Thomas Clark "Parson" Nicholson (April 14, 1863 – February 28, 1917) 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 ...

player whose career spanned from 1887 to 1899. He played principally as a second baseman and in the minor leagues. He did play three 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), ...

for the

Detroit Wolverines The Detroit Wolverines were a 19th-century Major League Baseball team that played in the National League from 1881 to 1888 in the city of Detroit, Michigan. In total, they won 426 games and lost 437, taking their lone pennant (and winning the pre ...

in 1888, the

Toledo Maumees The Toledo Maumees were a baseball team originally formed in 1888. The team was based in Toledo, Ohio, and formed part of the Tri-State League for one season. Their home games were played at Speranza Park in Toledo. In 1889, the Maumees moved to th ...

in 1890, and the Washington Senators in 1895. Nicholson's only full season in the major leagues came in 1890 with Toledo when he appeared in 134 games, all at second base, and compiled a .268

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

with 11

triples TripleS (stylized as tripleS; Help:IPA/English, /ˈtɹɪpəl:ɛs/; ) is a South Korean girl group formed by MODHAUS. They aim to be the world's first decentralized K-pop idol group. The members will rotate between the group, sub-unit, and solo ac ...

, four

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s, 72

RBIs A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the bat ...

and 46

stolen base In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a runner advances to a base to which they are not entitled and the official scorer rules that the advance should be credited to the action of the runner. The umpires determine whether the runner is safe or ...

s. Over the course of 12 minor league seasons, Nicholson appeared in 837 games and compiled a .303 batting average with 48 triples, 37 home runs, and 354 stolen bases.

Early years and nickname

Nicholson was born in

Blaine, Ohio Blaine is an unincorporated community in northern Pease Township, Belmont County, Ohio, United States, along Wheeling Creek. It has a post office with the ZIP code 43909. Blaine is part of the Wheeling, WV-OH Metropolitan Statistical Area ...

, in 1863. He received the nickname "Parson" because he refused to play baseball on Sundays.

Professional baseball career

Ohio minor leagues

Nicholson began his professional baseball career playing for minor league clubs in

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, capital of the U.S. state of Ohio Columbus may also refer to: Places ...

, Barnesville, and

Wooster, Ohio Wooster ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Wayne County. Located in northeastern Ohio, the city lies approximately south-southwest of Cleveland, southwest of Akron and west of Canton. The population was 27,232 at t ...

, and in

Lancaster, Pennsylvania Lancaster, ( ; pdc, Lengeschder) is a city in and the county seat of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is one of the oldest inland cities in the United States. With a population at the 2020 census of 58,039, it ranks 11th in population amon ...

. In 1887, at age 24, he compiled a .357

playing in the

Ohio State League The Ohio State League was a minor league baseball league that operated in numerous seasons between 1887 and 1947, predominantly as a Class D level league. League franchises were based in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia. Histo ...

for teams in

Wheeling, West Virginia Wheeling is a city in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Located almost entirely in Ohio County, of which it is the county seat, it lies along the Ohio River in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains and also contains a tiny portion extending ...

, and

Steubenville, Ohio Steubenville is a city in and the county seat of Jefferson County, Ohio, United States. Located along the Ohio River 33 miles west of Pittsburgh, it had a population of 18,161 at the 2020 census. The city's name is derived from Fort Steuben, a 1 ...

Detroit and Toledo

In 1888, Nicholson played for the St. Louis Whites in the Western Association. He joined the

late in the season, making his major league debut on September 14, 1888. He appeared in 24 games as a second baseman for Detroit and compiled a .259 batting average. The 1888 Detroit team finished in fifth place with a 68-63 record. With high salaries owed to the team's star players, and gate receipts declining markedly, the team folded in October 1888 with the players being sold to other teams. Nicholson was acquired by the

Cleveland Spiders The Cleveland Spiders were an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. The team competed at the major league level from 1887 to 1899, first for two seasons as a member of the now-defunct American Association (AA), followed ...

, but the Spiders sold Nicholson to the

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A Mud Hens team has played in ...

of the International League in May 1889 for $500. Nicholson appeared in 87 games for the Mud Hens in 1889 and moved with the team when they joined the

American Association American Association may refer to: Baseball * American Association (1882–1891), a major league active from 1882 to 1891 * American Association (1902–1997), a minor league active from 1902 to 1962 and 1969 to 1997 * American Association of Profe ...

and became the

in 1890. Nicholson appeared in 134 games, all at second base, for the Maumees in 1890, his lengthiest stint in the majors. He compiled a .268 batting average with 11 triples, four home runs, 72 RBIs and 46 stolen bases.

Return to the minors

In 1891, Nicholson returned to the minor leagues, playing for the Sioux City Huskers in the Western Association. During the 1892 season, Nicholson played for three different teams—Joliet/Aurora in the Illinois-Iowa League, Chattanooga in the Southern Association, and Toledo in the Western League. Nicholson then spent the 1893 and 1894 seasons playing for Erie in the Eastern League. He totaled 141 stolen bases in two seasons with Erie and compiled batting averages of .306 and .333.

Washington

In 1895, Nicholson returned to the major leagues with the Washington Senators. In 10 games for Washington, he compiled a .184 batting average with a triple, five RBIs and six stolen bases. He appeared in his final major league game on May 6, 1895.

Final years in the minors

After being released by the Senators, Nicholson signed with the Detroit Tigers, then of the Western League. During the 1895 season, he hit .348 in 81 games for the Tigers and had three triples and nine home runs. He had the second highest batting average on the Detroit club in 1895. Nicholson continued to play in the minors through the 1899 season. He split the 1897 season playing with three Western League teams and played the 1898 season for Newark in the Atlantic League and Kansas City in the Western League. He concluded his playing career in 1899 as a player-manager for Wheeling in the Interstate League.

Career totals

Over three major league seasons, Nicholson appeared in 168 games, 158 of them at second base. He compiled a .262 batting average with 15 triples, five home runs, 86 RBIs, and 58 stolen bases. Nicholson also appeared in 837 minor league games, 640 at second base, over a span of 12 seasons. During his minor league career, he batted .303 with 48 triples, 37 home runs, and 354 stolen bases.

Later years

While still an active ball player, Nicholson became the principal owner of a shoe business in

Bellaire, Ohio Bellaire is a village (United States)#Ohio, village in Belmont County, Ohio, Belmont County, Ohio, United States. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia Wheeling metropolitan area, Metropolitan Statistical Area, and Wheeling is across the Ohio ...

, known as Nicholson and Ball. He continued to operate the shoe business after his playing career ended. He was also elected as the mayor of Bellaire in 1903 and was the superintendent of the Trinity Lutheran Church for 25 years. Nicholson died in Bellaire in 1917 at age 53 from lobar pneumonia caused by tuberculosis. He was interred at the Rose Hill Cemetery in Bellaire.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nicholson, Parson 1863 births 1917 deaths 19th-century baseball players Major League Baseball second basemen Detroit Wolverines players Toledo Maumees players Washington Senators (1891–1899) players Minor league baseball managers Wheeling (minor league baseball) players Steubenville Stubs players St. Louis Whites players Wheeling National Citys players Wheeling Nailers (baseball) players Toledo Black Pirates players Sioux City Corn Huskers players Chattanooga Chatts players Joliet Convicts players Aurora Indians players Erie Blackbirds players Detroit Tigers (Western League) players St. Paul Saints (Western League) players Kansas City Blues (baseball) players Minneapolis Millers (baseball) players Newark Colts players Wheeling Stogies players Baseball players from Ohio People from Bellaire, Ohio People from Belmont County, Ohio