Fritz Buelow

Frederick William Alexander Buelow (February 13, 1876 – December 27, 1933), sometimes referred to as Fritz Buelow, was a German-born baseball player. He played professional baseball as catcher for 15 years from 1895 to 1909, including nine years in Major League Baseball with the St. Louis Perfectos, St. Louis Cardinals (1900), Detroit Tigers (1901–1904), Cleveland Naps (1904–1906), and St. Louis Browns (1907).

Early years Buelow was born in Berlin, Germany, in 1876. He moved to Detroit as a boy.

Professional baseball

Minor leagues Buelow began playing professional baseball in the minor leagues with the Columbus Statesman in 1895, the Brockton Shoemakers in 1896, and the Pawtucket Phenoms in 1897 and 1898. In 1898, he joined the Detroit Tigers of the Western League. He played for the Tigers in 1898 and 1899.

In four seasons with the Tigers, Buelow appeared in 241 games, 234 as a catcher, and compiled a .202 batting average and a .242 on-base percentage. He played for the Naps for three years, appeared in 151 games, and compiled batting averages of .176 in 1904.172 in 1905, and .163 in 1906. Defensively, he led the American League's catchers in 1906 when he threw out 54.2% of the base runners attempting to steal a base. Buelow appeared in 26 games for the Browns, 25 as a catcher, and compiled a .147 batting average in 75 at bats. He appeared in his final major league game on July 13, 1907.

Later years Buelow lived in Detroit after retiring from baseball. He was a gateman at the grandstand of Navin Field. He developed locomotor ataxia and suffered from that condition for several years. In December 1933, he was hospitalized at Grace Hospital in Detroit and died there after a stay of two weeks. He was 57 years old when he died.