Clarence Lemuel "Cupid" Childs (August 8, 1867 – November 8, 1912) was an American second baseman in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL) ...

with a 13-season career from 1888, 1890–1901, playing for the Philadelphia Quakers,

Cleveland Spiders The Cleveland Spiders were an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. The team competed at the major league level from 1887 to 1899, first for two seasons as a member of the now-defunct American Association (AA), followed ...

, St. Louis Perfectos and Chicago Orphans of the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

and the Syracuse Stars of the American Association.

Early life

Childs was born in

Calvert County, Maryland Calvert County is located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the population was 92,783. Its county seat is Prince Frederick. The county's name is derived from the family name of the Barons of Baltimore, the proprietors o ...

. During his career, much was apparently made of Childs' pudgy appearance. Standing 5'8" tall, he weighed 185 pounds. This led to the nickname of "Cupid", as he was said to resemble a cherub.

Career

Childs led the league in runs (136) in with the Cleveland Spiders. The 1892 Spiders featured several stars, including future Hall of Fame members

Cy Young Denton True "Cy" Young (March 29, 1867 – November 4, 1955) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher. Born in Gilmore, Ohio, he worked on his family's farm as a youth before starting his professional baseball career. Young entered th ...

, George Davis and

Jesse Burkett Jesse Cail Burkett (December 4, 1868 – May 27, 1953), nicknamed "Crab", was an American professional baseball left fielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1890 to 1905 for the New York Giants, Cleveland Spiders, St. Louis Pe ...

. The team went to the league championship series, where they lost to the

Boston Beaneaters Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- most p ...

. They had similar success in 1895, when they finished second in the league and played in the

Temple Cup The Temple Cup was a cup awarded to the winner of an annual best-of-seven postseason championship series for American professional baseball from 1894 to 1897. Competing teams were exclusively from the National League, which had been founded in 1 ...

. Childs was among the top ten players in the league in walks every season between 1890 and 1900; he finished second in walks every season between 1891 and 1894. He led the league in doubles and extra base hits in 1890. In May 1900, Childs was attempting a double play against the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. Founded as part o ...

when the Pirates player-manager

Fred Clarke Fred Clifford Clarke (October 3, 1872 – August 14, 1960) was an American Major League Baseball player from 1894 to and manager from 1897 to 1915. A Hall of Famer, Clarke played for and managed both the Louisville Colonels and Pittsburgh Pirat ...

slid into him. There was a brief confrontation on the field, and then Childs spotted Clarke at a train station after the game. Childs charged Clarke and badly beat the manager in the ensuing fistfight. The next day, fans in Pittsburgh showed up in large numbers (triple the average Monday attendance) hoping to see a continuation of the scuffle, but the game was played without incident. Childs' playing time fell off in his final season of 1901 (63 games, from 137 the previous year) as Pete Childs (no known relationship) played more of the team's games at second base. A career .306 hitter, Childs retired with a .416

on-base percentage In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) measures how frequently a batter reaches base. An official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1984, it is sometimes referred to as on-base average (OBA), as it is rarely presented as a ...

, 991 walks and 269 stolen bases, having played more than 1400 games as a second baseman.

Later life

By the time he was 45, Childs was living in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, and he had developed

cirrhosis Cirrhosis, also known as liver cirrhosis or hepatic cirrhosis, and end-stage liver disease, is the impaired liver function caused by the formation of scar tissue known as fibrosis due to damage caused by liver disease. Damage causes tissue repai ...

and

nephritis Nephritis is inflammation of the kidneys and may involve the glomeruli, tubules, or interstitial tissue surrounding the glomeruli and tubules. It is one of several different types of nephropathy. Types * Glomerulonephritis is inflammation ...

(known as Bright's disease at the time). He died in Baltimore on November 8, 1912. He was buried there at

Loudon Park Cemetery Loudon Park Cemetery is a historic cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland. It was incorporated on January 27, 1853, on of the site of the "Loudon" estate, previously owned by James Carey, a local merchant and politician. The entrance to the cemetery i ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Childs, Cupid Baseball players from Maryland Major League Baseball second basemen Philadelphia Quakers players Cleveland Spiders players St. Louis Perfectos players Chicago Orphans players Syracuse Stars (AA) players 1867 births 1912 deaths People from Calvert County, Maryland Toledo Swamp Angels players Syracuse Stars (minor league baseball) players Jersey City Skeeters players Montgomery Black Sox players Baltimore Orioles (IL) players Schenectady Electricians players Scranton Miners players 19th-century baseball players Shamokin Maroons players

Early life

Career

Later life

See also

References

External links