Tom Sullivan

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1884-1889)

Tom Sullivan was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1884 to 1889 for the Columbus Buckeyes, the Louisville Colonels, and the Kansas City Cowboys, a span of 6 seasons. Across 47 career appearances, he went 14-33 with a 4.04 ERA and 147 strikeouts.

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 14–33
ERA 4.04
WHIP 1.53
SO 147
Pitcher PIV -6082.4
Position
Pitcher
Height / Weight
5'10" / 165 lb
Born
3/1/1860 in New York, NY, USA
Died
4/12/1947 in Cincinnati, OH, USA
MLB Debut
1884-09-27
Last Game
1889-06-23

Full name: Thomas Sullivan

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Career Pitching Statistics

Tom Sullivan — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
14 33 47 47 46 0 0 408.0 474 183 12 152 147 4.04 -6082.4

Career ERA 4.04 vs. league average 3.32 across their career seasons — 21.7% worse than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Tom Sullivan — Season-by-Season Pitching
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1884 CL5 AA 2 2 4 4 4 0 0 31.0 42 14 3 12 4.06 3.11 (-31%) -403.3
1886 LS2 AA 2 7 9 9 8 0 0 75.0 94 33 33 27 3.96 3.37 (-17%) -2720.8
1888 KC2 AA 8 16 24 24 24 0 0 214.7 227 81 68 84 3.40 2.95 (-15%) -1407.2
1889 KC2 AA 2 8 10 10 10 0 0 87.3 111 55 48 24 5.67 3.93 (-44%) -1551.2
Career · 4 seasons 14 33 47 47 46 0 0 408.0 474 183 152 147 4.04 — -6,082

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

Tom Sullivan — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
51 163 20 19 2 0 0 6 7 19 42 .117 .217 .129 .346 -598

Career AVG .117 vs. league average .248 across their career seasons — 52.9% below league average.

Career OBP .217 vs. league average .300 across their career seasons — 27.5% below league average.

Career SLG .129 vs. league average .333 across their career seasons — 61.4% below league average.

Career OPS .346 vs. league average .633 across their career seasons — 45.3% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Tom Sullivan — 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
1884 CL5 AA 4 11 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 .091 — — — — 0.0
1886 LS2 AA 9 27 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 .111 — — — — 0.0
1888 KC2 AA 28 92 10 10 1 0 0 5 7 9 34 .109 .238 (-54%) .290 (-35%) .319 (-63%) .610 (-50%) -598.2
1889 KC2 AA 10 33 8 5 1 0 0 1 0 5 8 .152 — — — — 0.0
Career · 4 seasons 51 163 20 19 2 0 0 6 7 19 42 .117 — — — — -598

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.

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Tom Sullivan — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
OF 5 0 1 0 1 0
P 47 0 26 100 11 2

Season-by-Season Fielding

Tom Sullivan — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1884 CL5 P 4 0 0 3 0 0
1886 LS2 OF 1 0 0 0 0 0
1886 LS2 P 9 0 6 13 2 0
1888 KC2 OF 4 0 1 0 1 0
1888 KC2 P 24 0 17 68 4 2
1889 KC2 P 10 0 3 16 5 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Tom Sullivan — Career Games by Position
Position Games
Pitcher 47
Left Field 4
Right Field 1

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Tom Sullivan (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Johnny Miljus
    29-26, 3.92 ERA
  2. 91
    George Pechiney
    23-34, 4.23 ERA
  3. 86
    Tom Sheehan
    17-39, 4.00 ERA
  4. 83
    Ed Bagley
    16-27, 4.39 ERA
  5. 80
    John Tener
    25-31, 4.33 ERA
  6. 77
    Alex Ferson
    18-25, 4.37 ERA

Frequently Asked Questions about Tom Sullivan

What years did Tom Sullivan play?
Tom Sullivan played in Major League Baseball from 1884 to 1889.
Was Tom Sullivan a pitcher?
Yes. Tom Sullivan pitched in the major leagues, recording 14 wins and 147 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Tom Sullivan hit?
Tom Sullivan hit 0 career home runs with 19 hits.
What was Tom Sullivan's career batting average?
Tom Sullivan batted .117 over his career, with 19 hits in 163 at bats.
How many RBI did Tom Sullivan have?
Tom Sullivan drove in 6 runs in his career.
What was Tom Sullivan's career ERA?
Tom Sullivan finished with a 4.04 career ERA, going 14-33 with 147 strikeouts.