Porter Charleston

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records

Porter Charleston was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball for the Hilldale Club, the Baltimore Black Sox, and the Philadelphia Stars. Across 69 career appearances, he went 32-19 with a 3.86 ERA and 215 strikeouts. His totals include Negro Leagues seasons, which MLB recognized as major league in 2020. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 6258.9.

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 32–19
ERA 3.86
WHIP 1.28
SO 215
Pitcher PIV 6258.9
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
— / R
Height / Weight
6'1" / 181 lb
Born
1/8/1904 in Mexia, TX, USA
Died
6/11/1986 in Chester, PA, USA

Full name: Porter Riley Charleston

📊 Compare This Player 📈 View Career Timeline

Negro Leagues Career Statistics

Batting

Porter Charleston — Batting
PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB BA OBP SLG OPS
10.0 10.0 1.0 2.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 .200 .200 .400

Pitching

Porter Charleston — Pitching
W L GS CG GF SV IP H R ER HR BB SO ERA WHIP
2 2 4 1 1 0 27.1 35 22 4 7 8 12 1.32 1.57

Negro Leagues (season totals). Additive Retrosheet-digitized totals for seasons not already in the logs above; they are not summed into the career line. No team/league breakdown is available, and coverage may be partial.

Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Batting

Porter Charleston — Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Batting
Season PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB BA OBP SLG OPS
1930 2.0 2.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 .000
Listed seasons · 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — —

Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Pitching

Porter Charleston — Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Pitching
Season W L GS CG GF SV IP H R ER HR BB SO ERA WHIP
1930 0 1 1 0 0 0 6.1 9 5 4 0 2 4 5.68 1.74
Listed seasons · 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 6.1 9 5 4 0 2 4 5.68 1.74

Career Pitching Statistics

Porter Charleston — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
32 19 69 49 38 6 1 440.1 447 189 22 115 215 3.86 6258.9

Career ERA 3.86 vs. league average 4.18 across their career seasons — 7.7% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Porter Charleston Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1927 HIL ECL 1 2 4 4 3 0 0 27.1 26 10 9 10 3.29 4.08 (+19%) 506.1
1928 HIL EAS 4 6 15 8 5 0 0 81.2 93 49 27 38 5.40 4.13 (-31%) -352.2
1929 HIL ANL 9 5 21 13 9 1 1 120.1 130 55 32 64 4.11 4.60 (+11%) 1953.4
1931 HIL IND 8 2 11 10 9 3 0 90.0 84 28 17 48 2.80 4.10 (+32%) 2356.9
1932 HIL EWL 5 3 8 8 8 1 0 68.1 55 17 21 28 2.24 4.13 (+46%) 1149.4
1932 BBS EWL 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 4.0 8 5 0 2 11.25 — 0.0
1933 PS IND 3 0 4 4 3 1 0 26.2 18 11 3 14 3.71 3.86 (+4%) 709.0
1935 PS NN2 2 1 5 2 1 0 0 22.0 33 14 6 11 5.73 4.35 (-32%) -63.8
Career · 8 seasons 32 19 69 49 38 6 1 440.1 447 189 115 215 3.86 — 6,259

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

Porter Charleston — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
72 167 19 34 7 1 0 10 0 9 0 .204 .253 .257 .510 -498

Career AVG .204 vs. league average .279 across their career seasons — 27.1% below league average.

Career OBP .253 vs. league average .341 across their career seasons — 25.9% below league average.

Career SLG .257 vs. league average .395 across their career seasons — 34.7% below league average.

Career OPS .510 vs. league average .736 across their career seasons — 30.6% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Porter Charleston 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
1927 HIL ECL 4 8 1 2 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 .250 — — — — 0.0
1928 HIL EAS 15 27 3 6 1 0 0 2 0 1 0 .222 — — — — 0.0
1929 HIL ANL 21 52 2 7 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 .135 .289 (-53%) .353 (-57%) .415 (-54%) .769 (-55%) -497.6
1931 HIL IND 11 30 7 8 2 0 0 3 0 2 0 .267 — — — — 0.0
1932 HIL EWL 9 27 2 5 1 0 0 1 0 2 0 .185 — — — — 0.0
1932 BBS EWL 1 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1933 PS IND 4 11 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .091 — — — — 0.0
1934 BBS NN2 2 2 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 — — — — 0.0
1935 PS NN2 5 6 3 4 1 0 0 1 0 2 0 .667 — — — — 0.0
Career · 9 seasons 72 167 19 34 7 1 0 10 0 9 0 .204 — — — — -498

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 (15 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Porter Charleston — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home352300.600
Away541100.250

Pitching — Home / Away

Porter Charleston — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home310.1183332.61
Away415.0162731.20

Last 8 Games — Batting

Porter Charleston — Last 8 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1935-06-23 PH5CAGL 100000000
1935-06-10 PH5CAGL 000000000
1935-06-02 PH5NSHW 222000000
1935-05-26 PH5PTCL 000000001
1935-05-12 PH5BRNL 201000000
1935-05-04 PH5HOMW 211000010
1929-09-01 HILNYLL 200000000
1929-09-01 HILNYLL 000000000

Last 7 Games — Pitching

Porter Charleston — Last 7 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1935-06-23 PH5CAG — 1.2533000
1935-06-02 PH5NSH W 2.1540100
1935-05-26 PH5PTC — 0.0000100
1935-05-12 PH5BRN L 6.1850230
1935-05-04 PH5HOM W 9.0622321
1929-09-01 HILNYL — 5.0540311
1929-09-01 HILNYL L 1.0550003

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Porter Charleston — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 69 48 14 138 3 10
PH 2 0 0 0 0 0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Porter Charleston — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1927 HIL P 4 4 1 11 0 0
1928 HIL P 15 8 1 36 0 3
1929 HIL P 21 12 3 24 2 2
1931 HIL P 11 10 7 35 0 3
1932 HIL P 8 8 1 16 0 2
1932 BBS P 1 0 0 2 0 0
1933 PS P 4 4 0 6 0 0
1934 BBS PH 2 0 0 0 0 0
1935 PS P 5 2 1 8 1 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Porter Charleston Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 69

Most Similar Players

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

  1. 98
    Lee Wade
    25-27, 3.77 ERA
  2. 87
    Henderson Alvarez
    27-35, 3.82 ERA
  3. 84
    Eugene Bremer
    37-24, 3.57 ERA
  4. 84
    Johnny Markham
    26-19, 3.66 ERA
  5. 82
    Jim Willis
    33-42, 3.91 ERA
  6. 81
    Willie Jefferson
    22-24, 3.94 ERA

Porter Charleston: the record in brief

Porter Charleston's record on this page is drawn from the season tables, which run from 1927 to 1935. Charleston played for the Hilldale Club (1927 through 1932), the Baltimore Black Sox (1932 through 1934), and the Philadelphia Stars (1933 through 1935). Charleston is listed as a pitcher at 181 pounds on a 6-foot-1 frame. Charleston was born on January 8, 1904, in Mexia, TX, USA. The bio records the death on June 11, 1986, in Chester, PA, USA. Charleston's full given name, per the bio, is Porter Riley Charleston.

Charleston's career pitching line is 32 wins, 19 losses and a 3.86 ERA over 69 appearances. The totals include 215 strikeouts, 38 complete games, and 6 shutouts. Against a 4.18 league ERA for the same years, Charleston was 7.7% better. Charleston won 9 games in 1929, the most of any season listed. 1931 was Charleston's sharpest full season, a 2.80 ERA against the league's 4.10.

Frequently Asked Questions about Porter Charleston

Was Porter Charleston a pitcher?
Yes. Porter Charleston pitched in the major leagues, recording 32 wins and 215 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Porter Charleston hit?
Porter Charleston hit 0 career home runs with 34 hits.
What teams did Porter Charleston play for?
Porter Charleston played for 3 teams: the Hilldale Club (1927–1929, 1931–1932), the Baltimore Black Sox (1932, 1934), and the Philadelphia Stars (1933, 1935).
What were Porter Charleston's career stats?
In 69 games, Porter Charleston went 32-19 with a 3.86 ERA, 215 strikeouts, 440.1 innings pitched, and 1 saves.
What position did Porter Charleston play?
Porter Charleston played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Porter Charleston and how much did he weigh?
Porter Charleston was listed at 6 feet 1 inch and 181 pounds.
What was Porter Charleston's career ERA?
Porter Charleston finished with a 3.86 career ERA, going 32-19 with 215 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Porter Charleston have?
Porter Charleston recorded 215 career strikeouts.
Is Porter Charleston in the Hall of Fame?
No. Porter Charleston has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.