Joe Start

Joe Start
First baseman
Born: (1842-10-14)October 14, 1842
New York City
Died: March 27, 1927(1927-03-27) (aged 84)
Providence, Rhode Island
Batted: Left Threw: Left
MLB debut
May 18, 1871, for the New York Mutuals
Last MLB appearance
July 9, 1886, for the Washington Nationals
MLB statistics
Batting average .299
Hits 1,417
Runs 854
Teams
  National Association of Base Ball Players
Enterprise of Brooklyn (1860–1861)
Brooklyn Atlantics (1862–1870)
  League player
New York Mutuals (1871–1876)
Hartford Dark Blues (1877)
Chicago White Stockings (1878)
Providence Grays (1879–1885)
Washington Nationals (1886)
  League manager
New York Mutuals (1873)
Career highlights and awards
  • Finished in top four in batting average three times
  • Finished second in runs scored in 1878
  • Finished first in hits in 1878
  • Finished first in total bases in 1878
  • Finished second in RBIs in 1872

Joseph Start (October 14, 1842 – March 27, 1927), nicknamed "Old Reliable", was one of the most durable regulars of baseball's earliest era, and one of the top first basemen of his time. He started his career in 1859, before the advent of organized leagues and paid professionalism, and continued to play regularly until 1886, when he was 43.

Writing in the SABR Nineteenth Century Committee's Nineteen Century Notes (Summer 2018), baseball historian Bill Ryczek wrote: "There have been a number of 20th-century players who had long careers, but the game that Tommy John played during his [1963] rookie year was very much like the game he played during his final season in 1989. When 16-year-old Joe Start began playing in 1859, pitchers threw underhand with a stiff wrist from behind a line 45 feet from home plate, a fly ball caught on one bounce was an out, and gloves were unheard of, as were professional ballplayers. During his final season, pitchers threw over-hand or sidearm with velocity that was unimaginable in 1859. The one-bounce out was 20 years in the grave, and most players wore fielding gloves. All of the top players were professionals, and baseball had become big business, far removed from the amateur affair of 1859. Despite the dramatic changes in the game of baseball, Joe Start remained a steady, productive player, adapting to the changes as quickly as they appeared. He was a regular until his final year."[1]

Career achievements

Born in New York City, he led the Brooklyn Atlantics, the team he joined in 1862, to undefeated seasons in 1864 and 1865. In 1871, he joined the new National Association's New York Mutuals, hitting a career-high .360 in his first season with the team, when he was age 28. When the National League was formed in 1876, the Mutuals joined, bringing Start with them. After spending 1877 with the Hartford Dark Blues and 1878 with the Chicago White Stockings. 1878 was possibly Start's best season with the bat. He led the league with 100 hits and 125 total bases. He came close to the league lead with 12 doubles, 5 triples, and one home run. His 58 runs that year were second in the league. These statistics came in only 285 at bats, and at the age of 35, long after most players have begun to decline.

From 1879 until 1885, when he was 42, Start held down first base for the Providence Grays and continued to hit well; he also served as team captain,[2] a role that provided field leadership before the establishment of team managers.

Unfortunately, 1885 was Providence's last season in the NL, so in 1886, he moved to the Washington Nationals for what would be his final season. Start only played 31 games for the Nationals, did not hit well, and retired from professional play. After this final sub-par season, his lifetime Major League batting average dipped below .300, to .299. For the final nine seasons of Start's career, he was the oldest player on any major league roster.

Over his full major league career Start amassed 1418 hits, 854 runs, and 544 RBI in National League and National Association play. He logged a .299 batting average, a .322 on-base percentage, and a .367 slugging percentage. These totals do not include his first 12 pre-league years, and since they were achieved in much shorter seasons than today's professionals play, they only reflect a portion of his value to his teams. In addition, his career spanned many important rule changes that changed the game in pivotal ways, but Start continued to play at a high level through all of them. Start's 1879 Providence team won the National League, and in 1884 they won a championship, beating the New York Metropolitans.

Writing at 19cBaseball.com, early game historian Eric Miklich asserted that "Start was reported to be an excellent fielder and may have been the first first baseman to play off of the bag when not receiving a throw, enabling him to increase the area of the infield that he covered. At that time first basemen played close to or on top of the base, waiting to take throws from the infielders."[3]

Start died in Providence, Rhode Island at the age of 84.

References

  1. ↑ Ryczek, William, "My Favorite Nineteenth Century Player: Joe Start," Nineteenth Century Notes, Society of American Baseball Research 19th Century Committee, Summer 2018
  2. ↑ Karmik, Thom, “Sweeney Was Drunk, But I Didn’t Know It”, Baseball History Daily
  3. ↑ Miklich, Eric, "Joe Start, 1842-1927", 19cBaseball.com, 2016


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