Willard Brown
Center Fielder · Career Stats, Hall of Fame Bio & Records (1947-1949)
Willard Brown was a center fielder who played in Major League Baseball from 1947 to 1949 for the Kansas City Monarchs and the St. Louis Browns, a span of 3 seasons. In 473 career games, he hit .354 with 643 hits, 63 home runs, and 432 RBI. Willard Brown was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2006 and was a 5-time All-Star. His totals include Negro Leagues seasons, which MLB recognized as major league in 2020. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 11,037.
- 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
- Center Fielder
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 5'11" / 200 lb
- Died
- 8/4/1996 in Houston, TX, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1947-07-19
- Last Game
- 1949-09-18
- Hall of Fame
- Inducted 2006 (Negro League)
- Awards
- 5× All-Star
Full name: Willard Jessie Brown
Negro Leagues (season totals). Additive Retrosheet-digitized totals for seasons not already in the logs above; they are not summed into the career line. No team/league breakdown is available, and coverage may be partial.
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 473 | 1,818 | 368 | 643 | 139 | 46 | 63 | 432 | 95 | 137 | 16 | .354 | .400 | .585 | .985 | 11,037 |
Career AVG .354 vs. league average .267 across their career seasons — +32.5% above league average.
Career OBP .400 vs. league average .336 across their career seasons — +19.1% above league average.
Career SLG .585 vs. league average .378 across their career seasons — +54.7% above league average.
Career OPS .985 vs. league average .714 across their career seasons — +37.9% above 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1935 | KCM | IND | 13 | 47 | 8 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 13 | 2 | 5 | 1 | .340 | — | — | — | — | 393.3 |
| 1936 | KCM | IND | 11 | 47 | 11 | 18 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 1 | .383 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1937 | KCM | NAL | 56 | 214 | 51 | 81 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 60 | 10 | 19 | 0 | .379 | .276 (+37%) | .342 (+26%) | .398 (+67%) | .740 (+48%) | 1761.1 |
| 1938 | KCM | NAL | 47 | 180 | 36 | 62 | 16 | 4 | 7 | 48 | 20 | 11 | 0 | .344 | .272 (+26%) | .341 (+12%) | .392 (+51%) | .734 (+33%) | 943.4 |
| 1939 | KCM | NAL | 45 | 179 | 36 | 64 | 15 | 7 | 4 | 44 | 9 | 8 | 0 | .358 | .274 (+30%) | .342 (+12%) | .393 (+49%) | .735 (+32%) | 868.9 |
| 1940 | KCM | NAL | 3 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .182 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1941 | KCM | NAL | 42 | 159 | 35 | 54 | 9 | 4 | 6 | 34 | 14 | 16 | 1 | .340 | .262 (+30%) | .332 (+21%) | .373 (+50%) | .705 (+36%) | 948.2 |
| 1942 | KCM | NAL | 46 | 182 | 36 | 69 | 12 | 2 | 6 | 38 | 7 | 16 | 1 | .379 | .253 (+50%) | .323 (+33%) | .349 (+62%) | .672 (+48%) | 1383.7 |
| 1943 | KCM | NAL | 54 | 204 | 33 | 68 | 13 | 2 | 7 | 33 | 4 | 16 | 0 | .333 | .255 (+30%) | .324 (+18%) | .346 (+50%) | .671 (+34%) | 1083.5 |
| 1944 | KCM | NAL | 3 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | .333 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1946 | KCM | NAL | 38 | 145 | 30 | 48 | 11 | 6 | 3 | 27 | 3 | 7 | 2 | .331 | .256 (+29%) | .328 (+10%) | .358 (+54%) | .687 (+33%) | 660.6 |
| 1947 | KCM | NAL | 48 | 200 | 42 | 75 | 22 | 7 | 6 | 64 | 12 | 15 | 0 | .375 | .262 (+43%) | .336 (+25%) | .376 (+71%) | .712 (+50%) | 1573.7 |
| 1947 | SLA | AL | 21 | 67 | 4 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 7 | .179 | .262 (-32%) | .336 (-47%) | .376 (-29%) | .712 (-37%) | 1573.7 |
| 1948 | KCM | NAL | 46 | 174 | 43 | 71 | 23 | 2 | 7 | 54 | 8 | 22 | 3 | .408 | .263 (+55%) | .340 (+40%) | .379 (+80%) | .719 (+61%) | 1835.5 |
| Career · 14 seasons | 473 | 1,818 | 368 | 643 | 139 | 46 | 63 | 432 | 95 | 137 | 16 | .354 | — | — | — | — | 13,026 | ||
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 (459 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 310 | 1073 | 251 | 401 | 53 | 256 | .374 |
| Away | 149 | 490 | 101 | 205 | 29 | 101 | .418 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1949-09-05 | KCM | NY6 | L | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1949-09-04 | KCM | NY6 | L | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1949-09-04 | KCM | NY6 | W | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1949-08-11 | KCM | HOE | L | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1949-08-10 | KCM | HOE | L | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1949-08-09 | KCM | HOE | W | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1949-08-08 | KCM | HOE | W | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1949-08-07 | KCM | HOE | L | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1949-08-07 | KCM | HOE | L | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1949-08-05 | KCM | MEM | W | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1B | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2B | 12 | 12 | 30 | 34 | 6 | 3 |
| 3B | 9 | 8 | 7 | 15 | 3 | 2 |
| OF | 404 | 383 | 740 | 35 | 32 | 10 |
| SS | 52 | 48 | 72 | 122 | 18 | 20 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1935 | KCM | SS | 13 | 13 | 16 | 27 | 9 | 8 |
| 1936 | KCM | SS | 11 | 11 | 14 | 36 | 3 | 5 |
| 1937 | KCM | 1B | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1937 | KCM | OF | 41 | 39 | 47 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| 1937 | KCM | SS | 19 | 17 | 28 | 42 | 5 | 5 |
| 1938 | KCM | 3B | 6 | 6 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 1 |
| 1938 | KCM | OF | 41 | 41 | 67 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 1938 | KCM | SS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1939 | KCM | 3B | 2 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 1939 | KCM | OF | 44 | 44 | 66 | 3 | 4 | 2 |
| 1939 | KCM | SS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1940 | KCM | OF | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1941 | KCM | 3B | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| 1941 | KCM | OF | 42 | 41 | 68 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| 1942 | KCM | OF | 46 | 46 | 97 | 5 | 5 | 2 |
| 1943 | KCM | OF | 50 | 50 | 116 | 4 | 5 | 1 |
| 1943 | KCM | SS | 4 | 4 | 8 | 10 | 1 | 1 |
| 1944 | KCM | OF | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1946 | KCM | 2B | 12 | 12 | 30 | 34 | 6 | 3 |
| 1946 | KCM | OF | 26 | 26 | 62 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| 1947 | KCM | OF | 45 | 45 | 105 | 6 | 5 | 0 |
| 1947 | KCM | SS | 3 | 3 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 |
| 1947 | SLA | OF | 18 | 0 | 41 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1948 | KCM | OF | 46 | 46 | 68 | 7 | 8 | 3 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| First Base | 1 |
| Second Base | 12 |
| Third Base | 9 |
| Shortstop | 52 |
| Left Field | 108 |
| Center Field | 272 |
| Right Field | 24 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Willard Brown (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Compare Willard Brown
Willard Brown: the record in brief
Willard Brown's season table begins in 1935 with Negro Leagues seasons, which MLB now counts as major league; the bio gives the date of the MLB debut as July 19, 1947, and the final game as September 18, 1949. The season rows list, in order, the Kansas City Monarchs (1935 through 1948) and the St. Louis Browns (1947). Brown, a center fielder by primary position, both batted and threw right-handed. Height and weight on file: 5'11" and 200 pounds. Brown was born on June 26, 1915, in Shreveport, LA, USA. Brown died on August 4, 1996, in Houston, TX, USA. Willard Brown was the playing name; the full given name is Willard Jessie.
Brown's career batting table shows 473 games, 1,818 at bats and 643 hits, a .354 average, adding 63 home runs, 432 runs batted in, and 95 stolen bases. Brown's career OPS of .985 combines a .400 on-base mark with .585 slugging.
Frequently Asked Questions about Willard Brown
- What years did Willard Brown play?
- Willard Brown played in Major League Baseball from 1947 to 1949.
- Was Willard Brown a pitcher?
- No. Willard Brown was a position player (Center Fielder).
- How many home runs did Willard Brown hit?
- Willard Brown hit 63 career home runs with 643 hits.
- Is Willard Brown in the Hall of Fame?
- Yes. Willard Brown was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2006.
- What teams did Willard Brown play for?
- Willard Brown played for 2 teams: the Kansas City Monarchs (1935–1944, 1946–1948) and the St. Louis Browns (1947).
- Did Willard Brown win an MVP award?
- No. Willard Brown did not win the MVP award.
- What awards did Willard Brown win?
- Willard Brown was selected to 5 All-Star Games.
- What were Willard Brown's career stats?
- In 473 games, Willard Brown had 643 hits, 63 home runs, 432 RBI, 368 runs, and 95 stolen bases, with a .354 batting average.
- What position did Willard Brown play?
- Willard Brown played primarily as a center fielder, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Willard Brown and how much did he weigh?
- Willard Brown was listed at 5 feet 11 inches and 200 pounds.
- How many home runs did Willard Brown hit each season?
- Willard Brown's home runs by season: 5 in 1935, 1 in 1936, 10 in 1937, 7 in 1938, 4 in 1939, 0 in 1940, 6 in 1941, 6 in 1942, 7 in 1943, 0 in 1944, 3 in 1946, 7 in 1947, and 7 in 1948. His most in one season was 10, in 1937.
- What was Willard Brown's career batting average?
- Willard Brown batted .354 over his career, with 643 hits in 1,818 at bats.
- How many RBI did Willard Brown have?
- Willard Brown drove in 432 runs in his career.
- How many All-Star Games did Willard Brown make?
- Willard Brown was selected to 5 All-Star Games.