Bobby Bonds vs Brian Downing: Career Stats Comparison
Bobby Bonds (1968–1981) and Brian Downing (1973–1992) — they broke in during the 1960s and the 1970s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Bobby Bonds finished with 1,886 hits and 332 home runs; Brian Downing finished with 2,099 hits and 275 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.
Bobby Bonds
Brian Downing
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Bobby Bonds and Brian Downing. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.
| Statistic | Bobby Bonds | Brian Downing |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 1,849 | 2,344 |
| At-Bats | 7,043 | 7,853 |
| Runs | 1,258 | 1,188 |
| Hits | 1,886 | 2,099 |
| Doubles | 302 | 360 |
| Triples | 66 | 28 |
| Home Runs | 332 | 275 |
| RBI | 1,024 | 1,073 |
| Walks | 914 | 1,197 |
| Strikeouts | 1,757 | 1,127 |
| Stolen Bases | 461 | 50 |
| Batting Avg | .268 | .267 |
| On-Base % | .353 | .370 |
| Slugging % | .471 | .425 |
| OPS | .824 | .796 |
PIV Comparison
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Bobby Bonds leads Brian Downing 25,739 to 22,792 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,716 vs 1,140 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
Brian Downing — top 3 seasons by OPS
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Bobby Bonds leads in home runs, runs, stolen bases, and batting average, while Brian Downing owns hits, RBI, and OBP. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Bobby Bonds. PIV agrees: Bobby Bonds grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.