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NOVEMBER 1, 1864–JULY 10, 1897

Major League Career

1884–1890

Time as a Red

1885–1890

Position

CATCHER

BORN IN NEWPORT, KENTUCKY, Clarence “Kid” Baldwin was the son of a riverboat pilot. While Kid was still a kid, the family moved to St. Louis, where as a teenager he began playing baseball, making up for his runty size with a cocky, reckless attitude that didn’t make him popular with coaches and teammates. Society of American Baseball Researchers (SABR) historian David Ball writes that the nickname “Kid” was given frequently in that era “to scrappy, feisty little athletes, and Kid Baldwin certainly fit that description.” Listed at 5′6″ and 147 pounds, Kid probably was even lighter when he started playing professionally at 18.

A tough competitor with an outstanding arm, he established himself as an excellent catcher. In his first year, he made history by playing an official major league game (in the Union Association) for one team (Pittsburgh) while under contract to another major league team (Kansas City). On September 18, 1884, Pittsburgh’s only available catcher was injured during a game with Baltimore and Kid happened to be watching in the grandstand. He agreed to fill in.

He came to the Reds the following year, and though not a starter he was named the assistant team captain. With his brash attitude, he didn’t hesitate to give older—and bigger—veterans a piece of his mind. In his rookie year, he also played the outfield and third base and even worked four innings as a relief pitcher. But despite his skills on the field, during his first two seasons he became better known for his antics off of it, namely drinking and disobedience. He incurred so many fines that a teammate declared to reporters during the 1886 season that Kid had not yet cashed a full paycheck.

In 1887, new Reds’ president Aaron Stern offered Baldwin a hundred-dollar bonus if he remained sober throughout the season. Baldwin accepted the challenge and caught a league-leading 96 games, also leading in assists with 165.

But he soon went back to carousing, and his play suffered. When he got married (to Mary Killiger of Quincy, Illinois) after the 1889 season, the Reds hoped he would settle down. He didn’t. He played sparingly in 1890 until on July 28 the team released him. A week later, the beleaguered Philadelphia Athletics offered a contract, but he did no better there. On August 14, he blew a game by losing count of the outs. The Athletics led the St. Louis Browns 5–4 in the eighth inning, when the Browns loaded the bases with no outs. A St. Louis player grounded to the shortstop, who threw to Baldwin for the force at the plate. Baldwin then whipped the ball to first to get the batter out. The first baseman fired the ball back to Baldwin, who wasn’t there to catch it—he’d already headed to the bench thinking the inning was over. Two St. Louis runners scored and the game was lost. In September, the A’s released him. He had to beg for money to get home.

He never played again in the majors, setting an unfortunate record: He caught more games (396) in the majors than any player who never appeared in a game after the age of 25. The next year, despite his pledges to stay sober, no major league team wanted him. He played in the minors until being let go by Class B Harrisburg. From there, estranged from his wife, he drifted around, drinking heavily, living mostly in Cincinnati flophouses or on the streets. Early in 1897, his wife filed for divorce. He continued to spiral down, appearing in Cincinnati Probate Court, where a judge considered confining him to a mental hospital. On June 3, 1897, The New York Times described him as “a hopeless wreck of dissipation” and predicted his imminent death. He was taken to Cincinnati’s City Hospital and then agreed to go to Longview Insane Asylum, located in Carthage, hoping to overcome his demons and alcoholism. Instead, he died a week later, only 32 years old.