Lu Blue

First Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1921-1933)

Lu Blue was a first baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1921 to 1933 for 4 teams, including the Detroit Tigers, a span of 13 seasons. In 1,615 career games, he hit .287 with 1,696 hits, 44 home runs, and 695 RBI. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 14,285.

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

AVG .287
HR 44
RBI 695
H 1,696
OPS .803
PIV 14,285
Position
First Baseman
Bats / Throws
B / L
Height / Weight
5'10" / 165 lb
Born
3/5/1897 in Washington, DC, USA
Died
7/28/1958 in Alexandria, VA, USA
MLB Debut
1921-04-14
Last Game
1933-04-25

Full name: Luzerne Atwell Blue

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Career Batting Statistics

Lu Blue — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
1,615 5,904 1,151 1,696 319 109 44 695 151 1,092 436 .287 .402 .401 .803 14,285

Career AVG .287 vs. league average .283 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .402 vs. league average .344 across their career seasons — +16.8% above league average.

Career SLG .401 vs. league average .397 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OPS .803 vs. league average .742 across their career seasons — +8.2% above league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Lu Blue 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
1921 DET AL 153 585 103 180 33 11 5 75 13 103 47 .308 .286 (+7%) .344 (+21%) .395 (+8%) .739 (+14%) 2179.8
1922 DET AL 145 584 131 175 31 9 6 45 8 82 48 .300 .285 (+5%) .345 (+13%) .397 (+4%) .743 (+9%) 1317.6
1923 DET AL 129 504 100 143 27 7 1 46 10 96 40 .284 .282 (avg) .344 (+17%) .390 (-5%) .734 (+5%) 967.6
1924 DET AL 108 395 81 123 26 7 2 53 9 64 26 .311 .283 (+10%) .345 (+19%) .389 (+10%) .734 (+14%) 1339.9
1925 DET AL 150 532 91 163 18 9 3 94 19 83 29 .306 .288 (+6%) .349 (+15%) .407 (-4%) .756 (+5%) 914.7
1926 DET AL 128 429 92 123 24 14 1 52 13 90 18 .287 .279 (+3%) .345 (+19%) .390 (+6%) .735 (+12%) 1399.6
1927 DET AL 112 365 71 95 17 9 1 42 13 71 28 .260 .282 (-8%) .344 (+11%) .392 (-7%) .736 (+1%) 341.6
1928 SLA AL 154 549 116 154 32 11 14 80 12 105 43 .281 .280 (avg) .342 (+17%) .395 (+15%) .737 (+16%) 2179.5
1929 SLA AL 151 573 111 168 40 10 6 61 12 126 32 .293 .289 (+1%) .353 (+19%) .415 (+3%) .769 (+11%) 1852.4
1930 SLA AL 117 425 85 100 27 5 4 42 12 81 44 .235 .293 (-20%) .354 (+2%) .429 (-18%) .784 (-9%) -480.6
1931 CHA AL 155 589 119 179 23 15 1 62 13 127 60 .304 .276 (+10%) .338 (+27%) .388 (+3%) .726 (+14%) 2434.2
1932 CHA AL 112 373 51 93 21 2 0 43 17 64 21 .249 .275 (-9%) .335 (+8%) .391 (-19%) .726 (-6%) -161.6
1933 BRO NL 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
Career · 13 seasons 1,615 5,904 1,151 1,696 319 109 44 695 151 1,092 436 .287 — — — — 14,285

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 (1615 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Lu Blue — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home812291059083822357.288
Away803300256185822342.286

Last 10 Games — Batting

Lu Blue — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1933-04-25 BRONY1L 100000000
1932-09-15 CHWNYYW 000000000
1932-09-13 CHWMINW 000000000
1932-09-11 CHWMINL 300000020
1932-09-10 CHWBOSL 100000000
1932-09-05 CHWDETL 000000000
1932-09-04 CHWSLAL 100000000
1932-09-02 CHWSLAL 100000000
1932-08-27 CHWBOSL 300000010
1932-08-26 CHWBOSL 000000010

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Lu Blue — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 1571 0 15644 1016 191 1187
OF 1 0 3 1 2 0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Lu Blue — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1921 DET 1B 152 0 1478 85 16 75
1922 DET 1B 144 0 1506 95 15 107
1923 DET 1B 129 0 1347 93 12 74
1924 DET 1B 108 0 1099 85 17 72
1925 DET 1B 148 0 1480 101 19 115
1926 DET 1B 109 0 1153 57 19 95
1926 DET OF 1 0 3 1 2 0
1927 DET 1B 104 0 1040 68 18 99
1928 SLA 1B 154 0 1472 107 17 121
1929 SLA 1B 151 0 1491 88 10 127
1930 SLA 1B 111 0 1110 68 16 91
1931 CHA 1B 155 0 1452 81 16 105
1932 CHA 1B 105 0 1014 88 16 106
1933 BRO 1B 1 0 2 0 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Lu Blue Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
First Base 1568
Center Field 1

Award Voting History

Lu Blue — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1931 Most Valuable Player AL 17th 4.0 80 0
1925 Most Valuable Player AL 12th 7.0 64 0
1924 Most Valuable Player AL 19th 3.0 64 0
1922 Most Valuable Player AL 10th 11.0 64 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Lu Blue (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Stan Hack
    .301 avg, 57 HR
  2. 97
    Buddy Myer
    .303 avg, 38 HR
  3. 91
    Cupid Childs
    .306 avg, 20 HR
  4. 90
    Willie Kamm
    .281 avg, 29 HR
  5. 88
    Lou Boudreau HOF
    .295 avg, 68 HR
  6. 87
    Heinie Groh
    .292 avg, 26 HR

Lu Blue: the record in brief

Lu Blue played a first major league game on April 14, 1921 and a last one on April 25, 1933. The season rows list, in order, the Detroit Tigers (1921 through 1927), the St. Louis Browns (1928 through 1930), the Chicago White Sox (1931 through 1932), and the Brooklyn Dodgers (1933). Blue, born on March 5, 1897, in Washington, DC, USA, is listed as a first baseman and switch-hit and threw left-handed. The bio gives 165 pounds on a 5-foot-10 frame. Blue died on July 28, 1958, in Alexandria, VA, USA. The bio lists the given name Luzerne Atwell.

Blue collected 1,696 hits in 5,904 at bats across 1,615 games, good for a .287 batting average, adding 44 home runs, 695 RBI, and 151 stolen bases. On-base and slugging figures of .402 and .401 give Blue a career OPS of .803. Blue hit .287 while the league hit .283 over the same span, a figure close to average. The OPS comparison is .803 to a league .742, 8.2% above average.

Frequently Asked Questions about Lu Blue

What years did Lu Blue play?
Lu Blue played in Major League Baseball from 1921 to 1933.
Was Lu Blue a pitcher?
No. Lu Blue was a position player (First Baseman).
How many home runs did Lu Blue hit?
Lu Blue hit 44 career home runs with 1696 hits.
What was Lu Blue's career batting average?
Lu Blue batted .287 over his career, with 1,696 hits in 5,904 at bats.
How many RBI did Lu Blue have?
Lu Blue drove in 695 runs in his career.
Is Lu Blue in the Hall of Fame?
No. Lu Blue has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.