Kid Gleason

Second Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1888-1912)

Kid Gleason was a second baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1888 to 1912 for 6 teams, including the Philadelphia Phillies, a span of 25 seasons. In 1,968 career games, he hit .261 with 1,946 hits, 15 home runs, and 824 RBI. He also pitched in 299 games, going 138-131 with a 3.79 ERA. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 1084.8.

AVG (Batting Average):
Hits divided by at bats. .300 is the traditional mark of an excellent hitter.
HR (Home Runs):
Hits on which the batter circled the bases and scored, almost always by clearing the outfield fence.
RBI (Runs Batted In):
Runs that scored as a direct result of a batter's plate appearance.
OPS (On-Base Plus Slugging):
On-base percentage plus slugging percentage, the quickest single summary of offensive value. .900 or better is star-level.

Data updated

AVG .261
HR 15
RBI 824
H 1,946
OPS .628
PIV -9,092
Position
Second Baseman
Bats / Throws
B / R
Height / Weight
5'7" / 158 lb
Born
10/26/1865 in Camden, NJ, USA
Died
1/2/1933 in Philadelphia, PA, USA
MLB Debut
1888-04-20
Last Game
1912-08-27

Full name: William J. Gleason

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Career Batting Statistics

Kid Gleason — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
1,968 7,459 1,022 1,946 216 81 15 824 329 501 408 .261 .311 .318 .628 -9,092

Career AVG .261 vs. league average .264 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .311 vs. league average .327 across their career seasons — 5.1% below league average.

Career SLG .318 vs. league average .349 across their career seasons — 8.9% below league average.

Career OPS .628 vs. league average .676 across their career seasons — 7.0% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Kid Gleason 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
1888 PHI NL 24 83 4 17 2 0 0 5 3 3 16 .205 .238 (-14%) .290 (-20%) .319 (-28%) .610 (-24%) -276.2
1889 PHI NL 30 99 11 25 5 0 0 8 4 8 12 .253 .263 (-4%) .334 (-8%) .357 (-15%) .691 (-12%) -177.0
1890 PHI NL 63 224 22 47 3 0 0 17 10 12 21 .210 .260 (-19%) .336 (-26%) .351 (-36%) .687 (-31%) -1080.6
1891 PHI NL 65 214 31 53 5 2 0 17 6 20 17 .248 .254 (-3%) .331 (-4%) .343 (-16%) .675 (-10%) -305.1
1892 SLN NL 66 233 35 50 4 2 3 25 7 34 23 .215 .244 (-12%) .316 (-1%) .327 (-12%) .644 (-7%) -152.8
1893 SLN NL 59 199 25 51 6 4 0 20 2 19 8 .256 .279 (-8%) .356 (-8%) .379 (-14%) .735 (-11%) -370.1
1894 SLN NL 9 28 3 7 0 1 0 1 0 2 1 .250 — — — — 0.0
1894 BLN NL 26 86 22 30 5 1 0 17 1 7 2 .349 .309 (+13%) .379 (+5%) .435 (-1%) .814 (+2%) 0.0
1895 BLN NL 112 421 90 130 14 12 0 74 19 33 18 .309 .296 (+4%) .361 (+1%) .399 (avg) .761 (+1%) 16.7
1896 NY1 NL 133 541 79 162 17 5 4 89 46 42 13 .299 .290 (+3%) .354 (-1%) .387 (-4%) .741 (-2%) -195.4
1897 NY1 NL 132 543 86 172 16 4 1 106 44 27 24 .317 .291 (+9%) .354 (avg) .387 (-5%) .741 (-3%) -268.9
1898 NY1 NL 150 570 78 126 8 5 0 62 21 39 28 .221 .270 (-18%) .333 (-17%) .347 (-27%) .680 (-22%) -1891.3
1899 NY1 NL 147 580 73 154 14 5 0 60 29 24 28 .266 .282 (-6%) .343 (-14%) .366 (-16%) .710 (-15%) -1465.3
1900 NY1 NL 111 420 60 104 11 3 1 29 23 17 19 .248 .279 (-11%) .338 (-17%) .366 (-19%) .705 (-18%) -1247.1
1901 DET AL 135 547 82 150 16 12 3 75 32 41 25 .274 .271 (+1%) .326 (avg) .359 (+1%) .686 (+1%) 38.0
1902 DET AL 118 441 42 109 11 4 1 38 17 25 12 .247 .266 (-7%) .321 (-9%) .343 (-14%) .665 (-11%) -751.0
1903 PHI NL 106 412 65 117 19 6 1 49 12 23 19 .284 .261 (+9%) .316 (+3%) .345 (+6%) .662 (+5%) 298.6
1904 PHI NL 153 587 61 161 23 6 0 42 17 37 36 .274 .246 (+11%) .300 (+6%) .321 (+4%) .622 (+5%) 526.1
1905 PHI NL 155 608 95 150 17 7 1 50 16 45 45 .247 .248 (-1%) .307 (-2%) .322 (-6%) .629 (-4%) -331.8
1906 PHI NL 135 494 47 112 17 2 0 34 17 36 29 .227 .247 (-8%) .307 (-9%) .315 (-15%) .622 (-12%) -799.5
1907 PHI NL 36 126 11 18 3 0 0 6 3 7 12 .143 .245 (-42%) .304 (-34%) .308 (-46%) .613 (-40%) -691.7
1908 PHI NL 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1912 CHA AL 1 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 — — — — 0.0
Career · 23 seasons 1,968 7,459 1,022 1,946 216 81 15 824 329 501 408 .261 — — — — -9,124

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 Pitching Statistics

Kid Gleason — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
138 131 299 266 240 10 6 2389.1 2,552 1,007 76 906 744 3.79 1084.8

Career ERA 3.79 vs. league average 3.95 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

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Kid Gleason Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1888 PHI NL 7 16 24 23 23 0 0 199.2 199 63 53 89 2.84 2.95 (+4%) -2192.9
1889 PHI NL 9 15 29 21 15 0 1 205.0 242 127 97 64 5.58 3.93 (-42%) -2599.3
1890 PHI NL 38 17 60 55 54 6 2 506.0 479 148 167 222 2.63 3.88 (+32%) 7940.1
1891 PHI NL 24 22 53 44 40 1 1 418.0 431 163 165 100 3.51 3.52 (avg) -1499.3
1892 SLN NL 20 24 47 45 43 2 0 400.0 389 148 151 133 3.33 3.28 (-1%) -505.4
1893 SLN NL 21 22 48 45 37 1 1 380.1 436 195 187 86 4.61 4.66 (+1%) -2854.3
1894 SLN NL 2 6 8 8 6 0 0 58.0 75 39 21 9 6.05 5.33 (-14%) 194.2
1894 BLN NL 15 5 21 20 19 0 0 172.0 224 85 44 35 4.45 5.33 (+16%) 3902.8
1895 BLN NL 2 4 9 5 3 0 1 50.1 77 39 21 6 6.97 4.77 (-46%) -1301.1
Career · 9 seasons 138 131 299 266 240 10 6 2,389.1 2,552 1,007 906 744 3.79 — 1,085

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 (1247 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Kid Gleason — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home60823163176024197.260
Away63924762976003215.242

Last 10 Games — Batting

Kid Gleason — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1912-08-27 CHWBOSL 201000000
1908-08-10 PHIPITW 100000000
1908-07-18 PHISTLW 000000000
1907-09-13 PHIBSNW 100000000
1907-08-01 PHICINW 411000000
1907-08-01 PHICINL 300000001
1907-07-30 PHICINL 500000000
1907-06-27 PHINY1L 100000000
1907-06-20 PHIPITL 300000100
1907-06-19 PHIPITW 400000002

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Kid Gleason — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 7 4 57 2 1 3
2B 1585 466 3887 4776 571 585
3B 16 1 27 26 10 1
OF 45 0 65 3 5 0
P 299 0 163 476 66 16
SS 19 2 38 41 19 4

Season-by-Season Fielding

Kid Gleason — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1888 PHI OF 1 0 0 0 0 0
1888 PHI P 24 0 6 31 7 1
1889 PHI 2B 2 0 5 3 1 0
1889 PHI OF 3 0 2 0 0 0
1889 PHI P 29 0 12 44 9 1
1890 PHI 2B 2 0 2 7 3 0
1890 PHI P 60 0 24 95 8 4
1891 PHI OF 9 0 17 0 0 0
1891 PHI P 53 0 22 73 11 2
1891 PHI SS 4 0 8 5 4 1
1892 SLN 1B 1 0 4 0 0 0
1892 SLN 2B 9 0 20 24 1 0
1892 SLN OF 10 0 12 2 3 0
1892 SLN P 47 0 42 100 10 4
1893 SLN OF 11 0 21 1 1 0
1893 SLN P 48 0 30 87 12 3
1893 SLN SS 1 0 2 3 3 0
1894 SLN 1B 1 0 13 1 0 0
1894 SLN P 8 0 7 16 3 0
1894 BLN 1B 1 0 6 0 0 1
1894 BLN P 21 0 15 21 4 1
1895 BLN 2B 85 0 205 250 51 32
1895 BLN 3B 12 0 22 18 8 1
1895 BLN OF 4 0 2 0 0 0
1895 BLN P 9 0 5 9 2 0
1896 NY1 2B 130 0 329 397 48 38
1896 NY1 3B 3 0 4 7 2 0
1896 NY1 OF 1 0 1 0 0 0
1897 NY1 2B 130 0 312 396 53 43
1897 NY1 SS 3 0 5 8 3 1
1898 NY1 2B 144 0 366 468 55 57
1898 NY1 SS 6 0 17 20 5 1
1899 NY1 2B 147 0 404 472 50 61
1900 NY1 2B 111 0 321 326 48 51
1900 NY1 SS 1 0 2 1 3 0
1901 DET 2B 135 0 334 457 64 67
1902 DET 2B 118 0 320 349 42 66
1903 PHI 2B 102 0 236 280 22 30
1903 PHI OF 4 0 6 0 1 0
1904 PHI 2B 152 152 379 463 52 44
1904 PHI 3B 1 1 1 1 0 0
1905 PHI 2B 155 155 365 457 46 49
1906 PHI 2B 135 133 215 358 32 39
1907 PHI 1B 4 4 34 1 1 2
1907 PHI 2B 26 26 72 67 3 8
1907 PHI OF 1 0 2 0 0 0
1907 PHI SS 4 2 4 4 1 1
1908 PHI 2B 1 0 1 1 0 0
1908 PHI OF 1 0 2 0 0 0
1912 CHA 2B 1 0 1 1 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Kid Gleason Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 299
First Base 7
Second Base 1583
Third Base 16
Shortstop 19
Left Field 14
Center Field 15
Right Field 13

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Kid Gleason (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Joe Quinn
    .262 avg, 30 HR
  2. 81
    Larry Bowa
    .260 avg, 15 HR
  3. 79
    Joe Tinker HOF
    .262 avg, 31 HR
  4. 74
    Terry Turner
    .253 avg, 8 HR
  5. 68
    George Cutshaw
    .265 avg, 25 HR
  6. 65
    Germany Smith
    .243 avg, 47 HR

Kid Gleason: the record in brief

April 20, 1888 and August 27, 1912 bracket Kid Gleason's time in the majors: the debut and the last game on record. The team column moves through the Philadelphia Quakers (1888 to 1889), the Philadelphia Phillies (1890 to 1908), the St. Louis Browns (1892 through 1894), the Baltimore Orioles (1894 to 1895), the New York Giants (1896 to 1900), the Detroit Tigers (1901 to 1902), and the Chicago White Sox (1912). Gleason, a second baseman by primary position, batted from both sides and threw right-handed. Height and weight on file: 5'7" and 158 pounds. Gleason was born on October 26, 1865, in Camden, NJ, USA. The bio records the death on January 2, 1933, in Philadelphia, PA, USA. Gleason's full given name, per the bio, is William J. Gleason.

In 1,968 games and 7,459 at bats, Gleason batted .261 with 1,946 hits; the totals also include 15 homers, 824 RBI, and 329 stolen bases. The on-base percentage is .311 and the slugging percentage .318, for an OPS of .628.

Frequently Asked Questions about Kid Gleason

What years did Kid Gleason play?
Kid Gleason played in Major League Baseball from 1888 to 1912.
Was Kid Gleason a pitcher?
Both. Kid Gleason pitched in 299 games, going 138-131 with a 3.79 ERA, but spent most of his career as a Second Baseman.
How many home runs did Kid Gleason hit?
Kid Gleason hit 15 career home runs with 1,946 hits.
What teams did Kid Gleason play for?
Kid Gleason played for 6 teams: the Philadelphia Phillies (1888–1891, 1903–1908), the St. Louis Browns (1892–1894), the Baltimore Orioles (1894–1895), the New York Giants (1896–1900), the Detroit Tigers (1901–1902), and the Chicago White Sox (1912).
What were Kid Gleason's career stats?
In 1,968 games, Kid Gleason had 1,946 hits, 15 home runs, 824 RBI, 1,022 runs, and 329 stolen bases, with a .261 batting average. As a pitcher, in 299 games, he went 138-131 with a 3.79 ERA, 744 strikeouts, 2,389.1 innings pitched, and 6 saves.
What position did Kid Gleason play?
Kid Gleason played primarily as a second baseman, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Kid Gleason and how much did he weigh?
Kid Gleason was listed at 5 feet 7 inches and 158 pounds.
How many home runs did Kid Gleason hit each season?
Kid Gleason's home runs by season: 0 in 1888, 0 in 1889, 0 in 1890, 0 in 1891, 3 in 1892, 0 in 1893, 0 in 1894, 0 in 1895, 4 in 1896, 1 in 1897, 0 in 1898, 0 in 1899, 1 in 1900, 3 in 1901, 1 in 1902, 1 in 1903, 0 in 1904, 1 in 1905, 0 in 1906, 0 in 1907, 0 in 1908, and 0 in 1912. His most in one season was 4, in 1896.
What was Kid Gleason's career batting average?
Kid Gleason batted .261 over his career, with 1,946 hits in 7,459 at bats.
How many RBI did Kid Gleason have?
Kid Gleason drove in 824 runs in his career.
What was Kid Gleason's career ERA?
Kid Gleason finished with a 3.79 career ERA, going 138-131 with 744 strikeouts.
Is Kid Gleason in the Hall of Fame?
No. Kid Gleason has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.