- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Omaha
- Team: Omahogs
- League: Western Association
- Hall: National Baseball Hall of Fame
Charles Augustus Nichols (1869-1953). A right-handed, switch-hitting pitcher, Nichols played 15 major league seasons for 3 different clubs. Nichols had 11 seasons with 20 Wins or more, 10 consecutively, 7 of which exceeded 30. He quit MLB for 2 years to own & pitch for a minor league team, with whom he won another 48 games.
- Youngest to 300 Wins (30 years)
- 5x NL pennant winner
- His 361 Wins ranks 7th all-time
- Nichols has five known poses in the Old Judge canon.
- Elected to Hall of Fame: 1949
- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Omaha
- Team: Omahogs
- League: Western Association
Patrick H. O’Connell (1861-1943) had a very short-lived experience in the majors. He played mostly outfield during part of the 1886 season for the Baltimore Orioles of the American Association. He started 41 of his 42 games in the field, played one at first base and relieved for three innings in a game. His woeful batting (.181 average) was eclipsed by his even more inept play in the pastures as he committed 17 errors on 78 chances. By contrast, Jumbo Davis, the third baseman, handled 231 plays and muffed only 35 at the hot corner. O’Connell’s path crossed with Sandy Nava in his last appearance in the majors that season. Nava was the first known Mexican-American to play in the big leagues and was closing out what had been primarily a National League career.
Pat had broken in with Lawrence of the Eastern New England League in 1885. The Maine native continued briefly with Lawrence the next year before going back closer to home in Portland prior to making the jump to the AA later in ‘86. O’Connell found more playing time out west. He moved to Oshkosh in the Northwestern League for the ‘87 season and saw the most action of his pro career. He played regularly at first base and hit a resounding .354 in 116 games. From Wisconsin, Pat’s playing career declined quickly. He got into 84 games with the Omaha Omahogs in ‘88 and fewer than half that for two clubs the next year. After several years absence, Pat resurfaced in 1895 with the New Bedford Whalers of the New England League. At 34 he was the old man on the club.
- The Old Judge production department oftentimes misidentified Pat O'Connell on his cards as being a member of the Des Moines Prohibitionists of the Western League, occasionally listing his name as "Connell." A Peter J. Connell did play for Des Moines that year, and is one of 39 subjects who make a one pose appearance in the Old Judge cannon. (Mike Dorgan, by contrast, singularly leads the OJ cohort with 17 different poses.) Because of the confusion, this Pat O'Connell is oftentimes cited as PJ O'Connell. Such mix-ups are fairly common in the OJ series as the intrepid Old Judge crew sought to document as many players as possible in an era of shoddy record-keeping.
- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Omaha
- Team: Omahogs
- League: Western Association
George Archer Wilson (1860-1914) was Brooklyn all the way; born, bred and buried in the beloved borough. So it was fitting that when young Tugembarked on his chosen profession in 1884, he began at the top, with the hometown Atlantics of the American Association. He got into 24 games as a catcher/outfielder and hit what was a very respectable .232 for a backstop in that era. Thereafter, Tug was a stalwart in the heartland of the sport – its minor leagues. He never again saw a big league diamond, but he did see the country. His career lasted through the 1896 season and took him from New Jersey to New England, from Oshkosh to Omaha, from the Northwestern League to the Southern Association. After being an Atlantic he was a Clamdigger, a Domestic, a Giant, a Lamb, a Mountaineer and a Nutmeg. He was a Bingo, a Star, a Bluebird, a Brown and a Cracker. What a collection of uniforms! Tug concluded his pro career in the Virginia League as a Portsmouth Brown. As he was in the twilight of his playing days, he teamed there with about a dozen youngsters who would go on to the majors. It is likely they all heard the stories of how it was back in the day, in Brooklyn.
- The ’84 Atlantics were named by owner Charles Byrne for the old Nat’l Assoc Brooklyn franchise. The new team struggled to a ninth place finish
- Tug Wilson did not appear in the Old Judge series. However, this image is taken from an Old Judge proof suggesting that OJ either had intentions of including Wilson or this image represents an as-of-yet undiscovered player & pose.
- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Omaha
- Team: Omahogs
- League: Western Association
Joseph Strauss (1858-1906) was a fixture in minor league outfields from age 25 to 39 and got a a brief turn in the majors with 3 clubs from 1884-86. He entered MLB with the KC Cowboys the year they played in the short-lived Union Association, playing in only 16 games in ’84. The following season proved even slimmer pickings for “Dutch” as he was picked up by the Louisville Colonels in the AA, but appeared in only 2 games. His 1-for-6 performance must have showed them something, however, as Louisville brought Joe back the next year. He got into 74 games & hit .215 in nearly 300 at-bats. Joe’s lot improved a bit late that season when he was purchased by the competing, and stronger, Brooklyn Grays. Brooklyn would go on to a third-place finish. Strauss appeared in 9 games & hit .250 in his final experience in the big leagues. Undeterred by his mediocre showing at the top level, Joe continued his extensive minor-league career that included at least 15 teams, finishing up with Rock Island in the Western Association in 1898.
- Strauss made two relief appearances for the Colonels in ’86, saving one game. The scant data for bullpen achievement in that era records that Joe tied for the AA lead in saves that year with four other hurlers
- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Omaha
- Team: Omahogs
- League: Western Association
Charles Augustus Nichols (1869-1953). A right-handed, switch-hitting pitcher, Nichols played 15 major league seasons for 3 different clubs. Nichols had 11 seasons with 20 Wins or more, 10 consecutively, 7 of which exceeded 30. He quit MLB for 2 years to own & pitch for a minor league team, with whom he won another 48 games.
- Youngest to 300 Wins (30 years)
- 5x NL pennant winner
- His 361 Wins ranks 7th all-time
- Elected to Hall of Fame: 1949
- Although the Old Judge series features five known poses of Kid Nichols, I could not find one of suitable quality for this project. This image is taken from a cabinet photo produced by the Elmer Chickering Studio in Boston.
- Update: This card was retired in August of 2017 as I was finally able to find a suitable original Old Judge image of Kid Nichols. I have replaced this card with a new one that you can find here
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