Ripper Collins
First Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1931-1941)
Ripper Collins was a first baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1931 to 1941 for the St. Louis Cardinals, the Chicago Cubs, and the Pittsburgh Pirates, a span of 11 seasons. In 1,084 career games, he hit .296 with 1,121 hits, 135 home runs, and 659 RBI. Ripper Collins was a 3-time All-Star. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 12,100.
- 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
- First Baseman
- Bats / Throws
- B / L
- Height / Weight
- 5'9" / 165 lb
- Died
- 4/15/1970 in New Haven, NY, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1931-04-18
- Last Game
- 1941-09-28
- Awards
- 3× All-Star
Full name: James Anthony Collins
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,084 | 3,784 | 615 | 1,121 | 205 | 65 | 135 | 659 | 18 | 356 | 373 | .296 | .360 | .492 | .852 | 12,100 |
Career AVG .296 vs. league average .275 across their career seasons — +7.7% above league average.
Career OBP .360 vs. league average .339 across their career seasons — +6.2% above league average.
Career SLG .492 vs. league average .391 across their career seasons — +25.8% above league average.
Career OPS .852 vs. league average .730 across their career seasons — +16.7% above 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1931 | SLN | NL | 89 | 279 | 34 | 84 | 20 | 10 | 4 | 59 | 1 | 18 | 24 | .301 | .276 (+9%) | .338 (+4%) | .388 (+26%) | .726 (+15%) | 676.2 |
| 1932 | SLN | NL | 149 | 549 | 82 | 153 | 28 | 8 | 21 | 91 | 4 | 38 | 67 | .279 | .275 (+1%) | .335 (-2%) | .391 (+21%) | .726 (+10%) | 1006.0 |
| 1933 | SLN | NL | 132 | 493 | 66 | 153 | 26 | 7 | 10 | 68 | 7 | 38 | 49 | .310 | .270 (+15%) | .329 (+10%) | .377 (+20%) | .707 (+15%) | 1442.6 |
| 1934 | SLN | NL | 154 | 600 | 116 | 200 | 40 | 12 | 35 | 128 | 2 | 57 | 50 | .333 | .278 (+20%) | .340 (+15%) | .392 (+57%) | .733 (+37%) | 4482.5 |
| 1935 | SLN | NL | 150 | 578 | 109 | 181 | 36 | 10 | 23 | 122 | 0 | 65 | 45 | .313 | .279 (+12%) | .342 (+12%) | .399 (+33%) | .742 (+23%) | 2792.9 |
| 1936 | SLN | NL | 103 | 277 | 48 | 81 | 15 | 3 | 13 | 48 | 1 | 48 | 30 | .292 | .283 (+3%) | .349 (+14%) | .404 (+26%) | .753 (+20%) | 1215.7 |
| 1937 | CHN | NL | 115 | 456 | 77 | 125 | 16 | 5 | 16 | 71 | 2 | 32 | 46 | .274 | .276 (-1%) | .342 (-4%) | .398 (+10%) | .740 (+3%) | 225.5 |
| 1938 | CHN | NL | 143 | 490 | 78 | 131 | 22 | 8 | 13 | 61 | 1 | 54 | 48 | .267 | .272 (-2%) | .341 (+1%) | .392 (+8%) | .734 (+5%) | 436.8 |
| 1941 | PIT | NL | 49 | 62 | 5 | 13 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 6 | 14 | .210 | .262 (-20%) | .332 (-16%) | .373 (-18%) | .705 (-17%) | -177.8 |
| Career · 9 seasons | 1,084 | 3,784 | 615 | 1,121 | 205 | 65 | 135 | 659 | 18 | 356 | 373 | .296 | — | — | — | — | 12,100 | ||
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 (1084 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 563 | 1930 | 331 | 593 | 59 | 322 | .307 |
| Away | 521 | 1853 | 284 | 528 | 76 | 337 | .285 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1941-09-28 | PIT | CIN | W | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 1941-09-27 | PIT | CIN | L | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| 1941-09-26 | PIT | CIN | L | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1941-09-13 | PIT | BSN | W | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1941-09-12 | PIT | BSN | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1941-09-11 | PIT | BSN | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1941-09-10 | PIT | NY1 | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1941-08-24 | PIT | BSN | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 1941-08-23 | PIT | NY1 | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1941-08-13 | PIT | CHC | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1B | 894 | 0 | 7747 | 608 | 68 | 695 |
| OF | 75 | 0 | 120 | 8 | 7 | 2 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1931 | SLN | 1B | 68 | 0 | 563 | 42 | 3 | 54 |
| 1931 | SLN | OF | 3 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1932 | SLN | 1B | 81 | 0 | 701 | 46 | 1 | 72 |
| 1932 | SLN | OF | 60 | 0 | 96 | 7 | 5 | 2 |
| 1933 | SLN | 1B | 123 | 0 | 1054 | 79 | 7 | 82 |
| 1934 | SLN | 1B | 154 | 0 | 1289 | 110 | 13 | 115 |
| 1935 | SLN | 1B | 150 | 0 | 1269 | 95 | 18 | 107 |
| 1936 | SLN | 1B | 61 | 0 | 475 | 37 | 5 | 48 |
| 1936 | SLN | OF | 9 | 0 | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1937 | CHN | 1B | 111 | 0 | 1068 | 80 | 11 | 94 |
| 1938 | CHN | 1B | 135 | 0 | 1264 | 111 | 6 | 118 |
| 1941 | PIT | 1B | 11 | 0 | 64 | 8 | 4 | 5 |
| 1941 | PIT | OF | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| First Base | 894 |
| Left Field | 16 |
| Right Field | 59 |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1935 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 21th | 2.0 | 80 | 0 |
| 1934 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 6th | 32.0 | 80 | 0 |
| 1932 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 21th | 3.0 | 80 | 0 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Ripper Collins (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Ripper Collins: the record in brief
April 18, 1931 and September 28, 1941 bracket Ripper Collins's time in the majors: the debut and the last game on record. Collins played for the St. Louis Cardinals (1931 to 1936), the Chicago Cubs (1937 through 1938), and the Pittsburgh Pirates (1941). Collins played primarily as a first baseman and batted from both sides and threw left-handed. Born on March 30, 1904, in Altoona, PA, USA, Collins was listed at 5-foot-9 and 165 pounds. Collins's death is recorded on April 15, 1970, in New Haven, NY, USA. On the record, Ripper Collins was born James Anthony Collins.
Across 1,084 games at the plate, Collins's career line reads 1,121 hits in 3,784 at bats for a .296 average, adding 135 homers and 659 runs batted in. Collins's career OPS of .852 combines a .360 on-base mark with .492 slugging. The league as a whole hit .275 across Collins's seasons, which puts the .296 career mark 7.7% above average.
Frequently Asked Questions about Ripper Collins
- What years did Ripper Collins play?
- Ripper Collins played in Major League Baseball from 1931 to 1941.
- Was Ripper Collins a pitcher?
- No. Ripper Collins was a position player (First Baseman).
- How many home runs did Ripper Collins hit?
- Ripper Collins hit 135 career home runs with 1,121 hits.
- What teams did Ripper Collins play for?
- Ripper Collins played for 3 teams: the St. Louis Cardinals (1931–1936), the Chicago Cubs (1937–1938), and the Pittsburgh Pirates (1941).
- Did Ripper Collins win an MVP award?
- No. Ripper Collins did not win the MVP award.
- What awards did Ripper Collins win?
- Ripper Collins was selected to 3 All-Star Games.
- What were Ripper Collins's career stats?
- In 1,084 games, Ripper Collins had 1,121 hits, 135 home runs, 659 RBI, 615 runs, and 18 stolen bases, with a .296 batting average.
- What position did Ripper Collins play?
- Ripper Collins played primarily as a first baseman, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Ripper Collins and how much did he weigh?
- Ripper Collins was listed at 5 feet 9 inches and 165 pounds.
- How many home runs did Ripper Collins hit each season?
- Ripper Collins's home runs by season: 4 in 1931, 21 in 1932, 10 in 1933, 35 in 1934, 23 in 1935, 13 in 1936, 16 in 1937, 13 in 1938, and 0 in 1941. His most in one season was 35, in 1934.
- What was Ripper Collins's career batting average?
- Ripper Collins batted .296 over his career, with 1,121 hits in 3,784 at bats.
- How many RBI did Ripper Collins have?
- Ripper Collins drove in 659 runs in his career.
- Is Ripper Collins in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Ripper Collins has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
- How many All-Star Games did Ripper Collins make?
- Ripper Collins was selected to 3 All-Star Games.