Count Sensenderfer

Outfield
  • Card series: Pioneer Portraits I: 1850-1874
  • City: Philadelphia
  • Team: Athletics (NABBP)
  • League: National Association (NAPBBP)

John Phillips Jenkins Sensenderfer (1847-1903) was a second baseman and outfielder for the Philadelphia Athletics during the first four years of the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players, from 1871-74. The debonair man with an aura of aristocracy earned his nickname at least in part from the elegant mustache he sported. The Count, a lifelong Philadelphian, had been with the club in the amateur league since 1866, making him one of the true leading lights of baseball’s earliest days. Sensenderfer hit .299 over his ML career, but injuries prevented him from approaching the outstanding batting he displayed in the Athletics’ early days in the NABBP. For example, he scored over 200 runs in 1868 as one of the most prolific of early hitters.

  • After leaving baseball, Sensenderfer turned to politics. He was a local county commissioner and active in state Democratic roles as well

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