Willie Stargell (1988)


Date of Birth: 3/6/1940
Date of Death: 4/9/2001
Birthplace: Earlsboro, Oklahoma

Willie Stargell signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates shortly after high school in August, 1958. He started his professional baseball career in 1959 in the minor leagues. He spent almost four years in the minors before getting the chance to play in ten games with the Pirates in 1962.

Pittsburgh Pirates

In 1963, Stargell played in 108 games with the Pirates and he batted .243 with 74 hits and 47 RBIs. The next season was a better one for him. He batted .273 in 117 games in 1964. He had 115 hits, 19 doubles, 21 home runs, and 78 RBIs. He walked just 17 times and he struck out 92 times.

Stargell batted .272 in 144 games in 1965. He finished the season with 145 hits, 25 doubles, 27 home runs, 127 strikeouts to 39 walks, and 107 RBIs. He had a career high batting average of .315 in 1966. That season he had 153 hits, 30 doubles, 33 home runs, and 102 RBIs in 140 games. He struck out 109 times and he walked 48 times.

Stargell had another good season in 1967, batting .271 in 134 games. He had 125 hits, 18 doubles, 20 home runs, and 73 RBIs. He struggled the following season, batting just .237 in 128 games in 1968. He finished the season with 103 hits, 15 doubles, 24 home runs, and 67 RBIs.

Stargell had a career high 160 hits in 1969. He batted .307 in 145 games, and he had 31 doubles, 29 home runs, and 92 RBIs. He struck out 120 times and he walked 61 times. The following season, his batting average dropped to .264. He finished the 1970 season with 125 hits, 18 doubles, 31 home runs, 92 RBIs, and 119 strikeouts to 44 walks in 136 games.

In 1971, Stargell led the National League in home runs with a career high of 48. That season he also had a career high in RBIs with 125. He finished the year with 151 hits, 26 doubles, 154 strikeouts to 83 walks, and a .295 batting average in 141 games. The following season, he had 145 hits, 28 doubles, 33 home runs, 112 RBIs, and a .293 batting average in 138 games. He struck out 129 times and he walked 65 times in 1972.

Stargell had a strong season in 1973, leading the NL in home runs, RBIs, and OPS. He had career highs in games played (148), doubles (43), and OPS (1.038). He finished the season with 156 hits, 44 home runs, 119 RBIs, 129 strikeouts to 80 walks, and a .299 batting average.

Stargell again led the NL in OPS in 1974 with .944. He had 153 hits, 37 doubles, 25 home runs, 96 RBIs, and a .301 batting average in 140 games. His discipline at the plate improved and he had a career high 87 walks to 106 strikeouts. He won both the Roberto Clemente award and the Lou Gehrig Memorial award that year.

Stargell finished the 1975 season with 136 hits, 32 doubles, 22 home runs, 90 RBIs, and a .295 batting average in 124 games. The following season, he played in only 117 games and he batted .257. He finished the 1976 season with 110 hits, 20 doubles, 20 home runs, and 64 RBIs. He played in just 63 games in 1977, and he batted .274 with 51 hits.

Unlike most other major league players, some of Stargell's strongest seasons didn't come early in his career but, rather, they came towards the end of it. In 1978, after 16 years in the major leagues, Stargell was named the Sporting News Comeback Player of the Year. That season he batted .295 with 115 hits, 18 doubles, 28 home runs, and 97 RBIs in 122 games. He also won the Hutch award that season.

In 1979, Stargell was named the National League MVP (along with Keith Hernandez of the St. Louis Cardinals), the Sporting News Major League Player of the Year, and the Associated Press Athlete of the Year. He batted .281 with 119 hits, 19 doubles, 32 home runs, and 82 RBIs in 126 games. He also played well in the postseason, and he won the NLCS MVP award, the WS MVP award, and the Babe Ruth award. In 41 at-bats in 10 postseason games, he batted .415 with 17 hits, 6 doubles, 5 home runs, and 13 RBIs.

The 1979 season was Stargell's last full season in the major leagues. In his last three seasons, he never played in more than 74 games and his highest batting average was .283 in 1981 in just 38 games. He batted .262 in 67 games in 1980, and .233 in 74 games in 1982.

Stargell retired as a major league player after the 1982 season.

Awards and MLB Records

  • NL MVP
  • Sporting News Major League Player of the Year
  • Associated Press Athlete of the Year
  • NLCS MVP
  • World Series MVP
  • Babe Ruth award
  • Sporting News Comeback Player of the Year
  • Hutch award
  • Roberto Clemente award
  • Lou Gehrig Memorial award
  • Led NL in home runs (2 times)
  • Led NL in OPS (2 times)

Career Statistics

Stargell played in over 100 games in each of 16 seasons (1963-1976, 1978-1979). His statistics during that time include:

  • 5 seasons with over 150 hits, with a high of 160 in 1969
  • 5 seasons with 30 or more doubles, with a high of 43 in 1973
  • 15 seasons with 20 or more home runs, with a high of 48 in 1971
  • 5 seasons with over 100 RBIs, with a high of 125 in 1971
  • 3 seasons with a batting average over .300, with a high of .315 in 1966

Career batting statistics for Stargell include:

  • 2,360 games played
  • 2,232 hits
  • 423 doubles
  • 475 home runs
  • 1,540 RBIs
  • 1,936 strikeouts to 937 walks
  • .282 batting average
  • .360 on-base percentage
  • .889 OPS

Career fielding statistics for Stargell as a left fielder include:

  • 1,229 games played
  • 1,859 putouts
  • 80 errors
  • .961 fielding percentage

Postseason statistics for Stargell include:

  • 6 postseasons
  • 36 games played
  • 133 at-bats
  • 37 hits
  • 10 doubles
  • 7 home runs
  • 20 RBIs
  • 34 strikeouts to 17 walks
  • .278 batting average

Post Playing Career

After leaving major league baseball as a player, Stargell coached for the Atlanta Braves.

Stargell was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1988 on the first ballot with 82.4% of the vote.

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Willie Stargell
ESPN - Willie Stargell
Baseball Reference - Willie Stargell

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