Jack Burns
First Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1930-1936)
Jack Burns was a first baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1930 to 1936 for the St. Louis Browns and the Detroit Tigers, a span of 7 seasons. In 890 career games, he hit .279 with 980 hits, 44 home runs, and 417 RBI. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 1,546.
- 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
- L / L
- Height / Weight
- 5'10" / 175 lb
- Died
- 4/18/1975 in Brighton, MA, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1930-09-17
- Last Game
- 1936-09-27
Full name: John Irving Burns
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 890 | 3,516 | 541 | 980 | 199 | 31 | 44 | 417 | 63 | 376 | 299 | .279 | .350 | .391 | .740 | 1,546 |
Career AVG .279 vs. league average .280 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OBP .350 vs. league average .342 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career SLG .391 vs. league average .398 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OPS .740 vs. league average .740 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1930 | SLA | AL | 8 | 30 | 5 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 5 | .300 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1931 | SLA | AL | 144 | 580 | 75 | 148 | 27 | 7 | 4 | 70 | 19 | 42 | 58 | .255 | .276 (-8%) | .338 (-9%) | .388 (-11%) | .726 (-10%) | -983.6 |
| 1932 | SLA | AL | 150 | 617 | 111 | 188 | 33 | 8 | 11 | 70 | 17 | 61 | 43 | .305 | .275 (+11%) | .335 (+10%) | .391 (+12%) | .726 (+11%) | 1437.1 |
| 1933 | SLA | AL | 144 | 556 | 89 | 160 | 43 | 4 | 7 | 71 | 11 | 56 | 51 | .288 | .270 (+7%) | .329 (+7%) | .377 (+11%) | .707 (+9%) | 997.2 |
| 1934 | SLA | AL | 154 | 612 | 86 | 157 | 28 | 8 | 13 | 73 | 9 | 62 | 47 | .257 | .278 (-8%) | .340 (-4%) | .392 (avg) | .733 (-2%) | -217.4 |
| 1935 | SLA | AL | 143 | 549 | 77 | 157 | 28 | 1 | 5 | 67 | 3 | 68 | 49 | .286 | .279 (+2%) | .342 (+7%) | .399 (-8%) | .742 (-1%) | 80.4 |
| 1936 | SLA | AL | 9 | 14 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | .214 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1936 | DET | AL | 138 | 558 | 96 | 158 | 36 | 3 | 4 | 63 | 4 | 79 | 45 | .283 | .283 (avg) | .349 (+7%) | .404 (-6%) | .753 (avg) | 0.0 |
| Career · 8 seasons | 890 | 3,516 | 541 | 980 | 199 | 31 | 44 | 417 | 63 | 376 | 299 | .279 | — | — | — | — | 1,314 | ||
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 (890 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 449 | 1740 | 309 | 508 | 24 | 234 | .292 |
| Away | 441 | 1766 | 231 | 472 | 20 | 180 | .267 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1936-09-27 | DET | CLE | L | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 1936-09-26 | DET | CLE | L | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1936-09-23 | DET | SLA | L | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1936-09-22 | DET | SLA | W | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 1936-09-22 | DET | SLA | W | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1936-09-20 | DET | CLE | W | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1936-09-19 | DET | CLE | W | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1936-09-18 | DET | CLE | W | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1936-09-17 | DET | CLE | W | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1936-09-16 | DET | PHA | W | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1930 | SLA | 1B | 8 | 0 | 70 | 6 | 0 | 10 |
| 1931 | SLA | 1B | 143 | 0 | 1346 | 125 | 11 | 131 |
| 1932 | SLA | 1B | 150 | 0 | 1399 | 101 | 12 | 130 |
| 1933 | SLA | 1B | 143 | 0 | 1336 | 81 | 12 | 129 |
| 1934 | SLA | 1B | 154 | 0 | 1365 | 81 | 12 | 132 |
| 1935 | SLA | 1B | 141 | 0 | 1239 | 57 | 11 | 115 |
| 1936 | SLA | 1B | 2 | 0 | 28 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| 1936 | DET | 1B | 138 | 0 | 1280 | 73 | 8 | 126 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| First Base | 878 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Jack Burns (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Jack Burns: the record in brief
Jack Burns played a first major league game on September 17, 1930 and a last one on September 27, 1936. The team column moves through the St. Louis Browns (1930 through 1936) and the Detroit Tigers (1936). Burns, a first baseman by primary position, threw and hit left-handed. Height and weight on file: 5'10" and 175 pounds. The birth record reads August 31, 1907, in Cambridge, MA, USA. The bio records the death on April 18, 1975, in Brighton, MA, USA. Burns's full given name, per the bio, is John Irving Burns.
Burns finished with 980 hits from 3,516 at bats in 890 games, which works out to .279, along with 44 homers, 417 runs batted in, and 63 stolen bases. The on-base percentage is .350 and the slugging percentage .391, for an OPS of .740. The .279 career average is close to the .280 the league hit across the same seasons. The home run peak was 13 in 1934 with the St. Louis Browns.
Frequently Asked Questions about Jack Burns
- What years did Jack Burns play?
- Jack Burns played in Major League Baseball from 1930 to 1936.
- Was Jack Burns a pitcher?
- No. Jack Burns was a position player (First Baseman).
- How many home runs did Jack Burns hit?
- Jack Burns hit 44 career home runs with 980 hits.
- What was Jack Burns's career batting average?
- Jack Burns batted .279 over his career, with 980 hits in 3,516 at bats.
- How many RBI did Jack Burns have?
- Jack Burns drove in 417 runs in his career.
- Is Jack Burns in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Jack Burns has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.