Roy Oswalt vs Justin Verlander: Career Stats Comparison

Roy Oswalt (2001–2013) and Justin Verlander (2005–present) — both came up during the 2000s, so the matchup is a direct one. Roy Oswalt compiled 163 wins and 1,852 strikeouts; Justin Verlander put up 266 wins and 3,553 strikeouts. The numbers below run them through identical career and rate-stat lenses.

Roy Oswalt

Pitcher · 2001–2013
Wins
163
Losses
102
Strikeouts
1,852
ERA
3.36
WHIP
1.21
IP
2,245
View Roy Oswalt's full profile →

Justin Verlander

Pitcher · 2005–present
Wins
266
Losses
158
Strikeouts
3,553
ERA
3.32
WHIP
1.14
IP
3,567
View Justin Verlander'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 Roy Oswalt Justin Verlander
Wins 163 266
Losses 102 158
Games 365 555
Games Started 341 555
Complete Games 20 26
Shutouts 8 9
Saves 0 0
Strikeouts 1,852 3,553
Walks 520 1,004
Hits Allowed 2,199 3,046
Home Runs Allowed 197 371
Innings Pitched 2,245 3,567
ERA 3.36 3.32
WHIP 1.21 1.14
K/9 7.42 8.96
BB/9 2.08 2.53

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Justin Verlander leads Roy Oswalt 68,171 to 55,095 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (3,099 vs 3,935 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.

Roy Oswalt
55,095
Career Pitcher PIV · 3,935 per season (14 seasons)
Justin Verlander
68,171
Career Pitcher PIV · 3,099 per season (22 seasons)

How PIV is calculated →

Peak Seasons

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

Roy Oswalt — top 3 seasons by ERA (lower is better)

20012.73 ERA14-3, 144 K in 141 IP
20052.94 ERA20-12, 184 K in 241 IP
20032.97 ERA10-5, 108 K in 127 IP

Justin Verlander — top 3 seasons by ERA (lower is better)

20221.75 ERA18-4, 185 K in 175 IP
20112.40 ERA24-5, 250 K in 251 IP
20182.52 ERA16-9, 290 K in 214 IP

Verdict

On the head-to-head card, Justin Verlander leads in wins, strikeouts, ERA, and WHIP, while Roy Oswalt owns no headline categories. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Justin Verlander. PIV agrees: Justin Verlander grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.

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