Sal Butera
Catcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1980-1988)
Sal Butera was a catcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1980 to 1988 for 5 teams, including the Minnesota Twins, a span of 9 seasons. In 359 career games, he hit .227 with 182 hits, 8 home runs, and 76 RBI.
- 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
- Catcher
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 6'0" / 190 lb
- MLB Debut
- 1980-04-10
- Last Game
- 1988-09-26
Full name: Salvatore Philip Butera
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 359 | 801 | 63 | 182 | 24 | 3 | 8 | 76 | 0 | 86 | 85 | .227 | .302 | .295 | .597 | -1,849 |
Career AVG .227 vs. league average .260 across their career seasons — 12.4% below league average.
Career OBP .302 vs. league average .324 across their career seasons — 6.8% below league average.
Career SLG .295 vs. league average .390 across their career seasons — 24.4% below league average.
Career OPS .597 vs. league average .714 across their career seasons — 16.4% below 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | MIN | AL | 34 | 85 | 4 | 23 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 6 | .271 | .264 (+2%) | .326 (-8%) | .387 (-27%) | .714 (-18%) | -239.0 |
| 1981 | MIN | AL | 62 | 167 | 13 | 40 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 22 | 14 | .240 | .255 (-6%) | .320 (+1%) | .368 (-20%) | .688 (-10%) | -217.8 |
| 1982 | MIN | AL | 54 | 126 | 9 | 32 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 17 | 12 | .254 | .261 (-3%) | .324 (+7%) | .388 (-31%) | .712 (-13%) | -182.9 |
| 1983 | DET | AL | 4 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .200 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1984 | MON | NL | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1985 | MON | NL | 67 | 120 | 11 | 24 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 12 | 0 | 13 | 12 | .200 | .257 (-22%) | .323 (-13%) | .390 (-28%) | .714 (-21%) | -374.9 |
| 1986 | CIN | NL | 56 | 113 | 14 | 27 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 16 | 0 | 21 | 10 | .239 | .257 (-7%) | .325 (+9%) | .395 (-8%) | .720 (avg) | 45.3 |
| 1987 | CIN | NL | 5 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | .182 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1987 | MIN | AL | 51 | 111 | 7 | 19 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 0 | 7 | 16 | .171 | .262 (-35%) | .331 (-35%) | .415 (-41%) | .746 (-38%) | 0.0 |
| 1988 | TOR | AL | 23 | 60 | 3 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 9 | .233 | .254 (-8%) | .317 (-23%) | .377 (-7%) | .695 (-14%) | -151.5 |
| Career · 10 seasons | 359 | 801 | 63 | 182 | 24 | 3 | 8 | 76 | 0 | 86 | 85 | .227 | — | — | — | — | -1,121 | ||
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.
Season-by-Season Pitching
Click a stat to plot it across every season.
| Year | Team | Lg | W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA | Lg ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | MON | NL | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | — | 0.0 |
| 1986 | CIN | NL | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0.00 | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 2 seasons | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0.00 | — | 0 | ||
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 (361 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 169 | 364 | 29 | 80 | 2 | 35 | .220 |
| Away | 190 | 437 | 34 | 102 | 6 | 41 | .233 |
Pitching — Home / Away
| Split | G | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0.00 |
| Away | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988-09-26 | TOR | BOS | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1988-09-16 | TOR | CLE | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1988-09-13 | TOR | DET | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1988-09-12 | TOR | DET | L | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1988-09-07 | TOR | DET | L | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1988-08-30 | TOR | MIL | L | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1988-08-26 | TOR | TEX | L | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1988-08-22 | TOR | CHW | W | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 1988-08-20 | TOR | MIL | L | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1988-08-17 | TOR | CHW | L | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Last 2 Games — Pitching
| Date | Tm | Opp | Dec | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986-09-07 | CIN | CHC | — | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1985-06-26 | WSN | PIT | — | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1B | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| C | 348 | 255 | 1382 | 149 | 35 | 16 |
| P | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | MIN | C | 32 | 28 | 106 | 9 | 6 | 0 |
| 1981 | MIN | 1B | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1981 | MIN | C | 59 | 51 | 254 | 41 | 9 | 0 |
| 1982 | MIN | C | 53 | 41 | 230 | 26 | 3 | 5 |
| 1983 | DET | C | 4 | 1 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1984 | MON | C | 2 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1985 | MON | C | 66 | 40 | 227 | 20 | 4 | 5 |
| 1985 | MON | P | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1986 | CIN | C | 53 | 31 | 215 | 17 | 5 | 2 |
| 1986 | CIN | P | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1987 | CIN | C | 5 | 3 | 19 | 4 | 2 | 0 |
| 1987 | MIN | C | 51 | 40 | 213 | 21 | 4 | 3 |
| 1988 | TOR | C | 23 | 19 | 97 | 10 | 1 | 1 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 2 |
| Catcher | 348 |
| First Base | 1 |
| Designated Hitter | 3 |
Salary History
Sal Butera's recorded salaries total $165,000 over 2 seasons, 1986 to 1987. This total is partial: the salary data covers 1985 to 2016, and Butera's career ran from 1980 to 1988. His seasons before 1985 are not included, and no salary is recorded for 1985 and 1988.
| Year | Team | League | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | CIN | NL | $62,500 |
| 1986 | CIN | NL | $102,500 |
| Total recorded salary (partial) | $165,000 | ||
College History
| School Name | City | State | Years Attended |
|---|---|---|---|
| Suffolk County Community College | Brentwood | NY | 1971, 1972 |
Sal Butera: the record in brief
Between the debut on April 10, 1980 and the final game on September 26, 1988, Sal Butera built the record summarized on this page. The team column moves through the Minnesota Twins (1980 through 1987), the Detroit Tigers (1983), the Montreal Expos (1984 through 1985), the Cincinnati Reds (1986 to 1987), and the Toronto Blue Jays (1988). Butera played primarily as a catcher and threw and hit right-handed. The bio adds a birth date on September 25, 1952, in Richmond Hill, NY, USA and a listed size of 6'0" and 190 pounds. The given name on file is Salvatore Philip Butera.
Butera finished with 182 hits from 801 at bats in 359 games, which works out to .227, plus 8 homers and 76 runs batted in. The on-base percentage is .302 and the slugging percentage .295, for an OPS of .597. Butera's .227 average ran 12.4% below the .260 that the league posted over the same seasons. Butera collected a career-high 40 hits in 1981.
Frequently Asked Questions about Sal Butera
- What years did Sal Butera play?
- Sal Butera played in Major League Baseball from 1980 to 1988.
- Was Sal Butera a pitcher?
- No. Sal Butera was a position player (Catcher), though he did pitch in 2 career games.
- How many home runs did Sal Butera hit?
- Sal Butera hit 8 career home runs with 182 hits.
- What teams did Sal Butera play for?
- Sal Butera played for 5 teams: the Minnesota Twins (1980–1982, 1987), the Detroit Tigers (1983), the Montreal Expos (1984–1985), the Cincinnati Reds (1986–1987), and the Toronto Blue Jays (1988).
- What were Sal Butera's career stats?
- In 359 games, Sal Butera had 182 hits, 8 home runs, 76 RBI, and 63 runs, with a .227 batting average.
- How much did Sal Butera earn in his career?
- Sal Butera's recorded salaries total $165,000 over 2 seasons, 1986 to 1987. This total is partial: the salary data covers 1985 to 2016, and Butera's career ran from 1980 to 1988. His seasons before 1985 are not included, and no salary is recorded for 1985 and 1988.
- What was Sal Butera's salary?
- Sal Butera's last recorded salary was $62,500, in 1987. His highest recorded salary was $102,500, in 1986, and his lowest was $62,500, in 1987. The Salary History table lists each season from 1986 to 1987.
- What position did Sal Butera play?
- Sal Butera played primarily as a catcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Sal Butera and how much did he weigh?
- Sal Butera was listed at 6 feet and 190 pounds.
- How many home runs did Sal Butera hit each season?
- Sal Butera's home runs by season: 0 in 1980, 0 in 1981, 0 in 1982, 0 in 1983, 0 in 1984, 3 in 1985, 2 in 1986, 2 in 1987, and 1 in 1988. His most in one season was 3, in 1985.
- What was Sal Butera's career batting average?
- Sal Butera batted .227 over his career, with 182 hits in 801 at bats.
- How many RBI did Sal Butera have?
- Sal Butera drove in 76 runs in his career.
- What was Sal Butera's career ERA?
- Sal Butera finished with a 0.00 career ERA, going 0-0 with 1 strikeouts.
- Is Sal Butera in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Sal Butera has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.