Baseball Hall of Fame

This native Peorian was born September 1, 1863. He played baseball for New York in 1887 when he hit .301 in 127 games. An outfielder, he was traded to Brooklyn, where he played the 1888 through 1892 seasons, compiling 805 hits and 394 RBI’s to go with a .282 career batting average.

Darby played in 709 games during his six-year career while compiling a .934 fielding average. During the 1888 campaign, O'Brien patrolled left field while another Peorian, George Pickney, played third base for Brooklyn.

He helped lead Brooklyn to the 1889 pennant as he stole a league-leading 91 bases and scored 146 runs, while Brooklyn edged St. Louis by one game on the last day of the season. Darby O'Brien is buried in Springdale Cemetery.