John Clarkson
The workhorse who threw his arm into baseball immortality, Clarkson averaged 389 innings per season during his first seven years in the majors — a pace that would cripple modern pitchers by June. His 1885 season with Chicago remains one of the most dominant pitching performances ever recorded: 53 wins against just 16 losses with a 1.85 ERA that was 64% better than league average.
Clarkson's 328 career victories place him seventh all-time, but it's how he earned them that sets him apart. He struck out nearly two batters per game when the dead-ball era average hovered around one, making him baseball's first true power pitcher. His career ERA+ of 125 means he was consistently 25% better than his peers throughout a 13-year career.
The right-hander's dominance came at a cost — his arm gave out completely by age 32, ending what should have been a longer career. But those peak years burned so bright that the Veterans Committee had no choice but to enshrine him in Cooperstown.
Career · Hitting
12 seasons| Year | Team | G | AB | HR | RBI | AVG | OPS | OPS+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1882 | WOR | 3 | 11 | 0 | 2 | .364 | — | — |
| 1884 | CHC | 21 | 84 | 3 | 17 | .262 | — | — |
| 1885 | CHC | 72 | 283 | 4 | 32 | .216 | — | — |
| 1886 | CHC | 55 | 210 | 3 | 23 | .233 | — | — |
| 1887 | CHC | 63 | 215 | 6 | 25 | .242 | — | — |
| 1888 | BSN | 55 | 205 | 1 | 17 | .195 | — | — |
| 1889 | BSN | 73 | 262 | 2 | 23 | .206 | — | — |
| 1890 | BSN | 45 | 173 | 2 | 26 | .249 | — | — |
| 1891 | BSN | 55 | 187 | 0 | 26 | .225 | — | — |
| 1892 | CL4 | 45 | 158 | 1 | 17 | .171 | — | — |
| 1893 | CL4 | 37 | 131 | 1 | 17 | .206 | — | — |
| 1894 | CL4 | 22 | 55 | 1 | 7 | .200 | — | — |
| Career | 546 | 1974 | 24 | 232 | .219 | — | — | |
Career · Pitching
12 seasons| Year | Team | G | IP | W | L | ERA | ERA+ | SO | WHIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1882 | WOR | 3 | 24.0 | 1 | 2 | 4.50 | 62 | 3 | 2.125 |
| 1884 | CHC | 14 | 118.0 | 10 | 3 | 2.14 | 145 | 102 | 1.008 |
| 1885 | CHC | 70 | 623.0 | 53 | 16 | 1.85 | 164 | 308 | 0.953 |
| 1886 | CHC | 55 | 466.7 | 36 | 17 | 2.41 | 140 | 313 | 1.082 |
| 1887 | CHC | 60 | 523.0 | 38 | 21 | 3.08 | 135 | 237 | 1.157 |
| 1888 | BSN | 54 | 483.3 | 33 | 20 | 2.76 | 107 | 223 | 1.173 |
| 1889 | BSN | 73 | 620.0 | 49 | 19 | 2.73 | 144 | 284 | 1.277 |
| 1890 | BSN | 44 | 383.0 | 26 | 18 | 3.27 | 119 | 138 | 1.332 |
| 1891 | BSN | 55 | 460.7 | 33 | 19 | 2.79 | 126 | 141 | 1.279 |
| 1892 | CL4 | 45 | 389.0 | 25 | 16 | 2.48 | 132 | 139 | 1.239 |
| 1893 | CL4 | 36 | 295.0 | 16 | 17 | 4.45 | 105 | 62 | 1.536 |
| 1894 | CL4 | 22 | 150.7 | 8 | 10 | 4.42 | 121 | 28 | 1.454 |
| Career | 531 | 4536.4 | 328 | 178 | — | — | 1978 | — | |
Matchups, projections, comps — grounded in Lahman, Retrosheet, and Statcast.