William Brown
First Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1887-1894)
William Brown was a first baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1887 to 1894 for 6 teams, including the New York Giants, a span of 8 seasons. In 418 career games, he hit .261 with 415 hits, 6 home runs, and 252 RBI.
- 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
- First Baseman
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 6'2" / 190 lb
- Born
- 1866 in San Francisco, CA, USA
- Died
- 12/20/1897 in San Francisco, CA, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1887-05-10
- Last Game
- 1894-05-20
Full name: William M. Brown
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 418 | 1,589 | 236 | 415 | 70 | 17 | 6 | 252 | 39 | 123 | 124 | .261 | .319 | .338 | .657 | -1,313 |
Career AVG .261 vs. league average .266 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OBP .319 vs. league average .335 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career SLG .338 vs. league average .362 across their career seasons — 6.6% below league average.
Career OPS .657 vs. league average .697 across their career seasons — 5.8% below 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1887 | NY1 | NL | 49 | 170 | 17 | 37 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 25 | 10 | 10 | 15 | .218 | .270 (-20%) | .331 (-18%) | .373 (-31%) | .705 (-25%) | -637.3 |
| 1888 | NY1 | NL | 20 | 59 | 4 | 16 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 8 | .271 | .238 (+14%) | .290 (-3%) | .319 (-10%) | .610 (-6%) | -55.4 |
| 1889 | NY1 | NL | 40 | 139 | 16 | 36 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 29 | 6 | 9 | 9 | .259 | .263 (-2%) | .334 (-5%) | .357 (-1%) | .691 (-3%) | -76.1 |
| 1890 | NYP | PL | 60 | 230 | 47 | 64 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 43 | 5 | 13 | 13 | .278 | .260 (+7%) | .336 (-5%) | .351 (+14%) | .687 (+5%) | 91.8 |
| 1891 | PHI | NL | 115 | 441 | 62 | 107 | 20 | 4 | 0 | 50 | 7 | 34 | 35 | .243 | .254 (-4%) | .331 (-9%) | .343 (-11%) | .675 (-10%) | -698.6 |
| 1893 | BLN | NL | 7 | 32 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 3 | .125 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1893 | LS3 | NL | 111 | 461 | 80 | 140 | 23 | 7 | 1 | 85 | 9 | 50 | 32 | .304 | .279 (+9%) | .356 (+5%) | .379 (+3%) | .735 (+4%) | 0.0 |
| 1894 | LS3 | NL | 13 | 48 | 5 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 5 | 7 | .208 | — | — | — | — | -294.4 |
| 1894 | SLN | NL | 3 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .111 | — | — | — | — | -294.4 |
| Career · 9 seasons | 418 | 1,589 | 236 | 415 | 70 | 17 | 6 | 252 | 39 | 123 | 124 | .261 | — | — | — | — | -1,965 | ||
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
Playoff Batting by Year
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1B | 240 | 0 | 2380 | 125 | 34 | 151 |
| 2B | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 3B | 6 | 0 | 5 | 8 | 3 | 0 |
| C | 157 | 0 | 685 | 189 | 103 | 11 |
| OF | 20 | 0 | 25 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1887 | NY1 | 3B | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 1887 | NY1 | C | 46 | 0 | 229 | 69 | 28 | 5 |
| 1887 | NY1 | OF | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1888 | NY1 | C | 20 | 0 | 134 | 24 | 19 | 0 |
| 1889 | NY1 | C | 37 | 0 | 138 | 38 | 32 | 3 |
| 1889 | NY1 | OF | 3 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1890 | NYP | 1B | 9 | 0 | 97 | 4 | 5 | 4 |
| 1890 | NYP | 2B | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1890 | NYP | 3B | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 0 |
| 1890 | NYP | C | 34 | 0 | 124 | 38 | 18 | 1 |
| 1890 | NYP | OF | 13 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1891 | PHI | 1B | 97 | 0 | 997 | 48 | 12 | 60 |
| 1891 | PHI | C | 19 | 0 | 60 | 20 | 6 | 2 |
| 1891 | PHI | OF | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1893 | BLN | 1B | 7 | 0 | 63 | 3 | 1 | 3 |
| 1893 | LS3 | 1B | 111 | 0 | 1082 | 51 | 13 | 76 |
| 1893 | LS3 | C | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1894 | LS3 | 1B | 13 | 0 | 113 | 17 | 3 | 6 |
| 1894 | SLN | 1B | 3 | 0 | 28 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Catcher | 157 |
| First Base | 240 |
| Second Base | 2 |
| Third Base | 6 |
| Left Field | 2 |
| Center Field | 5 |
| Right Field | 13 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
William Brown (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
William Brown: the record in brief
May 10, 1887 and May 20, 1894 bracket William Brown's time in the majors: the debut and the last game on record. The team column moves through the New York Giants (1887 to 1890), the Philadelphia Phillies (1891), the Baltimore Orioles (1893), the Louisville Colonels (1893 through 1894), and the St. Louis Browns (1894). Born in 1866, in San Francisco, CA, USA, Brown is listed as a first baseman and both batted and threw right-handed. The bio gives 6 feet, 2 inches and 190 pounds. Brown died on December 20, 1897, in San Francisco, CA, USA. Brown's full given name, per the bio, is William M. Brown.
The batting record for Brown: 418 games, 415 hits in 1,589 at bats, and a .261 average, plus 6 homers, 252 runs batted in, and 39 stolen bases. Brown's career OPS of .657 combines a .319 on-base mark with .338 slugging. Against a .266 league average for those years, Brown's .261 average was near the norm. The OPS comparison is .657 to a league .697, 5.8% below average. The highest hit total in a season was 140, in 1893.
Frequently Asked Questions about William Brown
- What years did William Brown play?
- William Brown played in Major League Baseball from 1887 to 1894.
- Was William Brown a pitcher?
- No. William Brown was a position player (First Baseman).
- How many home runs did William Brown hit?
- William Brown hit 6 career home runs with 415 hits.
- What was William Brown's career batting average?
- William Brown batted .261 over his career, with 415 hits in 1,589 at bats.
- How many RBI did William Brown have?
- William Brown drove in 252 runs in his career.
- Is William Brown in the Hall of Fame?
- No. William Brown has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.