Walker Cooper

Catcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1940-1957)

Walker Cooper was a catcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1940 to 1957 for 7 teams, including the St. Louis Cardinals, a span of 18 seasons. In 1,473 career games, he hit .285 with 1,341 hits, 173 home runs, and 812 RBI. Walker Cooper was a 8-time All-Star. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 10,187.

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

AVG .285
HR 173
RBI 812
H 1,341
OPS .796
PIV 10,187
Position
Catcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
6'3" / 210 lb
Born
1/8/1915 in Atherton, MO, USA
Died
4/11/1991 in Scottsdale, AZ, USA
MLB Debut
1940-09-25
Last Game
1957-09-20
Awards
8× All-Star

Full name: William Walker Cooper

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Career Batting Statistics

Walker Cooper — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
1,473 4,702 573 1,341 240 40 173 812 18 309 357 .285 .332 .464 .796 10,187

Career AVG .285 vs. league average .260 across their career seasons — +9.6% above league average.

Career OBP .332 vs. league average .332 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .464 vs. league average .376 across their career seasons — +23.2% above league average.

Career OPS .796 vs. league average .709 across their career seasons — +12.3% above league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Walker Cooper 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
1940 SLN NL 6 19 3 6 1 0 0 2 1 2 2 .316 — — — — 0.0
1941 SLN NL 68 200 19 49 9 1 1 20 1 13 14 .245 .262 (-7%) .332 (-12%) .373 (-16%) .705 (-14%) -462.2
1942 SLN NL 125 438 58 123 32 7 7 65 4 29 29 .281 .253 (+11%) .323 (+1%) .349 (+24%) .672 (+13%) 847.0
1943 SLN NL 122 449 52 143 30 4 9 81 1 19 19 .318 .255 (+24%) .324 (+7%) .346 (+34%) .671 (+21%) 1505.2
1944 SLN NL 112 397 56 126 25 5 13 72 4 20 19 .317 .261 (+21%) .325 (+8%) .357 (+41%) .683 (+25%) 1634.6
1945 SLN NL 4 18 3 7 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 .389 — — — — 0.0
1946 NY1 NL 87 280 29 75 10 1 8 46 0 17 12 .268 .256 (+4%) .328 (-6%) .358 (+11%) .687 (+3%) 54.4
1947 NY1 NL 140 515 79 157 24 8 35 122 2 24 43 .305 .262 (+16%) .336 (+1%) .376 (+56%) .712 (+30%) 2667.0
1948 NY1 NL 91 290 40 77 12 0 16 54 1 28 29 .266 .263 (+1%) .340 (-2%) .379 (+25%) .719 (+12%) 573.5
1949 NY1 NL 42 147 14 31 4 2 4 21 0 7 8 .211 .262 (-20%) .343 (-24%) .384 (-10%) .727 (-16%) -437.1
1949 CIN NL 82 307 34 86 9 2 16 62 0 21 24 .280 .262 (+7%) .343 (-4%) .384 (+25%) .727 (+11%) -437.1
1950 CIN NL 15 47 3 9 3 0 0 4 0 0 5 .191 — — — — 0.0
1950 BSN NL 102 337 52 111 19 3 14 60 1 30 26 .329 .265 (+24%) .346 (+12%) .401 (+31%) .747 (+23%) 0.0
1951 BSN NL 109 342 42 107 14 1 18 59 1 28 18 .313 .260 (+20%) .336 (+9%) .385 (+34%) .721 (+22%) 1401.2
1952 BSN NL 102 349 33 82 12 1 10 55 1 22 32 .235 .252 (-7%) .326 (-14%) .369 (-2%) .696 (-8%) -487.7
1953 ML1 NL 53 137 12 30 6 0 3 16 1 12 15 .219 .264 (-17%) .335 (-15%) .397 (-17%) .733 (-16%) -363.0
1954 PIT NL 14 15 0 3 2 0 0 1 0 2 1 .200 — — — — 0.0
1954 CHN NL 57 158 21 49 10 2 7 32 0 21 23 .310 .261 (+19%) .333 (+19%) .390 (+36%) .723 (+28%) 0.0
1955 CHN NL 54 111 11 31 8 1 7 15 0 6 19 .279 .258 (+8%) .332 (-3%) .393 (+42%) .726 (+21%) 356.7
1956 SLN NL 40 68 5 18 5 1 2 14 0 3 8 .265 .258 (+3%) .331 (-11%) .397 (+15%) .728 (+3%) 4.4
1957 SLN NL 48 78 7 21 5 1 3 10 0 5 10 .269 .257 (+5%) .323 (-4%) .391 (+21%) .715 (+10%) 91.0
Career · 21 seasons 1,473 4,702 573 1,341 240 40 173 812 18 309 357 .285 — — — — 6,948

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

Walker Cooper — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
16 60 5 18 3 1 0 6 3 4 .300

Playoff Batting by Year

Walker Cooper — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1944 WS SLN 6 22 1 7 2 1 0 2 3 2 .318
1943 WS SLN 5 17 1 5 0 0 0 0 0 1 .294
1942 WS SLN 5 21 3 6 1 0 0 4 0 1 .286

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (1473 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Walker Cooper — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home756234127265271388.279
Away7172358300689102424.292

Last 10 Games — Batting

Walker Cooper — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1957-09-20 STLCINW 101000100
1957-09-17 STLBROW 300000000
1957-09-15 STLPITW 423001100
1957-09-10 STLPHIW 000000010
1957-09-08 STLCINW 100000000
1957-09-06 STLCINL 100000001
1957-09-02 STLCINL 301000000
1957-09-01 STLCHCW 100000001
1957-08-31 STLCHCW 400000000
1957-08-30 STLCHCW 201100011

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Walker Cooper — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
C 1223 89 5166 589 138 80

Season-by-Season Fielding

Walker Cooper — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1940 SLN C 6 0 19 4 0 0
1941 SLN C 63 0 247 39 10 11
1942 SLN C 115 0 519 62 17 6
1943 SLN C 112 0 504 49 14 5
1944 SLN C 97 0 442 40 10 7
1945 SLN C 4 0 27 1 1 0
1946 NY1 C 73 0 277 38 9 3
1947 NY1 C 132 0 561 51 13 8
1948 NY1 C 79 0 307 21 7 3
1949 NY1 C 40 0 148 18 3 2
1949 CIN C 77 0 316 43 8 3
1950 CIN C 13 0 62 7 2 0
1950 BSN C 88 0 386 47 12 9
1951 BSN C 90 0 367 57 8 9
1952 BSN C 89 0 417 55 8 8
1953 ML1 C 35 0 165 6 3 1
1954 PIT C 2 1 6 0 0 0
1954 CHN C 48 43 190 31 5 4
1955 CHN C 31 21 88 11 4 1
1956 SLN C 16 12 56 4 1 0
1957 SLN C 13 12 62 5 3 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Walker Cooper Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Catcher 1223

Awards & Honors

Walker Cooper — Awards & Honors
Year Award Notes
1947 TSN All-Star C
1944 Baseball Magazine All-Star C
1944 TSN All-Star C
1943 Baseball Magazine All-Star C
1943 TSN All-Star C

Award Voting History

Walker Cooper — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1952 Most Valuable Player NL 40th 1.0 336 0
1947 Most Valuable Player NL 18th 19.0 336 0
1944 Most Valuable Player NL 8th 72.0 336 1
1943 Most Valuable Player NL 2nd 192.0 336 5
1942 Most Valuable Player NL 11th 28.0 336 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Walker Cooper (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Mike Lieberthal
    .274 avg, 150 HR
  2. 97
    Elston Howard
    .274 avg, 168 HR
  3. 97
    Smoky Burgess
    .295 avg, 126 HR
  4. 90
    Thurman Munson
    .292 avg, 113 HR
  5. 89
    Terry Steinbach
    .271 avg, 162 HR
  6. 88
    Ernie Lombardi HOF
    .306 avg, 190 HR

Compare Walker Cooper

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

vs Mort Cooper

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Frequently Asked Questions about Walker Cooper

What years did Walker Cooper play?
Walker Cooper played in Major League Baseball from 1940 to 1957.
Was Walker Cooper a pitcher?
No. Walker Cooper was a position player (Catcher).
How many home runs did Walker Cooper hit?
Walker Cooper hit 173 career home runs with 1341 hits.
What was Walker Cooper's career batting average?
Walker Cooper batted .285 over his career, with 1,341 hits in 4,702 at bats.
How many RBI did Walker Cooper have?
Walker Cooper drove in 812 runs in his career.
Is Walker Cooper in the Hall of Fame?
No. Walker Cooper has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.