Frank R. Kitson (September 11, 1869 – April 14, 1930) was an American

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

. A native of Michigan, Kitson played 10 seasons in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

with the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

(1898–1899),

Brooklyn Superbas The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the club moved to Los Angeles, Californi ...

(1900–1902),

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

(1903–1905), Washington Senators (1906–1907), and

New York Highlanders The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

(1907). Kitson helped lead the 1900 Brooklyn Superbas to the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

pennant. He had 22 wins in 1899 and won at least 15 games five consecutive years from 1899 to 1903. He compiled a career record of 128–117 with a 3.18

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

(ERA) and 729

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

s. He appeared in 304 games and threw 211 complete games.

Early years

Kitson was born in 1869 at

Hopkins, Michigan Hopkins, formerly Hopkins Station, is a village within Hopkins Township in Allegan County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 610 at the 2010 census. History In 1854, John Hoffmaster settled here. On May 20, 1854, the Hopkins po ...

Professional baseball player

Minor leagues

The first record of Kitson's professional baseball career is in 1895 when he played for the Grand Rapids Gold Bugs in the Western League. He played in the

Virginia League The Virginia League was a minor league baseball affiliation which operated in Virginia and North Carolina from 1906 to 1928. It was classified as a "C" league from 1906 to 1919 and as a "B" league from 1920 to 1928. The most famous alumni to c ...

in 1896 and then in 1897 for the Burlington Colts of the

Western Association The Western Association was the name of five different leagues formed in American minor league baseball during the 19th and 20th centuries. The oldest league, originally established as the Northwestern League in 1883, was refounded as the Western ...

. He compiled a 14–17 record for Burlington.

Baltimore and Brooklyn

In August 1897, the

purchased Kitson from Burlington. Ned Hanlon, manager of the Orioles, later recalled that he arranged the purchase of Kitson without having seen him. Interviewed in 1900, Hanlon recalled: "I'll never take another man without first seeing him work. It took over a year to teach Kitson to earn the $500 that we gave for him, but it cost me enough worry to last a lifetime. He is now one of the best pitchers in the league, but when I got him he couldn't pitch a little bit, and as for fielding his position, that was out of the question." Kitson's major league career got off to a roller coaster start in Baltimore. In his first start on May 19, 1898, he shut out the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

. Six days later, the Cubs scored 20 runs off him; the game was called after seven innings with the Cubs ahead 20–4. In his second season in Baltimore, Kitson appeared in 40 games and compiled a 22-16 record in innings pitched. He ranked among the National League leaders with a 2.77 ERA (sixth), 22 wins (10th), and 34 complete games (10th). Kitson also contributed with a .314 batting average, three triples, and 16 RBIs. The Orioles folded after the 1899 season, and a number of players, including Kitson, were transferred the

. He was a key player for the 1900 Brooklyn team that compiled an 82-54 to win the

pennant. He appeared in 40 games in 1900, compiling a 15-13 record with a 4.19 ERA in 253 innings pitched. He also helped his cause with a .294 batting average. He improved in 1901, compiling a 19-11 record with a 2.98 ERA in 38 games pitched. He also led the National League with four saves. On July 25, he pitched a one-hitter against

Christy Mathewson Christopher Mathewson (August 12, 1880 – October 7, 1925), nicknamed "Big Six", "the Christian Gentleman", "Matty", and "the Gentleman's Hurler", was a Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher, who played 17 seasons with the New York Giant ...

and the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

, and ''The Brookly Daily Eagle'' reported that Kitson's "speed, curves and command was perfect and the Giants were helpless in his hands." In 1902, Kitson again won 19 games for Brooklyn, compiling a 19-13 record with a 2.85 ERA in 32 games pitched. He ranked among the National League's leaders with 19 wins (eighth), 109 strikeouts (ninth), and 29 complete games (10th).

Detroit Tigers

On October 25, 1902, he left Brooklyn to sign with the

in the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

. In his first season in Detroit, he compiled a 15-16 record with a career-best 2.58 ERA. He remained with the Tigers for two more seasons, compiling a 9-13 record, 3.07 ERA in 1904, and a 12-14 record, 3.47 ERA in 1905.

Washington and New York

On December 5, 1905, the Tigers traded Kitson to the Washington Senators in exchange for

Happy Townsend John "Happy" Townsend (April 9, 1879 – December 21, 1963), was a Major League Baseball pitcher from to . He played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Washington Senators, and Cleveland Naps. Townsend started his career with the Phillies in 1901, ...

. He compiled a 6-14 record and 3.65 for the Senators in 1906. He began the 1907 with the Senators and lost his first three decisions with a 3.94 ERA. On May 30, 1907, the Senators sold Kitson to the

. He compiled a 4-0 record for the Highlanders with a 3.00 ERA. He pitched his final major league game on July 22, 1907. In 249 major league games, Kitson posted a 128–117 record with a 3.18 ERA. He also compiled a respectable .240 batting average (235-for-979) with 4 home runs and 95 RBI.

Later years

Kitson died in April 1930 at his farm located two-and-a-half miles north of

Allegan, Michigan Allegan ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Its population was 5,222 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Allegan County. It lies within Allegan Township but is administratively autonomous. History The men after whom Allegan's ...

. He had been suffering from a heart ailment for several years before his death. He was interred in Hudson Corners Cemetery.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kitson, Frank 1869 births 1930 deaths Major League Baseball pitchers Baltimore Orioles (NL) players Brooklyn Superbas players Detroit Tigers players Washington Senators (1901–1960) players New York Highlanders players Baseball players from Michigan Grand Rapids Gold Bugs players Petersburg Farmers players Hampton Clamdiggers players Burlington Colts players Reading Actives players Minneapolis Millers (baseball) players Kansas City Blues (baseball) players Racine Belles (1909–1915) players 19th-century baseball players People from Allegan County, Michigan