Tim Keefe

Timothy John "Smiling Tim" or "Sir Timothy" Keefe
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
Height: 5'10"
Weight: 185 lbs.
Born: January 1, 1857 in Cambridge, MA
Died: April 23, 1933 in Cambridge, MA

Before Pedro Martinez, before Dwight Gooden, before Tom Seaver ... there was Smiling Tim Keefe. The greatest of the original Mets' pitchers, Tim was the only one of the 19th-century Mets to be elected to Baseball's Hall of Fame. In his two seasons in the American Association, he won 41 and 37 games, and when he retired after the 1893 season, he did so as baseball's all-time strikeout leader to that point. He also filled in occasionally in the field when he wasn't on the mound, and was a good enough hitter that he actually led the 1883 club in triples. One of his cards from the 1980s Baseball Immortals set is shown here, and there is another card pictured below.

Additional note: While I was browsing through the magnificent website Baseball-Reference.com in mid-2018, I stumbled across the information that Tim Keefe's 1883 season with the Mets was actually the greatest single season ever recorded in the history of baseball, either for pitchers or position players, in terms of Wins Above Replacement, as measured by B-REF.

You can read a condensed biography containing anecdotes from Smiling Tim's career by clicking on the Hall of Fame icon below. If you prefer a longer read, there is a much more significant biography available by clicking on the SABR banner at the bottom of the page.

back to Metropolitans - back to the New York Mets Hall of Records home page - Rounding Third baseball card shop

PITCHING RECORD (team-leading totals in red)

YEAR CLUB     G  GS  CG     IP   W   L  PCT    H    R   ER   SO   BB ShO SV  ERA
================================================================================
1880 Tro NL  12  12  12  105.0   6   6 .500   71   27   10   43   17   0  0 0.86
1881 Tro NL  45  45  45  402.0  18  27 .400  442  243  145  103   81   4  0 3.25
1882 Tro NL  43  42  41  375.0  17  26 .395  368  221  104  116   81   1  0 2.50
1883 *METS*  68  68  68  619.0  41  27 .603  486  244  166  361   98   5  0 2.41
1884 *METS*  58  58  56  483.0  37  17 .685  380  195  121  334   71   4  0 2.25
1885 N Y NL  46  46  45  400.0  32  13 .711  300  154   70  227  102   7  0 1.58
1886 N Y NL  64  64  62  535.0  42  20 .677  479  250  152  297  102   2  0 2.56
1887 N Y NL  56  56  54  476.2  35  19 .648  428  260  165  189  108   2  0 3.12
1888 N Y NL  51  51  48  434.1  35  12 .745  317  140   84  335   90   8  0 1.74
1889 N Y NL  47  45  39  364.0  28  13 .683  319  212  134  225  151   3  1 3.31
1890 N Y PL  30  30  23  229.0  17  11 .607  228  137   86   88   85   1  0 3.38
1891 2teams  19  17  13  133.1   5  11 .313  155  112   66   64   55   0  1 4.46
1892 Phi NL  39  38  31  313.1  19  16 .543  264  142   82  127  100   2  0 2.36
1893 Phi NL  22  22  17  178.0  10   7 .588  202  131   87   53   79   0  0 4.40
================================================================================
METS TOTALS 126 126 124 1102.0  78  44 .639  866  439  287  695  169   9  0 2.34
OTHER CLUBS 474 468 430 3945.2 264 181 .593 3573 2029 1185 1867 1051  30  2 2.70
================================================================================
CAREER TOTS 600 594 554 5047.2 342 225 .603 4439 2468 1472 2562 1220  39  2 2.62

seasons highlighted in blue denote he was selected Rounding Third's Mets Pitcher of the Year

SPLIT SEASONS

YEAR CLUB     G  GS  CG     IP   W   L  PCT    H    R   ER   SO   BB ShO SV  ERA
================================================================================
1891 N Y NL   8   7   4   55.0   2   5 .286   71   57   32   29   27   0  0 5.24
1891 Phi NL  11  10   9   78.1   3   6 .333   84   55   34   35   28   0  1 3.91

back to Metropolitans - back to the New York Mets Hall of Records home page - Rounding Third baseball card shop

1981 Perez-Steele Hall of Fame Postcard

This is a list of the Tim Keefe cards that I had in my collection; they’re all gone now. If you have any cards that are not listed here, and you are willing to trade or donate them, contact me at Rounding Third. Items that are struck through are no longer a part of the Rounding Third collection, having been sold for charity.

reprint of 1887 Allen & Ginter

1887 Old Judge reprint #16

1888 Goodwin Champions reprint

1976 Shakey's Pizza Baseball's Immortals #99

1980-87 SSPC Baseball Immortals #99
1980-87 SSPC Baseball Immortals #99 (1st printing)

1981 Perez-Steele Hall of Fame Postcards #99 (serial-numbered 06747/10,000)

2001 RBall Baseball Hall of Fame Postcards Series 1 #6 (no bat on back)
2001 RBall Baseball Hall of Fame Postcards Series 1 #6 (with bat on back)

2005 Baseball Hall of Fame Plaque Postcards

2012 Baseball Hall of Fame Plaque Postcards

Other Tim Keefe memorabilia in my collection:

Baseball Hall of Fame Museum coffee mug (I do still have this piece)

back to Metropolitans - back to the New York Mets Hall of Records home page - Rounding Third baseball card shop