Bill Burns

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1908-1912)

Bill Burns was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1908 to 1912 for 5 teams, including the Washington Senators, a span of 5 seasons. Across 117 career appearances, he went 30-52 with a 2.72 ERA and 233 strikeouts. He also batted .196 with 0 home runs. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 372.3.

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

W–L 30–52
ERA 2.72
WHIP 1.19
SO 233
Pitcher PIV 372.3
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
B / L
Height / Weight
6'2" / 195 lb
Born
1/27/1880 in San Saba, TX, USA
Died
6/7/1953 in Ramona, CA, USA
MLB Debut
1908-04-18
Last Game
1912-05-23

Full name: William Thomas Burns

Career Pitching Statistics

Bill Burns — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
30 52 117 85 45 10 2 717.7 705 217 14 147 233 2.72 372.3

Career ERA 2.72 vs. league average 2.89 across their career seasons — 6.0% 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

Bill Burns — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
118 245 12 48 8 1 0 7 1 15 63 .196 .245 .237 .482 -657

Career AVG .196 vs. league average .254 across their career seasons — 22.9% below league average.

Career OBP .245 vs. league average .319 across their career seasons — 23.2% below league average.

Career SLG .237 vs. league average .333 across their career seasons — 28.8% below league average.

Career OPS .482 vs. league average .652 across their career seasons — 26.1% 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.

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

Batting — Home / Away

Bill Burns — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home5611242203.196
Away6213482608.194

Pitching — Home / Away

Bill Burns — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home56357.134383701212.09
Away61357.1361100761152.52

Last 10 Games — Batting

Bill Burns — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1912-05-23 DETMINL 100000001
1912-05-09 DETBOSL 301100002
1912-05-04 DETSLAL 100000001
1912-04-28 DETCHWL 100000011
1912-04-21 DETCLEL 401100001
1912-04-13 DETCLEW 301000020
1911-09-22 PHICHCL 300000001
1911-09-19 PHICHCW 300000001
1911-09-07 PHIBSNW 311000000
1911-09-02 PHINY1L 000000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Bill Burns — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1912-05-23 DETMIN L 4.0855200
1912-05-09 DETBOS L 5.21164200
1912-05-04 DETSLA 4.0321110
1912-04-28 DETCHW L 6.01184110
1912-04-21 DETCLE L 10.0843110
1912-04-13 DETCLE W 9.01142230
1911-09-22 PHICHC L 8.01388330
1911-09-19 PHICHC W 9.0100160
1911-09-07 PHIBSN W 3.2822121
1911-09-02 PHINY1 2.0100010

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Bill Burns — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 117 63 19 262 23 8

Season-by-Season Fielding

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Bill Burns — Career Games by Position
Position Games
Pitcher 117

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

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

  1. 98
    Mike Prendergast
    41-53, 2.74 ERA
  2. 89
    Hank Robinson
    42-37, 2.53 ERA
  3. 83
    José Junco
    43-44, 3.09 ERA
  4. 83
    Bert Humphries
    50-43, 2.79 ERA
  5. 83
    Barney Wolfe
    21-39, 2.96 ERA
  6. 73
    Billy Campbell
    23-25, 2.80 ERA

Frequently Asked Questions about Bill Burns

What years did Bill Burns play?
Bill Burns played in Major League Baseball from 1908 to 1912.
Was Bill Burns a pitcher?
Yes. Bill Burns pitched in the major leagues, recording 30 wins and 233 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Bill Burns hit?
Bill Burns hit 0 career home runs with 48 hits.
What was Bill Burns's career batting average?
Bill Burns batted .196 over his career, with 48 hits in 245 at bats.
How many RBI did Bill Burns have?
Bill Burns drove in 7 runs in his career.
What was Bill Burns's career ERA?
Bill Burns finished with a 2.72 career ERA, going 30-52 with 233 strikeouts.