Ross Baumgarten

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1978-1982)

Ross Baumgarten was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1978 to 1982 for the Chicago White Sox and the Pittsburgh Pirates, a span of 5 seasons. Across 90 career appearances, he went 22-36 with a 4.00 ERA and 222 strikeouts.

W (Wins):
Games credited to a pitcher whose team took a lead it never surrendered while he was the pitcher of record.
ERA (Earned Run Average):
Earned runs allowed per nine innings pitched: (ER × 9) ÷ IP. The primary measure of pitching effectiveness.
SO (Strikeouts):
For a batter, times retired on a third strike; for a pitcher, batters retired on a third strike.
WHIP (Walks and Hits per Inning Pitched):
Baserunners allowed per inning: (BB + H) ÷ IP. Under 1.00 is elite.

Data updated

W–L 22–36
ERA 4.00
WHIP 1.42
SO 222
Pitcher PIV -4849.1
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
L / L
Height / Weight
6'1" / 180 lb
Born
5/27/1955 in Highland Park, IL, USA
MLB Debut
1978-08-16
Last Game
1982-08-23
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Career Pitching Statistics

Ross Baumgarten — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
22 36 90 84 10 6 0 495.1 492 220 43 211 222 4.00 -4849.1

Career ERA 4.00 vs. league average 3.81 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Ross Baumgarten — Season-by-Season Pitching
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1978 CHA AL 2 2 7 4 1 1 0 23.0 29 15 9 15 5.87 3.69 (-59%) -341.3
1979 CHA AL 13 8 28 28 4 3 0 190.2 175 75 83 72 3.54 4.00 (+12%) -2497.0
1980 CHA AL 2 12 24 23 3 1 0 136.0 127 52 52 66 3.44 3.84 (+10%) -220.9
1981 CHA AL 5 9 19 19 2 1 0 101.2 101 46 40 52 4.07 3.58 (-14%) -900.9
1982 PIT NL 0 5 12 10 0 0 0 44.0 60 32 27 17 6.55 3.86 (-69%) -889.0
Career · 5 seasons 22 36 90 84 10 6 0 495.1 492 220 211 222 4.00 — -4,849

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.

Career Batting Statistics

Ross Baumgarten — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
92 12 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 .083 .083 .083 .167 0

Career AVG .083 vs. league average .261 across their career seasons — 68.1% below league average.

Career OBP .083 vs. league average .325 across their career seasons — 74.4% below league average.

Career SLG .083 vs. league average .385 across their career seasons — 78.4% below league average.

Career OPS .167 vs. league average .710 across their career seasons — 76.5% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Ross Baumgarten — Season-by-Season Batting
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1978 CHA AL 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1979 CHA AL 28 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1980 CHA AL 24 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1981 CHA AL 21 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1982 PIT NL 12 12 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 .083 — — — — 0.0
Career · 5 seasons 92 12 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 .083 — — — — 0

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 (182 games) →

Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).

Batting — Home / Away

Ross Baumgarten — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home4360000.000
Away4960100.167

Pitching — Home / Away

Ross Baumgarten — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home43255.12471131001213.98
Away47240.02451071111014.01

Last 10 Games — Batting

Ross Baumgarten — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1982-08-23 PITSDPL 100000000
1982-08-18 PITSFGL 000000000
1982-08-12 PITSTLL 100000000
1982-08-06 PITNYNL 200000002
1982-08-01 PITNYNW 200000001
1982-07-19 PITCINW 100000000
1982-07-05 PITHOUL 100000000
1982-07-01 PITCHCW 201000000
1982-06-18 PITPHIL 000000000
1982-04-24 PITCHCW 100000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Ross Baumgarten — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1982-08-23 PITSDP L 4.0533301
1982-08-18 PITSFG — 2.0433020
1982-08-12 PITSTL L 4.2933200
1982-08-06 PITNYN L 6.1632261
1982-08-01 PITNYN — 4.2522830
1982-07-19 PITCIN — 2.1333420
1982-07-05 PITHOU L 5.0533211
1982-07-01 PITCHC — 5.0422110
1982-06-18 PITPHI — 1.0100100
1982-04-24 PITCHC — 2.2344100

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Ross Baumgarten — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 90 84 28 85 2 6

Season-by-Season Fielding

Ross Baumgarten — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1978 CHA P 7 4 0 2 0 0
1979 CHA P 28 28 14 28 1 1
1980 CHA P 24 23 5 31 1 3
1981 CHA P 19 19 7 16 0 1
1982 PIT P 12 10 2 8 0 1

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Ross Baumgarten — Career Games by Position
Position Games
Pitcher 90
Designated Hitter 1

College History

Ross Baumgarten — College History
School Name City State Years Attended
University of Florida Gainesville FL 1977
Florida Southern College Lakeland FL 1974
Palm Beach Community College Lake Worth FL 1975

Award Voting History

Ross Baumgarten — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1979 Rookie of the Year AL 4th 3.0 28 3

Most Similar Players

Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.

Career Spans

Ross Baumgarten (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Juan Eichelberger
    26-36, 4.10 ERA
  2. 97
    Yank Terry
    20-28, 4.09 ERA
  3. 96
    Silvio Martinez
    31-32, 3.88 ERA
  4. 91
    Brian Kingman
    23-45, 4.13 ERA
  5. 91
    Ralph Works
    24-24, 3.79 ERA
  6. 89
    Willie Ramsdell
    24-39, 3.83 ERA

Ross Baumgarten: the record in brief

Ross Baumgarten's major league career runs from a debut on August 16, 1978 to a final game on August 23, 1982. By club, Baumgarten's seasons break down as the Chicago White Sox (1978 through 1981) and the Pittsburgh Pirates (1982). Baumgarten played primarily as a pitcher and batted and threw left-handed. The bio adds a birth date on May 27, 1955, in Highland Park, IL, USA and a listed size of 180 pounds on a 6-foot-1 frame.

Baumgarten went 22-36 with a 4.00 ERA in 90 games, 84 of them starts. Also on Baumgarten's record: 222 strikeouts, 10 complete games, and 6 shutouts. Baumgarten's 4.00 ERA was close to the 3.81 league figure for those seasons. Baumgarten won 13 games in 1979, the most of any season listed. 1980 was Baumgarten's sharpest full season, a 3.44 ERA against the league's 3.84.

Baumgarten finished 4th in the 1979 Rookie of the Year voting, the best showing in the voting table.

Frequently Asked Questions about Ross Baumgarten

What years did Ross Baumgarten play?
Ross Baumgarten played in Major League Baseball from 1978 to 1982.
Was Ross Baumgarten a pitcher?
Yes. Ross Baumgarten pitched in the major leagues, recording 22 wins and 222 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Ross Baumgarten hit?
Ross Baumgarten hit 0 career home runs with 1 hits.
What was Ross Baumgarten's career batting average?
Ross Baumgarten batted .083 over his career, with 1 hits in 12 at bats.
What was Ross Baumgarten's career ERA?
Ross Baumgarten finished with a 4.00 career ERA, going 22-36 with 222 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Ross Baumgarten have?
Ross Baumgarten recorded 222 career strikeouts.