Richie Ashburn vs Willie Stargell: Career Stats Comparison

Richie Ashburn (1948–1962) and Willie Stargell (1962–1982) — they broke in during the 1940s and the 1960s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Richie Ashburn finished with 2,574 hits and 29 home runs; Willie Stargell finished with 2,232 hits and 475 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.

Richie Ashburn

Hitter · 1948–1962
Games
2,189
Hits
2,574
Home Runs
29
RBI
586
Avg
.308
OPS
.778
View Richie Ashburn's full profile →

Willie Stargell

Hitter · 1962–1982
Games
2,360
Hits
2,232
Home Runs
475
RBI
1,540
Avg
.282
OPS
.889
View Willie Stargell's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Richie Ashburn and Willie Stargell. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.

Statistic Richie Ashburn Willie Stargell
Games 2,189 2,360
At-Bats 8,365 7,927
Runs 1,322 1,194
Hits 2,574 2,232
Doubles 317 423
Triples 109 55
Home Runs 29 475
RBI 586 1,540
Walks 1,198 937
Strikeouts 571 1,936
Stolen Bases 234 17
Batting Avg .308 .282
On-Base % .396 .360
Slugging % .382 .529
OPS .778 .889

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Willie Stargell outpaces Richie Ashburn 42,804 to 18,707 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (2,038 vs 1,247 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.

Richie Ashburn
18,707
Career PIV · 1,247 per season (15 seasons)
Willie Stargell
42,804
Career PIV · 2,038 per season (21 seasons)

How PIV is calculated →

Peak Seasons

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

Richie Ashburn — top 3 seasons by OPS

1955.897 OPS3 HR, 42 RBI, .338 avg
1958.881 OPS2 HR, 33 RBI, .350 avg
1951.819 OPS4 HR, 63 RBI, .344 avg

Willie Stargell — top 3 seasons by OPS

19731.038 OPS44 HR, 119 RBI, .299 avg
19711.026 OPS48 HR, 125 RBI, .295 avg
1966.962 OPS33 HR, 102 RBI, .315 avg

Verdict

On the head-to-head card, Richie Ashburn leads in hits, runs, stolen bases, and batting average, while Willie Stargell owns home runs, RBI, and OPS. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Richie Ashburn. Note that PIV actually grades Willie Stargell ahead, which means Richie Ashburn's edge is partly volume. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.

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