| Bill Rariden | |
| Position: | Catcher |
| Bats: | Right |
| Throws: | Right |
| Birth Date: | February 4, 1888 |
| Birth Place: | Bedford, Indiana, U.S. |
| Death Place: | Bedford, Indiana, U.S. |
| Debutleague: | MLB |
| Debutdate: | August 9 |
| Debutyear: | 1909 |
| Debutteam: | Boston Doves |
| Finalleague: | MLB |
| Finaldate: | October 2 |
| Finalyear: | 1920 |
| Finalteam: | Cincinnati Reds |
| Statleague: | MLB |
| Stat1label: | Batting average |
| Stat1value: | .237 |
| Stat2label: | Home runs |
| Stat2value: | 7 |
| Stat3label: | Runs batted in |
| Stat3value: | 275 |
| Teams: | |
| Highlights: |
|
William Angel Rariden (February 4, 1888 – August 28, 1942), was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from 1909 to 1920 for the Boston Doves/Rustlers/Braves, Indianapolis Hoosiers/Newark Pepper, New York Giants, and Cincinnati Reds.[1]
A light-hitting defensive specialist, Rariden set the major league record for most assists by a catcher in a single season with 215 while playing for the Newark Pepper of the Federal League in .[2] He broke his own record the following season when he had 238 in .[2] Major League status was retroactively applied to the Federal League in .
Before Rariden's career, most catchers were large, slow-footed players.[3] Rariden's small size and agility helped him become one of the best catchers in major league baseball.[3] In the Deadball Era during which Rariden played, catchers played a huge defensive role, given the large number of bunts and stolen base attempts, therefore catchers of his era usually accumulated higher assist totals than did those of subsequent eras.[4]
Rariden had his best year offensively with the New York Giants in 1917 when he posted a .271 batting average in 101 games as, the Giants won the National League pennant before being defeated by the Chicago White Sox in the 1917 World Series.[5] Rariden was also a member of the 1919 Cincinnati Reds team which won the scandal-plagued 1919 World Series against the Chicago White Sox.[6]
In a twelve-year major league career, Rariden played in 982 games, accumulating 682 hits in 2,877 at bats for a .237 career batting average along with 7 home runs and 275 runs batted in.[1] He ended his career with a .972 fielding percentage.[1] Rariden led Federal League catchers twice in putouts, twice in assists and twice in baserunners caught stealing.[1] He led National League catchers once in putouts.[1]