Charles W. Reipschlager (February 7, 1856 – March 16, 1910) was an American

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catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...

who played from to with the

New York Metropolitans The Metropolitan Club (New York Metropolitans or the Mets) was a 19th-century professional baseball team that played in New York City from 1880 to 1887. (The ''New York Metropolitan Baseball Club'' was the name chosen in 1961 for the New York M ...

and the Cleveland Blues in the American Association. He batted and threw right-handed.

Early career

Reipschlager began his baseball career playing for a club in

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, in 1873 and 1874. He moved to the Flyaway Baseball Club of New York in 1875 as a

before joining a club in

Scranton, Pennsylvania Scranton is a city in and the county seat of Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, United States. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Scranton is the most populous city in Northeastern Pennsylvania and the ...

in 1876 as a

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

. Reipschlager caught for the Alaskas and the Brooklyn Chelsea team in the League Alliance in 1876. In 1878, he moved to the International Association, playing for the Lynn Live Oaks and the

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engl ...

team. In 1879, Reipschlager played for the

New Bedford New Bedford is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. It is located on the Acushnet River in what is known as the South Coast (Massachusetts), South Coast region. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, New Bedford had a ...

team of the National Association. He played for a club in

Brockton, Massachusetts Brockton is a city in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States; the population was 105,643 at the 2020 United States census. Along with Plymouth, Massachusetts, Plymouth, it is one of the two county seats of Plymouth County, Massachusetts, ...

in 1880. Reipschlager then played in the Eastern Championship Association in 1881 with the

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. They play their home games at Na ...

, Albany club, and the Brooklyn Atlantics. He moved back to the League Alliance in 1882, this time with the

. The team joined the American Association the following year.

New York Metropolitans

On May 2, 1883, Reipschlager made his Major League debut for the

in a game against the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

. New York defeated Baltimore 2-1. In his first season in the majors, Reipschlager played in 37 games, and collected 27

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in 145

at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens upon completion of his turn at bat, ...

s. His

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was .186. New York finished 4th in the American Association. In 1884, Reipschlager played in 59 for New York, batted .240, and collected 56 hits. The Metropolitans finished first in the American Association, but lost to the

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in the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...

. Reipschlager went hitless in five at bats in the series. Reipschlager played in 72 for the Metropolitans in 1885, batting .243. The team dropped to 7th place in the standings that year.1885 New York Metropolitans at Baseball-Reference
/ref> He finished with a .211 average in 1886, playing in 65 games. On December 26, 1886, he was purchased by the Cleveland Blues.

Cleveland Blues

After being released my New York, he was acquired by the Cleveland Blues in 1887. Reipschlager appeared in 63 games for Cleveland in 1887, playing 48 games at catcher and 16 games at

first base A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

. He batted .212, and collected 49 hits and 17

runs batted in A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if th ...

. The following season, he played for the Jersey City Skeeters of the

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, before returning to the now-independent Metropolitans in 1889. On March 16, 1910, Reipschlager died in

Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, sometimes referred to by its initials A.C., is a Jersey Shore seaside resort city (New Jersey), city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Atlantic City comprises the second half of ...

at the age of 54. He is buried in Lutheran All Faiths Cemetery in

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References

External links

Retrosheet
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Reipschlager, Charlie 1856 births 1910 deaths Major League Baseball catchers New York Metropolitans players Cleveland Blues (1887–88) players Baseball players from New York City Alaskas players Brooklyn Chelsea players Lynn Live Oaks players Worcester (minor league baseball) players New Bedford (minor league baseball) players Washington Nationals (minor league) players Albany (minor league baseball) players Brooklyn Atlantics (minor league) players New York Metropolitans (minor league) players Jersey City Skeeters players 19th-century baseball players 19th-century American sportsmen