Thomas Joseph Needham (April 17, 1879 – December 14, 1926) was an Irish-born Major League Baseball player from 1904 to 1914. He was a catcher with the Boston Beaneaters, New York Giants and Chicago Cubs. Needham hit poorly, hitting below .200 in 8 of his 11 seasons, Needham's career average was .209, due to his first season average of .260. Needham died in his home in Steubenville, Ohio at the age of 47.
| Tom Needham | |
|---|---|
 Tom Needham in November 1913 | |
| Catcher | |
| Born: April 17, 1879 Ireland | |
| Died: December 14, 1926 (aged 47) Steubenville, Ohio, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| May 12, 1904, for the Boston Beaneaters | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| July 8, 1914, for the Chicago Cubs | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .209 |
| Home runs | 8 |
| Runs batted in | 117 |
| Stats at Baseball Reference | |
| Teams | |
Career
editBorn in Ireland, Needham lived in Steubenville, Ohio, by his teens. He played baseball there before spending a few seasons in the minor leagues.[1]
Needham was signed in late 1903 by the Boston Beaneaters, and he made his major-league debut with them in 1904. Needham achieved career highs in several offensive categories during the 84 games he played in that first season: he tallied 70 hits, including 12 doubles, and he had a .260 batting average. He stayed with Boston for three more years, playing between 83 and 86 games each season.[2]
After a brief appearance with the New York Giants in 1908, Needham was traded to the Chicago Cubs for a player named Fred Leise before the 1909 season. This seemed to be a good opportunity for Needham, as Cubs catcher Johnny Kling was sitting out the 1909 season to pursue pool playing.[3] However, the team selected Jimmy Archer in that season's rule 5 draft, and Archer became the Cubs starting catcher. Needham hit over .200 only once and never appeared in more than 33 games in any of his six seasons with the Cubs.[2][4]
Needham, who had served as a player-coach in his last couple of seasons with the Cubs, managed the Newark Bears of the International League in 1917.[5] He later served as a pitching coach for the Chicago White Sox and was involved in starting up two minor leagues in Ohio.[1]
Death
editIn early December 1926, Needham suffered a stroke. He was taken to Ohio Valley Hospital, where staff members felt that his stroke was too severe to respond to any treatment, so he was taken back home to die.[6] He died on December 14, 1926.[5] He was survived by his wife and two children.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c "Tom Needham, former major league catcher, diesin Steubenville; had varied career". The Pittsburgh Post. December 15, 1926.
- ^ a b "Tom Needham Statistics and History". baseball-reference.com. Retrieved 2010-12-19.
- ^ "Tom Needham with Cubs.; Giants' forum catcher may take place of Johnny Kling at Chicago". The New York Times. March 28, 1909.
- ^ "Jimmy Archer Stats | Baseball-Reference.com". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved December 30, 2017.
- ^ a b "Tom Needham's death mourned by baseball fans of fifteen years ago". The Pittsburgh Sunday Post. December 19, 1926. p. 29.
- ^ "Tom Needham, veteran catcher, critically ill". Pittsburgh Gazette Times. December 10, 1926.
External links
edit- Career statistics from Baseball Reference, or Baseball Reference (Minors)