Darrell Evans vs Ron Santo: Career Stats Comparison

Darrell Evans (1969–1989) and Ron Santo (1960–1974) — both broke in during the 1960s, which makes the head-to-head feel like a contemporaries' debate. Darrell Evans finished with 2,223 hits and 414 home runs; Ron Santo finished with 2,254 hits and 342 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.

Darrell Evans

Hitter · 1969–1989
Games
2,687
Hits
2,223
Home Runs
414
RBI
1,354
Avg
.248
OPS
.792
View Darrell Evans's full profile →

Ron Santo

Hitter · 1960–1974
Games
2,243
Hits
2,254
Home Runs
342
RBI
1,331
Avg
.277
OPS
.826
View Ron Santo's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Darrell Evans and Ron Santo. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.

Statistic Darrell Evans Ron Santo
Games 2,687 2,243
At-Bats 8,973 8,143
Runs 1,344 1,138
Hits 2,223 2,254
Doubles 329 365
Triples 36 67
Home Runs 414 342
RBI 1,354 1,331
Walks 1,605 1,108
Strikeouts 1,410 1,343
Stolen Bases 98 35
Batting Avg .248 .277
On-Base % .361 .362
Slugging % .431 .464
OPS .792 .826

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Ron Santo leads Darrell Evans 33,743 to 26,064 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (2,250 vs 1,185 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.

Darrell Evans
26,064
Career PIV · 1,185 per season (22 seasons)
Ron Santo
33,743
Career PIV · 2,250 per season (15 seasons)

How PIV is calculated →

Peak Seasons

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

Darrell Evans — top 3 seasons by OPS

1973.959 OPS41 HR, 104 RBI, .281 avg
1983.894 OPS30 HR, 82 RBI, .277 avg
1987.880 OPS34 HR, 99 RBI, .257 avg

Ron Santo — top 3 seasons by OPS

1964.962 OPS30 HR, 114 RBI, .312 avg
1966.950 OPS30 HR, 94 RBI, .312 avg
1967.906 OPS31 HR, 98 RBI, .300 avg

Verdict

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

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