Charlie Gehringer vs Rogers Hornsby: Career Stats Comparison

Charlie Gehringer (1924–1942) and Rogers Hornsby (1915–1937) — they broke in during the 1920s and the 1910s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Charlie Gehringer finished with 2,839 hits and 184 home runs; Rogers Hornsby finished with 2,930 hits and 301 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.

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 →

Rogers Hornsby

Hitter · 1915–1937
Games
2,259
Hits
2,930
Home Runs
301
RBI
1,584
Avg
.358
OPS
1.010
View Rogers Hornsby's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Charlie Gehringer and Rogers Hornsby. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.

Statistic Charlie Gehringer Rogers Hornsby
Games 2,323 2,259
At-Bats 8,860 8,173
Runs 1,774 1,579
Hits 2,839 2,930
Doubles 574 541
Triples 146 169
Home Runs 184 301
RBI 1,427 1,584
Walks 1,186 1,038
Strikeouts 372 679
Stolen Bases 181 135
Batting Avg .320 .358
On-Base % .404 .434
Slugging % .480 .577
OPS .884 1.010

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Rogers Hornsby outpaces Charlie Gehringer 68,443 to 39,288 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (2,852 vs 2,068 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.

Charlie Gehringer
39,288
Career PIV · 2,068 per season (19 seasons)
Rogers Hornsby
68,443
Career PIV · 2,852 per season (24 seasons)

How PIV is calculated →

Peak Seasons

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

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

Rogers Hornsby — top 3 seasons by OPS

19251.245 OPS39 HR, 143 RBI, .403 avg
19241.203 OPS25 HR, 94 RBI, .424 avg
19221.181 OPS42 HR, 152 RBI, .401 avg

Verdict

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

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