Virgil Cheeves

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1920-1927)

Virgil Cheeves was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1920 to 1927 for the Chicago Cubs, the Cleveland Guardians, and the New York Giants, a span of 8 seasons. Across 111 career appearances, he went 26-27 with a 4.73 ERA and 98 strikeouts.

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 26–27
ERA 4.73
WHIP 1.56
SO 98
Pitcher PIV -8999.4
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
6'0" / 195 lb
Born
2/12/1901 in Oklahoma City, OK, USA
Died
5/5/1979 in Dallas, TX, USA
MLB Debut
1920-09-07
Last Game
1927-05-13

Full name: Virgil Earl Cheeves

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Career Pitching Statistics

Virgil Cheeves — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
26 27 111 56 18 2 2 458.2 526 241 28 188 98 4.73 -8999.4

Career ERA 4.73 vs. league average 3.99 across their career seasons — 18.5% worse than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Virgil Cheeves — Season-by-Season Pitching
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1920 CHN NL 0 0 5 2 0 0 0 18.0 16 7 7 3 3.50 3.45 (-2%) -81.7
1921 CHN NL 11 12 37 22 9 1 0 163.0 192 84 47 39 4.64 4.02 (-15%) -1368.5
1922 CHN NL 12 11 39 23 9 1 2 182.2 195 83 76 40 4.09 4.18 (+2%) -2879.7
1923 CHN NL 3 4 19 8 0 0 0 71.1 89 49 37 13 6.18 4.03 (-53%) -3168.7
1924 CLE AL 0 0 8 1 0 0 0 17.1 26 15 17 2 7.79 4.13 (-89%) -1500.9
1927 NY1 NL 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 6.1 8 3 4 1 4.26 — 0.0
Career · 6 seasons 26 27 111 56 18 2 2 458.2 526 241 188 98 4.73 — -8,999

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

Virgil Cheeves — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
111 141 11 26 4 1 1 4 0 4 39 .184 .218 .248 .466 -252

Career AVG .184 vs. league average .282 across their career seasons — 34.7% below league average.

Career OBP .218 vs. league average .343 across their career seasons — 36.5% below league average.

Career SLG .248 vs. league average .388 across their career seasons — 36.1% below league average.

Career OPS .466 vs. league average .731 across their career seasons — 36.3% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Virgil Cheeves — Season-by-Season Batting
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1920 CHN NL 5 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 .000 — — — — 0.0
1921 CHN NL 37 48 3 8 1 0 0 0 0 1 13 .167 — — — — 0.0
1922 CHN NL 39 62 6 13 1 1 1 3 0 2 16 .210 .285 (-27%) .345 (-26%) .397 (-23%) .743 (-24%) -251.6
1923 CHN NL 19 23 1 4 1 0 0 1 0 0 6 .174 — — — — 0.0
1924 CLE AL 8 4 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 .250 — — — — 0.0
1927 NY1 NL 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
Career · 6 seasons 111 141 11 26 4 1 1 4 0 4 39 .184 — — — — -252

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 (222 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Virgil Cheeves — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home55763602.079
Away566582013.308

Pitching — Home / Away

Virgil Cheeves — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home55251.127412085644.30
Away56207.0241122105365.30

Last 10 Games — Batting

Virgil Cheeves — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1927-05-13 NY1STLL 000000000
1927-05-03 NY1BROL 000000000
1927-04-14 NY1PHIL 000000000
1924-07-23 CLEBOSL 000000000
1924-07-13 CLEMINL 000000000
1924-07-11 CLEPHAL 100000000
1924-07-05 CLECHWL 100000001
1924-07-02 CLESLAL 100000001
1924-06-28 CLEDETL 000000000
1924-06-25 CLECHWL 111100000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Virgil Cheeves — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1927-05-13 NY1STL — 2.0122301
1927-05-03 NY1BRO — 1.1100010
1927-04-14 NY1PHI — 3.0611100
1924-07-23 CLEBOS — 0.1100000
1924-07-13 CLEMIN — 0.1222100
1924-07-11 CLEPHA — 4.0766412
1924-07-05 CLECHW — 2.2533500
1924-07-02 CLESLA — 5.0411000
1924-06-28 CLEDET — 0.1000100
1924-06-25 CLECHW — 3.2433410

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Virgil Cheeves — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 111 0 10 93 4 4

Season-by-Season Fielding

Virgil Cheeves — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1920 CHN P 5 0 0 2 0 0
1921 CHN P 37 0 4 33 4 0
1922 CHN P 39 0 3 38 0 3
1923 CHN P 19 0 2 13 0 1
1924 CLE P 8 0 0 5 0 0
1927 NY1 P 3 0 1 2 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Virgil Cheeves — Career Games by Position
Position Games
Pitcher 111

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Virgil Cheeves (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Wayland Dean
    24-36, 4.87 ERA
  2. 96
    Hal Wiltse
    20-40, 4.87 ERA
  3. 92
    Wally Hebert
    21-36, 4.63 ERA
  4. 89
    Roy Wilkinson
    12-31, 4.66 ERA
  5. 87
    Dick Newsome
    35-33, 4.50 ERA
  6. 84
    Grady Adkins
    12-27, 4.34 ERA

Virgil Cheeves: the record in brief

September 7, 1920 and May 13, 1927 bracket Virgil Cheeves's time in the majors: the debut and the last game on record. The team column moves through the Chicago Cubs (1920 through 1923), the Cleveland Indians (1924), and the New York Giants (1927). Listed as a pitcher, Cheeves threw and hit right-handed. The recorded size is 6-foot-0 and 195 pounds. The birth record reads February 12, 1901, in Oklahoma City, OK, USA. The bio records the death on May 5, 1979, in Dallas, TX, USA. The given name on file is Virgil Earl Cheeves.

Cheeves went 26-27 with a 4.73 ERA in 111 games, 56 of them starts. Cheeves had 98 strikeouts and 18 complete games. The league ERA over Cheeves's seasons was 3.99, so the 4.73 figure ran 18.5% worse than average. The best win total was 12, in 1922. In 1922, one of the busiest seasons, Cheeves posted a 4.09 ERA; the league figure that year was 4.18.

Frequently Asked Questions about Virgil Cheeves

What years did Virgil Cheeves play?
Virgil Cheeves played in Major League Baseball from 1920 to 1927.
Was Virgil Cheeves a pitcher?
Yes. Virgil Cheeves pitched in the major leagues, recording 26 wins and 98 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Virgil Cheeves hit?
Virgil Cheeves hit 1 career home run with 26 hits.
What teams did Virgil Cheeves play for?
Virgil Cheeves played for 3 teams: the Chicago Cubs (1920–1923), the Cleveland Indians (1924), and the New York Giants (1927).
What were Virgil Cheeves's career stats?
In 111 games, Virgil Cheeves went 26-27 with a 4.73 ERA, 98 strikeouts, 458.2 innings pitched, and 2 saves.
What position did Virgil Cheeves play?
Virgil Cheeves played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Virgil Cheeves and how much did he weigh?
Virgil Cheeves was listed at 6 feet and 195 pounds.
What was Virgil Cheeves's career ERA?
Virgil Cheeves finished with a 4.73 career ERA, going 26-27 with 98 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Virgil Cheeves have?
Virgil Cheeves recorded 98 career strikeouts.
Is Virgil Cheeves in the Hall of Fame?
No. Virgil Cheeves has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.