Bobby Bonds vs Carl Yastrzemski: Career Stats Comparison

Bobby Bonds (1968–1981) and Carl Yastrzemski (1961–1983) — 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; Carl Yastrzemski finished with 3,419 hits and 452 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 →

Carl Yastrzemski

Hitter · 1961–1983
Games
3,308
Hits
3,419
Home Runs
452
RBI
1,844
Avg
.285
OPS
.841
View Carl Yastrzemski's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

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

Statistic Bobby Bonds Carl Yastrzemski
Games 1,849 3,308
At-Bats 7,043 11,988
Runs 1,258 1,816
Hits 1,886 3,419
Doubles 302 646
Triples 66 59
Home Runs 332 452
RBI 1,024 1,844
Walks 914 1,845
Strikeouts 1,757 1,393
Stolen Bases 461 168
Batting Avg .268 .285
On-Base % .353 .379
Slugging % .471 .462
OPS .824 .841

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Carl Yastrzemski outpaces Bobby Bonds 54,310 to 25,739 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (2,361 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)
Carl Yastrzemski
54,310
Career PIV · 2,361 per season (23 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

Carl Yastrzemski — top 3 seasons by OPS

19701.044 OPS40 HR, 102 RBI, .329 avg
19671.040 OPS44 HR, 121 RBI, .326 avg
1965.932 OPS20 HR, 72 RBI, .312 avg

Verdict

On the head-to-head card, Carl Yastrzemski leads in hits, home runs, RBI, and runs, while Bobby Bonds owns stolen bases. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Carl Yastrzemski. PIV agrees: Carl Yastrzemski grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.

Related Matchups

See These Players in Another Era