Earl Averill vs Paul Waner: Career Stats Comparison
Earl Averill (1929–1941) and Paul Waner (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; Paul Waner finished with 3,152 hits and 113 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.
Earl Averill
Paul Waner
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Earl Averill and Paul Waner. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.
| Statistic | Earl Averill | Paul Waner |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 1,668 | 2,549 |
| At-Bats | 6,353 | 9,459 |
| Runs | 1,224 | 1,627 |
| Hits | 2,019 | 3,152 |
| Doubles | 401 | 605 |
| Triples | 128 | 191 |
| Home Runs | 238 | 113 |
| RBI | 1,164 | 1,309 |
| Walks | 774 | 1,091 |
| Strikeouts | 518 | 376 |
| Stolen Bases | 70 | 104 |
| Batting Avg | .318 | .333 |
| On-Base % | .395 | .404 |
| Slugging % | .534 | .473 |
| OPS | .928 | .878 |
PIV Comparison
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Paul Waner leads Earl Averill 40,296 to 33,953 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,832 vs 2,425 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
Paul Waner — top 3 seasons by OPS
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Paul Waner leads in hits, RBI, runs, and stolen bases, while Earl Averill owns home runs and OPS. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Paul Waner. PIV agrees: Paul Waner grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.