Max Carey vs Ty Cobb: Career Stats Comparison
Max Carey (1910–1929) and Ty Cobb (1905–1928) — they broke in during the 1910s and the 1900s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Max Carey finished with 2,665 hits and 70 home runs; Ty Cobb finished with 4,189 hits and 117 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Max Carey and Ty Cobb. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.
| Statistic | Max Carey | Ty Cobb |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 2,476 | 3,035 |
| At-Bats | 9,363 | 11,436 |
| Runs | 1,545 | 2,247 |
| Hits | 2,665 | 4,189 |
| Doubles | 419 | 724 |
| Triples | 159 | 295 |
| Home Runs | 70 | 117 |
| RBI | 800 | 1,944 |
| Walks | 1,040 | 1,249 |
| Strikeouts | 695 | 680 |
| Stolen Bases | 738 | 896 |
| Batting Avg | .285 | .366 |
| On-Base % | .361 | .433 |
| Slugging % | .386 | .512 |
| OPS | .747 | .945 |
PIV Comparison
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Ty Cobb outpaces Max Carey 87,488 to 14,867 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (3,645 vs 708 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).
Max Carey — top 3 seasons by OPS
Ty Cobb — top 3 seasons by OPS
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Ty Cobb leads in hits, home runs, RBI, and runs, while Max Carey owns no headline categories. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Ty Cobb. PIV agrees: Ty Cobb grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.