Tommy John vs Bill Singer: Career Stats Comparison

Tommy John (1963–1989) and Bill Singer (1964–1977) — both came up during the 1960s, so the matchup is a direct one. Tommy John compiled 288 wins and 2,245 strikeouts; Bill Singer put up 118 wins and 1,515 strikeouts. The numbers below run them through identical career and rate-stat lenses.

Tommy John

Pitcher · 1963–1989
Wins
288
Losses
231
Strikeouts
2,245
ERA
3.34
WHIP
1.28
IP
4,710
View Tommy John's full profile →

Bill Singer

Pitcher · 1964–1977
Wins
118
Losses
127
Strikeouts
1,515
ERA
3.39
WHIP
1.26
IP
2,174
View Bill Singer'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 Tommy John Bill Singer
Wins 288 118
Losses 231 127
Games 760 322
Games Started 700 308
Complete Games 162 94
Shutouts 46 24
Saves 4 2
Strikeouts 2,245 1,515
Walks 1,259 781
Hits Allowed 4,783 1,952
Home Runs Allowed 302 132
Innings Pitched 4,710 2,174
ERA 3.34 3.39
WHIP 1.28 1.26
K/9 4.29 6.27
BB/9 2.41 3.23

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Tommy John outpaces Bill Singer 39,802 to 24,349 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,422 vs 1,623 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.

Tommy John
39,802
Career Pitcher PIV · 1,422 per season (28 seasons)
Bill Singer
24,349
Career Pitcher PIV · 1,623 per season (15 seasons)

How PIV is calculated →

Peak Seasons

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

Tommy John — top 3 seasons by ERA (lower is better)

19681.98 ERA10-5, 117 K in 177 IP
19672.47 ERA10-13, 110 K in 178 IP
19742.59 ERA13-3, 78 K in 153 IP

Bill Singer — top 3 seasons by ERA (lower is better)

19692.34 ERA20-12, 247 K in 315 IP
19672.64 ERA12-8, 169 K in 204 IP
19682.88 ERA13-17, 227 K in 256 IP

Verdict

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

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