Harmon Killebrew vs Buck Leonard: Career Stats Comparison
Harmon Killebrew has the better career line of the two, leading 8 of the 14 scored categories on this page (1 further counting total is shown but not scored). Harmon Killebrew played 1954–1975 as a hitter; Buck Leonard played ?–1948 as a hitter.
- AVG (Batting Average):
- Hits divided by at bats. .300 is the traditional mark of an excellent hitter.
- HR (Home Runs):
- Hits on which the batter circled the bases and scored, almost always by clearing the outfield fence.
- RBI (Runs Batted In):
- Runs that scored as a direct result of a batter's plate appearance.
- OPS (On-Base Plus Slugging):
- On-base percentage plus slugging percentage, the quickest single summary of offensive value. .900 or better is star-level.
Data updated
Harmon Killebrew (1954–1975) and Buck Leonard (?–1948) — their careers are worth a careful side-by-side. Harmon Killebrew finished with 2,086 hits and 573 home runs; Buck Leonard finished with 790 hits and 100 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.
Quick answer
- Who hit more home runs? Harmon Killebrew, with 573 to Buck Leonard's 100.
- Who had the higher OPS? Buck Leonard, with 1.034 to Harmon Killebrew's .884.
- Who had the higher batting average? Buck Leonard, with .343 to Harmon Killebrew's .256.
- Who had more hits? Harmon Killebrew, with 2,086 to Buck Leonard's 790.
- Who drove in more runs? Harmon Killebrew, with 1,584 to Buck Leonard's 578.
- Who has the higher career PIV? Harmon Killebrew, with 48,240 career PIV to Buck Leonard's 19,107.
- Who won more championships? Buck Leonard, with 3 World Series titles to Harmon Killebrew's 0.
Harmon Killebrew
Buck Leonard
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Harmon Killebrew and Buck Leonard. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. 14 of the 15 lines below are scored; the other one is a counting total on which fewer is not an achievement, so no one is awarded it. Counting stats reward longevity, and strikeouts are left unmarked because a longer career accumulates more of them. Rate stats are not era-adjusted, so read them against the run environment each player worked in, or use the PIV card below, which is adjusted.
| Statistic | Harmon Killebrew | Buck Leonard |
|---|---|---|
| Games | Leads: 2,435 | 641 |
| At-Bats | Leads: 8,147 | 2,300 |
| Runs | Leads: 1,283 | 567 |
| Hits | Leads: 2,086 | 790 |
| Doubles | Leads: 290 | 153 |
| Triples | 24 | Leads: 52 |
| Home Runs | Leads: 573 | 100 |
| RBI | Leads: 1,584 | 578 |
| Walks | Leads: 1,559 | 419 |
| Strikeouts not scored | 1,699 | 14 |
| Stolen Bases | 19 | Leads: 32 |
| Batting Avg | .256 | Leads: .343 |
| On-Base % | .376 | Leads: .449 |
| Slugging % | .509 | Leads: .586 |
| OPS | .884 | Leads: 1.034 |
PIV Comparison through 2025
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Harmon Killebrew outpaces Buck Leonard 48,240 to 19,107 — driven by both sides of the ledger: 2,193 PIV per season to 1,274, across 22 seasons to 15. PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.
PIV is computed through the 2025 season. The career totals on this page include 2026 to date, so PIV does not yet reflect the 2026 season.
Peak Seasons
The best single seasons each player produced, ranked by OPS among qualified workloads (300+ at-bats).
Harmon Killebrew — top 3 seasons by OPS
Buck Leonard
No seasons meet the qualifying workload, so there is no peak-season list to show.
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Harmon Killebrew leads in hits, home runs, RBI, and runs, while Buck Leonard owns stolen bases, batting average, and OBP. 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.
Related Matchups
How the Harmon Killebrew and Buck Leonard careers compare
No season is shared: Buck Leonard played ?–1948, Harmon Killebrew 1954–1975. The table compares 2,435 games of Harmon Killebrew with 641 of Buck Leonard across 22 and 15 PIV seasons; totals favor the longer career by default. At the plate, Harmon Killebrew struck out more than walked (1,699 to 1,559), while Buck Leonard walked more often than struck out (419 walks, 14 strikeouts). Home runs make up a larger share of Harmon Killebrew's hits: 573 of 2,086 for Harmon Killebrew, 100 of 790 for Buck Leonard. Buck Leonard's slugging percentage of .586 tops Harmon Killebrew's .509. Buck Leonard has no qualifying season for the peak list, while Harmon Killebrew's best is 1961.
Harmon Killebrew vs Buck Leonard: Frequently Asked Questions
- Who was better, Harmon Killebrew or Buck Leonard?
- By the career statistics compared on this page, Harmon Killebrew leads Buck Leonard in 8 of the 14 scored categories.
- Did Harmon Killebrew or Buck Leonard hit more home runs?
- Harmon Killebrew, with 573 to Buck Leonard's 100.
- Who had the higher OPS?
- Buck Leonard, with 1.034 to Harmon Killebrew's .884.
- Who had the higher batting average?
- Buck Leonard, with .343 to Harmon Killebrew's .256.
- Who had more hits?
- Harmon Killebrew, with 2,086 to Buck Leonard's 790.