Dick Donovan
Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1950-1965)
Dick Donovan was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1950 to 1965 for 5 teams, including the Boston Braves, a span of 16 seasons. Across 345 career appearances, he went 122-99 with a 3.67 ERA and 880 strikeouts. He also batted .163 with 15 home runs. Dick Donovan was a 3-time All-Star. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 8578.4.
- 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
- Position
- Pitcher
- Bats / Throws
- L / R
- Height / Weight
- 6'3" / 190 lb
- Died
- 1/6/1997 in Weymouth, MA, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1950-04-24
- Last Game
- 1965-06-12
- Awards
- 3× All-Star
Full name: Richard Edward Donovan
Season-by-Season Pitching
Click a stat to plot it across every season.
| Year | Team | Lg | W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA | Lg ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | BSN | NL | 0 | 2 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29.2 | 28 | 27 | 34 | 9 | 8.19 | 4.36 (-88%) | -2233.8 |
| 1951 | BSN | NL | 0 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13.2 | 17 | 8 | 11 | 4 | 5.27 | 4.04 (-30%) | -91.8 |
| 1952 | BSN | NL | 0 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 13.0 | 18 | 8 | 12 | 6 | 5.54 | 3.70 (-50%) | -648.6 |
| 1954 | DET | AL | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6.0 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 10.50 | — | 0.0 |
| 1955 | CHA | AL | 15 | 9 | 29 | 24 | 11 | 5 | 0 | 187.0 | 186 | 69 | 48 | 88 | 3.32 | 4.00 (+17%) | 2780.3 |
| 1956 | CHA | AL | 12 | 10 | 34 | 31 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 234.2 | 212 | 95 | 59 | 120 | 3.64 | 3.96 (+8%) | 3502.6 |
| 1957 | CHA | AL | 16 | 6 | 28 | 28 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 220.2 | 203 | 68 | 45 | 88 | 2.77 | 3.83 (+28%) | 2612.6 |
| 1958 | CHA | AL | 15 | 14 | 34 | 34 | 16 | 4 | 0 | 248.0 | 240 | 83 | 53 | 127 | 3.01 | 3.86 (+22%) | 3121.9 |
| 1959 | CHA | AL | 9 | 10 | 31 | 29 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 179.2 | 171 | 73 | 58 | 71 | 3.66 | 3.90 (+6%) | 65.5 |
| 1960 | CHA | AL | 6 | 1 | 33 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 78.2 | 87 | 47 | 25 | 30 | 5.38 | 3.82 (-41%) | -2062.7 |
| 1961 | WS2 | AL | 10 | 10 | 23 | 22 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 168.2 | 138 | 45 | 35 | 62 | 2.40 | 4.03 (+40%) | 3232.6 |
| 1962 | CLE | AL | 20 | 10 | 34 | 34 | 16 | 5 | 0 | 250.2 | 255 | 100 | 47 | 94 | 3.59 | 3.96 (+9%) | 2035.1 |
| 1963 | CLE | AL | 11 | 13 | 30 | 30 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 206.0 | 211 | 97 | 28 | 84 | 4.24 | 3.46 (-23%) | -2003.4 |
| 1964 | CLE | AL | 7 | 9 | 30 | 23 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 158.1 | 181 | 80 | 29 | 83 | 4.55 | 3.58 (-27%) | -488.3 |
| 1965 | CLE | AL | 1 | 3 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22.2 | 32 | 15 | 6 | 12 | 5.96 | 3.50 (-70%) | -1243.8 |
| Career · 15 seasons | 122 | 99 | 345 | 273 | 101 | 25 | 5 | 2,017.1 | 1,988 | 822 | 495 | 880 | 3.67 | — | 8,578 | ||
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
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 371 | 694 | 67 | 113 | 14 | 0 | 15 | 64 | 0 | 78 | 292 | .163 | .257 | .248 | .505 | -2,864 |
Career AVG .163 vs. league average .256 across their career seasons — 36.3% below league average.
Career OBP .257 vs. league average .325 across their career seasons — 21.1% below league average.
Career SLG .248 vs. league average .387 across their career seasons — 36.0% below league average.
Career OPS .505 vs. league average .712 across their career seasons — 29.2% below 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | BSN | NL | 10 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | .167 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1951 | BSN | NL | 8 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | .333 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1952 | BSN | NL | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1954 | DET | AL | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1955 | CHA | AL | 40 | 76 | 10 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 9 | 26 | .224 | .258 (-13%) | .332 (-1%) | .393 (-33%) | .726 (-18%) | -177.2 |
| 1956 | CHA | AL | 44 | 90 | 10 | 20 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 15 | 0 | 14 | 30 | .222 | .258 (-14%) | .331 (avg) | .397 (-8%) | .728 (-4%) | -44.1 |
| 1957 | CHA | AL | 30 | 83 | 8 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 8 | 32 | .145 | .257 (-44%) | .323 (-32%) | .391 (-32%) | .715 (-32%) | -425.0 |
| 1958 | CHA | AL | 34 | 80 | 5 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 33 | .113 | .257 (-56%) | .324 (-30%) | .394 (-71%) | .719 (-53%) | -637.1 |
| 1959 | CHA | AL | 31 | 61 | 4 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 32 | .131 | .256 (-49%) | .323 (-39%) | .392 (-37%) | .715 (-38%) | -380.1 |
| 1960 | CHA | AL | 33 | 23 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 13 | .130 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1961 | WS2 | AL | 24 | 56 | 6 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 23 | .179 | .258 (-31%) | .328 (-21%) | .399 (-37%) | .727 (-30%) | -263.4 |
| 1962 | CLE | AL | 34 | 89 | 8 | 16 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 32 | .180 | .257 (-30%) | .326 (-22%) | .393 (-17%) | .719 (-19%) | -271.5 |
| 1963 | CLE | AL | 31 | 69 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 31 | .130 | .246 (-47%) | .308 (-50%) | .371 (-49%) | .680 (-50%) | -519.7 |
| 1964 | CLE | AL | 31 | 48 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 10 | 27 | .146 | — | — | — | — | -145.7 |
| 1965 | CLE | AL | 12 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 15 seasons | 371 | 694 | 67 | 113 | 14 | 0 | 15 | 64 | 0 | 78 | 292 | .163 | — | — | — | — | -2,864 | ||
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 (716 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 178 | 324 | 37 | 59 | 7 | 34 | .182 |
| Away | 193 | 370 | 30 | 54 | 8 | 30 | .146 |
Pitching — Home / Away
| Split | G | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 165 | 1013.1 | 982 | 379 | 225 | 429 | 3.37 |
| Away | 180 | 1004.0 | 1006 | 445 | 270 | 453 | 3.99 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1965-06-12 | CLE | KC1 | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1965-06-11 | CLE | KC1 | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1965-06-08 | CLE | MIN | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1965-05-23 | CLE | BOS | L | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1965-05-16 | CLE | TEX | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1965-05-15 | CLE | TEX | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1965-05-13 | CLE | BAL | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1965-05-11 | CLE | BAL | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1965-05-04 | CLE | NYY | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1965-05-02 | CLE | TEX | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Last 10 Games — Pitching
| Date | Tm | Opp | Dec | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1965-06-12 | CLE | KC1 | — | 2.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 1965-06-11 | CLE | KC1 | — | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 1965-06-08 | CLE | MIN | — | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1965-05-23 | CLE | BOS | L | 4.1 | 9 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 1965-05-16 | CLE | TEX | L | 0.1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1965-05-15 | CLE | TEX | — | 1.0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1965-05-13 | CLE | BAL | — | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 1965-05-11 | CLE | BAL | — | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1965-05-04 | CLE | NYY | — | 1.1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1965-05-02 | CLE | TEX | — | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | BSN | P | 10 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 1 |
| 1951 | BSN | P | 8 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 1952 | BSN | P | 7 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 |
| 1954 | DET | P | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955 | CHA | P | 29 | 24 | 11 | 33 | 0 | 2 |
| 1956 | CHA | P | 34 | 31 | 11 | 46 | 1 | 4 |
| 1957 | CHA | P | 28 | 28 | 18 | 37 | 0 | 3 |
| 1958 | CHA | P | 34 | 34 | 16 | 34 | 2 | 3 |
| 1959 | CHA | P | 31 | 29 | 11 | 26 | 4 | 1 |
| 1960 | CHA | P | 33 | 8 | 6 | 19 | 1 | 0 |
| 1961 | WS2 | P | 23 | 22 | 15 | 26 | 4 | 1 |
| 1962 | CLE | P | 34 | 34 | 23 | 36 | 3 | 6 |
| 1963 | CLE | P | 30 | 30 | 20 | 29 | 2 | 1 |
| 1964 | CLE | P | 30 | 23 | 9 | 30 | 1 | 3 |
| 1965 | CLE | P | 12 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 345 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1962 | TSN All-Star | P |
| 1962 | TSN Pitcher of the Year |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 5th | 64.0 | 280 | 0 |
| 1961 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 17th | 5.0 | 280 | 0 |
| 1958 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 25th | 1.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1957 | Cy Young Award | ML | 2nd | 1.0 | 16 | 1 |
| 1957 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 13th | 19.0 | 336 | 0 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Dick Donovan (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Compare Dick Donovan
Dick Donovan: the record in brief
Dick Donovan played a first major league game on April 24, 1950 and a last one on June 12, 1965. Club by club, the record runs the Boston Braves (1950 to 1952), the Detroit Tigers (1954), the Chicago White Sox (1955 to 1960), the Washington Senators (1961), and the Cleveland Indians (1962 through 1965). Donovan is listed as a pitcher at 6-foot-3 and 190 pounds. Donovan threw right-handed and batted left-handed, per the bio block. The recorded birth is December 7, 1927, in Boston, MA, USA. Donovan's death is recorded on January 6, 1997, in Weymouth, MA, USA. The given name on file is Richard Edward Donovan.
Donovan pitched in 345 games, starting 273, and finished with a 122-99 record and 3.67 ERA. Also on Donovan's record: 880 strikeouts, 101 complete games, and 25 shutouts. Donovan's 3.67 ERA was close to the 3.84 league figure for those seasons. No season topped the 20 wins of 1962. The strikeout high was 127 in 1958.
Frequently Asked Questions about Dick Donovan
- What years did Dick Donovan play?
- Dick Donovan played in Major League Baseball from 1950 to 1965.
- Was Dick Donovan a pitcher?
- Yes. Dick Donovan pitched in the major leagues, recording 122 wins and 880 strikeouts.
- How many home runs did Dick Donovan hit?
- Dick Donovan hit 15 career home runs with 113 hits.
- What was Dick Donovan's career batting average?
- Dick Donovan batted .163 over his career, with 113 hits in 694 at bats.
- How many RBI did Dick Donovan have?
- Dick Donovan drove in 64 runs in his career.
- What was Dick Donovan's career ERA?
- Dick Donovan finished with a 3.67 career ERA, going 122-99 with 880 strikeouts.