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 teams did Bill Burns play for?

Bill Burns played for 5 teams: the Washington Senators (1908–1909), the Chicago White Sox (1909–1910), the Cincinnati Reds (1910–1911), the Philadelphia Phillies (1911), and the Detroit Tigers (1912).

What were Bill Burns's career stats?

In 117 games, Bill Burns went 30-52 with a 2.72 ERA, 233 strikeouts, 717.2 innings pitched, and 2 saves. At the plate he had 48 hits and 0 home runs.

What position did Bill Burns play?

Bill Burns played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.

How tall was Bill Burns and how much did he weigh?

Bill Burns was listed at 6 feet 2 inches and 195 pounds.

What was Bill Burns's career ERA?

Bill Burns finished with a 2.72 career ERA, going 30-52 with 233 strikeouts.

How many strikeouts did Bill Burns have?

Bill Burns recorded 233 career strikeouts.

Is Bill Burns in the Hall of Fame?

No. Bill Burns has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

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 October 25, 2026

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

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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	717.2	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.

Bill Burns Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year	Team	Lg	W	L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA	Lg ERA	Pitcher PIV
1908	WS1	AL	6	11	23	19	11	2	0	164.0	135	31	18	55	1.70	2.40 (+29%)	1277.3
1909	WS1	AL	1	1	6	4	1	0	0	29.1	25	4	7	13	1.23	2.55 (+52%)	124.7
1909	CHA	AL	7	13	23	19	10	3	0	168.0	161	38	34	50	2.04	2.55 (+20%)	-18.3
1910	CHA	AL	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0.1	0	0	1	0	0.00	—	0.0
1910	CIN	NL	8	13	31	21	13	2	0	178.2	183	69	49	57	3.48	2.79 (-25%)	-750.1
1911	CIN	NL	1	0	6	3	0	0	1	17.2	17	6	3	5	3.06	3.37 (+9%)	-272.2
1911	PHI	NL	6	10	21	14	8	3	1	121.0	132	46	26	47	3.42	3.37 (-1%)	58.1
1912	DET	AL	1	4	6	5	2	0	0	38.2	52	23	9	6	5.35	3.36 (-59%)	-47.1
Career · 8 seasons			30	52	117	85	45	10	2	717.2	705	217	147	233	2.72	—	372

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.

Bill Burns — Season-by-Season Batting
Year	Team	Lg	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	Lg AVG	Lg OBP	Lg SLG	Lg OPS	PIV
1908	WS1	AL	23	54	1	8	2	0	0	1	2	16	.148	.240 (-38%)	.298 (-40%)	.306 (-40%)	.605 (-40%)	-299.7
1909	WS1	AL	6	11	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	2	.273	—	—	—	—	0.0
1909	CHA	AL	23	59	3	9	3	0	3	0	5	12	.153	.244 (-38%)	.306 (-29%)	.312 (-35%)	.618 (-32%)	0.0
1910	CHA	AL	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1910	CIN	NL	32	61	5	16	1	0	2	0	2	12	.262	.249 (+5%)	.317 (-7%)	.326 (-15%)	.644 (-11%)	0.0
1911	CIN	NL	6	7	1	3	0	1	1	0	1	1	.429	—	—	—	—	0.0
1911	PHI	NL	21	40	2	6	0	0	1	0	2	14	.150	—	—	—	—	0.0
1912	DET	AL	6	13	0	3	2	0	0	0	3	6	.231	—	—	—	—	0.0
Career · 8 seasons			118	245	12	48	8	1	7	1	15	63	.196	—	—	—	—	-300

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 (235 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Bill Burns — Batting — Home / Away
Split	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	AVG
Home	56	112	4	22	0	3	.196
Away	62	134	8	26	0	8	.194

Pitching — Home / Away

Bill Burns — Pitching — Home / Away
Split	G	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
Home	56	357.1	343	83	70	121	2.09
Away	61	357.1	361	100	76	115	2.52

Last 10 Games — Batting

Bill Burns — Last 10 Games — Batting
Date	Tm	Opp	Res	AB	R	H	2B	BB	SO
1912-05-23	DET	MIN	L	1	0	0	0	0	1
1912-05-09	DET	BOS	L	3	0	1	1	0	2
1912-05-04	DET	SLA	L	1	0	0	0	0	1
1912-04-28	DET	CHW	L	1	0	0	0	1	1
1912-04-21	DET	CLE	L	4	0	1	1	0	1
1912-04-13	DET	CLE	W	3	0	1	0	2	0
1911-09-22	PHI	CHC	L	3	0	0	0	0	1
1911-09-19	PHI	CHC	W	3	0	0	0	0	1
1911-09-07	PHI	BSN	W	3	1	1	0	0	0
1911-09-02	PHI	NY1	L	0	0	0	0	0	0

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Bill Burns — Last 10 Games — Pitching
Date	Tm	Opp	Dec	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR
1912-05-23	DET	MIN	L	4.0	8	5	5	2	0	0
1912-05-09	DET	BOS	L	5.2	11	6	4	2	0	0
1912-05-04	DET	SLA	—	4.0	3	2	1	1	1	0
1912-04-28	DET	CHW	L	6.0	11	8	4	1	1	0
1912-04-21	DET	CLE	L	10.0	8	4	3	1	1	0
1912-04-13	DET	CLE	W	9.0	11	4	2	2	3	0
1911-09-22	PHI	CHC	L	8.0	13	8	8	3	3	0
1911-09-19	PHI	CHC	W	9.0	1	0	0	1	6	0
1911-09-07	PHI	BSN	W	3.2	8	2	2	1	2	1
1911-09-02	PHI	NY1	—	2.0	1	0	0	0	1	0

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

Bill Burns — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1908	WS1	P	23	19	2	69	6	2
1909	WS1	P	6	4	2	10	2	0
1909	CHA	P	23	19	4	64	5	0
1910	CHA	P	1	0	0	0	0	0
1910	CIN	P	31	21	3	57	6	2
1911	CIN	P	6	0	1	10	0	0
1911	PHI	P	21	0	6	40	2	3
1912	DET	P	6	0	1	12	2	1

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.

Bill Burns: the record in brief

Bill Burns's major league career runs from a debut on April 18, 1908 to a final game on May 23, 1912. By club, Burns's seasons break down as the Washington Senators (1908 to 1909), the Chicago White Sox (1909 through 1910), the Cincinnati Reds (1910 through 1911), the Philadelphia Phillies (1911), and the Detroit Tigers (1912). At 6'2" and 195 pounds, Burns is listed as a pitcher. The bio says Burns switch-hit and threw left-handed. The recorded birth is January 27, 1880, in San Saba, TX, USA. Burns died on June 7, 1953, in Ramona, CA, USA. The given name on file is William Thomas Burns.

Across 117 games (85 starts), Burns recorded 30 wins against 52 losses with a 2.72 ERA. The same table counts 233 strikeouts, 45 complete games, and 10 shutouts. The leagues Burns pitched in allowed 2.89 earned runs per nine over those seasons, so the career ERA was 6.0% better than average. No season topped the 8 wins of 1910.

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 teams did Bill Burns play for?: Bill Burns played for 5 teams: the Washington Senators (1908–1909), the Chicago White Sox (1909–1910), the Cincinnati Reds (1910–1911), the Philadelphia Phillies (1911), and the Detroit Tigers (1912).
What were Bill Burns's career stats?: In 117 games, Bill Burns went 30-52 with a 2.72 ERA, 233 strikeouts, 717.2 innings pitched, and 2 saves. At the plate he had 48 hits and 0 home runs.
What position did Bill Burns play?: Bill Burns played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Bill Burns and how much did he weigh?: Bill Burns was listed at 6 feet 2 inches and 195 pounds.
What was Bill Burns's career ERA?: Bill Burns finished with a 2.72 career ERA, going 30-52 with 233 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Bill Burns have?: Bill Burns recorded 233 career strikeouts.
Is Bill Burns in the Hall of Fame?: No. Bill Burns has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.