Frank Howard vs Willie Stargell: Career Stats Comparison
Frank Howard (1958–1973) and Willie Stargell (1962–1982) — they broke in during the 1950s and the 1960s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Frank Howard finished with 1,774 hits and 382 home runs; Willie Stargell finished with 2,232 hits and 475 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.
Frank Howard
Willie Stargell
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Frank Howard and Willie Stargell. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.
| Statistic | Frank Howard | Willie Stargell |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 1,895 | 2,360 |
| At-Bats | 6,488 | 7,927 |
| Runs | 864 | 1,194 |
| Hits | 1,774 | 2,232 |
| Doubles | 245 | 423 |
| Triples | 35 | 55 |
| Home Runs | 382 | 475 |
| RBI | 1,119 | 1,540 |
| Walks | 782 | 937 |
| Strikeouts | 1,460 | 1,936 |
| Stolen Bases | 8 | 17 |
| Batting Avg | .273 | .282 |
| On-Base % | .352 | .360 |
| Slugging % | .499 | .529 |
| OPS | .851 | .889 |
PIV Comparison
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Willie Stargell outpaces Frank Howard 42,804 to 30,024 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (2,038 vs 1,766 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
Willie Stargell — top 3 seasons by OPS
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Willie Stargell leads in hits, home runs, RBI, and runs, while Frank Howard owns no headline categories. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Willie Stargell. PIV agrees: Willie Stargell grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.