Roy Face vs Hoyt Wilhelm: Career Stats Comparison

Roy Face (1953–1969) and Hoyt Wilhelm (1952–1972) — both came up during the 1950s, so the matchup is a direct one. Roy Face compiled 104 wins and 877 strikeouts; Hoyt Wilhelm put up 143 wins and 1,610 strikeouts. The numbers below run them through identical career and rate-stat lenses.

Roy Face

Pitcher · 1953–1969
Wins
104
Losses
95
Strikeouts
877
ERA
3.48
WHIP
1.24
IP
1,375
View Roy Face's full profile →

Hoyt Wilhelm

Pitcher · 1952–1972
Wins
143
Losses
122
Strikeouts
1,610
ERA
2.52
WHIP
1.12
IP
2,254
View Hoyt Wilhelm's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

Every cell below is a career total or career rate. Cells highlighted in green mark the player who leads that line. For pitchers, lower ERA, WHIP, and BB/9 lead; higher K/9 leads.

Statistic Roy Face Hoyt Wilhelm
Wins 104 143
Losses 95 122
Games 848 1,070
Games Started 27 52
Complete Games 6 20
Shutouts 0 5
Saves 193 227
Strikeouts 877 1,610
Walks 362 778
Hits Allowed 1,347 1,757
Home Runs Allowed 141 150
Innings Pitched 1,375 2,254
ERA 3.48 2.52
WHIP 1.24 1.12
K/9 5.74 6.43
BB/9 2.37 3.11

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Hoyt Wilhelm outpaces Roy Face 40,894 to 14,397 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,573 vs 847 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.

Roy Face
14,397
Career Pitcher PIV · 847 per season (17 seasons)
Hoyt Wilhelm
40,894
Career Pitcher PIV · 1,573 per season (26 seasons)

How PIV is calculated →

Peak Seasons

The best single seasons each player produced, ranked by ERA among qualified workloads (120+ innings).

Roy Face — top 2 seasons by ERA (lower is better)

19563.52 ERA12-13, 96 K in 135 IP
19553.58 ERA5-7, 84 K in 125 IP

Hoyt Wilhelm — top 3 seasons by ERA (lower is better)

19651.81 ERA7-7, 106 K in 144 IP
19641.99 ERA12-9, 95 K in 131 IP
19592.19 ERA15-11, 139 K in 226 IP

Verdict

On the head-to-head card, Hoyt Wilhelm leads in wins, strikeouts, ERA, and WHIP, while Roy Face owns no headline categories. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Hoyt Wilhelm. PIV agrees: Hoyt Wilhelm grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.

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