Don Drysdale

Pitcher · Career Stats, Hall of Fame Bio & Records (1956-1969)

Don Drysdale was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1956 to 1969 for the Brooklyn Dodgers and the Los Angeles Dodgers, a span of 14 seasons. Across 518 career appearances, he went 209-166 with a 2.95 ERA and 2,486 strikeouts. He also batted .186 with 29 home runs. Don Drysdale was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1984 and was a 8-time All-Star and a Cy Young. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 57463.6.

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

⭐ Hall of Fame 1984
W–L 209–166
ERA 2.95
WHIP 1.15
SO 2,486
Pitcher PIV 57463.6
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
6'5" / 190 lb
Born
7/23/1936 in Van Nuys, CA, USA
Died
7/3/1993 in Montreal, QC, CAN
MLB Debut
1956-04-17
Last Game
1969-08-05
Hall of Fame
Inducted 1984 (BBWAA)
Awards
8× All-Star · Cy Young

Full name: Donald Scott Drysdale

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Career Pitching Statistics

Don Drysdale — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
209 166 518 465 167 49 6 3432.0 3,084 1,124 280 855 2,486 2.95 57463.6

Career ERA 2.95 vs. league average 3.64 across their career seasons — 19.1% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Don Drysdale Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1956 BRO NL 5 5 25 12 2 0 0 99.0 95 29 31 55 2.64 3.96 (+33%) 1249.2
1957 BRO NL 17 9 34 29 9 4 0 221.0 197 66 61 148 2.69 3.83 (+30%) 4589.4
1958 LAN NL 12 13 44 29 6 1 0 211.2 214 98 72 131 4.17 3.86 (-8%) 632.4
1959 LAN NL 17 13 44 36 15 4 2 270.2 237 104 93 242 3.46 3.90 (+11%) 4799.9
1960 LAN NL 15 14 41 36 15 5 2 269.0 214 85 72 246 2.84 3.82 (+25%) 6403.7
1961 LAN NL 13 10 40 37 10 3 0 244.0 236 100 83 182 3.69 4.03 (+8%) 850.2
1962 LAN NL 25 9 43 41 19 2 1 314.1 272 99 78 232 2.83 3.96 (+28%) 9172.3
1963 LAN NL 19 17 42 42 17 3 0 315.1 287 92 57 251 2.63 3.46 (+24%) 7587.4
1964 LAN NL 18 16 40 40 21 5 0 321.1 242 78 68 237 2.18 3.58 (+39%) 9554.8
1965 LAN NL 23 12 44 42 20 7 1 308.1 270 95 66 210 2.77 3.50 (+21%) 2623.2
1966 LAN NL 13 16 40 40 11 3 0 273.2 279 104 45 177 3.42 3.52 (+3%) 4208.3
1967 LAN NL 13 16 38 38 9 3 0 282.0 269 86 60 196 2.74 3.30 (+17%) 4141.3
1968 LAN NL 14 12 31 31 12 8 0 239.0 201 57 56 155 2.15 2.98 (+28%) 2771.6
1969 LAN NL 5 4 12 12 1 1 0 62.2 71 31 13 24 4.45 3.61 (-23%) -1120.0
Career · 14 seasons 209 166 518 465 167 49 6 3,432.0 3,084 1,124 855 2,486 2.95 — 57,464

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

Don Drysdale — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
547 1,169 96 218 26 7 29 113 0 60 370 .186 .228 .295 .523 -4,371

Career AVG .186 vs. league average .251 across their career seasons — 25.6% below league average.

Career OBP .228 vs. league average .317 across their career seasons — 28.0% below league average.

Career SLG .295 vs. league average .379 across their career seasons — 22.0% below league average.

Career OPS .523 vs. league average .696 across their career seasons — 24.8% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Don Drysdale 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
1956 BRO NL 26 26 4 5 1 0 1 1 0 1 8 .192 — — — — 0.0
1957 BRO NL 37 73 7 9 0 0 2 6 0 7 29 .123 .257 (-52%) .323 (-38%) .391 (-47%) .715 (-43%) -497.0
1958 LAN NL 47 66 9 15 1 1 7 12 0 3 25 .227 .257 (-12%) .324 (-20%) .394 (+50%) .719 (+18%) 161.5
1959 LAN NL 46 91 9 15 1 1 4 12 0 4 31 .165 .256 (-36%) .323 (-39%) .392 (-16%) .715 (-26%) -417.7
1960 LAN NL 41 83 3 13 6 2 0 4 0 6 32 .157 .255 (-39%) .323 (-35%) .387 (-29%) .711 (-31%) -451.0
1961 LAN NL 40 83 9 16 1 0 5 12 0 6 24 .193 .258 (-25%) .328 (-26%) .399 (-3%) .727 (-13%) -205.8
1962 LAN NL 43 111 9 22 4 1 0 14 0 5 29 .198 .257 (-23%) .326 (-25%) .393 (-36%) .719 (-31%) -544.2
1963 LAN NL 42 96 5 16 1 1 0 5 0 9 35 .167 .246 (-32%) .308 (-22%) .371 (-47%) .680 (-36%) -514.0
1964 LAN NL 40 110 10 19 2 0 1 8 0 4 29 .173 .250 (-31%) .312 (-35%) .377 (-42%) .690 (-39%) -658.8
1965 LAN NL 58 130 18 39 4 1 7 19 0 5 34 .300 .245 (+22%) .310 (+6%) .371 (+37%) .682 (+23%) 451.2
1966 LAN NL 46 106 6 20 2 0 2 8 0 3 28 .189 .248 (-24%) .309 (-32%) .376 (-30%) .685 (-31%) -501.7
1967 LAN NL 38 93 2 12 1 0 0 6 0 5 26 .129 .242 (-47%) .306 (-44%) .357 (-61%) .663 (-53%) -731.8
1968 LAN NL 31 79 4 14 1 0 0 3 0 0 29 .177 .236 (-25%) .298 (-37%) .340 (-44%) .638 (-41%) -462.0
1969 LAN NL 12 22 1 3 1 0 0 3 0 2 11 .136 — — — — 0.0
Career · 14 seasons 547 1,169 96 218 26 7 29 113 0 60 370 .186 — — — — -4,371

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

Don Drysdale — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
8 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 7 .000

Playoff Batting by Year

Don Drysdale — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1966 WS LAN 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000
1965 WS LAN 3 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 .000
1963 WS LAN 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 .000
1959 WS LAN 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000
1956 WS BRO 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

Don Drysdale — Playoff Career Pitching
W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
3 3 7 6 0 39.2 36 13 12 36 2.95

Playoff Pitching by Year

Don Drysdale — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1966 WS LAN 0 2 2 2 0 10.0 8 5 3 6 4.50
1965 WS LAN 1 1 2 2 0 11.2 12 5 3 15 3.86
1963 WS LAN 1 0 1 1 0 9.0 3 0 1 9 0.00
1959 WS LAN 1 0 1 1 0 7.0 11 1 4 5 1.29
1956 WS BRO 0 0 1 0 0 2.0 2 2 1 1 9.00

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (1061 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Don Drysdale — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home273558411061760.190
Away272608551121253.184

Pitching — Home / Away

Don Drysdale — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home2591795.2152550241213242.52
Away2571626.2154661643711553.41

Last 10 Games — Batting

Don Drysdale — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1969-08-05 LADPITL 100000001
1969-08-01 LADSTLL 100000000
1969-07-27 LADCHCW 100000011
1969-07-03 LADCINL 200000002
1969-06-28 LADSDPW 512100211
1969-06-24 LADATLL 100000001
1969-06-20 LADCINW 200000001
1969-06-15 LADNYNW 200000000
1969-04-22 LADSFGL 100000001
1969-04-18 LADHOUW 201000101

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Don Drysdale — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1969-08-05 LADPIT — 6.0832121
1969-08-01 LADSTL L 2.0655110
1969-07-27 LADCHC W 5.0522122
1969-07-03 LADCIN — 7.0722020
1969-06-28 LADSDP W 9.0500230
1969-06-24 LADATL L 2.0455301
1969-06-20 LADCIN W 6.0300020
1969-06-15 LADNYN W 5.2722030
1969-04-22 LADSFG L 4.2753031
1969-04-18 LADHOU — 6.2944200

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Don Drysdale — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 518 465 188 686 59 55

Season-by-Season Fielding

Don Drysdale — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1956 BRO P 25 12 8 20 2 1
1957 BRO P 34 29 15 60 2 4
1958 LAN P 44 29 15 45 6 10
1959 LAN P 44 36 18 48 3 4
1960 LAN P 41 36 18 60 3 3
1961 LAN P 40 37 13 36 3 3
1962 LAN P 43 41 10 60 7 5
1963 LAN P 42 42 19 62 4 7
1964 LAN P 40 40 13 68 3 5
1965 LAN P 44 42 22 55 9 4
1966 LAN P 40 40 10 45 7 1
1967 LAN P 38 38 11 64 5 3
1968 LAN P 31 31 15 50 5 4
1969 LAN P 12 12 1 13 0 1

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Don Drysdale Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 518

Awards & Honors

Don Drysdale — Awards & Honors
Year Award Notes
1962 Cy Young Award
1962 TSN All-Star P
1962 TSN Major League Player of the Year
1962 TSN Pitcher of the Year

Award Voting History

Don Drysdale — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1965 Most Valuable Player NL 5th 77.0 280 0
1963 Most Valuable Player NL 21th 3.0 280 0
1962 Cy Young Award ML 1st 14.0 20 14
1962 Most Valuable Player NL 5th 85.0 280 0
1957 Most Valuable Player NL 19th 8.0 336 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Don Drysdale (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Juan Marichal HOF
    243-142, 2.89 ERA
  2. 97
    Kevin Brown
    211-144, 3.28 ERA
  3. 95
    Catfish Hunter HOF
    224-166, 3.26 ERA
  4. 89
    Jim Bunning HOF
    224-184, 3.27 ERA
  5. 87
    Luis Tiant
    229-172, 3.30 ERA
  6. 84
    Zack Greinke
    225-156, 3.49 ERA

Compare Don Drysdale

Side-by-side career stat comparisons against Drysdale's closest peers by position and era.

vs Cy Young
vs Walter Johnson
vs Randy Johnson
vs Pedro Martinez
vs Nolan Ryan
vs Curt Schilling

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See Don Drysdale in Another Era

What would Drysdale's 1968 season look like in a different era's run environment? Try the cross-era translation with a live slider.

Translate Don Drysdale's peak season across eras →

Don Drysdale: the record in brief

Don Drysdale's major league career runs from a debut on April 17, 1956 to a final game on August 5, 1969. By club, Drysdale's seasons break down as the Brooklyn Dodgers (1956 through 1957) and the Los Angeles Dodgers (1958 to 1969). Drysdale played primarily as a pitcher and both batted and threw right-handed. The bio adds a birth date on July 23, 1936, in Van Nuys, CA, USA and a listed size of 6-foot-5 and 190 pounds. Drysdale's death is recorded on July 3, 1993, in Montreal, QC, CAN. Drysdale's full given name, per the bio, is Donald Scott Drysdale.

Across 518 games (465 starts), Drysdale recorded 209 wins against 166 losses with a 2.95 ERA. The same table counts 2,486 strikeouts, 167 complete games, and 49 shutouts. Against a 3.64 league ERA for the same years, Drysdale was 19.1% better. Drysdale won 25 games in 1962, the most of any season listed. Drysdale struck out 251 batters in 1963, a career high.

Frequently Asked Questions about Don Drysdale

What years did Don Drysdale play?
Don Drysdale played in Major League Baseball from 1956 to 1969.
Was Don Drysdale a pitcher?
Yes. Don Drysdale pitched in the major leagues, recording 209 wins and 2486 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Don Drysdale hit?
Don Drysdale hit 29 career home runs with 218 hits.
Is Don Drysdale in the Hall of Fame?
Yes. Don Drysdale was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1984.
What teams did Don Drysdale play for?
Don Drysdale played for one team, the Los Angeles Dodgers (1956–1969).
How many Cy Young Awards did Don Drysdale win?
Don Drysdale won 1 Cy Young Award, in 1962.
What awards did Don Drysdale win?
Don Drysdale won the Cy Young Award (1962). He was selected to 8 All-Star Games.
What were Don Drysdale's career stats?
In 518 games, Don Drysdale went 209-166 with a 2.95 ERA, 2,486 strikeouts, 3,432.0 innings pitched, and 6 saves. At the plate he had 218 hits and 29 home runs.
What position did Don Drysdale play?
Don Drysdale played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Don Drysdale and how much did he weigh?
Don Drysdale was listed at 6 feet 5 inches and 190 pounds.
What was Don Drysdale's career ERA?
Don Drysdale finished with a 2.95 career ERA, going 209-166 with 2,486 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Don Drysdale have?
Don Drysdale recorded 2,486 career strikeouts.
How many All-Star Games did Don Drysdale make?
Don Drysdale was selected to 8 All-Star Games.