Pete Rose vs Willie Stargell: Career Stats Comparison
Pete Rose (1963–1986) and Willie Stargell (1962–1982) — both broke in during the 1960s, which makes the head-to-head feel like a contemporaries' debate. Pete Rose finished with 4,256 hits and 160 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.
Pete Rose
Willie Stargell
Career Stats Side-by-Side
Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Pete Rose 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 | Pete Rose | Willie Stargell |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 3,562 | 2,360 |
| At-Bats | 14,053 | 7,927 |
| Runs | 2,165 | 1,194 |
| Hits | 4,256 | 2,232 |
| Doubles | 746 | 423 |
| Triples | 135 | 55 |
| Home Runs | 160 | 475 |
| RBI | 1,314 | 1,540 |
| Walks | 1,566 | 937 |
| Strikeouts | 1,143 | 1,936 |
| Stolen Bases | 198 | 17 |
| Batting Avg | .303 | .282 |
| On-Base % | .375 | .360 |
| Slugging % | .409 | .529 |
| OPS | .784 | .889 |
PIV Comparison
By PIV (Player Impact Value), Willie Stargell edges Pete Rose 42,804 to 40,772 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (2,038 vs 1,631 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).
Pete Rose — top 3 seasons by OPS
Willie Stargell — top 3 seasons by OPS
Verdict
On the head-to-head card, Pete Rose leads in hits, runs, stolen bases, and batting average, while Willie Stargell owns home runs, RBI, and OPS. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Pete Rose. Note that PIV actually grades Willie Stargell ahead, which means Pete Rose's edge is partly volume. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.