Tim O'Rourke

Timothy Patrick O'Rourke
(Voiceless Tim)

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 5' 10", Weight 170 lb.

• Debut June 14, 1890
• Final Game August 7, 1894
• Born May 18, 1864 in Chicago, IL USA
• Died April 20, 1938 in Seattle, WA USA

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Biographical Information

Tim O'Rourke played 5 years in the major leagues. His batting averages stayed pretty steady in the .270-.310 range, but while that was at first above average, as the ball got livelier over the years it became below average.

One source says he played in the Texas League from 1888 to 1890. He was 26 when he joined the Syracuse Stars of the American Association in 1890, during the year of three leagues. He played about 3/4 of the year there, making his debut near the end of May. His batting average and slugging percentage were both comfortably higher than the team averages.

The next year, his .279 batting average looked even better compared to the Columbus Solons team average of .237.

In 1892, O'Rourke joined the Baltimore Orioles, who lost 101 games. His .310 batting average was highest among the regulars. While he was primarily a third baseman in his career, in 1892 and 1893 he played more shortstop than any other position.

The 1893 Baltimore Orioles did a lot of rebuilding, and while O'Rourke stayed on the team, he was traded in early June for Hughie Jennings and Harry Taylor. Jennings was a young player who had not yet proven himself, which is how the Orioles were able to acquire him. Plus, they had a young kid named John McGraw who they used most of the season at shortstop. O'Rourke had hit a ton, however, while he was with the Orioles - he hit .363, which undoubtedly made him of interest to the Louisville Colonels. Although O'Rourke only hit .281 with them that season, it was still 21 points above the team average.

The next season the Colonels put him at first base. He hit .277, which was above the team average of .269, but he didn't stay with the team who ended up using Luke Lutenberg at the position, hitting .192. O'Rourke came to the St. Louis Browns and played third base for them in 18 games, hitting .282 on a team that hit .286. The Browns tried 8 players at third base that year, and Heinie Peitz won the job. O'Rourke than was used by the Washington Senators for 7 games, during which he hit .200, and they released him. He played at second and at short, since the team's third baseman was Bill Joyce, who hit .355 that year.