Roberto Clemente vs Reggie Jackson: Career Stats Comparison

Roberto Clemente (1955–1972) and Reggie Jackson (1967–1987) — they broke in during the 1950s and the 1960s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Roberto Clemente finished with 3,000 hits and 240 home runs; Reggie Jackson finished with 2,584 hits and 563 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.

Roberto Clemente

Hitter · 1955–1972
Games
2,433
Hits
3,000
Home Runs
240
RBI
1,305
Avg
.317
OPS
.834
View Roberto Clemente's full profile →

Reggie Jackson

Hitter · 1967–1987
Games
2,820
Hits
2,584
Home Runs
563
RBI
1,702
Avg
.262
OPS
.846
View Reggie Jackson's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Roberto Clemente and Reggie Jackson. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.

Statistic Roberto Clemente Reggie Jackson
Games 2,433 2,820
At-Bats 9,454 9,864
Runs 1,416 1,551
Hits 3,000 2,584
Doubles 440 463
Triples 166 49
Home Runs 240 563
RBI 1,305 1,702
Walks 621 1,375
Strikeouts 1,230 2,597
Stolen Bases 83 228
Batting Avg .317 .262
On-Base % .359 .356
Slugging % .475 .490
OPS .834 .846

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Reggie Jackson leads Roberto Clemente 41,801 to 34,131 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,991 vs 1,896 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.

Roberto Clemente
34,131
Career PIV · 1,896 per season (18 seasons)
Reggie Jackson
41,801
Career PIV · 1,991 per season (21 seasons)

How PIV is calculated →

Peak Seasons

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

Roberto Clemente — top 3 seasons by OPS

1970.963 OPS14 HR, 60 RBI, .352 avg
1969.955 OPS19 HR, 91 RBI, .345 avg
1967.954 OPS23 HR, 110 RBI, .357 avg

Reggie Jackson — top 3 seasons by OPS

19691.018 OPS47 HR, 118 RBI, .275 avg
1980.995 OPS41 HR, 111 RBI, .300 avg
1979.926 OPS29 HR, 89 RBI, .297 avg

Verdict

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

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