Zack Wheat vs Hack Wilson: Career Stats Comparison

Zack Wheat (1909–1927) and Hack Wilson (1923–1934) — they broke in during the 1900s and the 1920s respectively, which makes the side-by-side worth doing carefully. Zack Wheat finished with 2,884 hits and 132 home runs; Hack Wilson finished with 1,461 hits and 244 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 →

Hack Wilson

Hitter · 1923–1934
Games
1,348
Hits
1,461
Home Runs
244
RBI
1,063
Avg
.307
OPS
.940
View Hack Wilson's full profile →

Career Stats Side-by-Side

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

Statistic Zack Wheat Hack Wilson
Games 2,410 1,348
At-Bats 9,106 4,760
Runs 1,289 884
Hits 2,884 1,461
Doubles 476 266
Triples 172 67
Home Runs 132 244
RBI 1,248 1,063
Walks 650 674
Strikeouts 572 713
Stolen Bases 205 52
Batting Avg .317 .307
On-Base % .367 .395
Slugging % .450 .545
OPS .817 .940

PIV Comparison

By PIV (Player Impact Value), Zack Wheat leads Hack Wilson 30,370 to 27,235 — a gap driven primarily by per-season impact (1,598 vs 2,095 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)
Hack Wilson
27,235
Career PIV · 2,095 per season (13 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

Hack Wilson — top 3 seasons by OPS

19301.177 OPS56 HR, 191 RBI, .356 avg
19291.044 OPS39 HR, 159 RBI, .345 avg
1928.992 OPS31 HR, 120 RBI, .313 avg

Verdict

On the head-to-head card, Zack Wheat leads in hits, RBI, runs, and stolen bases, while Hack Wilson owns home runs, OBP, and OPS. 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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