Earl Averill vs Babe Herman: Career Stats Comparison
Earl Averill (1929–1941) and Babe Herman (1926–1945) — both broke in during the 1920s, which makes the head-to-head feel like a contemporaries' debate. Earl Averill finished with 2,019 hits and 238 home runs; Babe Herman finished with 1,818 hits and 181 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.
Earl Averill
Babe Herman
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Earl Averill and Babe Herman. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.
| Statistic | Earl Averill | Babe Herman |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 1,668 | 1,552 |
| At-Bats | 6,353 | 5,603 |
| Runs | 1,224 | 882 |
| Hits | 2,019 | 1,818 |
| Doubles | 401 | 399 |
| Triples | 128 | 110 |
| Home Runs | 238 | 181 |
| RBI | 1,164 | 997 |
| Walks | 774 | 520 |
| Strikeouts | 518 | 553 |
| Stolen Bases | 70 | 94 |
| Batting Avg | .318 | .324 |
| On-Base % | .395 | .383 |
| Slugging % | .534 | .532 |
| OPS | .928 | .915 |
PIV Comparison
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Earl Averill leads Babe Herman 33,953 to 25,837 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (2,425 vs 1,845 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).
Earl Averill — top 3 seasons by OPS
Babe Herman — top 3 seasons by OPS
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Earl Averill leads in hits, home runs, RBI, and runs, while Babe Herman owns stolen bases and batting average. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Earl Averill. PIV agrees: Earl Averill grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.