Harold Baines vs Edgar Martinez: Career Stats Comparison
Harold Baines (1980–2001) and Edgar Martinez (1987–2004) — both broke in during the 1980s, which makes the head-to-head feel like a contemporaries' debate. Harold Baines finished with 2,866 hits and 384 home runs; Edgar Martinez finished with 2,247 hits and 309 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.
Harold Baines
Edgar Martinez
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Harold Baines and Edgar Martinez. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.
| Statistic | Harold Baines | Edgar Martinez |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 2,830 | 2,055 |
| At-Bats | 9,908 | 7,213 |
| Runs | 1,299 | 1,219 |
| Hits | 2,866 | 2,247 |
| Doubles | 488 | 514 |
| Triples | 49 | 15 |
| Home Runs | 384 | 309 |
| RBI | 1,628 | 1,261 |
| Walks | 1,062 | 1,283 |
| Strikeouts | 1,441 | 1,202 |
| Stolen Bases | 34 | 49 |
| Batting Avg | .289 | .312 |
| On-Base % | .356 | .418 |
| Slugging % | .465 | .515 |
| OPS | .820 | .933 |
PIV Comparison
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Edgar Martinez outpaces Harold Baines 41,586 to 25,497 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (2,310 vs 944 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).
Harold Baines — top 3 seasons by OPS
Edgar Martinez — top 3 seasons by OPS
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Edgar Martinez leads in stolen bases, batting average, OBP, and OPS, while Harold Baines owns hits, home runs, and RBI. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Edgar Martinez. PIV agrees: Edgar Martinez grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.