Cap Anson vs Vladimir Guerrero: Career Stats Comparison

Cap Anson (1871–1897) and Vladimir Guerrero (2019–present) — they broke in during the 1870s and the 2010s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Cap Anson finished with 3,435 hits and 97 home runs; Vladimir Guerrero finished with 1,077 hits and 183 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.

Cap Anson

Hitter · 1871–1897
Games
2,524
Hits
3,435
Home Runs
97
RBI
2,075
Avg
.334
OPS
.841
View Cap Anson's full profile →

Vladimir Guerrero

Hitter · 2019–present
Games
975
Hits
1,077
Home Runs
183
RBI
591
Avg
.288
OPS
.861
View Vladimir Guerrero's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Cap Anson and Vladimir Guerrero. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.

Statistic Cap Anson Vladimir Guerrero
Games 2,524 975
At-Bats 10,281 3,734
Runs 1,999 571
Hits 3,435 1,077
Doubles 582 211
Triples 142 6
Home Runs 97 183
RBI 2,075 591
Walks 984 430
Strikeouts 330 645
Stolen Bases 277 26
Batting Avg .334 .288
On-Base % .394 .366
Slugging % .447 .495
OPS .841 .861

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Cap Anson outpaces Vladimir Guerrero 52,242 to 14,982 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,935 vs 2,140 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.

Cap Anson
52,242
Career PIV · 1,935 per season (27 seasons)
Vladimir Guerrero
14,982
Career PIV · 2,140 per season (7 seasons)

How PIV is calculated →

Peak Seasons

The best single seasons each player produced, ranked by OPS among qualified workloads (300+ at-bats).

Cap Anson — top 3 seasons by OPS

1894.997 OPS5 HR, 100 RBI, .388 avg
1886.977 OPS10 HR, 147 RBI, .371 avg
1881.952 OPS1 HR, 82 RBI, .399 avg

Vladimir Guerrero — top 3 seasons by OPS

20211.002 OPS48 HR, 111 RBI, .311 avg
2024.940 OPS30 HR, 103 RBI, .323 avg
2025.848 OPS23 HR, 84 RBI, .292 avg

Verdict

On the head-to-head card, Cap Anson leads in hits, RBI, runs, and stolen bases, while Vladimir Guerrero owns home runs and OPS. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Cap Anson. PIV agrees: Cap Anson grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.

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