Cliff Lee vs Chase Utley: Career Stats Comparison

Cliff Lee (2002–2014) and Chase Utley (2003–2018) — both broke in during the 2000s, which makes the head-to-head feel like a contemporaries' debate. Cliff Lee finished with 51 hits and 2 home runs; Chase Utley finished with 1,885 hits and 259 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.

Cliff Lee

Two-Way Player · 2002–2014
Games
337
Hits
51
Home Runs
2
RBI
19
Avg
.175
OPS
.415
View Cliff Lee's full profile →

Chase Utley

Hitter · 2003–2018
Games
1,937
Hits
1,885
Home Runs
259
RBI
1,025
Avg
.275
OPS
.823
View Chase Utley's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Cliff Lee and Chase Utley. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.

Statistic Cliff Lee Chase Utley
Games 337 1,937
At-Bats 291 6,857
Runs 18 1,103
Hits 51 1,885
Doubles 7 411
Triples 1 58
Home Runs 2 259
RBI 19 1,025
Walks 5 724
Strikeouts 110 1,193
Stolen Bases 2 154
Batting Avg .175 .275
On-Base % .189 .358
Slugging % .227 .465
OPS .415 .823

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Chase Utley outpaces Cliff Lee 17,446 to -1,242 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,026 vs -83 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.

Cliff Lee
-1,242
Career PIV · -83 per season (15 seasons)
Chase Utley
17,446
Career PIV · 1,026 per season (17 seasons)

How PIV is calculated →

Peak Seasons

The best single seasons each player produced, ranked by OPS among qualified workloads (300+ at-bats).

Cliff Lee — top 0 seasons by OPS

Chase Utley — top 3 seasons by OPS

2007.976 OPS22 HR, 103 RBI, .332 avg
2005.915 OPS28 HR, 105 RBI, .291 avg
2008.915 OPS33 HR, 104 RBI, .292 avg

Verdict

On the head-to-head card, Chase Utley leads in hits, home runs, RBI, and runs, while Cliff Lee owns no headline categories. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Chase Utley. PIV agrees: Chase Utley grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.

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