Babe Herman vs Ken Williams: Career Stats Comparison
Babe Herman (1926–1945) and Ken Williams (1915–1929) — they broke in during the 1920s and the 1910s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Babe Herman finished with 1,818 hits and 181 home runs; Ken Williams finished with 1,552 hits and 196 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.
Babe Herman
Ken Williams
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Babe Herman and Ken Williams. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.
| Statistic | Babe Herman | Ken Williams |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 1,552 | 1,397 |
| At-Bats | 5,603 | 4,862 |
| Runs | 882 | 860 |
| Hits | 1,818 | 1,552 |
| Doubles | 399 | 285 |
| Triples | 110 | 77 |
| Home Runs | 181 | 196 |
| RBI | 997 | 913 |
| Walks | 520 | 566 |
| Strikeouts | 553 | 287 |
| Stolen Bases | 94 | 154 |
| Batting Avg | .324 | .319 |
| On-Base % | .383 | .393 |
| Slugging % | .532 | .530 |
| OPS | .915 | .924 |
PIV Comparison
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Ken Williams edges Babe Herman 26,593 to 25,837 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,900 vs 1,845 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.
Peak Seasons
The best single seasons each player produced, ranked by OPS among qualified workloads (300+ at-bats).
Babe Herman — top 3 seasons by OPS
Ken Williams — top 3 seasons by OPS
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Ken Williams leads in home runs, stolen bases, OBP, and OPS, while Babe Herman owns hits, RBI, and runs. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Ken Williams. PIV agrees: Ken Williams grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.