Baseball History: Remembering Count Sensenderfer

There are players who made their mark on baseball history in unique ways. Count Sensenderfer was one of those players.

In the early days of baseball history, Count Sensenderfer had established himself as a star. Sensenderfer was not royalty; having been born to a carpenter in Philadelphia, but gained the nickname of ‘Count’ due to his impressive moustache and aristocratic airs. He joined the Philadelphia Athletics in 1866, before any thought of a major league existed, and despite being only 18 years old, quickly cemented his place as one of the best players in the country.

Considering the large slate of games that those teams played, and that high scoring games were the norm, Sensenderfer put up some astonishing numbers. He became one of the few players to score over 200 runs in a season in 1868, a year when the Athletics won the championship. Originally a second baseman, he had moved to center at that point, and remained one of the top players in the game.

In 1871, the National Association, the first major league, came into being. The Athletics were one of the original teams, with Sensenderfer still a part of the franchise. He was considered the 80th player to make his major league debut, doing so on May 20 of that season. Sensenderfer had a strong campaign, producing a .323/.323/.394 batting line, but he began to suffer from injuries. He was unable to play in the NA championship game that year, leading to the 40 year old Nate Berkenstock playing his only major league game in that contest.

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Those injuries would hamper Sensenderfer for the rest of his career. He played in only a single game in 1872, but returned as the Athletics regular center fielder in 1873. The following year, injuries limited him to five games, ending his professional baseball career at only 26 years of age.

Normally, Sensenderfer would be a forgotten player in the annuls of baseball history. However, he accomplished quite a feat by simply not doing one thing common in the game. In his 234 plate appearances, he posted a .299/.299/.342 batting line, never drawing a single walk. In fact, Sensenderfer holds the career record for the most plate appearances of any non-pitcher that never drew a base on balls.

After his playing career, Sensenderfer remained a prominent figure in Philadelphia. He entered the world of politics, becoming an active member of the Pennsylvania Democratic State Committee. He had two terms as the Commissioner of Philadelphia County, continuing to remain in the forefront of the city. Sensenderfer passed away at 55 years old on May 3, 1903, his days on the diamond far in the past.

Next: Remembering Mamie Johnson

Count Sensenderfer was one of the first players in baseball history, playing in the very first major league. However, he still holds a record that has not been equaled to this day.