Oscar Charleston vs Ken Williams: Career Stats Comparison
Oscar Charleston (?–1941) and Ken Williams (1915–1929) — their careers are worth a careful side-by-side. Oscar Charleston finished with 1,718 hits and 183 home runs; Ken Williams finished with 1,552 hits and 196 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.
Oscar Charleston
Ken Williams
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Oscar Charleston and Ken Williams. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.
| Statistic | Oscar Charleston | Ken Williams |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 1,336 | 1,397 |
| At-Bats | 4,903 | 4,862 |
| Runs | 1,164 | 860 |
| Hits | 1,718 | 1,552 |
| Doubles | 329 | 285 |
| Triples | 112 | 77 |
| Home Runs | 183 | 196 |
| RBI | 1,139 | 913 |
| Walks | 647 | 566 |
| Strikeouts | 29 | 287 |
| Stolen Bases | 311 | 154 |
| Batting Avg | .350 | .319 |
| On-Base % | .430 | .393 |
| Slugging % | .575 | .530 |
| OPS | 1.005 | .924 |
PIV Comparison
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Oscar Charleston leads Ken Williams 34,756 to 26,593 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,121 vs 1,900 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).
Oscar Charleston — top 2 seasons by OPS
Ken Williams — top 3 seasons by OPS
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Oscar Charleston leads in hits, RBI, runs, and stolen bases, while Ken Williams owns home runs. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Oscar Charleston. PIV agrees: Oscar Charleston grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.