Was he injured? Do you have any more info on this?
He had a hand injury in 1891, according to "The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract" pg. 421, and because of it couldn't play catcher anymore. James doesn't specify how the injury occurred, or what exactly it was. He tried being an outfielder for a year, but had a bad season, and was dumped by his team. He played baseball in some California minor leagues for a few years after that though, until 1895.