Todd was a native of
Troy, New York. His professional playing career began at the advanced age of 26 in 1928 at the lowest level—then Class D—of
minor league baseball. He reached the majors as a 30-year-old
rookie in , and spent the next nine full seasons in the big leagues. His best years came in and as a member of the Pirates. Todd led all
National League catchers in games caught each year,
batted .307 and .265 respectively, and drove home 86 and 75
runs batted in. During the 1938 offseason, Todd was traded to the
Boston Bees, then to the Dodgers. In , he platooned with
left-handed-hitting
Babe Phelps and batted .278 for the Dodgers. He then finished his MLB playing tenure with the Cubs. He was the Cubs' most-used catcher in , starting 98 games, but it was his last full campaign in the major leagues. ==Career statistics==