Playing Career
Latham made his professional debut in minor league baseball with Springfield of the National Association in 1879. Latham debuted in MLB with the Buffalo Bisons of the National League (NL) in 1880, becoming the first person from New Hampshire to play in MLB. He played for the Philadelphia Athletics of the National Association in 1881, and the Philadelphia Phillies of the League Alliance in 1882.
Latham returned to MLB with the St. Louis Browns of the American Association (AA) in 1883. Latham was known as a very good base stealer in his day. He led the AA in runs scored (152) during the 1886 season. He also batted .316 and stole 142 bases, plus another 12 stolen bases in the playoffs. In 1887, as a member of the Browns, he stole 129 bases. This record is not recognized by Major League Baseball, as stolen bases were defined differently prior to 1898. He led the league in stolen bases with 109 during the 1888 season.
In 1890, he jumped to the Chicago Pirates of the Players' League. He returned to the NL with the Cincinnati Reds in July 1890 to serve as a utility player and coach. He played for Cincinnati through 1895, and was traded to the Browns after the 1895 season with Ed McFarland, Morgan Murphy, Tom Parrott and cash for Red Ehret and Heinie Peitz. The Browns released Latham after the 1896 season.
Latham returned to minor league baseball. He played for the Columbus Buckeyes/Senators of the Western League and Scranton Miners of the Eastern League in 1896. He played for the Mansfield Haymakers of the Interstate League in 1897. In 1898, he applied to become a NL umpire; instead, he played for the New Britain Rangers of the Connecticut State League and Hartford Cooperatives of the Atlantic League in 1898. Latham returned to MLB with the Washington Senators in 1899. He played for the Denver Grizzlies of the Western League in 1902.
He played for the New York Giants of the NL in 1909, becaming the oldest man in Major League history to steal a base, at the age of 49, a record that still stands today. Latham ended his career with 739 stolen bases. Latham’s baserunning expertise was apparently purely instinctive.
He holds the career record for errors at third base, with 822, more than 200 more than the next player on the list. He apparently had the habit of letting catchable ground balls go past him by standing still as one passed to his side. Until decades after his playing days, when a third baseman did this it was said that he "Arlie Lathamed it."
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