Mordecai Brown

Pitcher · Career Stats, Hall of Fame Bio & Records (1903-1916)

Mordecai Brown was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1903 to 1916 for 6 teams, including the St. Louis Cardinals, a span of 14 seasons. Across 481 career appearances, he went 239-130 with a 2.06 ERA, 1,375 strikeouts, and 49 saves. He also batted .206 with 2 home runs. Mordecai Brown was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1949. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 31501.4.

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

⭐ Hall of Fame 1949
W–L 239–130
ERA 2.06
WHIP 1.07
SO 1,375
Pitcher PIV 31501.4
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
B / R
Height / Weight
5'10" / 175 lb
Born
10/19/1876 in Nyesville, IN, USA
Died
2/14/1948 in Terre Haute, IN, USA
MLB Debut
1903-04-19
Last Game
1916-09-04
Hall of Fame
Inducted 1949 (BBWAA)

Full name: Mordecai Peter Centennial Brown

Career Pitching Statistics

Mordecai Brown — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
239 130 481 332 271 55 49 3172.1 2,708 725 43 673 1,375 2.06 31501.4

Career ERA 2.06 vs. league average 2.85 across their career seasons — 27.9% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

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

Mordecai Brown — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
493 1,143 93 235 20 11 2 74 8 44 199 .206 .236 .248 .483 -4,021

Career AVG .206 vs. league average .252 across their career seasons — 18.6% below league average.

Career OBP .236 vs. league average .316 across their career seasons — 25.3% below league average.

Career SLG .248 vs. league average .330 across their career seasons — 25.1% below league average.

Career OPS .483 vs. league average .646 across their career seasons — 25.2% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

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

Mordecai Brown — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
9 20 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 7 .100

Playoff Batting by Year

Mordecai Brown — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1910 WS CHN 3 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000
1908 WS CHN 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000
1907 WS CHN 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 .000
1906 WS CHN 3 6 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 4 .333

Playoff Career Pitching

Mordecai Brown — Playoff Career Pitching
W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
5 4 9 7 0 57.2 50 19 13 35 2.97

Playoff Pitching by Year

Mordecai Brown — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1910 WS CHN 1 2 3 2 0 18.0 23 11 7 14 5.50
1908 WS CHN 2 0 2 1 0 11.0 6 0 1 5 0.00
1907 WS CHN 1 0 1 1 0 9.0 7 0 1 4 0.00
1906 WS CHN 1 2 3 3 0 19.2 14 8 4 12 3.66

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

Batting — Home / Away

Mordecai Brown — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home24755146116127.211
Away24959648120148.201

Pitching — Home / Away

Mordecai Brown — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home2391578.213122183317381.24
Away2421584.113962323466491.32

Last 10 Games — Batting

Mordecai Brown — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1916-09-04 CHCCINL 422000000
1916-08-22 CHCBROL 200000001
1916-08-19 CHCNY1W 100000000
1916-08-18 CHCNY1L 200000010
1916-07-29 CHCPHIL 000000000
1916-07-27 CHCBSNL 000000000
1916-07-23 CHCNY1W 402000001
1916-07-19 CHCNY1L 100000000
1916-06-24 CHCCINL 100000001
1916-06-21 CHCCINL 100000001

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Mordecai Brown — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1916-09-04 CHCCIN L 9.019109120
1916-08-22 CHCBRO — 5.2542250
1916-08-19 CHCNY1 W 3.0200010
1916-08-18 CHCNY1 — 5.2300160
1916-07-29 CHCPHI — 1.0100010
1916-07-27 CHCBSN — 2.0000010
1916-07-23 CHCNY1 W 9.01133000
1916-07-19 CHCNY1 — 4.0100130
1916-06-24 CHCCIN L 3.0565100
1916-06-21 CHCCIN — 2.0100110

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Mordecai Brown — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
2B 1 0 0 0 0 0
OF 3 0 2 0 0 0
P 481 202 171 843 36 43

Season-by-Season Fielding

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Mordecai Brown Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 481
Left Field 1
Center Field 1
Right Field 1

Awards & Honors

Award Voting History

Mordecai Brown — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1913 Most Valuable Player NL 27th 1.0 64 0
1911 Most Valuable Player NL 17th 4.0 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

Mordecai Brown (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Charles Bender HOF
    212-127, 2.46 ERA
  2. 97
    Ed Walsh HOF
    195-126, 1.82 ERA
  3. 87
    Slim Sallee
    174-143, 2.56 ERA
  4. 83
    Eddie Cicotte
    209-149, 2.38 ERA
  5. 83
    Carl Hubbell HOF
    253-154, 2.98 ERA
  6. 78
    Carl Mays
    207-126, 2.92 ERA

Mordecai Brown: the record in brief

According to the bio, Mordecai Brown debuted on April 19, 1903 and played a final game on September 4, 1916. The team column moves through the St. Louis Cardinals (1903), the Chicago Cubs (1904 through 1916), the Cincinnati Reds (1913), the St. Louis Terriers (1914), the Brooklyn Tip-Tops (1914), and the Chicago Whales (1915). Brown, born on October 19, 1876, in Nyesville, IN, USA, is listed as a pitcher and switch-hit and threw right-handed. The bio gives 5'10" and 175 pounds. The bio records the death on February 14, 1948, in Terre Haute, IN, USA. Brown's full given name, per the bio, is Mordecai Peter Centennial Brown.

Brown went 239-130 with a 2.06 ERA in 481 games, 332 of them starts. The totals include 1,375 strikeouts, 271 complete games, 55 shutouts, and 49 saves. The leagues Brown pitched in allowed 2.85 earned runs per nine over those seasons, so the career ERA was 27.9% better than average. 1908 brought Brown a season-high 29 wins. 1909 produced Brown's most strikeouts, 172.

Frequently Asked Questions about Mordecai Brown

What years did Mordecai Brown play?
Mordecai Brown played in Major League Baseball from 1903 to 1916.
Was Mordecai Brown a pitcher?
Yes. Mordecai Brown pitched in the major leagues, recording 239 wins and 1375 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Mordecai Brown hit?
Mordecai Brown hit 2 career home runs with 235 hits.
Is Mordecai Brown in the Hall of Fame?
Yes. Mordecai Brown was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1949.
What teams did Mordecai Brown play for?
Mordecai Brown played for 6 teams: the St. Louis Cardinals (1903), the Chicago Cubs (1904–1912, 1916), the Cincinnati Reds (1913), the St. Louis Terriers (1914), the Brooklyn Tip-Tops (1914), and the Chicago Whales (1915).
What were Mordecai Brown's career stats?
In 481 games, Mordecai Brown went 239-130 with a 2.06 ERA, 1,375 strikeouts, 3,172.1 innings pitched, and 49 saves. At the plate he had 235 hits and 2 home runs.
What position did Mordecai Brown play?
Mordecai Brown played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Mordecai Brown and how much did he weigh?
Mordecai Brown was listed at 5 feet 10 inches and 175 pounds.
What was Mordecai Brown's career ERA?
Mordecai Brown finished with a 2.06 career ERA, going 239-130 with 1,375 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Mordecai Brown have?
Mordecai Brown recorded 1,375 career strikeouts.