Patsy Donovan
Outfielder · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1890-1907)
Patsy Donovan was an outfielder who played in Major League Baseball from 1890 to 1907 for 8 teams, including the Boston Braves, a span of 18 seasons. In 1,824 career games, he hit .301 with 2,256 hits, 16 home runs, and 738 RBI. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 874.
- 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
- Position
- Outfielder
- Bats / Throws
- L / L
- Height / Weight
- 5'11" / 175 lb
- Died
- 12/25/1953 in Lawrence, MA, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1890-04-19
- Last Game
- 1907-10-05
Full name: Patrick Joseph Donovan
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,824 | 7,505 | 1,321 | 2,256 | 208 | 75 | 16 | 738 | 518 | 457 | 334 | .301 | .348 | .355 | .702 | 874 |
Career AVG .301 vs. league average .268 across their career seasons — +12.3% above league average.
Career OBP .348 vs. league average .332 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career SLG .355 vs. league average .354 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OPS .702 vs. league average .686 across their career seasons — near 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1890 | BSN | NL | 32 | 140 | 17 | 36 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 10 | 8 | 17 | .257 | .260 (-1%) | .336 (-9%) | .351 (-27%) | .687 (-18%) | -366.7 |
| 1890 | BRO | NL | 28 | 105 | 17 | 23 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 3 | 5 | 5 | .219 | .260 (-16%) | .336 (-20%) | .351 (-19%) | .687 (-20%) | -366.7 |
| 1891 | LS2 | AA | 105 | 439 | 73 | 141 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 53 | 27 | 30 | 18 | .321 | .254 (+26%) | .331 (+13%) | .343 (+8%) | .675 (+11%) | 905.9 |
| 1891 | WS9 | AA | 17 | 70 | 9 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 5 | .200 | .254 (-21%) | .331 (-27%) | .343 (-38%) | .675 (-32%) | 905.9 |
| 1892 | WAS | NL | 40 | 163 | 29 | 39 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 12 | 16 | 11 | 13 | .239 | .244 (-2%) | .316 (-7%) | .327 (-10%) | .644 (-8%) | -211.6 |
| 1892 | PIT | NL | 90 | 388 | 77 | 114 | 15 | 3 | 2 | 26 | 40 | 20 | 16 | .294 | .244 (+20%) | .316 (+5%) | .327 (+11%) | .644 (+8%) | -211.6 |
| 1893 | PIT | NL | 113 | 499 | 114 | 158 | 5 | 8 | 2 | 56 | 46 | 42 | 8 | .317 | .279 (+13%) | .356 (+5%) | .379 (-2%) | .735 (+1%) | 155.2 |
| 1894 | PIT | NL | 133 | 577 | 147 | 175 | 21 | 10 | 4 | 76 | 41 | 36 | 12 | .303 | .309 (-2%) | .379 (-8%) | .435 (-9%) | .814 (-9%) | -915.2 |
| 1895 | PIT | NL | 126 | 522 | 115 | 162 | 18 | 6 | 1 | 59 | 36 | 48 | 19 | .310 | .296 (+5%) | .361 (+4%) | .399 (-7%) | .761 (-1%) | -17.4 |
| 1896 | PIT | NL | 131 | 573 | 113 | 183 | 20 | 5 | 3 | 59 | 48 | 35 | 18 | .319 | .290 (+10%) | .354 (+4%) | .387 (avg) | .741 (+2%) | 319.4 |
| 1897 | PIT | NL | 120 | 479 | 82 | 154 | 16 | 7 | 0 | 57 | 34 | 25 | 23 | .322 | .291 (+10%) | .354 (+2%) | .387 (-1%) | .741 (avg) | 12.4 |
| 1898 | PIT | NL | 147 | 610 | 112 | 184 | 16 | 9 | 0 | 37 | 41 | 34 | 33 | .302 | .270 (+11%) | .333 (+4%) | .347 (+3%) | .680 (+3%) | 336.9 |
| 1899 | PIT | NL | 122 | 536 | 82 | 156 | 11 | 7 | 1 | 56 | 26 | 17 | 17 | .291 | .282 (+3%) | .343 (-7%) | .366 (-6%) | .710 (-7%) | -642.0 |
| 1900 | SLN | NL | 126 | 503 | 78 | 159 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 61 | 45 | 38 | 15 | .316 | .279 (+13%) | .338 (+9%) | .366 (-7%) | .705 (+1%) | 214.7 |
| 1901 | SLN | NL | 130 | 531 | 92 | 161 | 23 | 5 | 1 | 73 | 28 | 27 | 37 | .303 | .271 (+12%) | .326 (+5%) | .359 (+3%) | .686 (+4%) | 429.8 |
| 1902 | SLN | NL | 126 | 502 | 70 | 158 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 35 | 34 | 28 | 15 | .315 | .266 (+18%) | .321 (+13%) | .343 (+3%) | .665 (+8%) | 853.7 |
| 1903 | SLN | NL | 105 | 410 | 63 | 134 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 39 | 25 | 25 | 21 | .327 | .261 (+25%) | .316 (+17%) | .345 (+9%) | .662 (+13%) | 1012.3 |
| 1904 | WS1 | AL | 125 | 436 | 30 | 100 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 17 | 24 | 40 | .229 | .246 (-7%) | .300 (-10%) | .321 (-24%) | .622 (-17%) | -995.0 |
| 1906 | BRO | NL | 7 | 21 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .238 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1907 | BRO | NL | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 20 seasons | 1,824 | 7,505 | 1,321 | 2,256 | 208 | 75 | 16 | 738 | 518 | 457 | 334 | .301 | — | — | — | — | 1,420 | ||
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 (890 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 441 | 1746 | 274 | 556 | 2 | 163 | .318 |
| Away | 449 | 1807 | 255 | 502 | 0 | 136 | .278 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1907-10-05 | BRO | BSN | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1906-08-13 | BRO | CHC | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1906-07-07 | BRO | PHI | L | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1906-07-06 | BRO | PHI | L | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1906-07-05 | BRO | PHI | L | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1906-06-30 | BRO | PHI | W | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1906-06-29 | BRO | PHI | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1906-06-28 | BRO | PHI | L | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1906-05-17 | BRO | STL | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1904-10-10 | MIN | PHA | W | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OF | 1816 | 126 | 2929 | 265 | 201 | 69 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1890 | BSN | OF | 32 | 0 | 45 | 4 | 6 | 1 |
| 1890 | BRO | OF | 28 | 0 | 66 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| 1891 | LS2 | OF | 105 | 0 | 214 | 15 | 22 | 0 |
| 1891 | WS9 | OF | 17 | 0 | 22 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| 1892 | WAS | OF | 40 | 0 | 56 | 9 | 12 | 3 |
| 1892 | PIT | OF | 90 | 0 | 111 | 18 | 19 | 4 |
| 1893 | PIT | OF | 112 | 0 | 178 | 16 | 13 | 5 |
| 1894 | PIT | OF | 133 | 0 | 269 | 23 | 21 | 5 |
| 1895 | PIT | OF | 126 | 0 | 188 | 11 | 8 | 2 |
| 1896 | PIT | OF | 131 | 0 | 224 | 24 | 12 | 8 |
| 1897 | PIT | OF | 120 | 0 | 186 | 17 | 11 | 5 |
| 1898 | PIT | OF | 147 | 0 | 238 | 21 | 20 | 4 |
| 1899 | PIT | OF | 122 | 0 | 186 | 9 | 12 | 3 |
| 1900 | SLN | OF | 124 | 0 | 180 | 13 | 10 | 4 |
| 1901 | SLN | OF | 129 | 0 | 215 | 19 | 5 | 8 |
| 1902 | SLN | OF | 126 | 0 | 179 | 30 | 9 | 6 |
| 1903 | SLN | OF | 105 | 0 | 142 | 16 | 8 | 5 |
| 1904 | WS1 | OF | 122 | 121 | 217 | 15 | 9 | 4 |
| 1906 | BRO | OF | 6 | 5 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1907 | BRO | OF | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Left Field | 121 |
| Center Field | 74 |
| Right Field | 1623 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Patsy Donovan (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Patsy Donovan: the record in brief
According to the bio, Patsy Donovan debuted on April 19, 1890 and played a final game on October 5, 1907. The team column moves through the Boston Beaneaters (1890), the Brooklyn Bridegrooms (1890), the Louisville Colonels (1891), the Washington Statesmen (1891), the Washington Senators (1892 through 1904), the Pittsburgh Pirates (1892 through 1899), the St. Louis Cardinals (1900 to 1903), and the Brooklyn Superbas (1906 to 1907). Donovan played primarily as an outfielder and threw and hit left-handed. Born on March 16, 1865, in Cobh, County Cork, Ireland, Donovan was listed at 175 pounds on a 5-foot-11 frame. The bio records the death on December 25, 1953, in Lawrence, MA, USA. The bio lists the given name Patrick Joseph.
The batting record for Donovan: 1,824 games, 2,256 hits in 7,505 at bats, and a .301 average, along with 16 homers, 738 RBI, and 518 stolen bases. Reaching base at a .348 clip and slugging .355, Donovan finished with a .702 OPS.
Frequently Asked Questions about Patsy Donovan
- What years did Patsy Donovan play?
- Patsy Donovan played in Major League Baseball from 1890 to 1907.
- Was Patsy Donovan a pitcher?
- No. Patsy Donovan was a position player (Outfielder).
- How many home runs did Patsy Donovan hit?
- Patsy Donovan hit 16 career home runs with 2256 hits.
- What was Patsy Donovan's career batting average?
- Patsy Donovan batted .301 over his career, with 2,256 hits in 7,505 at bats.
- How many RBI did Patsy Donovan have?
- Patsy Donovan drove in 738 runs in his career.
- Is Patsy Donovan in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Patsy Donovan has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.