What years did Jake Early play?

Jake Early played in Major League Baseball from 1939 to 1949.

Was Jake Early a pitcher?

No. Jake Early was a position player (Catcher).

How many home runs did Jake Early hit?

Jake Early hit 32 career home runs with 532 hits.

What was Jake Early's career batting average?

Jake Early batted .241 over his career, with 532 hits in 2,208 at bats.

How many RBI did Jake Early have?

Jake Early drove in 264 runs in his career.

Is Jake Early in the Hall of Fame?

No. Jake Early has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Jake Early

Catcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1939-1949)

Jake Early was a catcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1939 to 1949 for the Washington Senators and the St. Louis Browns, a span of 11 seasons. In 747 career games, he hit .241 with 532 hits, 32 home runs, and 264 RBI. Jake Early was an All-Star.

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 September 9, 2026

AVG .241

HR 32

RBI 264

H 532

OPS .679

PIV -463

Position: Catcher
Bats / Throws: L / R
Height / Weight: 5'11" / 168 lb
Born: 5/19/1915 in Kings Mountain, NC, USA
Died: 5/31/1985 in Melbourne, FL, USA
MLB Debut: 1939-05-04
Last Game: 1949-09-30
Awards: All-Star

Full name: Jacob Willard Early

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Career Batting Statistics

Jake Early — Career Batting Statistics
G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
747	2,208	216	532	98	23	32	264	7	281	259	.241	.330	.350	.679	-463

Career AVG .241 vs. league average .262 across their career seasons — 8.0% below league average.

Career OBP .330 vs. league average .334 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .350 vs. league average .372 across their career seasons — 5.9% below league average.

Career OPS .679 vs. league average .706 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Jake Early 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
1939	WS1	AL	32	84	8	22	7	2	0	14	0	5	14	.262	.274 (-4%)	.342 (-11%)	.393 (avg)	.735 (-5%)	-105.2
1940	WS1	AL	80	206	26	53	8	4	5	14	0	23	22	.257	.267 (-4%)	.335 (avg)	.387 (+5%)	.722 (+3%)	93.1
1941	WS1	AL	104	355	42	102	20	7	10	54	0	24	38	.287	.262 (+10%)	.332 (+2%)	.373 (+25%)	.705 (+14%)	797.3
1942	WS1	AL	104	353	31	72	14	2	3	46	0	37	37	.204	.253 (-19%)	.323 (-13%)	.349 (-20%)	.672 (-17%)	-868.9
1943	WS1	AL	126	423	37	109	23	3	5	60	5	53	43	.258	.255 (+1%)	.324 (+6%)	.346 (+4%)	.671 (+5%)	517.9
1946	WS1	AL	64	189	13	38	6	0	4	18	0	23	27	.201	.256 (-22%)	.328 (-13%)	.358 (-17%)	.687 (-15%)	-422.9
1947	SLA	AL	87	214	25	48	9	3	3	19	0	54	34	.224	.262 (-15%)	.336 (+13%)	.376 (-11%)	.712 (+1%)	222.3
1948	WS1	AL	97	246	22	54	7	2	1	28	2	36	33	.220	.263 (-17%)	.340 (-5%)	.379 (-27%)	.719 (-17%)	-597.7
1949	WS1	AL	53	138	12	34	4	0	1	11	0	26	11	.246	.262 (-6%)	.343 (+8%)	.384 (-23%)	.727 (-8%)	-98.6
Career · 9 seasons			747	2,208	216	532	98	23	32	264	7	281	259	.241	—	—	—	—	-463

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 (747 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Jake Early — Batting — Home / Away
Split	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	AVG
Home	369	1051	108	259	13	121	.246
Away	378	1157	106	273	19	140	.236

Last 10 Games — Batting

Jake Early — Last 10 Games — Batting
Date	Tm	Opp	Res	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	BB	SO
1949-09-30	MIN	BOS	L	0	1	0	0	0	1	0
1949-09-27	MIN	BOS	L	4	0	0	0	0	0	1
1949-09-23	MIN	NYY	L	3	1	1	1	1	0	1
1949-09-23	MIN	NYY	W	1	1	0	0	0	2	0
1949-09-21	MIN	SLA	W	4	0	1	0	0	0	0
1949-09-20	MIN	SLA	L	1	0	1	0	0	1	0
1949-09-18	MIN	DET	L	2	0	0	0	0	1	0
1949-09-16	MIN	CLE	W	3	0	1	0	1	1	0
1949-09-13	MIN	CHW	L	3	0	0	0	0	1	0
1949-09-11	MIN	NYY	L	2	1	0	0	0	2	0

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Jake Early — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
C	694	0	2566	417	74	65

Season-by-Season Fielding

Jake Early — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year	Team	Pos	G	PO	A	E	DP
1939	WS1	C	24	95	9	4	1
1940	WS1	C	56	276	41	10	5
1941	WS1	C	100	385	52	16	13
1942	WS1	C	98	392	71	9	11
1943	WS1	C	122	443	83	11	10
1946	WS1	C	64	246	45	12	7
1947	SLA	C	85	301	43	4	5
1948	WS1	C	92	268	51	3	7
1949	WS1	C	53	160	22	5	6

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Jake Early Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position	Games
Catcher	694

Award Voting History

Jake Early — Award Voting History
Year	Award	League	Finish	Points Won	Points Max	Votes First
1943	Most Valuable Player	AL	23th	6.0	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

Jake Early (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

Frequently Asked Questions about Jake Early

What years did Jake Early play?: Jake Early played in Major League Baseball from 1939 to 1949.
Was Jake Early a pitcher?: No. Jake Early was a position player (Catcher).
How many home runs did Jake Early hit?: Jake Early hit 32 career home runs with 532 hits.
What was Jake Early's career batting average?: Jake Early batted .241 over his career, with 532 hits in 2,208 at bats.
How many RBI did Jake Early have?: Jake Early drove in 264 runs in his career.
Is Jake Early in the Hall of Fame?: No. Jake Early has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.