Burt Hooton vs Nolan Ryan: Career Stats Comparison

Burt Hooton (1971–1985) and Nolan Ryan (1966–1993) — breaking in during the 1970s and the 1960s respectively, so they pitched against very different hitting environments. Burt Hooton compiled 151 wins and 1,491 strikeouts; Nolan Ryan put up 324 wins and 5,714 strikeouts. The numbers below run them through identical career and rate-stat lenses.

Burt Hooton

Pitcher · 1971–1985
Wins
151
Losses
136
Strikeouts
1,491
ERA
3.38
WHIP
1.24
IP
2,652
View Burt Hooton's full profile →

Nolan Ryan

Pitcher · 1966–1993
Wins
324
Losses
292
Strikeouts
5,714
ERA
3.19
WHIP
1.25
IP
5,386
View Nolan Ryan's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

Every cell below is a career total or career rate. Cells highlighted in green mark the player who leads that line. For pitchers, lower ERA, WHIP, and BB/9 lead; higher K/9 leads.

Statistic Burt Hooton Nolan Ryan
Wins 151 324
Losses 136 292
Games 480 807
Games Started 377 773
Complete Games 86 222
Shutouts 29 61
Saves 7 3
Strikeouts 1,491 5,714
Walks 799 2,795
Hits Allowed 2,497 3,923
Home Runs Allowed 193 321
Innings Pitched 2,652 5,386
ERA 3.38 3.19
WHIP 1.24 1.25
K/9 5.06 9.55
BB/9 2.71 4.67

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Nolan Ryan outpaces Burt Hooton 111,223 to 24,063 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (4,119 vs 1,504 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.

Burt Hooton
24,063
Career Pitcher PIV · 1,504 per season (16 seasons)
Nolan Ryan
111,223
Career Pitcher PIV · 4,119 per season (27 seasons)

How PIV is calculated →

Peak Seasons

The best single seasons each player produced, ranked by ERA among qualified workloads (120+ innings).

Burt Hooton — top 3 seasons by ERA (lower is better)

19812.28 ERA11-6, 74 K in 142 IP
19772.62 ERA12-7, 153 K in 223 IP
19782.71 ERA19-10, 104 K in 236 IP

Nolan Ryan — top 3 seasons by ERA (lower is better)

19811.69 ERA11-5, 140 K in 149 IP
19722.28 ERA19-16, 329 K in 284 IP
19872.76 ERA8-16, 270 K in 211 IP

Verdict

On the head-to-head card, Nolan Ryan leads in wins, strikeouts, ERA, and K/9, while Burt Hooton owns WHIP. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Nolan Ryan. PIV agrees: Nolan Ryan grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.

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