Roger Bresnahan vs Buck Ewing: Career Stats Comparison
Roger Bresnahan (1897–1915) and Buck Ewing (1880–1897) — they broke in during the 1890s and the 1880s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Roger Bresnahan finished with 1,252 hits and 26 home runs; Buck Ewing finished with 1,625 hits and 71 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.
Roger Bresnahan
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Roger Bresnahan and Buck Ewing. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.
| Statistic | Roger Bresnahan | Buck Ewing |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 1,446 | 1,315 |
| At-Bats | 4,481 | 5,363 |
| Runs | 682 | 1,129 |
| Hits | 1,252 | 1,625 |
| Doubles | 218 | 250 |
| Triples | 71 | 178 |
| Home Runs | 26 | 71 |
| RBI | 530 | 883 |
| Walks | 714 | 392 |
| Strikeouts | 403 | 294 |
| Stolen Bases | 212 | 354 |
| Batting Avg | .279 | .303 |
| On-Base % | .386 | .351 |
| Slugging % | .377 | .456 |
| OPS | .764 | .807 |
PIV Comparison
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Roger Bresnahan edges Buck Ewing 18,191 to 17,919 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,011 vs 995 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).
Roger Bresnahan — top 3 seasons by OPS
Buck Ewing — top 3 seasons by OPS
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Buck Ewing leads in hits, home runs, RBI, and runs, while Roger Bresnahan owns OBP. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Buck Ewing. Note that PIV actually grades Roger Bresnahan ahead, which means Buck Ewing's edge is partly volume. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.