Chris Carpenter

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1997-2012)

Chris Carpenter was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1997 to 2012 for the Toronto Blue Jays and the St. Louis Cardinals, a span of 16 seasons. Across 350 career appearances, he went 144-94 with a 3.76 ERA and 1,697 strikeouts. He also batted .118 with 2 home runs. Chris Carpenter was a 3-time All-Star and a Cy Young. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 32496.8.

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 144–94
ERA 3.76
WHIP 1.28
SO 1,697
Pitcher PIV 32496.8
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
6'6" / 230 lb
Born
4/27/1975 in Exeter, NH, USA
MLB Debut
1997-05-12
Last Game
2012-10-02
Awards
3× All-Star · Cy Young

Full name: Christopher John Carpenter

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Career Pitching Statistics

Chris Carpenter — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
144 94 350 332 33 15 0 2219.1 2,205 927 220 627 1,697 3.76 32496.8

Career ERA 3.76 vs. league average 4.36 across their career seasons — 13.8% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Chris Carpenter (b. 1975) Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1997 TOR AL 3 7 14 13 1 1 0 81.1 108 46 37 55 5.09 4.39 (-16%) 155.7
1998 TOR AL 12 7 33 24 1 1 0 175.0 177 85 61 136 4.37 4.43 (+1%) 1714.2
1999 TOR AL 9 8 24 24 4 1 0 150.0 177 73 48 106 4.38 4.71 (+7%) 2246.6
2000 TOR AL 10 12 34 27 2 0 0 175.1 204 122 83 113 6.26 4.77 (-31%) -3531.6
2001 TOR AL 11 11 34 34 3 2 0 215.2 229 98 75 157 4.09 4.42 (+7%) -1022.1
2002 TOR AL 4 5 13 13 1 0 0 73.1 89 43 27 45 5.28 4.28 (-23%) -1237.3
2004 SLN NL 15 5 28 28 1 0 0 182.0 169 70 38 152 3.46 4.46 (+22%) 2894.6
2005 SLN NL 21 5 33 33 7 4 0 241.2 204 76 51 213 2.83 4.29 (+34%) 8847.6
2006 SLN NL 15 8 32 32 5 3 0 221.2 194 76 43 184 3.09 4.53 (+32%) 6323.9
2007 SLN NL 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 6.0 9 5 1 3 7.50 — 0.0
2008 SLN NL 0 1 4 3 0 0 0 15.1 16 3 4 7 1.76 4.32 (+59%) 508.4
2009 SLN NL 17 4 28 28 3 1 0 192.2 156 48 38 144 2.24 4.32 (+48%) 7744.1
2010 SLN NL 16 9 35 35 1 0 0 235.0 214 84 63 179 3.22 4.08 (+21%) 2415.9
2011 SLN NL 11 9 34 34 4 2 0 237.1 243 91 55 191 3.45 3.94 (+12%) 5470.8
2012 SLN NL 0 2 3 3 0 0 0 17.0 16 7 3 12 3.71 4.01 (+8%) -34.0
Career · 15 seasons 144 94 350 332 33 15 0 2,219.1 2,205 927 627 1,697 3.76 — 32,497

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

Chris Carpenter — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
350 439 18 52 8 0 2 21 0 12 144 .118 .145 .150 .296 -4,127

Career AVG .118 vs. league average .264 across their career seasons — 55.1% below league average.

Career OBP .145 vs. league average .333 across their career seasons — 56.3% below league average.

Career SLG .150 vs. league average .420 across their career seasons — 64.2% below league average.

Career OPS .296 vs. league average .753 across their career seasons — 60.7% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Chris Carpenter (b. 1975) Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1997 TOR AL 14 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1998 TOR AL 33 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1999 TOR AL 24 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 .000 — — — — 0.0
2000 TOR AL 34 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 — — — — 0.0
2001 TOR AL 34 6 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 .167 — — — — 0.0
2002 TOR AL 13 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000 — — — — 0.0
2004 SLN NL 28 62 1 5 0 0 0 1 0 1 21 .081 .266 (-70%) .335 (-72%) .427 (-81%) .762 (-77%) -792.2
2005 SLN NL 33 77 7 5 2 0 0 2 0 5 23 .065 .264 (-75%) .330 (-64%) .418 (-78%) .749 (-72%) -927.0
2006 SLN NL 32 71 2 9 0 0 0 2 0 0 27 .127 .269 (-53%) .336 (-62%) .431 (-71%) .768 (-67%) -790.6
2007 SLN NL 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
2008 SLN NL 4 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 .000 — — — — 0.0
2009 SLN NL 28 63 3 11 3 0 1 7 0 2 13 .175 .262 (-33%) .332 (-36%) .417 (-35%) .750 (-36%) -378.2
2010 SLN NL 35 72 2 8 0 0 1 4 0 1 25 .111 .257 (-57%) .325 (-58%) .402 (-62%) .728 (-60%) -696.6
2011 SLN NL 34 71 2 11 3 0 0 5 0 2 25 .155 .255 (-39%) .320 (-44%) .399 (-51%) .719 (-48%) -541.8
2012 SLN NL 3 6 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .167 — — — — 0.0
Career · 15 seasons 350 439 18 52 8 0 2 21 0 12 144 .118 — — — — -4,127

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

Chris Carpenter — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
18 37 0 6 2 0 0 2 0 12 .162

Playoff Batting by Year

Chris Carpenter — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
2012 NLCS SLN 2 2 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 .500
2012 NLDS1 SLN 1 3 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 1 .667
2011 NLCS SLN 1 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500
2011 NLDS1 SLN 2 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .250
2011 WS SLN 3 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 .000
2009 NLDS1 SLN 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000
2006 NLCS SLN 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000
2006 NLDS2 SLN 2 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 .200
2006 WS SLN 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2005 NLCS SLN 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 .000
2005 NLDS1 SLN 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

Chris Carpenter — Playoff Career Pitching
W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
10 4 18 18 0 108.0 104 36 36 68 3.00

Playoff Pitching by Year

Chris Carpenter — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
2012 NLCS SLN 0 2 2 2 0 8.0 12 4 4 7 4.50
2012 NLDS1 SLN 1 0 1 1 0 5.2 7 0 2 2 0.00
2011 NLCS SLN 1 0 1 1 0 5.0 6 3 3 3 5.40
2011 NLDS1 SLN 1 0 2 2 0 12.0 8 4 3 5 3.00
2011 WS SLN 2 0 3 3 0 19.0 17 6 5 13 2.84
2009 NLDS1 SLN 0 1 1 1 0 5.0 9 4 4 3 7.20
2006 NLCS SLN 0 1 2 2 0 11.0 13 7 4 5 5.73
2006 NLDS2 SLN 2 0 2 2 0 13.1 12 3 4 12 2.02
2006 WS SLN 1 0 1 1 0 8.0 3 0 0 6 0.00
2005 NLCS SLN 1 0 2 2 0 15.0 14 5 4 9 3.00
2005 NLDS1 SLN 1 0 1 1 0 6.0 3 0 3 3 0.00

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (700 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Chris Carpenter — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home17021092106.100
Away180229931215.135

Pitching — Home / Away

Chris Carpenter — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home1701119.210824403098373.54
Away1801099.211234873188603.99

Last 10 Games — Batting

Chris Carpenter — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
2012-10-02 STLCINL 200000001
2012-09-26 STLHOUL 201000001
2012-09-21 STLCHCL 200000000
2011-09-28 STLHOUW 401000102
2011-09-23 STLCHCL 100000100
2011-09-18 STLPHIW 300000001
2011-09-13 STLPITW 301000201
2011-09-07 STLMILW 300000002
2011-09-02 STLCINL 100000000
2011-08-27 STLPITL 100000001

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Chris Carpenter — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
2012-10-02 STLCIN L 6.0733271
2012-09-26 STLHOU L 6.0422031
2012-09-21 STLCHC — 5.0522120
2011-09-28 STLHOU W 9.02001110
2011-09-23 STLCHC — 7.0511250
2011-09-18 STLPHI W 8.0800150
2011-09-13 STLPIT — 7.01044162
2011-09-07 STLMIL W 9.0400250
2011-09-02 STLCIN — 6.0866151
2011-08-27 STLPIT L 5.0966251

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Chris Carpenter — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 350 332 185 251 10 32

Season-by-Season Fielding

Chris Carpenter — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1997 TOR P 14 13 7 5 1 1
1998 TOR P 33 24 20 13 1 2
1999 TOR P 24 24 10 15 1 3
2000 TOR P 34 27 7 12 1 2
2001 TOR P 34 34 11 25 0 6
2002 TOR P 13 13 7 3 0 0
2004 SLN P 28 28 12 34 1 4
2005 SLN P 33 33 15 40 1 2
2006 SLN P 32 32 11 25 0 3
2007 SLN P 1 1 1 1 0 0
2008 SLN P 4 3 0 5 0 0
2009 SLN P 28 28 21 19 0 2
2010 SLN P 35 35 35 29 1 4
2011 SLN P 34 34 28 23 3 3
2012 SLN P 3 3 0 2 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Chris Carpenter (b. 1975) Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 350

Awards & Honors

Chris Carpenter — Awards & Honors
Year Award Notes
2009 Comeback Player of the Year
2009 MLB Players Choice Comeback Player
2009 Pitcher of the Month August
2009 TSN Comeback Player of the Year
2006 MLB Players Choice Outstanding Pitcher
2006 Player of the Week Week of 2006-07-15
2006 Player of the Week Week of 2006-09-16
2006 Player of the Week Week of 2006-08-19
2006 TSN Pitcher of the Year
2005 Cy Young Award
2005 MLB Players Choice Outstanding Pitcher
2005 Player of the Week Week of 2005-09-03
2005 TSN Pitcher of the Year
2005 This Year in Baseball Starter of the Year MLB.com GIBBY
2004 MLB Players Choice Comeback Player
2004 TSN Comeback Player of the Year

Salary History

Chris Carpenter — Salary History
Year Team League Salary
2012 SLN NL $8,500,000
2010 SLN NL $15,840,971
2009 SLN NL $13,302,583
2008 SLN NL $10,500,000
2007 SLN NL $8,500,000
2006 SLN NL $5,000,000
2005 SLN NL $2,000,000
2004 SLN NL $300,000
2003 SLN NL $300,000
2002 TOR AL $3,450,000
2001 TOR AL $2,583,333
2000 TOR AL $733,333
1999 TOR AL $483,333
1998 TOR AL $190,000
1997 TOR AL $150,000
Total Career Earnings $71,833,553

Award Voting History

Chris Carpenter — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
2009 Cy Young Award NL 2nd 94.0 160 9
2009 Most Valuable Player NL 14th 25.0 448 0
2006 Cy Young Award NL 3rd 63.0 160 2
2006 Most Valuable Player NL 19th 4.0 448 0
2005 Cy Young Award NL 1st 132.0 160 19
2005 Most Valuable Player NL 8th 52.0 448 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Chris Carpenter (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Jose Quintana
    115-113, 3.79 ERA
  2. 97
    Bruce Hurst
    145-113, 3.92 ERA
  3. 94
    Jered Weaver
    150-98, 3.63 ERA
  4. 93
    Johnny Cueto
    144-113, 3.52 ERA
  5. 93
    Freddy Garcia
    156-108, 4.15 ERA
  6. 92
    Dennis Leonard
    144-106, 3.70 ERA

Compare Chris Carpenter

Side-by-side career stat comparisons against Carpenter's closest peers by position and era.

vs Roger Clemens
vs Greg Maddux
vs Randy Johnson
vs Pedro Martinez
vs Curt Schilling
vs Clayton Kershaw

Browse all MLB player comparisons →

Chris Carpenter: the record in brief

Chris Carpenter's major league career runs from a debut on May 12, 1997 to a final game on October 2, 2012. By club, Carpenter's seasons break down as the Toronto Blue Jays (1997 through 2002) and the St. Louis Cardinals (2004 to 2012). Carpenter played primarily as a pitcher and both batted and threw right-handed. Born on April 27, 1975, in Exeter, NH, USA, Carpenter was listed at 6 feet, 6 inches and 230 pounds. Carpenter's full given name, per the bio, is Christopher John Carpenter.

Across 350 games (332 starts), Carpenter recorded 144 wins against 94 losses with a 3.76 ERA. Carpenter had 1,697 strikeouts, 33 complete games, and 15 shutouts. Against a 4.36 league ERA for the same years, Carpenter was 13.8% better. The best win total was 21, in 2005. 2009 was Carpenter's sharpest full season, a 2.24 ERA against the league's 4.32. Carpenter's career Pitcher PIV, which scores run prevention against each season's league, is 32,496.8.

Frequently Asked Questions about Chris Carpenter

What years did Chris Carpenter play?
Chris Carpenter played in Major League Baseball from 1997 to 2012.
Was Chris Carpenter a pitcher?
Yes. Chris Carpenter pitched in the major leagues, recording 144 wins and 1697 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Chris Carpenter hit?
Chris Carpenter hit 2 career home runs with 52 hits.
What was Chris Carpenter's career batting average?
Chris Carpenter batted .118 over his career, with 52 hits in 439 at bats.
How many RBI did Chris Carpenter have?
Chris Carpenter drove in 21 runs in his career.
What was Chris Carpenter's career ERA?
Chris Carpenter finished with a 3.76 career ERA, going 144-94 with 1,697 strikeouts.