Ernie Courtney

Third Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1902-1908)

Ernie Courtney was a third baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1902 to 1908 for 5 teams, including the Boston Braves, a span of 7 seasons. In 558 career games, he hit .245 with 471 hits, 5 home runs, and 200 RBI. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 303.

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 .245
HR 5
RBI 200
H 471
OPS .618
PIV 303
Position
Third Baseman
Bats / Throws
L / R
Height / Weight
5'8" / 168 lb
Born
1/20/1875 in Des Moines, IA, USA
Died
2/29/1920 in Buffalo, NY, USA
MLB Debut
1902-04-17
Last Game
1908-10-02

Full name: Edward Ernest Courtney

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Career Batting Statistics

Ernie Courtney — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
558 1,921 226 471 52 17 5 200 35 188 172 .245 .321 .298 .618 303

Career AVG .245 vs. league average .251 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .321 vs. league average .309 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .298 vs. league average .323 across their career seasons — 7.9% below league average.

Career OPS .618 vs. league average .632 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Ernie Courtney — 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
1902 BSN NL 48 165 23 36 3 0 0 17 3 13 16 .218 .266 (-18%) .321 (-9%) .343 (-31%) .665 (-21%) -451.6
1902 BLA AL 1 4 3 2 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 .500 — — — — -451.6
1903 NYA AL 25 79 7 21 3 3 1 8 1 7 8 .266 .261 (+2%) .316 (+8%) .345 (+21%) .662 (+15%) 174.1
1903 DET AL 23 74 7 17 0 0 0 6 1 5 7 .230 .261 (-12%) .316 (-4%) .345 (-34%) .662 (-19%) 174.1
1905 PHI NL 155 601 77 165 14 7 2 77 17 47 53 .275 .248 (+11%) .307 (+9%) .322 (+3%) .629 (+6%) 729.6
1906 PHI NL 116 398 53 94 12 2 0 42 6 45 27 .236 .247 (-5%) .307 (+3%) .315 (-12%) .622 (-5%) -161.9
1907 PHI NL 130 440 42 107 17 4 2 43 6 55 41 .243 .245 (-1%) .304 (+10%) .308 (+2%) .613 (+6%) 656.6
1908 PHI NL 60 160 14 29 3 0 0 6 1 15 20 .181 .240 (-25%) .298 (-13%) .306 (-35%) .605 (-24%) -472.1
Career · 8 seasons 558 1,921 226 471 52 17 5 200 35 188 172 .245 — — — — 197

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 (560 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Ernie Courtney — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home2769271002431103.262
Away284992125226494.228

Last 10 Games — Batting

Ernie Courtney — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1908-10-02 PHINY1L 100000000
1908-09-19 PHICHCL 400000002
1908-09-19 PHICHCL 400000001
1908-09-18 PHICHCW 401000000
1908-09-17 PHIPITL 401000000
1908-09-16 PHIPITL 400000001
1908-09-16 PHIPITW 312000101
1908-09-15 PHIPITL 412100100
1908-09-14 PHIBSNL 300000001
1908-09-02 PHIBROW 710000010

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Ernie Courtney — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 75 74 684 45 14 34
2B 11 5 18 25 1 0
3B 362 345 471 606 94 35
OF 46 7 84 5 2 0
SS 36 2 46 109 13 9

Season-by-Season Fielding

Ernie Courtney — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1902 BSN OF 39 0 71 5 2 0
1902 BSN SS 3 0 6 6 1 1
1902 BLA 3B 1 0 4 2 0 0
1903 NYA 1B 1 0 9 1 0 0
1903 NYA 2B 4 0 6 7 1 0
1903 NYA SS 19 0 24 63 8 7
1903 DET 3B 13 0 17 13 2 1
1903 DET SS 9 0 11 30 3 1
1905 PHI 3B 155 155 229 249 40 13
1906 PHI 1B 13 13 123 9 3 5
1906 PHI 3B 96 95 113 163 23 9
1906 PHI OF 3 3 4 0 0 0
1906 PHI SS 1 0 0 0 0 0
1907 PHI 1B 48 49 426 29 10 23
1907 PHI 2B 2 1 4 3 0 0
1907 PHI 3B 75 75 90 143 24 11
1907 PHI OF 4 4 9 0 0 0
1907 PHI SS 2 2 0 6 1 0
1908 PHI 1B 13 12 126 6 1 6
1908 PHI 2B 5 4 8 15 0 0
1908 PHI 3B 22 20 18 36 5 1
1908 PHI SS 2 0 5 4 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Ernie Courtney — Career Games by Position
Position Games
First Base 77
Second Base 11
Third Base 363
Shortstop 36
Left Field 40
Center Field 1
Right Field 6

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Ernie Courtney (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    George Magoon
    .239 avg, 2 HR
  2. 86
    Joe Gedeon
    .244 avg, 1 HR
  3. 81
    Bobby Robinson
    .246 avg, 9 HR
  4. 76
    Rob Andrews
    .251 avg, 3 HR
  5. 75
    Jack Warner
    .250 avg, 1 HR
  6. 72
    Art Butler
    .241 avg, 3 HR

Ernie Courtney: the record in brief

Between the debut on April 17, 1902 and the final game on October 2, 1908, Ernie Courtney built the record summarized on this page. The season rows list, in order, the Boston Beaneaters (1902), the Baltimore Orioles (1902), the New York Highlanders (1903), the Detroit Tigers (1903), and the Philadelphia Phillies (1905 to 1908). Courtney played primarily as a third baseman and hit left-handed while throwing right-handed. The bio adds a birth date on January 20, 1875, in Des Moines, IA, USA and a listed size of 5 feet, 8 inches and 168 pounds. Courtney's death is recorded on February 29, 1920, in Buffalo, NY, USA. The given name on file is Edward Ernest Courtney.

Courtney finished with 471 hits from 1,921 at bats in 558 games, which works out to .245; the totals also include 5 home runs, 200 RBI, and 35 stolen bases. Reaching base at a .321 clip and slugging .298, Courtney finished with a .618 OPS. The .245 career average is close to the .251 the league hit across the same seasons.

Frequently Asked Questions about Ernie Courtney

What years did Ernie Courtney play?
Ernie Courtney played in Major League Baseball from 1902 to 1908.
Was Ernie Courtney a pitcher?
No. Ernie Courtney was a position player (Third Baseman).
How many home runs did Ernie Courtney hit?
Ernie Courtney hit 5 career home runs with 471 hits.
What teams did Ernie Courtney play for?
Ernie Courtney played for 4 teams: the Boston Beaneaters (1902), the New York Highlanders (1902–1903), the Detroit Tigers (1903), and the Philadelphia Phillies (1905–1908).
What were Ernie Courtney's career stats?
In 558 games, Ernie Courtney had 471 hits, 5 home runs, 200 RBI, 226 runs, and 35 stolen bases, with a .245 batting average.
What position did Ernie Courtney play?
Ernie Courtney played primarily as a third baseman, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Ernie Courtney and how much did he weigh?
Ernie Courtney was listed at 5 feet 8 inches and 168 pounds.
How many home runs did Ernie Courtney hit each season?
Ernie Courtney's home runs by season: 0 in 1902, 1 in 1903, 2 in 1905, 0 in 1906, 2 in 1907, and 0 in 1908. His most in one season was 2, in 1905 and 1907.
What was Ernie Courtney's career batting average?
Ernie Courtney batted .245 over his career, with 471 hits in 1,921 at bats.
How many RBI did Ernie Courtney have?
Ernie Courtney drove in 200 runs in his career.
Is Ernie Courtney in the Hall of Fame?
No. Ernie Courtney has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.