Bobby Bonds vs Fred Lynn: Career Stats Comparison
Bobby Bonds (1968–1981) and Fred Lynn (1974–1990) — 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; Fred Lynn finished with 1,960 hits and 306 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.
Bobby Bonds
Fred Lynn
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Bobby Bonds and Fred Lynn. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.
| Statistic | Bobby Bonds | Fred Lynn |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 1,849 | 1,969 |
| At-Bats | 7,043 | 6,925 |
| Runs | 1,258 | 1,063 |
| Hits | 1,886 | 1,960 |
| Doubles | 302 | 388 |
| Triples | 66 | 43 |
| Home Runs | 332 | 306 |
| RBI | 1,024 | 1,111 |
| Walks | 914 | 857 |
| Strikeouts | 1,757 | 1,116 |
| Stolen Bases | 461 | 72 |
| Batting Avg | .268 | .283 |
| On-Base % | .353 | .360 |
| Slugging % | .471 | .484 |
| OPS | .824 | .845 |
PIV Comparison
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Bobby Bonds edges Fred Lynn 25,739 to 25,648 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,716 vs 1,425 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).
Bobby Bonds — top 3 seasons by OPS
Fred Lynn — top 3 seasons by OPS
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Fred Lynn leads in hits, RBI, batting average, and OBP, while Bobby Bonds owns home runs, runs, and stolen bases. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Fred Lynn. Note that PIV actually grades Bobby Bonds ahead, which means Fred Lynn's edge is partly volume. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.