Bartson made his PL debut for the Pirates on May 14, 1890, in a game against the Buffalo Bisons that Chicago won 4–1. In July, Bartson was traded to Buffalo to help their pitching staff, though he voided the trade, a condition possible under league structure. Bartson reasoned it was better to pitch once a week for a good team than once every three days for a bad one.[3] He played his final PL game on September 16, 1890.[1] Pirates manager Charles Comiskey recommended him for release after Bartson got drunk and verbally abused Cap Anson, so much so that police had to remove Bartson from the grounds, in a NL game Bartson attended during an off-day; Comiskey stated "his work was not of such a kind as to warrant his retention" anyway.[3]
Bartson did not make many starts with Chicago, as pitchers Mark Baldwin and Silver King started 113 of the club's 138 total games.[3] He finished the year with 20 games started, an ERA of 4.11, and a 9–10 win–loss record, while having a batting average of .167 with 13 hits over 90 plate appearances.[1] According to author Ed Koszarek, his pitching numbers were indicative of being a "third reserve pitcher on a staff", and were far below the Pirates' level, and his batting numbers were below normal for a pitcher.[4]
After the season, he played for the Quincy Ravens of the Illinois–Iowa League (IIL), the Minneapolis Millers of the Western Association (WA), and the St. Paul Apostles/Duluth Whalebacks of the WA in 1891. In 1892, Bartson recorded a 17–13 win–loss record and a 1.30 ERA over 242.1 innings pitched for the Rock Island-Moline Twins of the IIL.[1] He continued to play for several Midwestern minor-league teams until his early thirties.[3] Bartson stood at 6 feet 0 inches (183 cm) and weighed 170 pounds (77 kg).[4]
After his professional baseball career, he formed a WA team in Peoria with Ed Dugdale, and later served as president of Peoria Three-I club.[3] In politics, he was a city official in Peoria and served as Republican Central Committee chairman. At the time of his death, he was working for the Empire Cigar Store in the city.[5] Bartson died on June 9, 1936, in Peoria, of heart disease, and is interred at Springdale Cemetery in Peoria.[1][4]