Bobby Bonds vs Rusty Staub: Career Stats Comparison

Bobby Bonds (1968–1981) and Rusty Staub (1963–1985) — both broke in during the 1960s, which makes the head-to-head feel like a contemporaries' debate. Bobby Bonds finished with 1,886 hits and 332 home runs; Rusty Staub finished with 2,716 hits and 292 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.

Bobby Bonds

Hitter · 1968–1981
Games
1,849
Hits
1,886
Home Runs
332
RBI
1,024
Avg
.268
OPS
.824
View Bobby Bonds's full profile →

Rusty Staub

Hitter · 1963–1985
Games
2,951
Hits
2,716
Home Runs
292
RBI
1,466
Avg
.279
OPS
.793
View Rusty Staub's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Bobby Bonds and Rusty Staub. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.

Statistic Bobby Bonds Rusty Staub
Games 1,849 2,951
At-Bats 7,043 9,720
Runs 1,258 1,189
Hits 1,886 2,716
Doubles 302 499
Triples 66 47
Home Runs 332 292
RBI 1,024 1,466
Walks 914 1,255
Strikeouts 1,757 888
Stolen Bases 461 47
Batting Avg .268 .279
On-Base % .353 .362
Slugging % .471 .431
OPS .824 .793

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Rusty Staub leads Bobby Bonds 30,346 to 25,739 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,264 vs 1,716 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.

Bobby Bonds
25,739
Career PIV · 1,716 per season (15 seasons)
Rusty Staub
30,346
Career PIV · 1,264 per season (24 seasons)

How PIV is calculated →

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

1973.900 OPS39 HR, 96 RBI, .283 avg
1975.888 OPS32 HR, 85 RBI, .270 avg
1970.879 OPS26 HR, 78 RBI, .302 avg

Rusty Staub — top 3 seasons by OPS

1969.952 OPS29 HR, 79 RBI, .302 avg
1970.891 OPS30 HR, 94 RBI, .274 avg
1971.874 OPS19 HR, 97 RBI, .311 avg

Verdict

On the head-to-head card, Rusty Staub 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 Rusty Staub. PIV agrees: Rusty Staub grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.

Related Matchups