Zack Wheat vs Ken Williams: Career Stats Comparison

Zack Wheat (1909–1927) and Ken Williams (1915–1929) — they broke in during the 1900s and the 1910s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Zack Wheat finished with 2,884 hits and 132 home runs; Ken Williams finished with 1,552 hits and 196 home runs. Below is the full career table, PIV adjustment, peak seasons, and a verdict.

Zack Wheat

Hitter · 1909–1927
Games
2,410
Hits
2,884
Home Runs
132
RBI
1,248
Avg
.317
OPS
.817
View Zack Wheat's full profile →

Ken Williams

Hitter · 1915–1929
Games
1,397
Hits
1,552
Home Runs
196
RBI
913
Avg
.319
OPS
.924
View Ken Williams's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

Every cell below is a career total or career rate for Zack Wheat and Ken Williams. Cells highlighted in green mark the category leader. Counting stats reward longevity; the rate stats at the bottom are era-agnostic.

Statistic Zack Wheat Ken Williams
Games 2,410 1,397
At-Bats 9,106 4,862
Runs 1,289 860
Hits 2,884 1,552
Doubles 476 285
Triples 172 77
Home Runs 132 196
RBI 1,248 913
Walks 650 566
Strikeouts 572 287
Stolen Bases 205 154
Batting Avg .317 .319
On-Base % .367 .393
Slugging % .450 .530
OPS .817 .924

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Zack Wheat leads Ken Williams 30,370 to 26,593 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,598 vs 1,900 per year). PIV adjusts each season to league baselines, so it's the cleanest way to compare careers across eras.

Zack Wheat
30,370
Career PIV · 1,598 per season (19 seasons)
Ken Williams
26,593
Career PIV · 1,900 per season (14 seasons)

How PIV is calculated →

Peak Seasons

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

Zack Wheat — top 3 seasons by OPS

1924.978 OPS14 HR, 97 RBI, .375 avg
1925.944 OPS14 HR, 103 RBI, .359 avg
1923.927 OPS8 HR, 65 RBI, .375 avg

Ken Williams — top 3 seasons by OPS

19231.062 OPS29 HR, 91 RBI, .357 avg
19221.040 OPS39 HR, 155 RBI, .332 avg
19251.003 OPS25 HR, 105 RBI, .331 avg

Verdict

On the head-to-head card, Zack Wheat leads in hits, RBI, runs, and stolen bases, while Ken Williams owns home runs, batting average, and OBP. That doesn't settle the era debate, but on the raw scoreboard the edge goes to Zack Wheat. PIV agrees: Zack Wheat grades out higher across their careers. Click through to each profile for the full season-by-season breakdown.

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