Roberto Clemente vs Al Oliver: Career Stats Comparison

Roberto Clemente (1955–1972) and Al Oliver (1968–1985) — 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; Al Oliver finished with 2,743 hits and 219 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 →

Al Oliver

Hitter · 1968–1985
Games
2,368
Hits
2,743
Home Runs
219
RBI
1,326
Avg
.303
OPS
.795
View Al Oliver's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

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

Statistic Roberto Clemente Al Oliver
Games 2,433 2,368
At-Bats 9,454 9,049
Runs 1,416 1,189
Hits 3,000 2,743
Doubles 440 529
Triples 166 77
Home Runs 240 219
RBI 1,305 1,326
Walks 621 535
Strikeouts 1,230 756
Stolen Bases 83 84
Batting Avg .317 .303
On-Base % .359 .344
Slugging % .475 .451
OPS .834 .795

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Roberto Clemente outpaces Al Oliver 34,131 to 21,212 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,896 vs 1,061 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)
Al Oliver
21,212
Career PIV · 1,061 per season (20 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

Al Oliver — top 3 seasons by OPS

1982.906 OPS22 HR, 109 RBI, .331 avg
1978.848 OPS14 HR, 89 RBI, .324 avg
1976.839 OPS12 HR, 61 RBI, .323 avg

Verdict

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

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