Baldy Louden

Who was Baldy Louden?

William P. "Baldy" Louden, was a Major League Baseball infielder who played six seasons in the Major Leagues with the New York Highlanders, Detroit Tigers, Buffalo Buffeds, and Cincinnati Reds. Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Louden played mostly at second base and shortstop. Over six years, Louden played in 603 Major League games and had a .261 batting average and a .355 on-base percentage.

Louden was earning $2,700 a year with the Tigers when he chose to join Buffalo of the Federal League in 1914. Louden had his most productive seasons with the "Buffeds." In 1914, he was among the Federal League's leaders with a .313 batting average, .391 on-base percentage, and 35 stolen bases.

When the Federal League folded in 1916, Louden moved to the Cincinnati Reds, where he hit .219 while leading National League second basemen in fielding average.

In 1912 with Detroit, his Range factor was 5.61 in 87 games at 2nd base—0.86 points higher than the league average for second basemen. His Range factor in 1916 with Cincinnati was 5.40—0.66 points higher than the National League average.