Sheriff Blake

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1920-1937)

Sheriff Blake was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1920 to 1937 for 5 teams, including the Pittsburgh Pirates, a span of 18 seasons. Across 304 career appearances, he went 87-102 with a 4.13 ERA and 621 strikeouts. He also batted .211 with 0 home runs.

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 87–102
ERA 4.13
WHIP 1.55
SO 621
Pitcher PIV -5943.7
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
B / R
Height / Weight
6'0" / 180 lb
Born
9/17/1899 in Ansted, WV, USA
Died
10/31/1982 in Beckley, WV, USA
MLB Debut
1920-06-29
Last Game
1937-09-26

Full name: John Frederick Blake

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Career Pitching Statistics

Sheriff Blake — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
87 102 304 196 81 11 8 1620.0 1,766 744 68 740 621 4.13 -5943.7

Career ERA 4.13 vs. league average 4.23 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Sheriff Blake Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1920 PIT NL 0 0 6 0 0 0 0 13.1 21 12 6 7 8.10 3.45 (-135%) 42.4
1924 CHN NL 6 6 29 11 4 0 1 106.1 123 54 44 42 4.57 4.13 (-11%) 126.2
1925 CHN NL 10 18 36 31 14 0 2 231.1 260 125 114 93 4.86 4.55 (-7%) -4307.4
1926 CHN NL 11 12 39 27 11 4 1 197.2 204 79 92 95 3.60 4.11 (+12%) 263.5
1927 CHN NL 13 14 32 27 13 2 0 224.1 238 82 82 64 3.29 4.08 (+19%) 1405.6
1928 CHN NL 17 11 34 29 16 4 1 240.2 209 66 101 78 2.47 4.13 (+40%) 1110.8
1929 CHN NL 14 13 35 30 13 1 1 218.1 244 104 103 70 4.29 4.60 (+7%) -118.8
1930 CHN NL 10 14 34 24 7 0 0 186.2 213 100 99 80 4.82 4.80 (avg) -2634.3
1931 CHN NL 0 4 16 5 0 0 0 50.0 64 29 26 29 5.22 4.10 (-27%) -673.9
1931 PHI NL 4 5 14 9 1 0 1 71.0 90 44 35 31 5.58 4.10 (-36%) -244.5
1937 SLA AL 2 2 15 1 0 0 1 36.2 55 31 20 12 7.61 4.34 (-75%) -1483.8
1937 SLN NL 0 3 14 2 2 0 0 43.2 45 18 18 20 3.71 4.34 (+14%) 570.4
Career · 12 seasons 87 102 304 196 81 11 8 1,620.0 1,766 744 740 621 4.13 — -5,944

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

Sheriff Blake — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
310 558 46 118 5 1 0 30 0 14 91 .211 .233 .224 .457 -3,337

Career AVG .211 vs. league average .283 across their career seasons — 25.2% below league average.

Career OBP .233 vs. league average .345 across their career seasons — 32.3% below league average.

Career SLG .224 vs. league average .397 across their career seasons — 43.6% below league average.

Career OPS .457 vs. league average .742 across their career seasons — 38.4% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Sheriff Blake Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1920 PIT NL 6 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .250 — — — — 0.0
1924 CHN NL 29 31 5 9 0 1 0 3 0 1 1 .290 — — — — 0.0
1925 CHN NL 36 79 4 12 1 0 0 7 0 2 21 .152 .288 (-47%) .349 (-51%) .407 (-60%) .756 (-55%) -727.9
1926 CHN NL 39 65 2 14 0 0 0 4 0 2 9 .215 .279 (-23%) .345 (-28%) .390 (-45%) .735 (-37%) -380.1
1927 CHN NL 32 83 2 16 0 0 0 3 0 1 10 .193 .282 (-32%) .344 (-41%) .392 (-51%) .736 (-46%) -621.8
1928 CHN NL 35 88 10 19 1 0 0 5 0 1 13 .216 .280 (-23%) .342 (-32%) .395 (-43%) .737 (-38%) -533.0
1929 CHN NL 38 81 11 14 2 0 0 4 0 4 10 .173 .289 (-40%) .353 (-40%) .415 (-52%) .769 (-47%) -640.8
1930 CHN NL 36 66 5 15 0 0 0 2 0 2 14 .227 .293 (-23%) .354 (-29%) .429 (-47%) .784 (-39%) -433.0
1931 CHN NL 16 16 4 8 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 .500 — — — — 0.0
1931 PHI NL 14 25 2 6 1 0 0 1 0 1 7 .240 — — — — 0.0
1937 SLA AL 15 10 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 .100 — — — — 0.0
1937 SLN NL 14 10 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .300 — — — — 0.0
Career · 12 seasons 310 558 46 118 5 1 0 30 0 14 91 .211 — — — — -3,337

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.

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

Sheriff Blake — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
2 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000

Playoff Batting by Year

Sheriff Blake — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1929 WS CHN 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000

Playoff Career Pitching

Sheriff Blake — Playoff Career Pitching
W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
0 1 2 0 0 1.1 4 2 0 1 13.50

Playoff Pitching by Year

Sheriff Blake — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1929 WS CHN 0 1 2 0 0 1.1 4 2 0 1 13.50

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (614 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Sheriff Blake — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home1532662961015.229
Away1572911757014.196

Pitching — Home / Away

Sheriff Blake — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home150833.08993453703223.73
Away154787.18664063723054.64

Last 10 Games — Batting

Sheriff Blake — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1937-09-26 STLCHCL 000000000
1937-09-20 STLNY1L 100000001
1937-09-18 STLBSNL 000000000
1937-09-15 STLPHIL 000000000
1937-09-12 STLCINL 000000000
1937-09-07 STLCHCL 300000000
1937-08-28 STLPHIL 000000000
1937-08-26 STLPHIL 101000000
1937-08-21 STLPITL 111000000
1937-08-04 STLBSNW 000000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Sheriff Blake — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1937-09-26 STLCHC — 2.0000220
1937-09-20 STLNY1 — 3.2411030
1937-09-18 STLBSN — 1.0000010
1937-09-15 STLPHI — 2.0200200
1937-09-12 STLCIN — 0.1100010
1937-09-07 STLCHC L 8.01187240
1937-08-28 STLPHI — 1.0100110
1937-08-26 STLPHI L 4.0532210
1937-08-21 STLPIT — 5.0322100
1937-08-04 STLBSN — 1.1322110

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Sheriff Blake — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 304 0 55 401 13 24

Season-by-Season Fielding

Sheriff Blake — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1920 PIT P 6 0 1 2 0 1
1924 CHN P 29 0 2 30 0 0
1925 CHN P 36 0 7 52 2 6
1926 CHN P 39 0 9 54 1 1
1927 CHN P 32 0 10 64 4 5
1928 CHN P 34 0 4 48 3 3
1929 CHN P 35 0 6 43 2 1
1930 CHN P 34 0 7 50 1 4
1931 CHN P 16 0 1 16 0 1
1931 PHI P 14 0 5 22 0 2
1937 SLA P 15 0 2 8 0 0
1937 SLN P 14 0 1 12 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Sheriff Blake Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 304

College History

Sheriff Blake — College History
School Name City State Years Attended
West Virginia Wesleyan College Buckhannon WV 1918, 1919

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Sheriff Blake (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Bill Wight
    77-99, 3.95 ERA
  2. 84
    Jack Kramer
    95-103, 4.24 ERA
  3. 82
    Vic Sorrell
    92-101, 4.43 ERA
  4. 77
    Bill Hallahan
    102-94, 4.03 ERA
  5. 75
    Bob Weiland
    62-94, 4.24 ERA
  6. 65
    Ray Scarborough
    80-85, 4.13 ERA

Sheriff Blake: the record in brief

Between the debut on June 29, 1920 and the final game on September 26, 1937, Sheriff Blake built the record summarized on this page. Club by club, the record runs the Pittsburgh Pirates (1920), the Chicago Cubs (1924 through 1931), the Philadelphia Phillies (1931), the St. Louis Browns (1937), and the St. Louis Cardinals (1937). At 6-foot-0 and 180 pounds, Blake is listed as a pitcher. The bio says Blake switch-hit and threw right-handed. Blake was born on September 17, 1899, in Ansted, WV, USA. Blake's death is recorded on October 31, 1982, in Beckley, WV, USA. Blake's full given name, per the bio, is John Frederick Blake.

Blake went 87-102 with a 4.13 ERA in 304 games, 196 of them starts. The same table counts 621 strikeouts, 81 complete games, and 11 shutouts. Blake's 4.13 ERA was close to the 4.23 league figure for those seasons. 1928 brought Blake a season-high 17 wins. Blake struck out 95 batters in 1926, a career high.

Frequently Asked Questions about Sheriff Blake

What years did Sheriff Blake play?
Sheriff Blake played in Major League Baseball from 1920 to 1937.
Was Sheriff Blake a pitcher?
Yes. Sheriff Blake pitched in the major leagues, recording 87 wins and 621 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Sheriff Blake hit?
Sheriff Blake hit 0 career home runs with 118 hits.
What was Sheriff Blake's career batting average?
Sheriff Blake batted .211 over his career, with 118 hits in 558 at bats.
How many RBI did Sheriff Blake have?
Sheriff Blake drove in 30 runs in his career.
What was Sheriff Blake's career ERA?
Sheriff Blake finished with a 4.13 career ERA, going 87-102 with 621 strikeouts.