Hank Arft
First Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1948-1952)
Hank Arft was a first baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1948 to 1952 for the St. Louis Browns, a span of 5 seasons. In 300 career games, he hit .253 with 229 hits, 13 home runs, and 118 RBI. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 229.
- AVG (Batting Average):
- Hits divided by at bats. .300 is the traditional mark of an excellent hitter.
- HR (Home Runs):
- Hits on which the batter circled the bases and scored, almost always by clearing the outfield fence.
- RBI (Runs Batted In):
- Runs that scored as a direct result of a batter's plate appearance.
- OPS (On-Base Plus Slugging):
- On-base percentage plus slugging percentage, the quickest single summary of offensive value. .900 or better is star-level.
Data updated
- Position
- First Baseman
- Bats / Throws
- L / L
- Height / Weight
- 5'10" / 190 lb
- Died
- 12/14/2002 in St. Louis, MO, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1948-07-27
- Last Game
- 1952-05-23
Full name: Henry Irven Arft
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 300 | 906 | 116 | 229 | 46 | 13 | 13 | 118 | 8 | 137 | 133 | .253 | .352 | .375 | .727 | 229 |
Career AVG .253 vs. league average .261 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OBP .352 vs. league average .339 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career SLG .375 vs. league average .384 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OPS .727 vs. league average .723 across their career seasons — near league average.
Season-by-Season Batting
Click a stat to plot it across every season.
| Year | Team | Lg | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | Lg AVG | Lg OBP | Lg SLG | Lg OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1948 | SLA | AL | 69 | 248 | 25 | 59 | 10 | 3 | 5 | 38 | 1 | 45 | 43 | .238 | .263 (-10%) | .340 (+4%) | .379 (-4%) | .719 (avg) | 74.4 |
| 1949 | SLA | AL | 6 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .200 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1950 | SLA | AL | 98 | 280 | 45 | 75 | 16 | 4 | 1 | 32 | 3 | 46 | 48 | .268 | .265 (+1%) | .346 (+8%) | .401 (-9%) | .747 (-1%) | 41.4 |
| 1951 | SLA | AL | 112 | 345 | 44 | 90 | 16 | 5 | 7 | 42 | 4 | 41 | 34 | .261 | .260 (avg) | .336 (+1%) | .385 (+3%) | .721 (+2%) | 113.2 |
| 1952 | SLA | AL | 15 | 28 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 7 | .143 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 5 seasons | 300 | 906 | 116 | 229 | 46 | 13 | 13 | 118 | 8 | 137 | 133 | .253 | — | — | — | — | 229 | ||
Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.
Game Log & Splits
View full game log (300 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 158 | 476 | 72 | 137 | 9 | 77 | .288 |
| Away | 142 | 430 | 44 | 92 | 4 | 41 | .214 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1952-05-23 | SLA | CLE | L | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 1952-05-22 | SLA | MIN | L | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1952-05-21 | SLA | MIN | W | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 1952-05-18 | SLA | NYY | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1952-05-17 | SLA | BOS | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1952-05-16 | SLA | BOS | W | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1952-05-11 | SLA | CLE | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1952-05-07 | SLA | PHA | L | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1952-05-06 | SLA | PHA | W | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1952-04-30 | SLA | NYY | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
Season-by-Season Fielding
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| First Base | 260 |
Hank Arft: the record in brief
Hank Arft played a first major league game on July 27, 1948 and a last one on May 23, 1952. Arft spent the whole of the career shown here with one club, the St. Louis Browns. Arft played primarily as a first baseman and batted and threw left-handed. Born on January 28, 1922, in Manchester, MO, USA, Arft was listed at 5 feet, 10 inches and 190 pounds. Arft died on December 14, 2002, in St. Louis, MO, USA. Hank Arft was the playing name; the full given name is Henry Irven.
Arft collected 229 hits in 906 at bats across 300 games, good for a .253 batting average; the totals also include 13 homers and 118 RBI. Reaching base at a .352 clip and slugging .375, Arft finished with a .727 OPS. Arft hit .253 while the league hit .261 over the same span, a figure close to average. The highest hit total in a season was 90, in 1951.
Frequently Asked Questions about Hank Arft
- What years did Hank Arft play?
- Hank Arft played in Major League Baseball from 1948 to 1952.
- Was Hank Arft a pitcher?
- No. Hank Arft was a position player (First Baseman).
- How many home runs did Hank Arft hit?
- Hank Arft hit 13 career home runs with 229 hits.
- What was Hank Arft's career batting average?
- Hank Arft batted .253 over his career, with 229 hits in 906 at bats.
- How many RBI did Hank Arft have?
- Hank Arft drove in 118 runs in his career.
- Is Hank Arft in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Hank Arft has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.