Josh Hamilton vs Matt Holliday: Career Stats Comparison
Matt Holliday has the better career line of the two, leading 13 of the 14 scored categories on this page (1 further counting total is shown but not scored). Josh Hamilton played 2007–2015 as a hitter; Matt Holliday played 2004–2018 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
Josh Hamilton (2007–2015) and Matt Holliday (2004–2018) — both broke in during the 2000s, which makes the head-to-head feel like a contemporaries' debate. Josh Hamilton finished with 1,134 hits and 200 home runs; Matt Holliday finished with 2,096 hits and 316 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.
Quick answer
- Who hit more home runs? Matt Holliday, with 316 to Josh Hamilton's 200.
- Who had the higher OPS? Matt Holliday, with .889 to Josh Hamilton's .865.
- Who had the higher batting average? Matt Holliday, with .299 to Josh Hamilton's .290.
- Who had more hits? Matt Holliday, with 2,096 to Josh Hamilton's 1,134.
- Who drove in more runs? Matt Holliday, with 1,220 to Josh Hamilton's 701.
- Who has the higher career PIV? Matt Holliday, with 30,426 career PIV to Josh Hamilton's 13,689.
- Who won more championships? Matt Holliday, with 1 World Series title to Josh Hamilton's 0.
Josh Hamilton
Matt Holliday
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Josh Hamilton and Matt Holliday. 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, so read them against the run environment each player worked in, or use the PIV card below, which is adjusted.
| Statistic | Josh Hamilton | Matt Holliday |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 1,027 | Leads: 1,903 |
| At-Bats | 3,909 | Leads: 7,009 |
| Runs | 609 | Leads: 1,157 |
| Hits | 1,134 | Leads: 2,096 |
| Doubles | 234 | Leads: 468 |
| Triples | 24 | Leads: 32 |
| Home Runs | 200 | Leads: 316 |
| RBI | 701 | Leads: 1,220 |
| Walks | 352 | Leads: 802 |
| Strikeouts not scored | 938 | 1,362 |
| Stolen Bases | 50 | Leads: 108 |
| Batting Avg | .290 | Leads: .299 |
| On-Base % | .349 | Leads: .379 |
| Slugging % | Leads: .516 | .510 |
| OPS | .865 | Leads: .889 |
PIV Comparison through 2025
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Matt Holliday outpaces Josh Hamilton 30,426 to 13,689 — driven by both sides of the ledger: 1,902 PIV per season to 1,521, across 16 seasons to 9. 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.
Peak Seasons
The best single seasons each player produced, ranked by OPS among qualified workloads (300+ at-bats).
Josh Hamilton — top 3 seasons by OPS
Matt Holliday — top 3 seasons by OPS
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Matt Holliday leads in hits, home runs, RBI, and runs, while Josh Hamilton owns no headline categories. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Matt Holliday. PIV agrees: Matt Holliday grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.
Related Matchups
How the Josh Hamilton and Matt Holliday careers compare
The careers of Josh Hamilton (2007–2015) and Matt Holliday (2004–2018) overlapped from 2007 to 2015, so for those seasons they faced the same league conditions. The table compares 1,027 games of Josh Hamilton with 1,903 of Matt Holliday across 9 and 16 PIV seasons; totals favor the longer career by default. The green cells for Josh Hamilton are slugging percentage (.516 to .510). At the plate, Josh Hamilton struck out more than walked (938 to 352), and Matt Holliday struck out more than walked (1,362 to 802). On the bases, Matt Holliday stole more often per game played (50 steals in 1,027 games for Josh Hamilton, 108 in 1,903 for Matt Holliday).
Josh Hamilton vs Matt Holliday: Frequently Asked Questions
- Who was better, Josh Hamilton or Matt Holliday?
- By the career statistics compared on this page, Matt Holliday leads Josh Hamilton in 13 of the 14 scored categories.
- Did Josh Hamilton or Matt Holliday hit more home runs?
- Matt Holliday, with 316 to Josh Hamilton's 200.
- Who had the higher OPS?
- Matt Holliday, with .889 to Josh Hamilton's .865.
- Who had the higher batting average?
- Matt Holliday, with .299 to Josh Hamilton's .290.
- Who had more hits?
- Matt Holliday, with 2,096 to Josh Hamilton's 1,134.