Bill Buckner

First Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1969-1990)

Bill Buckner was a first baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1969 to 1990 for 5 teams, including the Los Angeles Dodgers, a span of 22 seasons. In 2,517 career games, he hit .289 with 2,715 hits, 174 home runs, and 1,208 RBI. Bill Buckner was an All-Star. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 4,914.

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 .289
HR 174
RBI 1,208
H 2,715
OPS .729
PIV 4,914
Position
First Baseman
Bats / Throws
L / L
Height / Weight
6'0" / 185 lb
Born
12/14/1949 in Vallejo, CA, USA
Died
5/27/2019 in Boise, ID, USA
MLB Debut
1969-09-21
Last Game
1990-05-30
Awards
All-Star

Full name: William Joseph Buckner

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Career Batting Statistics

Bill Buckner — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
2,517 9,397 1,077 2,715 498 49 174 1,208 183 450 453 .289 .321 .408 .729 4,914

Career AVG .289 vs. league average .257 across their career seasons — +12.3% above league average.

Career OBP .321 vs. league average .323 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .408 vs. league average .382 across their career seasons — +6.7% above league average.

Career OPS .729 vs. league average .706 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Bill Buckner 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
1969 LAN NL 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1970 LAN NL 28 68 6 13 3 1 0 4 0 3 7 .191 .253 (-25%) .325 (-31%) .385 (-31%) .711 (-31%) -347.6
1971 LAN NL 108 358 37 99 15 1 5 41 4 11 18 .277 .249 (+11%) .316 (-3%) .365 (avg) .682 (-2%) -143.3
1972 LAN NL 105 383 47 122 14 3 5 37 10 17 13 .319 .243 (+31%) .310 (+12%) .353 (+16%) .664 (+14%) 876.4
1973 LAN NL 140 575 68 158 20 0 8 46 12 17 34 .275 .256 (+7%) .325 (-9%) .378 (-7%) .703 (-8%) -815.8
1974 LAN NL 145 580 83 182 30 3 7 58 31 30 24 .314 .256 (+22%) .324 (+8%) .369 (+12%) .693 (+10%) 1042.4
1975 LAN NL 92 288 30 70 11 2 6 31 8 17 15 .243 .257 (-6%) .327 (-13%) .374 (-4%) .701 (-8%) -446.6
1976 LAN NL 154 642 76 193 28 4 7 60 28 26 26 .301 .255 (+18%) .320 (+2%) .360 (+8%) .681 (+5%) 452.6
1977 CHN NL 122 426 40 121 27 0 11 60 7 21 23 .284 .264 (+8%) .329 (-5%) .401 (+6%) .730 (+1%) -35.3
1978 CHN NL 117 446 47 144 26 1 5 74 7 18 17 .323 .257 (+25%) .323 (+7%) .378 (+11%) .702 (+9%) 634.5
1979 CHN NL 149 591 72 168 34 7 14 66 9 30 28 .284 .265 (+7%) .329 (-3%) .397 (+10%) .727 (+4%) 267.1
1980 CHN NL 145 578 69 187 41 3 10 68 1 30 18 .324 .264 (+22%) .326 (+8%) .387 (+18%) .714 (+13%) 1387.8
1981 CHN NL 106 421 45 131 35 3 10 75 5 26 16 .311 .255 (+22%) .320 (+9%) .368 (+30%) .688 (+20%) 1386.1
1982 CHN NL 161 657 93 201 34 5 15 105 15 36 26 .306 .261 (+17%) .324 (+5%) .388 (+14%) .712 (+10%) 1153.5
1983 CHN NL 153 626 79 175 38 6 16 66 12 25 30 .280 .260 (+7%) .324 (-5%) .389 (+12%) .714 (+4%) 313.4
1984 CHN NL 21 43 3 9 0 0 0 2 0 1 1 .209 — — — — 0.0
1984 BOS AL 114 439 51 122 21 2 11 67 2 24 38 .278 .259 (+7%) .322 (-1%) .384 (+7%) .707 (+3%) 0.0
1985 BOS AL 162 673 89 201 46 3 16 110 18 30 36 .299 .257 (+16%) .323 (+1%) .390 (+14%) .714 (+8%) 821.5
1986 BOS AL 153 629 73 168 39 2 18 102 6 40 25 .267 .257 (+4%) .325 (-4%) .395 (+7%) .720 (+2%) 4.8
1987 BOS AL 75 286 23 78 6 1 2 42 1 13 19 .273 .262 (+4%) .331 (-10%) .415 (-23%) .746 (-17%) -811.2
1987 CAL AL 57 183 16 56 12 1 3 32 1 9 7 .306 .262 (+16%) .331 (+2%) .415 (+4%) .746 (+3%) -811.2
1988 CAL AL 19 43 1 9 0 0 0 9 2 4 0 .209 — — — — 0.0
1988 KCA AL 89 242 18 62 14 0 3 34 3 13 19 .256 .254 (+1%) .317 (-9%) .377 (-7%) .695 (-8%) 0.0
1989 KCA AL 79 176 7 38 4 1 1 16 1 6 11 .216 .254 (-15%) .319 (-25%) .375 (-29%) .694 (-27%) -751.5
1990 BOS AL 22 43 4 8 0 0 1 3 0 3 2 .186 — — — — 0.0
Career · 25 seasons 2,517 9,397 1,077 2,715 498 49 174 1,208 183 450 453 .289 — — — — 4,177

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

Bill Buckner — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
23 98 6 20 3 0 1 5 0 8 .204

Playoff Batting by Year

Bill Buckner — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1986 ALCS BOS 7 28 3 6 1 0 0 3 0 2 .214
1986 WS BOS 7 32 2 6 0 0 0 1 0 3 .188
1974 NLCS LAN 4 18 0 3 1 0 0 0 0 2 .167
1974 WS LAN 5 20 1 5 1 0 1 1 0 1 .250

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (2517 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Bill Buckner — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home12704666571138583635.297
Away12474731506133091573.281

Last 10 Games — Batting

Bill Buckner — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1990-05-30 BOSTEXL 401000000
1990-05-27 BOSMINL 100000000
1990-05-25 BOSMINL 100000000
1990-05-23 BOSKCRL 100000000
1990-05-21 BOSTEXW 000000000
1990-05-20 BOSMINL 100000100
1990-05-18 BOSMINL 100000000
1990-05-13 BOSLAAL 100000000
1990-05-04 BOSOAKL 300000001
1990-05-02 BOSSEAL 401000000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Bill Buckner — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 1555 1505 13901 1351 128 1200
OF 644 607 1225 28 18 3

Season-by-Season Fielding

Bill Buckner — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1970 LAN 1B 1 0 1 0 0 0
1970 LAN OF 20 16 36 1 0 1
1971 LAN 1B 11 7 70 6 0 4
1971 LAN OF 86 77 165 5 1 0
1972 LAN 1B 35 31 311 21 3 28
1972 LAN OF 61 57 123 1 1 0
1973 LAN 1B 93 87 888 50 2 93
1973 LAN OF 48 44 93 0 1 0
1974 LAN 1B 6 5 49 1 1 2
1974 LAN OF 137 129 235 4 6 0
1975 LAN OF 72 67 138 4 2 0
1976 LAN 1B 1 0 0 0 0 0
1976 LAN OF 153 153 315 7 5 0
1977 CHN 1B 99 98 966 58 10 75
1978 CHN 1B 105 104 1075 83 6 85
1979 CHN 1B 140 140 1258 124 7 118
1980 CHN 1B 94 89 826 73 6 67
1980 CHN OF 50 49 90 5 2 2
1981 CHN 1B 105 105 996 81 17 92
1982 CHN 1B 161 161 1547 159 12 89
1983 CHN 1B 144 136 1366 161 13 132
1983 CHN OF 15 13 25 0 0 0
1984 CHN 1B 7 5 66 5 0 5
1984 CHN OF 2 2 5 1 0 0
1984 BOS 1B 113 113 974 96 15 75
1985 BOS 1B 162 162 1384 184 12 140
1986 BOS 1B 138 138 1067 157 14 104
1987 BOS 1B 74 73 605 58 6 53
1987 CAL 1B 5 5 35 2 0 1
1988 CAL 1B 1 0 1 1 0 1
1988 KCA 1B 21 18 160 12 1 11
1989 KCA 1B 24 20 181 13 3 19
1990 BOS 1B 15 8 75 6 0 6

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Bill Buckner Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
First Base 1556
Left Field 485
Right Field 171
Designated Hitter 125

Awards & Honors

Bill Buckner — Awards & Honors
Year Award Notes
1986 Player of the Week Week of 1986-09-12
1982 Player of the Month August
1982 Player of the Week Week of 1982-08-20
1981 Player of the Week Week of 1981-05-01
1981 Player of the Week Week of 1981-09-11
1977 Player of the Week Week of 1977-08-19

Salary History

Bill Buckner's recorded salaries total $2,761,667 over 5 seasons, 1985 to 1989. This total is partial: the salary data covers 1985 to 2016, and Buckner's career ran from 1969 to 1990. His seasons before 1985 are not included, and no salary is recorded for 1990.

Bill Buckner — Salary History
Year Team League Salary
1989 KCA AL $400,000
1988 CAL AL $400,000
1987 BOS AL $366,667
1987 CAL AL $62,500
1986 BOS AL $785,000
1985 BOS AL $747,500
Total recorded salary (partial) $2,761,667

Award Voting History

Bill Buckner — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1982 Most Valuable Player NL 10th 38.0 336 0
1981 Most Valuable Player NL 10th 35.0 336 0
1980 Most Valuable Player NL 14th 11.0 336 0
1978 Most Valuable Player NL 17th 8.0 336 0
1974 Most Valuable Player NL 25th 1.0 336 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Bill Buckner (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Buddy Bell
    .279 avg, 201 HR
  2. 94
    Steve Garvey
    .294 avg, 272 HR
  3. 93
    Alan Trammell HOF
    .285 avg, 185 HR
  4. 92
    Orlando Cabrera
    .272 avg, 123 HR
  5. 92
    Red Schoendienst HOF
    .289 avg, 84 HR
  6. 91
    Chris Chambliss
    .279 avg, 185 HR

Bill Buckner: the record in brief

Bill Buckner played a first major league game on September 21, 1969 and a last one on May 30, 1990. The season rows list, in order, the Los Angeles Dodgers (1969 to 1976), the Chicago Cubs (1977 through 1984), the Boston Red Sox (1984 through 1990), the California Angels (1987 through 1988), and the Kansas City Royals (1988 to 1989). The bio lists Buckner as a first baseman who threw and hit left-handed. The recorded size is 6'0" and 185 pounds. Buckner was born on December 14, 1949, in Vallejo, CA, USA. Buckner's death is recorded on May 27, 2019, in Boise, ID, USA. The given name on file is William Joseph Buckner.

Buckner finished with 2,715 hits from 9,397 at bats in 2,517 games, which works out to .289, along with 174 home runs, 1,208 RBI, and 183 stolen bases. Reaching base at a .321 clip and slugging .408, Buckner finished with a .729 OPS. Buckner's .289 average ran 12.3% above the .257 that the league posted over the same seasons.

Frequently Asked Questions about Bill Buckner

What years did Bill Buckner play?
Bill Buckner played in Major League Baseball from 1969 to 1990.
Was Bill Buckner a pitcher?
No. Bill Buckner was a position player (First Baseman).
How many home runs did Bill Buckner hit?
Bill Buckner hit 174 career home runs with 2,715 hits.
What teams did Bill Buckner play for?
Bill Buckner played for 5 teams: the Los Angeles Dodgers (1969–1976), the Chicago Cubs (1977–1984), the Boston Red Sox (1984–1987, 1990), the California Angels (1987–1988), and the Kansas City Royals (1988–1989).
Did Bill Buckner win an MVP award?
No. Bill Buckner did not win the MVP award.
What awards did Bill Buckner win?
Bill Buckner was selected to 1 All-Star Game.
What were Bill Buckner's career stats?
In 2,517 games, Bill Buckner had 2,715 hits, 174 home runs, 1,208 RBI, 1,077 runs, and 183 stolen bases, with a .289 batting average.
How much did Bill Buckner earn in his career?
Bill Buckner's recorded salaries total $2,761,667 over 5 seasons, 1985 to 1989. This total is partial: the salary data covers 1985 to 2016, and Buckner's career ran from 1969 to 1990. His seasons before 1985 are not included, and no salary is recorded for 1990.
What was Bill Buckner's salary?
Bill Buckner's last recorded salary was $400,000, in 1989. His highest recorded salary was $785,000, in 1986, and his lowest was $400,000, in 1988. The Salary History table lists each season from 1985 to 1989.
What position did Bill Buckner play?
Bill Buckner played primarily as a first baseman, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Bill Buckner and how much did he weigh?
Bill Buckner was listed at 6 feet and 185 pounds.
How many home runs did Bill Buckner hit each season?
Bill Buckner's home runs by season: 0 in 1969, 0 in 1970, 5 in 1971, 5 in 1972, 8 in 1973, 7 in 1974, 6 in 1975, 7 in 1976, 11 in 1977, 5 in 1978, 14 in 1979, 10 in 1980, 10 in 1981, 15 in 1982, 16 in 1983, 11 in 1984, 16 in 1985, 18 in 1986, 5 in 1987, 3 in 1988, 1 in 1989, and 1 in 1990. His most in one season was 18, in 1986.
What was Bill Buckner's career batting average?
Bill Buckner batted .289 over his career, with 2,715 hits in 9,397 at bats.
How many RBI did Bill Buckner have?
Bill Buckner drove in 1,208 runs in his career.