This week’s Monster Card comes from our resident deadball expert, Scott Fennessy who writes about his current 1905 replay. Like last week’s entry, 1901 Jimmy “Nixey” Callahan is a duel threat. He can beat you with his arm or his bat. For that matter, he can beat you with his legs.
Callahan played 12 of his 13 years in Chicago. He spent four with the NL Colts/Orphans and then with the advent of the American League, he moved to the White Sox for the balance of his career. I wouldn’t say his career was of superstar caliber but he did last 13 years in the big leagues which in of itself is an accomplishment. As a hitter, he batted .273 with 442 runs scored and 186 stolen bases. From the mound, he won in double figures six years in a row including two 20-win seasons in 1898-99 for the Orphans.
In 1901, he hit for his highest average in his career (.331) though he only got to the plate 132 times. He stole 10 bases and hit 11 extra bases (7-3-1). Similarly, he also had his lowest ERA of his career with a 2.42 mark. That translated to a 15-8 record for the White Sox.
| Year | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1901 | 45 | 132 | 118 | 15 | 39 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 19 | 10 | 10 | 9 | .331 | .383 | .466 |
…and Callahan’s pitching stats for 1901
| Year | W | L | G | GS | GF | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | SO | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1901 | 15 | 8 | .652 | 2.42 | 27 | 22 | 5 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 215.1 | 195 | 94 | 58 | 4 | 50 | 70 |
So Nixey Callahan helps the team on the mound and at the plate. He’s a Grade AZ pitcher by virtue of his 2.42 ERA and allowing just 50 walks in just over 215 innings. Offensively, Nixey is no slouch either. We don’t expect hit for power in the deadball era but with two 11s and a 10 plus three 14s, he has a good on base card.
Of note about this card: like other cards in the 1901 set, Callahan has two error numbers, a 53-21 and a 21-16. Also, he only has two 8s to go with his two 9s.
Whether they knew it or not, APBA was probably correct with their defensive ratings of P-2 but a 3B-3 and 2B-5. Throughout his career, Callahan was known as a good fielding pitcher, having a high range factor in several seasons from the mound. At the same time, he led the league in errors at third base two years later in 1903. One can surmise, that his infield work probably needed work.
thanks, Scott for the suggestion!
And by future of his K/9 relative to the league rates (2.9 versus league rate of 2.6), if this set was ever re-produced, he’d get a (Y) as well! One of my favorites!
Oops. “virtue” not “future”
“Only got to the plate 132 times” A huge number by contemporary or even 1050/1960 standards.