Roberto Clemente vs Ralph Kiner: Career Stats Comparison
Roberto Clemente (1955–1972) and Ralph Kiner (1946–1955) — they broke in during the 1950s and the 1940s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Roberto Clemente finished with 3,000 hits and 240 home runs; Ralph Kiner finished with 1,451 hits and 369 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.
Roberto Clemente
Ralph Kiner
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Roberto Clemente and Ralph Kiner. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.
| Statistic | Roberto Clemente | Ralph Kiner |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 2,433 | 1,472 |
| At-Bats | 9,454 | 5,205 |
| Runs | 1,416 | 971 |
| Hits | 3,000 | 1,451 |
| Doubles | 440 | 216 |
| Triples | 166 | 39 |
| Home Runs | 240 | 369 |
| RBI | 1,305 | 1,015 |
| Walks | 621 | 1,011 |
| Strikeouts | 1,230 | 749 |
| Stolen Bases | 83 | 22 |
| Batting Avg | .317 | .279 |
| On-Base % | .359 | .398 |
| Slugging % | .475 | .548 |
| OPS | .834 | .946 |
PIV Comparison
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Ralph Kiner edges Roberto Clemente 35,424 to 34,131 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (3,220 vs 1,896 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).
Roberto Clemente — top 3 seasons by OPS
Ralph Kiner — top 3 seasons by OPS
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Roberto Clemente leads in hits, RBI, runs, and stolen bases, while Ralph Kiner owns home runs, OBP, and OPS. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Roberto Clemente. Note that PIV actually grades Ralph Kiner ahead, which means Roberto Clemente's edge is partly volume. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.