Pete Hotaling

Peter James Hotaling
(Monkey)

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 5' 8", Weight 166 lb.

• Debut May 1, 1879
• Final Game September 15, 1888
• Born December 16, 1856 in Mohawk, NY USA
• Died July 2, 1928 in Cleveland, OH USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Pete Hotaling played nine seasons in the major leagues, moving around a whole lot. He made seven stops in the nine years, playing three times for a team in Cleveland.

He was mostly a center fielder, with average to above-average range. As a hitter, he was usually above-average.

His first season was with the 1879 Cincinnati Reds at a time when the team comprised a mixture of youngsters and pioneer veterans. His teammates included Ross Barnes, Deacon White, King Kelly, Cal McVey and Will White. He was a year older than King Kelly. Hotaling, however, did not stay around, and played for four different teams in his first four years.

In 1881, he played for the Worcester Ruby Legs and had the second highest batting average on the team. The highest average was posted by his teammate and fellow outfielder Buttercup Dickerson, who had also been his teammate on the Reds in 1879.

Hotaling had his worst two seasons with the bat in 1883 and 1884 with the Cleveland Blues, but oddly enough, it was the only time in his career that he stayed with one team for two years.

Several years later he found himself in the American Association with the Cleveland Blues in 1887, and his batting average (.299) and slugging percentage (.424) were both second on the team that year.

Hotaling never played on a pennant winner. A couple of his teams finished third in the league, which was the highest finish he saw.

Related Sites

• Pete Hotaling at the SABR Bio Project