Richie Ashburn vs Billy Williams: Career Stats Comparison
Richie Ashburn (1948–1962) and Billy Williams (1959–1976) — they broke in during the 1940s and the 1950s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Richie Ashburn finished with 2,574 hits and 29 home runs; Billy Williams finished with 2,711 hits and 426 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.
Richie Ashburn
Billy Williams
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Richie Ashburn and Billy Williams. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.
| Statistic | Richie Ashburn | Billy Williams |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 2,189 | 2,488 |
| At-Bats | 8,365 | 9,350 |
| Runs | 1,322 | 1,410 |
| Hits | 2,574 | 2,711 |
| Doubles | 317 | 434 |
| Triples | 109 | 88 |
| Home Runs | 29 | 426 |
| RBI | 586 | 1,475 |
| Walks | 1,198 | 1,045 |
| Strikeouts | 571 | 1,046 |
| Stolen Bases | 234 | 90 |
| Batting Avg | .308 | .290 |
| On-Base % | .396 | .361 |
| Slugging % | .382 | .492 |
| OPS | .778 | .853 |
PIV Comparison
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Billy Williams outpaces Richie Ashburn 44,022 to 18,707 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (2,446 vs 1,247 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.
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
Billy Williams — top 3 seasons by OPS
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Billy Williams leads in hits, home runs, RBI, and runs, while Richie Ashburn owns stolen bases, batting average, and OBP. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Billy Williams. PIV agrees: Billy Williams grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.