Gil Hodges vs Harmon Killebrew: Career Stats Comparison

Gil Hodges (1943–1963) and Harmon Killebrew (1954–1975) — they broke in during the 1940s and the 1950s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Gil Hodges finished with 1,921 hits and 370 home runs; Harmon Killebrew finished with 2,086 hits and 573 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.

Gil Hodges

Hitter · 1943–1963
Games
2,071
Hits
1,921
Home Runs
370
RBI
1,274
Avg
.273
OPS
.846
View Gil Hodges's full profile →

Harmon Killebrew

Hitter · 1954–1975
Games
2,435
Hits
2,086
Home Runs
573
RBI
1,584
Avg
.256
OPS
.884
View Harmon Killebrew's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Gil Hodges and Harmon Killebrew. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.

Statistic Gil Hodges Harmon Killebrew
Games 2,071 2,435
At-Bats 7,030 8,147
Runs 1,105 1,283
Hits 1,921 2,086
Doubles 295 290
Triples 48 24
Home Runs 370 573
RBI 1,274 1,584
Walks 943 1,559
Strikeouts 1,137 1,699
Stolen Bases 63 19
Batting Avg .273 .256
On-Base % .359 .376
Slugging % .487 .509
OPS .846 .884

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Harmon Killebrew outpaces Gil Hodges 48,240 to 24,928 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (2,193 vs 1,385 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.

Gil Hodges
24,928
Career PIV · 1,385 per season (18 seasons)
Harmon Killebrew
48,240
Career PIV · 2,193 per season (22 seasons)

How PIV is calculated →

Peak Seasons

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

Gil Hodges — top 3 seasons by OPS

1954.952 OPS42 HR, 130 RBI, .304 avg
1953.943 OPS31 HR, 122 RBI, .302 avg
1951.901 OPS40 HR, 103 RBI, .268 avg

Harmon Killebrew — top 3 seasons by OPS

19611.012 OPS46 HR, 122 RBI, .288 avg
19691.011 OPS49 HR, 140 RBI, .276 avg
1967.965 OPS44 HR, 113 RBI, .269 avg

Verdict

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

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