN NL 10 10 24 20 18 1 0 192.1 205 78 79 39 3.65 3.68 (+1%) -2169.1
1901 SLN NL 0 3 3 3 1 0 0 15.0 24 11 14 3 6.60 3.49 (-89%) -1014.8
Career · 11 seasons 160 170 380 342 301 12 3 2,973.1 3,101 1,331 1,207 893 4.03 — 5,799

Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.

Career Batting Statistics

Theodore Breitenstein — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
448 1,350 174 291 27 15 4 126 30 150 145 .216 .297 .267 .563 -4,762

Career AVG .216 vs. league average .278 across their career seasons — 22.4% below league average.

Career OBP .297 vs. league average .344 across their career seasons — 13.7% below league average.

Career SLG .267 vs. league average .371 across their career seasons — 28.1% below league average.

Career OPS .563 vs. league average .715 across their career seasons — 21.2% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Theodore Breitenstein Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1891 SL4 AA 6 12 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1892 SLN NL 47 131 16 16 1 1 0 6 4 16 20 .122 .244 (-50%) .316 (-28%) .327 (-56%) .644 (-42%) -766.1
1893 SLN NL 49 160 20 29 1 1 1 14 3 18 15 .181 .279 (-35%) .356 (-25%) .379 (-42%) .735 (-34%) -872.3
1894 SLN NL 63 182 27 40 7 2 0 13 3 31 19 .220 .309 (-29%) .379 (-10%) .435 (-36%) .814 (-24%) -729.7
1895 SLN NL 73 221 25 42 2 0 0 18 5 29 22 .190 .296 (-36%) .361 (-21%) .399 (-50%) .761 (-36%) -1282.0
1896 SLN NL 51 162 21 42 5 2 0 12 8 13 26 .259 .290 (-11%) .354 (-11%) .387 (-19%) .741 (-15%) -405.5
1897 CIN NL 41 124 16 33 4 6 0 23 5 6 5 .266 .291 (-9%) .354 (-15%) .387 (+2%) .741 (-6%) -188.7
1898 CIN NL 41 121 16 26 2 1 0 17 0 16 9 .215 .270 (-21%) .333 (-8%) .347 (-29%) .680 (-19%) -308.1
1899 CIN NL 33 105 18 37 4 1 1 11 1 10 11 .352 .282 (+25%) .343 (+19%) .366 (+19%) .710 (+19%) 355.3
1900 CIN NL 41 126 12 24 1 1 2 12 0 9 18 .190 .279 (-32%) .338 (-28%) .366 (-28%) .705 (-28%) -565.4
1901 SLN NL 3 6 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .333 — — — — 0.0
Career · 11 seasons 448 1,350 174 291 27 15 4 126 30 150 145 .216 — — — — -4,762

Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (210 games) →

Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).

Batting — Home / Away

Theodore Breitenstein — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home591712949027.287
Away591851840313.216

Pitching — Home / Away

Theodore Breitenstein — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home55443.04461821601073.70
Away37290.2315124129633.84

Last 10 Games — Batting

Theodore Breitenstein — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1901-05-09 STLCINL 000000000
1901-05-05 STLCINL 401000000
1901-04-29 STLPITL 211000000
1900-10-07 CINCHCL 300000001
1900-09-23 CINCHCL 311000110
1900-09-17 CINPHIL 400000000
1900-09-14 CINBROW 401000100
1900-09-13 CINBROL 400000000
1900-09-13 CINBROL 300000010
1900-09-12 CINBROL 211000010

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Theodore Breitenstein — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1901-05-09 STLCIN L 1.0463400
1901-05-05 STLCIN L 9.01076531
1901-04-29 STLPIT L 5.010132500
1900-10-07 CINCHC L 8.11144200
1900-09-23 CINCHC L 9.0963360
1900-09-17 CINPHI L 8.0744230
1900-09-03 CINNY1 W 9.0942620
1900-08-20 CINSTL W 9.01675601
1900-08-16 CINPHI W 9.0933620
1900-08-07 CINBSN W 9.0600510

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Theodore Breitenstein — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
OF 65 0 84 7 11 1
P 380 0 245 692 57 24

Season-by-Season Fielding

Theodore Breitenstein — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1891 SL4 OF 1 0 1 1 0 0
1891 SL4 P 6 0 1 2 0 0
1892 SLN OF 10 0 11 1 0 1
1892 SLN P 39 0 22 68 6 2
1893 SLN OF 2 0 1 0 0 0
1893 SLN P 48 0 42 82 8 4
1894 SLN OF 7 0 5 0 1 0
1894 SLN P 56 0 42 83 9 4
1895 SLN OF 16 0 18 0 3 0
1895 SLN P 55 0 46 100 14 1
1896 SLN OF 8 0 12 0 1 0
1896 SLN P 44 0 34 89 7 4
1897 CIN P 40 0 16 65 3 3
1898 CIN OF 2 0 5 0 2 0
1898 CIN P 39 0 17 89 2 3
1899 CIN OF 7 0 11 3 1 0
1899 CIN P 26 0 14 47 4 1
1900 CIN OF 12 0 20 2 3 0
1900 CIN P 24 0 9 60 4 0
1901 SLN P 3 0 2 7 0 2

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Theodore Breitenstein Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 380
Left Field 20
Center Field 16
Right Field 29

Most Similar Players

Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.

Career Spans

Theodore Breitenstein (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Brickyard Kennedy
    187-159, 3.96 ERA
  2. 82
    Bert Cunningham
    142-167, 4.22 ERA
  3. 81
    Pink Hawley
    167-179, 3.96 ERA
  4. 78
    Jouett Meekin
    152-133, 4.07 ERA
  5. 64
    Bill Hutchison
    182-163, 3.59 ERA
  6. 64
    Chick Fraser
    175-212, 3.67 ERA

Theodore Breitenstein: the record in brief

Between the debut on April 28, 1891 and the final game on May 9, 1901, Theodore Breitenstein built the record summarized on this page. Club by club, the record runs the St. Louis Browns (1891 to 1896), the Cincinnati Reds (1897 to 1900), and the St. Louis Cardinals (1901). Breitenstein played primarily as a pitcher and threw and hit left-handed. The bio adds a birth date on June 1, 1869, in St. Louis, MO, USA and a listed size of 5'9" and 167 pounds. The bio records the death on May 3, 1935, in St. Louis, MO, USA. Theodore Breitenstein was the playing name; the full given name is Theodore J.

Breitenstein's career pitching line is 160 wins, 170 losses and a 4.03 ERA over 380 appearances. Also on Breitenstein's record: 893 strikeouts, 301 complete games, and 12 shutouts. Breitenstein's 4.03 ERA was close to the 4.03 league figure for those seasons. The best win total was 27, in 1894.

Frequently Asked Questions about Theodore Breitenstein

What years did Theodore Breitenstein play?
Theodore Breitenstein played in Major League Baseball from 1891 to 1901.
Was Theodore Breitenstein a pitcher?
Yes. Theodore Breitenstein pitched in the major leagues, recording 160 wins and 893 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Theodore Breitenstein hit?
Theodore Breitenstein hit 4 career home runs with 291 hits.
What was Theodore Breitenstein's career batting average?
Theodore Breitenstein batted .216 over his career, with 291 hits in 1,350 at bats.
How many RBI did Theodore Breitenstein have?
Theodore Breitenstein drove in 126 runs in his career.
What was Theodore Breitenstein's career ERA?
Theodore Breitenstein finished with a 4.03 career ERA, going 160-170 with 893 strikeouts.