Rocky Colavito vs Billy Williams: Career Stats Comparison
Rocky Colavito (1955–1968) and Billy Williams (1959–1976) — both broke in during the 1950s, which makes the head-to-head feel like a contemporaries' debate. Rocky Colavito finished with 1,730 hits and 374 home runs; Billy Williams finished with 2,711 hits and 426 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.
Rocky Colavito
Billy Williams
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Rocky Colavito and Billy Williams. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.
| Statistic | Rocky Colavito | Billy Williams |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 1,841 | 2,488 |
| At-Bats | 6,503 | 9,350 |
| Runs | 971 | 1,410 |
| Hits | 1,730 | 2,711 |
| Doubles | 283 | 434 |
| Triples | 21 | 88 |
| Home Runs | 374 | 426 |
| RBI | 1,159 | 1,475 |
| Walks | 951 | 1,045 |
| Strikeouts | 880 | 1,046 |
| Stolen Bases | 19 | 90 |
| Batting Avg | .266 | .290 |
| On-Base % | .359 | .361 |
| Slugging % | .489 | .492 |
| OPS | .848 | .853 |
PIV Comparison
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Billy Williams outpaces Rocky Colavito 44,022 to 28,223 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (2,446 vs 1,764 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).
Rocky Colavito — top 3 seasons by OPS
Billy Williams — top 3 seasons by OPS
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Billy Williams leads in hits, home runs, RBI, and runs, while Rocky Colavito owns no headline categories. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Billy Williams. PIV agrees: Billy Williams grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.