Bob Elliott vs Charlie Gehringer: Career Stats Comparison

Charlie Gehringer has the better career line of the two, leading 14 of the 14 scored categories on this page (1 further counting total is shown but not scored). Bob Elliott played 1939–1953 as a hitter; Charlie Gehringer played 1924–1942 as a hitter.

AVG (Batting Average):
Hits divided by at bats. .300 is the traditional mark of an excellent hitter.
HR (Home Runs):
Hits on which the batter circled the bases and scored, almost always by clearing the outfield fence.
RBI (Runs Batted In):
Runs that scored as a direct result of a batter's plate appearance.
OPS (On-Base Plus Slugging):
On-base percentage plus slugging percentage, the quickest single summary of offensive value. .900 or better is star-level.

Data updated

Bob Elliott (1939–1953) and Charlie Gehringer (1924–1942) — they broke in during the 1930s and the 1920s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Bob Elliott finished with 2,061 hits and 170 home runs; Charlie Gehringer finished with 2,839 hits and 184 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.

Quick answer

  • Who hit more home runs? Charlie Gehringer, with 184 to Bob Elliott's 170.
  • Who had the higher OPS? Charlie Gehringer, with .884 to Bob Elliott's .815.
  • Who had the higher batting average? Charlie Gehringer, with .320 to Bob Elliott's .289.
  • Who had more hits? Charlie Gehringer, with 2,839 to Bob Elliott's 2,061.
  • Who drove in more runs? Charlie Gehringer, with 1,427 to Bob Elliott's 1,195.
  • Who has the higher career PIV? Charlie Gehringer, with 39,288 career PIV to Bob Elliott's 22,824.
  • Who won more championships? Charlie Gehringer, with 1 World Series title to Bob Elliott's 0.
Leads Charlie Gehringer 14 of 14 scored categories
PIV edge Charlie Gehringer +16,463
Read the verdict ↓

Bob Elliott

Hitter · 1939–1953
Games
1,978
Hits
2,061
Home Runs
170
RBI
1,195
Avg
.289
OPS
.815
View Bob Elliott's full profile →

Charlie Gehringer

Hitter · 1924–1942
Games
2,323
Hits
2,839
Home Runs
184
RBI
1,427
Avg
.320
OPS
.884
View Charlie Gehringer's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Bob Elliott and Charlie Gehringer. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. 14 of the 15 lines below are scored; the other one is a counting total on which fewer is not an achievement, so no one is awarded it. Counting stats reward longevity, and strikeouts are left unmarked because a longer career accumulates more of them. Rate stats are not era-adjusted, and the 1930s and the 1920s were different run environments, so read them against their eras, or use the PIV card below, which is adjusted.

Bob Elliott vs Charlie Gehringer: Career Stats Comparison — Career Stats Side-by-Side
Statistic Bob Elliott Charlie Gehringer
Games 1,978 Leads: 2,323
At-Bats 7,141 Leads: 8,860
Runs 1,064 Leads: 1,774
Hits 2,061 Leads: 2,839
Doubles 382 Leads: 574
Triples 94 Leads: 146
Home Runs 170 Leads: 184
RBI 1,195 Leads: 1,427
Walks 967 Leads: 1,186
Strikeouts not scored 604 372
Stolen Bases 60 Leads: 181
Batting Avg .289 Leads: .320
On-Base % .375 Leads: .404
Slugging % .440 Leads: .480
OPS .815 Leads: .884

PIV Comparison through 2025

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Charlie Gehringer outpaces Bob Elliott 39,288 to 22,824 — driven by both sides of the ledger: 2,068 PIV per season to 1,427, across 19 seasons to 16. PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.

PIV is computed through the 2025 season. The career totals on this page include 2026 to date, so PIV does not yet reflect the 2026 season.

Bob Elliott
22,824
Career PIV · 1,427 per season (16 seasons)
Charlie Gehringer
39,288
Career PIV · 2,068 per season (19 seasons)

How PIV is calculated →

Peak Seasons

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

Bob Elliott — top 3 seasons by OPS

1947.927 OPS22 HR, 113 RBI, .317 avg
1950.898 OPS24 HR, 107 RBI, .305 avg
1948.897 OPS23 HR, 100 RBI, .283 avg

Charlie Gehringer — top 3 seasons by OPS

1936.987 OPS15 HR, 116 RBI, .354 avg
1937.978 OPS14 HR, 96 RBI, .371 avg
1939.967 OPS16 HR, 86 RBI, .325 avg

Verdict

On the head-to-head card, Charlie Gehringer leads in hits, home runs, RBI, and runs, while Bob Elliott owns no headline categories. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Charlie Gehringer. PIV agrees: Charlie Gehringer grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.

Related Matchups

How the Bob Elliott and Charlie Gehringer careers compare

From 1939 through 1942, Bob Elliott and Charlie Gehringer were in the majors together. With 1,978 games against 2,323 across 16 and 19 PIV seasons, neither player's totals owe much to extra seasons. Every scored category on the table goes to Charlie Gehringer. Bob Elliott walked more often than struck out (967 walks, 604 strikeouts); Charlie Gehringer walked more often than struck out (1,186 walks, 372 strikeouts). On the bases, Charlie Gehringer stole more often per game played (60 steals in 1,978 games for Bob Elliott, 181 in 2,323 for Charlie Gehringer). Charlie Gehringer's slugging percentage of .480 tops Bob Elliott's .440.

Bob Elliott vs Charlie Gehringer: Frequently Asked Questions

Who was better, Bob Elliott or Charlie Gehringer?
By the career statistics compared on this page, Charlie Gehringer leads Bob Elliott in 14 of the 14 scored categories.
Did Bob Elliott or Charlie Gehringer hit more home runs?
Charlie Gehringer, with 184 to Bob Elliott's 170.
Who had the higher OPS?
Charlie Gehringer, with .884 to Bob Elliott's .815.
Who had the higher batting average?
Charlie Gehringer, with .320 to Bob Elliott's .289.
Who had more hits?
Charlie Gehringer, with 2,839 to Bob Elliott's 2,061.

See These Players in Another Era