Joe Coleman
Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1942-1955)
Joe Coleman was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1942 to 1955 for the Philadelphia Athletics, the Baltimore Orioles, and the Detroit Tigers, a span of 14 seasons. Across 223 career appearances, he went 52-76 with a 4.38 ERA and 444 strikeouts. He also batted .182 with 4 home runs. Joe Coleman was an All-Star.
- 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
- Position
- Pitcher
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 6'2" / 200 lb
- Died
- 4/9/1997 in Fort Myers, FL, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1942-09-19
- Last Game
- 1955-09-07
- Awards
- All-Star
Full name: Joseph Patrick Coleman
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1942 | PHA | AL | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6.0 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3.00 | — | 0.0 |
| 1946 | PHA | AL | 0 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13.0 | 19 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 5.54 | 3.59 (-54%) | -198.5 |
| 1947 | PHA | AL | 6 | 12 | 32 | 21 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 160.1 | 171 | 77 | 62 | 65 | 4.32 | 3.97 (-9%) | -1812.0 |
| 1948 | PHA | AL | 14 | 13 | 33 | 29 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 215.2 | 224 | 98 | 90 | 86 | 4.09 | 4.10 (avg) | 1119.2 |
| 1949 | PHA | AL | 13 | 14 | 33 | 30 | 18 | 1 | 1 | 240.1 | 249 | 103 | 127 | 109 | 3.86 | 4.12 (+6%) | 1530.5 |
| 1950 | PHA | AL | 0 | 5 | 15 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 54.0 | 74 | 51 | 50 | 12 | 8.50 | 4.36 (-95%) | -3679.2 |
| 1951 | PHA | AL | 1 | 6 | 28 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 96.1 | 117 | 64 | 59 | 34 | 5.98 | 4.04 (-48%) | -3091.6 |
| 1953 | PHA | AL | 3 | 4 | 21 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 90.0 | 85 | 40 | 49 | 18 | 4.00 | 4.14 (+3%) | -1971.1 |
| 1954 | BAL | AL | 13 | 17 | 33 | 32 | 15 | 4 | 0 | 221.1 | 184 | 86 | 96 | 103 | 3.50 | 3.90 (+10%) | 860.1 |
| 1955 | BAL | AL | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11.2 | 19 | 14 | 10 | 4 | 10.80 | 4.00 (-170%) | -1774.5 |
| 1955 | DET | AL | 2 | 1 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 25.1 | 22 | 9 | 14 | 5 | 3.20 | 4.00 (+20%) | -167.4 |
| Career · 11 seasons | 52 | 76 | 223 | 140 | 60 | 11 | 6 | 1,134.0 | 1,172 | 552 | 566 | 444 | 4.38 | — | -9,184 | ||
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
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 223 | 363 | 20 | 66 | 16 | 0 | 4 | 26 | 1 | 22 | 133 | .182 | .229 | .259 | .488 | -1,817 |
Career AVG .182 vs. league average .261 across their career seasons — 30.3% below league average.
Career OBP .229 vs. league average .335 across their career seasons — 31.9% below league average.
Career SLG .259 vs. league average .381 across their career seasons — 31.9% below league average.
Career OPS .488 vs. league average .716 across their career seasons — 31.9% 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1942 | PHA | AL | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1946 | PHA | AL | 4 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .400 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1947 | PHA | AL | 32 | 48 | 3 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 25 | .146 | — | — | — | — | -338.5 |
| 1948 | PHA | AL | 33 | 74 | 2 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 29 | .122 | .263 (-54%) | .340 (-48%) | .379 (-61%) | .719 (-55%) | -653.3 |
| 1949 | PHA | AL | 33 | 79 | 4 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 29 | .177 | .262 (-33%) | .343 (-34%) | .384 (-34%) | .727 (-34%) | -451.5 |
| 1950 | PHA | AL | 15 | 17 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | .059 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1951 | PHA | AL | 28 | 27 | 2 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 12 | .259 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1953 | PHA | AL | 21 | 28 | 1 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 7 | .286 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1954 | BAL | AL | 33 | 74 | 4 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 22 | .176 | .261 (-33%) | .333 (-38%) | .390 (-24%) | .723 (-30%) | -373.8 |
| 1955 | BAL | AL | 6 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .667 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1955 | DET | AL | 17 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .750 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 11 seasons | 223 | 363 | 20 | 66 | 16 | 0 | 4 | 26 | 1 | 22 | 133 | .182 | — | — | — | — | -1,817 | ||
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 (446 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 115 | 186 | 10 | 34 | 1 | 6 | .183 |
| Away | 108 | 177 | 10 | 32 | 3 | 20 | .181 |
Pitching — Home / Away
| Split | G | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 115 | 636.2 | 613 | 271 | 280 | 254 | 3.83 |
| Away | 108 | 496.2 | 560 | 285 | 285 | 192 | 5.16 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955-09-07 | DET | BOS | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955-09-02 | DET | KC1 | L | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955-08-29 | DET | BAL | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955-08-27 | DET | BOS | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955-08-25 | DET | BOS | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955-08-21 | DET | CHW | L | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955-08-09 | DET | CLE | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955-08-06 | DET | NYY | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955-08-04 | DET | MIN | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955-08-02 | DET | MIN | W | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Last 10 Games — Pitching
| Date | Tm | Opp | Dec | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955-09-07 | DET | BOS | — | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955-09-02 | DET | KC1 | — | 3.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955-08-29 | DET | BAL | — | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955-08-27 | DET | BOS | — | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955-08-25 | DET | BOS | — | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955-08-21 | DET | CHW | — | 4.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1955-08-09 | DET | CLE | — | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955-08-06 | DET | NYY | — | 0.1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| 1955-08-04 | DET | MIN | L | 1.2 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955-08-02 | DET | MIN | W | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1942 | PHA | P | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1946 | PHA | P | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1947 | PHA | P | 32 | 0 | 5 | 16 | 1 | 0 |
| 1948 | PHA | P | 33 | 0 | 6 | 33 | 3 | 3 |
| 1949 | PHA | P | 33 | 0 | 7 | 23 | 2 | 3 |
| 1950 | PHA | P | 15 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1951 | PHA | P | 28 | 0 | 7 | 9 | 1 | 1 |
| 1953 | PHA | P | 21 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 1 |
| 1954 | BAL | P | 33 | 32 | 15 | 41 | 3 | 5 |
| 1955 | BAL | P | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955 | DET | P | 17 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 223 |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1954 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 19th | 6.0 | 336 | 0 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Joe Coleman (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Joe Coleman: the record in brief
According to the bio, Joe Coleman debuted on September 19, 1942 and played a final game on September 7, 1955. Club by club, the record runs the Philadelphia Athletics (1942 to 1953), the Baltimore Orioles (1954 to 1955), and the Detroit Tigers (1955). Coleman is listed as a pitcher at 200 pounds on a 6-foot-2 frame. Coleman both batted and threw right-handed, per the bio block. Coleman was born on July 30, 1922, in Medford, MA, USA. Coleman died on April 9, 1997, in Fort Myers, FL, USA. Joe Coleman was the playing name; the full given name is Joseph Patrick.
The pitching table credits Coleman with a 52-76 record and a 4.38 ERA in 223 games. The same table counts 444 strikeouts, 60 complete games, and 11 shutouts. Against a 3.97 league ERA for the same seasons, the 4.38 mark was 10.5% worse. The best win total was 14, in 1948. The strikeout high was 109 in 1949.
Frequently Asked Questions about Joe Coleman
- What years did Joe Coleman play?
- Joe Coleman played in Major League Baseball from 1942 to 1955.
- Was Joe Coleman a pitcher?
- Yes. Joe Coleman pitched in the major leagues, recording 52 wins and 444 strikeouts.
- How many home runs did Joe Coleman hit?
- Joe Coleman hit 4 career home runs with 66 hits.
- What was Joe Coleman's career batting average?
- Joe Coleman batted .182 over his career, with 66 hits in 363 at bats.
- How many RBI did Joe Coleman have?
- Joe Coleman drove in 26 runs in his career.
- What was Joe Coleman's career ERA?
- Joe Coleman finished with a 4.38 career ERA, going 52-76 with 444 strikeouts.