Frank Howard vs Dave Parker: Career Stats Comparison
Frank Howard (1958–1973) and Dave Parker (1973–1991) — they broke in during the 1950s and the 1970s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Frank Howard finished with 1,774 hits and 382 home runs; Dave Parker finished with 2,712 hits and 339 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.
Frank Howard
Dave Parker
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Frank Howard and Dave Parker. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.
| Statistic | Frank Howard | Dave Parker |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 1,895 | 2,466 |
| At-Bats | 6,488 | 9,358 |
| Runs | 864 | 1,272 |
| Hits | 1,774 | 2,712 |
| Doubles | 245 | 526 |
| Triples | 35 | 75 |
| Home Runs | 382 | 339 |
| RBI | 1,119 | 1,493 |
| Walks | 782 | 683 |
| Strikeouts | 1,460 | 1,537 |
| Stolen Bases | 8 | 154 |
| Batting Avg | .273 | .290 |
| On-Base % | .352 | .339 |
| Slugging % | .499 | .471 |
| OPS | .851 | .810 |
PIV Comparison
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Frank Howard leads Dave Parker 30,024 to 23,542 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,766 vs 1,177 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).
Frank Howard — top 3 seasons by OPS
Dave Parker — top 3 seasons by OPS
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Dave Parker leads in hits, RBI, runs, and stolen bases, while Frank Howard owns home runs, OBP, and OPS. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Dave Parker. Note that PIV actually grades Frank Howard ahead, which means Dave Parker's edge is partly volume. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.