Jiggs Donahue

First Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1900-1909)

Jiggs Donahue was a first baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1900 to 1909 for 5 teams, including the Pittsburgh Pirates, a span of 10 seasons. In 813 career games, he hit .255 with 731 hits, 4 home runs, and 327 RBI. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 503.

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 .255
HR 4
RBI 327
H 731
OPS .624
PIV 503
Position
First Baseman
Bats / Throws
L / L
Height / Weight
6'1" / 178 lb
Born
7/13/1879 in Springfield, OH, USA
Died
7/19/1913 in Columbus, OH, USA
MLB Debut
1900-09-10
Last Game
1909-10-02

Full name: John Augustine Donahue

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Career Batting Statistics

Jiggs Donahue — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
813 2,862 319 731 90 31 4 327 143 215 178 .255 .311 .313 .624 503

Career AVG .255 vs. league average .253 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .311 vs. league average .311 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .313 vs. league average .326 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OPS .624 vs. league average .636 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Jiggs Donahue 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
1900 PIT NL 3 10 1 2 0 1 0 3 1 0 1 .200 — — — — 0.0
1901 PIT NL 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1901 MLA AL 37 107 10 34 5 4 0 16 4 10 3 .318 .271 (+17%) .326 (+18%) .359 (+22%) .686 (+20%) 0.0
1902 SLA AL 30 89 11 21 1 1 1 7 2 12 8 .236 .266 (-12%) .321 (+2%) .343 (-12%) .665 (-5%) -38.4
1904 CHA AL 102 367 46 91 9 7 1 48 18 25 26 .248 .246 (avg) .300 (-1%) .321 (-1%) .622 (-1%) -65.3
1905 CHA AL 149 533 71 153 22 4 1 76 32 44 35 .287 .248 (+16%) .307 (+13%) .322 (+8%) .629 (+10%) 1093.5
1906 CHA AL 154 556 70 143 17 7 1 57 36 48 25 .257 .247 (+4%) .307 (+4%) .315 (+1%) .622 (+2%) 291.7
1907 CHA AL 157 609 75 158 16 4 0 68 27 28 33 .259 .245 (+6%) .304 (-3%) .308 (-3%) .613 (-3%) -326.0
1908 CHA AL 93 304 22 62 8 2 0 22 14 25 30 .204 .240 (-15%) .298 (-9%) .306 (-21%) .605 (-15%) -575.5
1909 CHA AL 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1909 WS1 AL 84 283 13 67 12 1 0 28 9 22 17 .237 .244 (-3%) .306 (-4%) .312 (-8%) .618 (-6%) 0.0
Career · 11 seasons 813 2,862 319 731 90 31 4 327 143 215 178 .255 — — — — 380

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

Jiggs Donahue — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
6 18 0 5 2 1 0 4 3 4 .278

Playoff Batting by Year

Jiggs Donahue — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1906 WS CHA 6 18 0 5 2 1 0 4 3 4 .278

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (813 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Jiggs Donahue — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home41814161653591149.254
Away39514441533723162.258

Last 10 Games — Batting

Jiggs Donahue — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1909-10-02 MINPHAL 401000000
1909-10-02 MINPHAL 300000020
1909-09-16 MINSLAL 100000000
1909-08-14 MINDETL 401000100
1909-08-13 MINDETL 100000000
1909-08-11 MINDETW 300000010
1909-08-10 MINSLAL 101100100
1909-08-09 MINSLAL 402000201
1909-08-07 MINSLAW 301000110
1909-08-05 MINCLEW 111100100

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Jiggs Donahue — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 745 719 8151 556 112 336
C 45 0 160 54 13 2
OF 2 0 1 0 0 0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Jiggs Donahue — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1900 PIT C 2 0 7 1 1 0
1900 PIT OF 1 0 1 0 0 0
1901 PIT C 1 0 0 0 0 0
1901 PIT OF 1 0 0 0 0 0
1901 MLA 1B 13 0 113 6 10 8
1901 MLA C 19 0 73 24 7 0
1902 SLA 1B 5 0 38 0 3 4
1902 SLA C 23 0 80 29 5 2
1904 CHA 1B 101 100 1067 85 25 49
1905 CHA 1B 149 149 1645 114 21 77
1906 CHA 1B 154 154 1697 118 22 62
1907 CHA 1B 157 157 1846 140 12 78
1908 CHA 1B 83 80 968 57 6 30
1909 CHA 1B 2 0 11 0 0 0
1909 WS1 1B 81 79 766 36 13 28

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Jiggs Donahue Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Catcher 45
First Base 745
Left Field 1
Right Field 1

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Jiggs Donahue (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Bill McKechnie HOF
    .251 avg, 8 HR
  2. 96
    Dick Egan
    .249 avg, 4 HR
  3. 93
    Charlie Reilly
    .250 avg, 17 HR
  4. 90
    Sonny Jackson
    .251 avg, 7 HR
  5. 88
    Larry Kopf
    .249 avg, 5 HR
  6. 84
    Al Myers
    .245 avg, 13 HR

Jiggs Donahue: the record in brief

The profile opens with Jiggs Donahue's first major league game on September 10, 1900; the last one listed came on October 2, 1909. Club by club, the record runs the Pittsburgh Pirates (1900 through 1901), the Milwaukee Brewers (1901), the St. Louis Browns (1902), the Chicago White Sox (1904 to 1909), and the Washington Senators (1909). Donahue played primarily as a first baseman and threw and hit left-handed. Born on July 13, 1879, in Springfield, OH, USA, Donahue was listed at 6-foot-1 and 178 pounds. Donahue's death is recorded on July 19, 1913, in Columbus, OH, USA. The given name on file is John Augustine Donahue.

Donahue's career batting table shows 813 games, 2,862 at bats and 731 hits, a .255 average; the totals also include 4 home runs, 327 RBI, and 143 stolen bases. Donahue got on base at a .311 rate and slugged .313 (.624 OPS). The .255 career average is close to the .253 the league hit across the same seasons. 1907 produced Donahue's most hits, 158 of them for the Chicago White Sox.

Frequently Asked Questions about Jiggs Donahue

What years did Jiggs Donahue play?
Jiggs Donahue played in Major League Baseball from 1900 to 1909.
Was Jiggs Donahue a pitcher?
No. Jiggs Donahue was a position player (First Baseman).
How many home runs did Jiggs Donahue hit?
Jiggs Donahue hit 4 career home runs with 731 hits.
What teams did Jiggs Donahue play for?
Jiggs Donahue played for 4 teams: the Pittsburgh Pirates (1900–1901), the St. Louis Browns (1901–1902), the Chicago White Sox (1904–1909), and the Washington Senators (1909).
What were Jiggs Donahue's career stats?
In 813 games, Jiggs Donahue had 731 hits, 4 home runs, 327 RBI, 319 runs, and 143 stolen bases, with a .255 batting average.
What position did Jiggs Donahue play?
Jiggs Donahue played primarily as a first baseman, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Jiggs Donahue and how much did he weigh?
Jiggs Donahue was listed at 6 feet 1 inch and 178 pounds.
How many home runs did Jiggs Donahue hit each season?
Jiggs Donahue's home runs by season: 0 in 1900, 0 in 1901, 1 in 1902, 1 in 1904, 1 in 1905, 1 in 1906, 0 in 1907, 0 in 1908, and 0 in 1909. His most in one season was 1, in 1902, 1904, 1905, and 1906.
What was Jiggs Donahue's career batting average?
Jiggs Donahue batted .255 over his career, with 731 hits in 2,862 at bats.
How many RBI did Jiggs Donahue have?
Jiggs Donahue drove in 327 runs in his career.
Is Jiggs Donahue in the Hall of Fame?
No. Jiggs Donahue has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.