Kid Nichols

Pitcher · Career Stats, Hall of Fame Bio & Records (1890-1906)

Kid Nichols was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1890 to 1906 for the Boston Braves, the St. Louis Cardinals, and the Philadelphia Phillies, a span of 17 seasons. Across 621 career appearances, he went 362-208 with a 2.96 ERA and 1,881 strikeouts. He also batted .226 with 16 home runs. Kid Nichols was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1949. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 64461.3.

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

⭐ Hall of Fame 1949
W–L 362–208
ERA 2.96
WHIP 1.22
SO 1,881
Pitcher PIV 64461.3
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
B / R
Height / Weight
5'10" / 175 lb
Born
9/14/1869 in Madison, WI, USA
Died
4/11/1953 in Kansas City, MO, USA
MLB Debut
1890-04-23
Last Game
1906-05-18
Hall of Fame
Inducted 1949 (Veterans)

Full name: Charles Augustus Nichols

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Career Pitching Statistics

Kid Nichols — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
362 208 621 562 532 48 16 5067.1 4,929 1,664 156 1,272 1,881 2.96 64461.3

Career ERA 2.96 vs. league average 3.67 across their career seasons — 19.6% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Kid Nichols Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1890 BSN NL 27 19 48 47 47 7 0 424.0 374 105 112 222 2.23 3.88 (+43%) 10490.3
1891 BSN NL 30 17 52 48 45 5 3 425.1 413 113 103 240 2.39 3.52 (+32%) 9618.0
1892 BSN NL 35 16 53 51 49 5 0 453.0 404 143 121 192 2.84 3.28 (+14%) 5007.7
1893 BSN NL 34 14 52 44 43 1 1 425.0 426 166 118 94 3.52 4.66 (+25%) 5398.9
1894 BSN NL 32 13 50 46 40 3 0 407.0 488 215 121 113 4.75 5.33 (+11%) 4172.6
1895 BSN NL 27 16 48 43 43 1 2 390.2 434 148 90 148 3.41 4.77 (+29%) 7688.4
1896 BSN NL 30 14 49 43 37 3 1 372.1 387 117 101 102 2.83 4.36 (+35%) 2580.6
1897 BSN NL 31 11 46 40 37 2 3 368.0 362 108 68 127 2.64 4.30 (+39%) 7812.1
1898 BSN NL 31 12 50 42 40 5 4 388.0 316 92 85 138 2.13 3.59 (+41%) 5777.9
1899 BSN NL 21 19 42 37 37 4 1 343.1 326 114 82 108 2.99 3.85 (+22%) 3290.8
1900 BSN NL 13 16 29 27 25 4 0 231.1 215 79 72 53 3.07 3.68 (+17%) -2151.4
1901 BSN NL 19 16 38 34 33 4 0 321.0 306 115 90 143 3.22 3.49 (+8%) 1667.2
1904 SLN NL 21 13 36 35 35 3 1 317.0 268 71 50 134 2.02 2.66 (+24%) 3773.5
1905 SLN NL 1 5 7 7 5 0 0 51.2 64 31 18 16 5.40 2.82 (-91%) -494.7
1905 PHI NL 10 6 17 16 15 1 0 138.2 129 35 28 50 2.27 2.82 (+19%) 821.9
1906 PHI NL 0 1 4 2 1 0 0 11.0 17 12 13 1 9.82 2.68 (-267%) -992.5
Career · 16 seasons 362 208 621 562 532 48 16 5,067.1 4,929 1,664 1,272 1,881 2.96 — 64,461

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

Kid Nichols — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
650 2,090 273 472 58 24 16 278 19 137 343 .226 .277 .300 .577 -6,107

Career AVG .226 vs. league average .268 across their career seasons — 15.9% below league average.

Career OBP .277 vs. league average .334 across their career seasons — 16.9% below league average.

Career SLG .300 vs. league average .356 across their career seasons — 15.9% below league average.

Career OPS .577 vs. league average .690 across their career seasons — 16.4% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Kid Nichols 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
1890 BSN NL 49 174 18 43 5 1 0 23 2 11 36 .247 .260 (-5%) .336 (-12%) .351 (-18%) .687 (-15%) -418.9
1891 BSN NL 52 183 21 36 6 0 0 27 1 12 31 .197 .254 (-23%) .331 (-25%) .343 (-33%) .675 (-29%) -812.2
1892 BSN NL 57 197 21 40 6 2 2 21 3 16 52 .203 .244 (-17%) .316 (-17%) .327 (-13%) .644 (-15%) -460.0
1893 BSN NL 53 177 25 39 3 2 2 26 4 15 22 .220 .279 (-21%) .356 (-20%) .379 (-23%) .735 (-21%) -634.0
1894 BSN NL 51 170 39 50 11 2 0 34 1 16 24 .294 .309 (-5%) .379 (-6%) .435 (-12%) .814 (-9%) -273.0
1895 BSN NL 49 161 23 37 3 2 0 18 0 14 29 .230 .296 (-22%) .361 (-19%) .399 (-32%) .761 (-26%) -697.0
1896 BSN NL 51 147 27 28 3 3 1 24 2 12 18 .190 .290 (-34%) .354 (-28%) .387 (-30%) .741 (-29%) -716.8
1897 BSN NL 46 147 20 39 5 0 3 28 4 7 18 .265 .291 (-9%) .354 (-11%) .387 (-7%) .741 (-9%) -209.6
1898 BSN NL 51 158 26 38 3 3 2 23 0 4 8 .241 .270 (-11%) .333 (-20%) .347 (-3%) .680 (-11%) -324.9
1899 BSN NL 42 136 13 26 3 0 1 12 1 6 9 .191 .282 (-32%) .343 (-34%) .366 (-36%) .710 (-35%) -766.4
1900 BSN NL 29 90 14 18 0 0 1 7 1 7 8 .200 .279 (-28%) .338 (-24%) .366 (-36%) .705 (-30%) -418.2
1901 BSN NL 55 163 16 46 8 7 4 28 0 8 39 .282 .271 (+4%) .326 (-3%) .359 (+36%) .686 (+18%) 372.2
1904 SLN NL 36 109 7 17 1 2 0 5 0 7 26 .156 .246 (-37%) .300 (-29%) .321 (-37%) .622 (-33%) -504.4
1905 SLN NL 8 22 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 .227 — — — — 0.0
1905 PHI NL 17 53 3 10 1 0 0 2 0 2 17 .189 .248 (-24%) .307 (-29%) .322 (-36%) .629 (-32%) 0.0
1906 PHI NL 4 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
Career · 16 seasons 650 2,090 273 472 58 24 16 278 19 137 343 .226 — — — — -5,863

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.

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

Kid Nichols — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
2 7 1 2 0 0 0 2 0 1 .286

Playoff Batting by Year

Kid Nichols — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1892 CS BSN 2 7 1 2 0 0 0 2 0 1 .286

Playoff Career Pitching

Kid Nichols — Playoff Career Pitching
W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
2 0 2 2 0 18.0 17 2 4 13 1.00

Playoff Pitching by Year

Kid Nichols — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1892 CS BSN 2 0 2 2 0 18.0 17 2 4 13 1.00

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (465 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Kid Nichols — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home1213584689752.249
Away1213753371124.189

Pitching — Home / Away

Kid Nichols — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home113921.08862322233392.27
Away110882.07551682243041.71

Last 10 Games — Batting

Kid Nichols — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1906-05-18 PHICHCL 000000000
1906-04-28 PHINY1L 300000000
1906-04-25 PHINY1L 000000000
1906-04-21 PHIBSNW 000000000
1905-10-02 PHICHCL 300000001
1905-09-28 PHICINW 401100000
1905-09-23 PHIPITW 300000001
1905-09-20 PHINY1L 300000003
1905-09-15 PHIBSNW 400000002
1905-09-09 PHIBSNW 401000002

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Kid Nichols — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1906-05-18 PHICHC — 0.1240200
1906-04-28 PHINY1 L 8.01270800
1906-04-25 PHINY1 — 1.0000000
1906-04-21 PHIBSN — 1.2350310
1905-10-02 PHICHC L 8.0680250
1905-09-28 PHICIN W 9.0910230
1905-09-23 PHIPIT W 9.0800230
1905-09-20 PHINY1 L 9.0960320
1905-09-15 PHIBSN W 9.0620340
1905-09-09 PHIBSN W 9.0420260

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Kid Nichols — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 6 0 38 2 5 3
OF 20 0 33 1 7 0
P 621 60 313 1031 67 34

Season-by-Season Fielding

Kid Nichols — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1890 BSN OF 2 0 1 0 1 0
1890 BSN P 48 0 14 85 13 1
1891 BSN P 52 0 30 100 7 5
1892 BSN OF 5 0 11 0 1 0
1892 BSN P 53 0 25 88 4 4
1893 BSN OF 1 0 1 0 2 0
1893 BSN P 52 0 21 81 5 5
1894 BSN OF 1 0 1 0 0 0
1894 BSN P 50 0 34 67 7 3
1895 BSN OF 1 0 0 0 0 0
1895 BSN P 48 0 31 73 4 2
1896 BSN OF 2 0 4 0 1 0
1896 BSN P 49 0 19 92 0 3
1897 BSN P 46 0 29 62 3 1
1898 BSN 1B 1 0 7 0 1 0
1898 BSN P 50 0 21 78 4 1
1899 BSN P 42 0 25 71 5 5
1900 BSN P 29 0 19 48 1 1
1901 BSN 1B 5 0 31 2 4 3
1901 BSN OF 7 0 15 1 2 0
1901 BSN P 38 0 27 69 4 1
1904 SLN P 36 35 13 84 5 1
1905 SLN OF 1 0 0 0 0 0
1905 SLN P 7 7 2 9 1 0
1905 PHI P 17 16 3 23 4 1
1906 PHI P 4 2 0 1 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Kid Nichols Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 621
First Base 6
Left Field 11
Center Field 3
Right Field 6

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

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

  1. 98
    Mickey Welch HOF
    307-210, 2.71 ERA
  2. 97
    John Clarkson HOF
    328-178, 2.81 ERA
  3. 79
    Tony Mullane
    284-220, 3.05 ERA
  4. 77
    Tim Keefe HOF
    342-225, 2.63 ERA
  5. 75
    Old Hoss Radbourn HOF
    310-194, 2.68 ERA
  6. 45
    Jim McCormick
    265-214, 2.43 ERA

Compare Kid Nichols

Side-by-side career stat comparisons against Nichols's closest peers by position and era.

vs Cy Young
vs Christy Mathewson
vs Pete Alexander
vs Rube Waddell
vs Ed Walsh
vs Tim Keefe

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See Kid Nichols in Another Era

What would Nichols's 1904 season look like in a different era's run environment? Try the cross-era translation with a live slider.

Translate Kid Nichols's peak season across eras →

Kid Nichols: the record in brief

Kid Nichols played a first major league game on April 23, 1890 and a last one on May 18, 1906. The team column moves through the Boston Beaneaters (1890 to 1901), the St. Louis Cardinals (1904 through 1905), and the Philadelphia Phillies (1905 to 1906). Born on September 14, 1869, in Madison, WI, USA, Nichols is listed as a pitcher and switch-hit and threw right-handed. Nichols's listed size is 175 pounds on a 5-foot-10 frame. The bio records the death on April 11, 1953, in Kansas City, MO, USA. The given name on file is Charles Augustus Nichols.

The pitching table credits Nichols with a 362-208 record and a 2.96 ERA in 621 games. Also on Nichols's record: 1,881 strikeouts, 532 complete games, 48 shutouts, and 16 saves. Against a 3.67 league ERA for the same years, Nichols was 19.6% better. Nichols won 35 games in 1892, the most of any season listed. The strikeout high was 240 in 1891.

Frequently Asked Questions about Kid Nichols

What years did Kid Nichols play?
Kid Nichols played in Major League Baseball from 1890 to 1906.
Was Kid Nichols a pitcher?
Yes. Kid Nichols pitched in the major leagues, recording 362 wins and 1881 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Kid Nichols hit?
Kid Nichols hit 16 career home runs with 472 hits.
Is Kid Nichols in the Hall of Fame?
Yes. Kid Nichols was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1949.
What was Kid Nichols's career batting average?
Kid Nichols batted .226 over his career, with 472 hits in 2,090 at bats.
How many RBI did Kid Nichols have?
Kid Nichols drove in 278 runs in his career.