Joe Dawson

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1924-1929)

Joe Dawson was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1924 to 1929 for the Cleveland Guardians and the Pittsburgh Pirates, a span of 6 seasons. Across 59 career appearances, he went 11-17 with a 4.15 ERA and 62 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 11–17
ERA 4.15
WHIP 1.45
SO 62
Pitcher PIV -2111.0
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
5'11" / 182 lb
Born
3/9/1897 in Bow, WA, USA
Died
1/4/1978 in Longview, TX, USA
MLB Debut
1924-07-04
Last Game
1929-05-31

Full name: Ralph Fenton Dawson

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Career Pitching Statistics

Joe Dawson — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
11 17 59 18 5 0 3 238.1 233 110 10 112 62 4.15 -2111.0

Career ERA 4.15 vs. league average 4.23 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Joe Dawson — Season-by-Season Pitching
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1924 CLE AL 1 2 4 4 0 0 0 20.1 24 15 21 7 6.64 4.13 (-61%) -831.8
1927 PIT NL 3 7 20 7 4 0 0 80.2 80 40 32 17 4.46 4.08 (-9%) -198.7
1928 PIT NL 7 7 31 7 1 0 3 128.2 116 47 56 36 3.29 4.13 (+20%) -1080.5
1929 PIT NL 0 1 4 0 0 0 0 8.2 13 8 3 2 8.31 — 0.0
Career · 4 seasons 11 17 59 18 5 0 3 238.1 233 110 112 62 4.15 — -2,111

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

Joe Dawson — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
59 77 7 20 2 1 0 4 0 5 9 .260 .305 .312 .617 0

Career AVG .260 vs. league average .284 across their career seasons — 8.6% below league average.

Career OBP .305 vs. league average .346 across their career seasons — 12.0% below league average.

Career SLG .312 vs. league average .398 across their career seasons — 21.7% below league average.

Career OPS .617 vs. league average .745 across their career seasons — 17.2% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Joe Dawson — 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
1924 CLE AL 4 7 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .286 — — — — 0.0
1927 PIT NL 20 25 1 5 0 0 0 1 0 0 3 .200 — — — — 0.0
1928 PIT NL 31 43 4 12 2 1 0 3 0 4 6 .279 — — — — 0.0
1929 PIT NL 4 2 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 .500 — — — — 0.0
Career · 4 seasons 59 77 7 20 2 1 0 4 0 5 9 .260 — — — — 0

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

Joe Dawson — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Batting by Year

Joe Dawson — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1927 WS PIT 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

Joe Dawson — Playoff Career Pitching
W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
0 0 1 0 0 1.0 0 0 0 0 0.00

Playoff Pitching by Year

Joe Dawson — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1927 WS PIT 0 0 1 0 0 1.0 0 0 0 0 0.00

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (118 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Joe Dawson — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home293851303.342
Away30392701.179

Pitching — Home / Away

Joe Dawson — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home29116.01084342223.34
Away30122.21266870434.99

Last 10 Games — Batting

Joe Dawson — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1929-05-31 PITPHIL 211000010
1929-05-30 PITCHCL 000000000
1929-05-11 PITPHIL 000000000
1929-04-22 PITCINL 000000000
1928-09-25 PITBSNW 000000000
1928-09-24 PITBSNW 100000000
1928-09-21 PITPHIW 310000010
1928-09-18 PITNY1L 000000000
1928-09-11 PITCHCL 000000000
1928-09-09 PITSTLW 000000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Joe Dawson — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1929-05-31 PITPHI L 5.2743301
1929-05-30 PITCHC — 1.0000010
1929-05-11 PITPHI — 1.0222011
1929-04-22 PITCIN — 1.0433000
1928-09-25 PITBSN SV 3.0311000
1928-09-24 PITBSN W 4.0300430
1928-09-21 PITPHI W 8.0711250
1928-09-18 PITNY1 L 1.1211101
1928-09-11 PITCHC — 1.2000000
1928-09-09 PITSTL W 2.0000020

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Joe Dawson — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 59 0 8 43 2 0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Joe Dawson — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1924 CLE P 4 0 1 8 0 0
1927 PIT P 20 0 1 18 2 0
1928 PIT P 31 0 6 15 0 0
1929 PIT P 4 0 0 2 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Joe Dawson — Career Games by Position
Position Games
Pitcher 59

Joe Dawson: the record in brief

According to the bio, Joe Dawson debuted on July 4, 1924 and played a final game on May 31, 1929. Club by club, the record runs the Cleveland Indians (1924) and the Pittsburgh Pirates (1927 through 1929). Dawson is listed as a pitcher at 5-foot-11 and 182 pounds. Dawson both batted and threw right-handed, per the bio block. Dawson was born on March 9, 1897, in Bow, WA, USA. Dawson's death is recorded on January 4, 1978, in Longview, TX, USA. The given name on file is Ralph Fenton Dawson.

Dawson pitched in 59 games, starting 18, and finished with a 11-17 record and 4.15 ERA. Dawson had 62 strikeouts. Dawson's 4.15 ERA was close to the 4.23 league figure for those seasons. 1928 brought Dawson a season-high 7 wins. Among the heaviest workloads, the lowest ERA was 3.29 in 1928, when the league's was 4.13.

Pitching in the playoffs, Dawson went 0-0 with a 0.00 ERA in 1 games. Those appearances came in 1927.

Frequently Asked Questions about Joe Dawson

What years did Joe Dawson play?
Joe Dawson played in Major League Baseball from 1924 to 1929.
Was Joe Dawson a pitcher?
Yes. Joe Dawson pitched in the major leagues, recording 11 wins and 62 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Joe Dawson hit?
Joe Dawson hit 0 career home runs with 20 hits.
What teams did Joe Dawson play for?
Joe Dawson played for 2 teams: the Cleveland Indians (1924) and the Pittsburgh Pirates (1927–1929).
What were Joe Dawson's career stats?
In 59 games, Joe Dawson went 11-17 with a 4.15 ERA, 62 strikeouts, 238.1 innings pitched, and 3 saves.
What position did Joe Dawson play?
Joe Dawson played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Joe Dawson and how much did he weigh?
Joe Dawson was listed at 5 feet 11 inches and 182 pounds.
What was Joe Dawson's career ERA?
Joe Dawson finished with a 4.15 career ERA, going 11-17 with 62 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Joe Dawson have?
Joe Dawson recorded 62 career strikeouts.
Is Joe Dawson in the Hall of Fame?
No. Joe Dawson has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.