Cooney Snyder

Abraham Conrad Snyder (Cooney)

• Bats Right, Throws Unknown
• Height 6' 3", Weight 180 lb.

• Debut May 19, 1898
• Final Game June 19, 1898
• Born May 6, 1873 in Chinguacousy, ON CAN
• Died April 21, 1917 in Toronto, ON CAN

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Biographical Information

Cooney Snyder was sold by Toronto in 1897 to Washington, who sold him to the Louisville Colonels in 1898. He played a month in the majors for Louisville, where he was a teammate of Fred Clarke and Honus Wagner.

While there are a half dozen players with the last name "Cooney", Snyder is the only major leaguer remembered with the first name of "Cooney", which is short for his given name Conrad. Canadian census records indicate that he was managing a hotel in Toronto, ON in 1911 and 1912. He died in that city in 1917 and is buried at Union Cemetery in Guelph, ON.

"In signing Snyder Mr. Irwin corraled one of the best catchers that ever donned a mask, and at the close of the season he will be a much-sought after man. As a thrower to bases he is in a class by himself, easily catching the fastest runners six feet off the bases. The writer has seen a good many catchers, but has never seen one that so favorably impressed him as does 'Cooney' Snyder." - the opinion of Sporting Life's Toronto correspondent, July 3, 1897

"Catcher 'Cooney' Snyder, late the Colonels' backstop, has advanced faster in his profession than most players. . . Snyder is credited with an extraordinary throwing arm as well as a strong swing as a batsman. . . Before he became proficient in base ball 'Cooney' was a keeper in a Canadian insane asylum. His daily task was to wrestle with the patients who showed a desire to buck against the rules of the institution. . . There he developed into an athlete . . ." - Sporting Life, July 2, 1898

Further Reading

• "Another Snyder", in Bill Carle, ed.: Biographical Research Committee Report, SABR, July/August, 2010, p. 1.