Miguel Cabrera vs Paul Goldschmidt: Career Stats Comparison

Miguel Cabrera (2003–present) and Paul Goldschmidt (2011–present) — they broke in during the 2000s and the 2010s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Miguel Cabrera finished with 3,174 hits and 511 home runs; Paul Goldschmidt finished with 2,190 hits and 372 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.

Miguel Cabrera

Hitter · 2003–present
Games
2,797
Hits
3,174
Home Runs
511
RBI
1,881
Avg
.306
OPS
.901
View Miguel Cabrera's full profile →

Paul Goldschmidt

Hitter · 2011–present
Games
2,074
Hits
2,190
Home Runs
372
RBI
1,232
Avg
.288
OPS
.882
View Paul Goldschmidt's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Miguel Cabrera and Paul Goldschmidt. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.

Statistic Miguel Cabrera Paul Goldschmidt
Games 2,797 2,074
At-Bats 10,356 7,608
Runs 1,551 1,280
Hits 3,174 2,190
Doubles 627 477
Triples 17 24
Home Runs 511 372
RBI 1,881 1,232
Walks 1,258 1,086
Strikeouts 2,105 1,979
Stolen Bases 40 174
Batting Avg .306 .288
On-Base % .382 .378
Slugging % .518 .504
OPS .901 .882

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Miguel Cabrera outpaces Paul Goldschmidt 49,680 to 35,401 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (2,366 vs 2,360 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.

Miguel Cabrera
49,680
Career PIV · 2,366 per season (21 seasons)
Paul Goldschmidt
35,401
Career PIV · 2,360 per season (15 seasons)

How PIV is calculated →

Peak Seasons

The best single seasons each player produced, ranked by OPS among qualified workloads (300+ at-bats).

Miguel Cabrera — top 3 seasons by OPS

20131.078 OPS44 HR, 137 RBI, .348 avg
20101.042 OPS38 HR, 126 RBI, .328 avg
20111.033 OPS30 HR, 105 RBI, .344 avg

Paul Goldschmidt — top 3 seasons by OPS

20151.005 OPS33 HR, 110 RBI, .321 avg
2022.981 OPS35 HR, 115 RBI, .317 avg
2017.966 OPS36 HR, 120 RBI, .297 avg

Verdict

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

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