Rickey Henderson vs Reggie Jackson: Career Stats Comparison

Rickey Henderson (1979–2003) and Reggie Jackson (1967–1987) — they broke in during the 1970s and the 1960s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Rickey Henderson finished with 3,055 hits and 297 home runs; Reggie Jackson finished with 2,584 hits and 563 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.

Rickey Henderson

Hitter · 1979–2003
Games
3,081
Hits
3,055
Home Runs
297
RBI
1,115
Avg
.279
OPS
.820
View Rickey Henderson's full profile →

Reggie Jackson

Hitter · 1967–1987
Games
2,820
Hits
2,584
Home Runs
563
RBI
1,702
Avg
.262
OPS
.846
View Reggie Jackson's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Rickey Henderson and Reggie Jackson. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.

Statistic Rickey Henderson Reggie Jackson
Games 3,081 2,820
At-Bats 10,961 9,864
Runs 2,295 1,551
Hits 3,055 2,584
Doubles 510 463
Triples 66 49
Home Runs 297 563
RBI 1,115 1,702
Walks 2,190 1,375
Strikeouts 1,694 2,597
Stolen Bases 1,406 228
Batting Avg .279 .262
On-Base % .401 .356
Slugging % .419 .490
OPS .820 .846

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Reggie Jackson leads Rickey Henderson 41,801 to 37,642 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,991 vs 1,298 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.

Rickey Henderson
37,642
Career PIV · 1,298 per season (29 seasons)
Reggie Jackson
41,801
Career PIV · 1,991 per season (21 seasons)

How PIV is calculated →

Peak Seasons

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

Rickey Henderson — top 3 seasons by OPS

19931.023 OPS17 HR, 47 RBI, .327 avg
19901.016 OPS28 HR, 61 RBI, .325 avg
1985.934 OPS24 HR, 72 RBI, .314 avg

Reggie Jackson — top 3 seasons by OPS

19691.018 OPS47 HR, 118 RBI, .275 avg
1980.995 OPS41 HR, 111 RBI, .300 avg
1979.926 OPS29 HR, 89 RBI, .297 avg

Verdict

On the head-to-head card, Rickey Henderson leads in hits, runs, stolen bases, and batting average, while Reggie Jackson owns home runs, RBI, and OPS. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Rickey Henderson. Note that PIV actually grades Reggie Jackson ahead, which means Rickey Henderson's edge is partly volume. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.

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