Rick Burleson
Shortstop · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1974-1987)
Rick Burleson was a shortstop who played in Major League Baseball from 1974 to 1987 for the Boston Red Sox, the California Angels, and the Baltimore Orioles, a span of 14 seasons. In 1,346 career games, he hit .273 with 1,401 hits, 50 home runs, and 449 RBI. Rick Burleson was a 4-time All-Star, a Gold Glove, and a Silver Slugger.
- 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
- Shortstop
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 5'10" / 165 lb
- MLB Debut
- 1974-05-04
- Last Game
- 1987-07-08
- Awards
- 4× All-Star · Gold Glove · Silver Slugger
Full name: Richard Paul Burleson
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,346 | 5,139 | 656 | 1,401 | 256 | 23 | 50 | 449 | 72 | 420 | 477 | .273 | .328 | .361 | .689 | -1,733 |
Career AVG .273 vs. league average .260 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OBP .328 vs. league average .326 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career SLG .361 vs. league average .386 across their career seasons — 6.7% below league average.
Career OPS .689 vs. league average .712 across their career seasons — near 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | BOS | AL | 114 | 384 | 36 | 109 | 22 | 0 | 4 | 44 | 3 | 21 | 34 | .284 | .256 (+11%) | .324 (-1%) | .369 (+1%) | .693 (avg) | -76.7 |
| 1975 | BOS | AL | 158 | 580 | 66 | 146 | 25 | 1 | 6 | 62 | 8 | 45 | 44 | .252 | .257 (-2%) | .327 (-7%) | .374 (-12%) | .701 (-10%) | -925.6 |
| 1976 | BOS | AL | 152 | 540 | 75 | 157 | 27 | 1 | 7 | 42 | 14 | 60 | 37 | .291 | .255 (+14%) | .320 (+14%) | .360 (+6%) | .681 (+10%) | 1226.9 |
| 1977 | BOS | AL | 154 | 663 | 80 | 194 | 36 | 7 | 3 | 52 | 13 | 47 | 69 | .293 | .264 (+11%) | .329 (+3%) | .401 (-5%) | .730 (-1%) | -170.1 |
| 1978 | BOS | AL | 145 | 626 | 75 | 155 | 32 | 5 | 5 | 49 | 8 | 40 | 71 | .248 | .257 (-4%) | .323 (-9%) | .378 (-11%) | .702 (-10%) | -1026.5 |
| 1979 | BOS | AL | 153 | 627 | 93 | 174 | 32 | 5 | 5 | 60 | 9 | 35 | 54 | .278 | .265 (+5%) | .329 (-4%) | .397 (-7%) | .727 (-6%) | -694.4 |
| 1980 | BOS | AL | 155 | 644 | 89 | 179 | 29 | 2 | 8 | 51 | 12 | 62 | 51 | .278 | .264 (+5%) | .326 (+5%) | .387 (-5%) | .714 (-1%) | 18.5 |
| 1981 | CAL | AL | 109 | 430 | 53 | 126 | 17 | 1 | 5 | 33 | 4 | 42 | 38 | .293 | .255 (+15%) | .320 (+12%) | .368 (+1%) | .688 (+6%) | 572.5 |
| 1982 | CAL | AL | 11 | 45 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 3 | .156 | — | — | — | — | -263.6 |
| 1983 | CAL | AL | 33 | 119 | 22 | 34 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 12 | 12 | .286 | .260 (+10%) | .324 (+7%) | .389 (-11%) | .714 (-3%) | -30.1 |
| 1984 | CAL | AL | 7 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1986 | CAL | AL | 93 | 271 | 35 | 77 | 14 | 0 | 5 | 29 | 1 | 33 | 32 | .284 | .257 (+10%) | .325 (+11%) | .395 (-1%) | .720 (+5%) | 326.6 |
| 1987 | BAL | AL | 62 | 206 | 26 | 43 | 14 | 1 | 2 | 14 | 0 | 17 | 30 | .209 | .262 (-21%) | .331 (-16%) | .415 (-24%) | .746 (-20%) | -690.2 |
| Career · 13 seasons | 1,346 | 5,139 | 656 | 1,401 | 256 | 23 | 50 | 449 | 72 | 420 | 477 | .273 | — | — | — | — | -1,733 | ||
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
Game Log & Splits
View full game log (1345 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 671 | 2514 | 353 | 686 | 27 | 231 | .273 |
| Away | 674 | 2621 | 302 | 714 | 23 | 218 | .272 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987-07-08 | BAL | CHW | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1987-07-07 | BAL | CHW | L | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1987-07-05 | BAL | MIN | L | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1987-07-03 | BAL | MIN | L | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1987-07-01 | BAL | BOS | L | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1987-06-30 | BAL | BOS | L | 5 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1987-06-26 | BAL | DET | L | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1987-06-24 | BAL | NYY | W | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1987-06-22 | BAL | NYY | L | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1987-06-20 | BAL | DET | W | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2B | 92 | 85 | 192 | 235 | 9 | 66 |
| 3B | 6 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| SS | 1192 | 1164 | 2151 | 3871 | 179 | 827 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | BOS | 2B | 31 | 27 | 65 | 79 | 3 | 24 |
| 1974 | BOS | 3B | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1974 | BOS | SS | 88 | 81 | 143 | 256 | 18 | 42 |
| 1975 | BOS | SS | 158 | 157 | 267 | 498 | 29 | 102 |
| 1976 | BOS | SS | 152 | 145 | 274 | 478 | 34 | 88 |
| 1977 | BOS | SS | 154 | 154 | 285 | 482 | 24 | 111 |
| 1978 | BOS | SS | 144 | 144 | 285 | 482 | 15 | 100 |
| 1979 | BOS | SS | 153 | 151 | 272 | 523 | 16 | 109 |
| 1980 | BOS | SS | 155 | 155 | 301 | 528 | 22 | 147 |
| 1981 | CAL | SS | 109 | 108 | 208 | 394 | 13 | 88 |
| 1982 | CAL | SS | 11 | 11 | 19 | 51 | 1 | 12 |
| 1983 | CAL | SS | 31 | 29 | 54 | 102 | 5 | 16 |
| 1986 | CAL | 2B | 6 | 5 | 15 | 11 | 0 | 3 |
| 1986 | CAL | 3B | 4 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 1986 | CAL | SS | 37 | 29 | 43 | 77 | 2 | 12 |
| 1987 | BAL | 2B | 55 | 53 | 112 | 145 | 6 | 39 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Second Base | 92 |
| Third Base | 5 |
| Shortstop | 1193 |
| Designated Hitter | 45 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Silver Slugger | SS |
| 1981 | TSN All-Star | SS |
| 1979 | Gold Glove | SS |
| 1977 | TSN All-Star | SS |
| 1976 | Player of the Week | Week of 1976-08-20 |
Salary History
| Year | Team | League | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | BAL | AL | $200,000 |
| 1986 | CAL | AL | $856,667 |
| 1985 | CAL | AL | $856,667 |
| Total Career Earnings | $1,913,334 | ||
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 21th | 7.0 | 392 | 0 |
| 1978 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 36th | 1.0 | 392 | 0 |
| 1977 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 22th | 5.0 | 392 | 0 |
| 1975 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 13th | 28.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1974 | Rookie of the Year | AL | 4th | 1.0 | 24 | 1 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Rick Burleson (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Rick Burleson: the record in brief
Rick Burleson's major league career runs from a debut on May 4, 1974 to a final game on July 8, 1987. Club by club, the record runs the Boston Red Sox (1974 through 1980), the California Angels (1981 through 1986), and the Baltimore Orioles (1987). Burleson played primarily as a shortstop and threw and hit right-handed. The bio adds a birth date on April 29, 1951, in Lynwood, CA, USA and a listed size of 5'10" and 165 pounds. On the record, Rick Burleson was born Richard Paul Burleson.
In 1,346 games and 5,139 at bats, Burleson batted .273 with 1,401 hits, plus 50 homers, 449 runs batted in, and 72 stolen bases. Burleson got on base at a .328 rate and slugged .361 (.689 OPS). Burleson hit .273 while the league hit .260 over the same span, a figure close to average. The hits column peaks at 194, in 1977. The RBI column peaks at 62 in 1975. In 1981, a season of regular play, Burleson hit .293 while the league hit .255.
Frequently Asked Questions about Rick Burleson
- What years did Rick Burleson play?
- Rick Burleson played in Major League Baseball from 1974 to 1987.
- Was Rick Burleson a pitcher?
- No. Rick Burleson was a position player (Shortstop).
- How many home runs did Rick Burleson hit?
- Rick Burleson hit 50 career home runs with 1401 hits.
- What was Rick Burleson's career batting average?
- Rick Burleson batted .273 over his career, with 1,401 hits in 5,139 at bats.
- How many RBI did Rick Burleson have?
- Rick Burleson drove in 449 runs in his career.
- Is Rick Burleson in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Rick Burleson has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.