Bobby Bonds vs Roberto Clemente: Career Stats Comparison
Bobby Bonds (1968–1981) and Roberto Clemente (1955–1972) — they broke in during the 1960s and the 1950s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Bobby Bonds finished with 1,886 hits and 332 home runs; Roberto Clemente finished with 3,000 hits and 240 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.
Bobby Bonds
Roberto Clemente
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Bobby Bonds and Roberto Clemente. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.
| Statistic | Bobby Bonds | Roberto Clemente |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 1,849 | 2,433 |
| At-Bats | 7,043 | 9,454 |
| Runs | 1,258 | 1,416 |
| Hits | 1,886 | 3,000 |
| Doubles | 302 | 440 |
| Triples | 66 | 166 |
| Home Runs | 332 | 240 |
| RBI | 1,024 | 1,305 |
| Walks | 914 | 621 |
| Strikeouts | 1,757 | 1,230 |
| Stolen Bases | 461 | 83 |
| Batting Avg | .268 | .317 |
| On-Base % | .353 | .359 |
| Slugging % | .471 | .475 |
| OPS | .824 | .834 |
PIV Comparison
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Roberto Clemente leads Bobby Bonds 34,131 to 25,739 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,896 vs 1,716 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).
Bobby Bonds — top 3 seasons by OPS
Roberto Clemente — top 3 seasons by OPS
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Roberto Clemente leads in hits, RBI, runs, and batting average, while Bobby Bonds owns home runs and stolen bases. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Roberto Clemente. PIV agrees: Roberto Clemente grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.