Watson Clark vs Charlie Root: Career Stats Comparison

Watson Clark (1924–1937) and Charlie Root (1923–1941) — both came up during the 1920s, so the matchup is a direct one. Watson Clark compiled 111 wins and 643 strikeouts; Charlie Root put up 201 wins and 1,459 strikeouts. The numbers below run them through identical career and rate-stat lenses.

Watson Clark

Pitcher · 1924–1937
Wins
111
Losses
97
Strikeouts
643
ERA
3.66
WHIP
1.30
IP
1,747
View Watson Clark's full profile →

Charlie Root

Pitcher · 1923–1941
Wins
201
Losses
160
Strikeouts
1,459
ERA
3.59
WHIP
1.30
IP
3,197
View Charlie Root's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

Every cell below is a career total or career rate. Cells highlighted in green mark the player who leads that line. For pitchers, lower ERA, WHIP, and BB/9 lead; higher K/9 leads.

Statistic Watson Clark Charlie Root
Wins 111 201
Losses 97 160
Games 355 632
Games Started 206 341
Complete Games 91 177
Shutouts 14 21
Saves 16 40
Strikeouts 643 1,459
Walks 383 889
Hits Allowed 1,897 3,252
Home Runs Allowed 86 187
Innings Pitched 1,747 3,197
ERA 3.66 3.59
WHIP 1.30 1.30
K/9 3.31 4.11
BB/9 1.97 2.50

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Charlie Root leads Watson Clark 28,449 to 23,338 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,673 vs 1,667 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.

Watson Clark
23,338
Career Pitcher PIV · 1,667 per season (14 seasons)
Charlie Root
28,449
Career Pitcher PIV · 1,673 per season (17 seasons)

How PIV is calculated →

Peak Seasons

The best single seasons each player produced, ranked by ERA among qualified workloads (120+ innings).

Watson Clark — top 3 seasons by ERA (lower is better)

19282.68 ERA12-9, 85 K in 194 IP
19313.20 ERA14-10, 96 K in 233 IP
19353.30 ERA13-8, 35 K in 207 IP

Charlie Root — top 3 seasons by ERA (lower is better)

19332.60 ERA15-10, 86 K in 242 IP
19262.82 ERA18-17, 127 K in 271 IP
19382.86 ERA8-7, 70 K in 160 IP

Verdict

On the head-to-head card, Charlie Root leads in wins, strikeouts, ERA, and WHIP, while Watson Clark owns no headline categories. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Charlie Root. PIV agrees: Charlie Root grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.

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