Roy Face
Born: 2/20/1928 in Stephentown, NY, USA
MLB Debut: 1953-04-16 | Final Game: 1969-08-15
Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 5'8" | Weight: 155 lbs
Full name: Elroy Leon Face
Biography
Roy Face, born in 1928, was a prominent pitcher in Major League Baseball who played from 1953 until his retirement in 1969. Known for his exceptional skill on the mound, Face compiled a career record of 104-95 with an earned run average (ERA) of 3.48. He recorded 877 strikeouts and secured 193 saves over his career, showcasing his ability to both start and close games effectively. Face's contributions to the game were recognized with six All-Star selections, affirming his status as one of the leading pitchers of his era.
Playing primarily during the 1950s and 1960s, Face emerged as a key figure in the evolving role of relief pitchers, helping to shape the modern bullpen strategy. His effectiveness in high-pressure situations made him a reliable asset for his teams, particularly the Pittsburgh Pirates, where he spent the majority of his career. Face's legacy is marked not only by his impressive statistics but also by his influence on the way pitching was approached in the late 20th century, as the role of the relief pitcher became increasingly vital to team success.
Career Pitching Statistics
| W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | HR | BB | SO | ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 104 | 95 | 848 | 27 | 6 | 0 | 193 | 1375.0 | 1347 | 531 | 141 | 362 | 877 | 3.48 | 0 |
Season-by-Season Pitching
| Year | Team | Lg | W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1953 | PIT | NL | 6 | 8 | 41 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 119.0 | 145 | 87 | 30 | 56 | 6.58 | -1205.4 |
| 1955 | PIT | NL | 5 | 7 | 42 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 125.7 | 128 | 50 | 40 | 84 | 3.58 | 3155.8 |
| 1956 | PIT | NL | 12 | 13 | 68 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 135.3 | 131 | 53 | 42 | 96 | 3.52 | 1823.8 |
| 1957 | PIT | NL | 4 | 6 | 59 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 93.7 | 97 | 32 | 24 | 53 | 3.07 | 1095.0 |
| 1958 | PIT | NL | 5 | 2 | 57 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 84.0 | 77 | 27 | 22 | 47 | 2.89 | 1689.0 |
| 1959 | PIT | NL | 18 | 1 | 57 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 93.3 | 91 | 28 | 25 | 69 | 2.70 | 3112.2 |
| 1960 | PIT | NL | 10 | 8 | 68 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 114.7 | 93 | 37 | 29 | 72 | 2.90 | 1586.9 |
| 1961 | PIT | NL | 6 | 12 | 62 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 92.0 | 94 | 39 | 10 | 55 | 3.82 | 1391.3 |
| 1962 | PIT | NL | 8 | 7 | 63 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 91.0 | 74 | 19 | 18 | 45 | 1.88 | 1624.0 |
| 1963 | PIT | NL | 3 | 9 | 56 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 69.7 | 75 | 25 | 19 | 41 | 3.23 | 158.9 |
| 1964 | PIT | NL | 3 | 3 | 55 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 79.7 | 82 | 46 | 27 | 63 | 5.20 | -591.5 |
| 1965 | PIT | NL | 5 | 2 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20.3 | 20 | 6 | 7 | 19 | 2.66 | 601.5 |
| 1966 | PIT | NL | 6 | 6 | 54 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 70.0 | 68 | 21 | 24 | 67 | 2.70 | 243.9 |
| 1967 | PIT | NL | 7 | 5 | 61 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 74.3 | 62 | 20 | 22 | 41 | 2.42 | 198.5 |
| 1968 | DET | AL | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| 1968 | PIT | NL | 2 | 4 | 43 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 52.0 | 46 | 15 | 7 | 34 | 2.60 | 834.9 |
| 1969 | WSN | NL | 4 | 2 | 44 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 59.3 | 62 | 26 | 15 | 34 | 3.94 | - |
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 853 | 194 | 9 | 31 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 47 | 0.160 | 0.168 | 0.175 | 0.344 | 0.0 |
Season-by-Season Batting
| Year | Team | Lg | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1953 | PIT | NL | 43 | 30 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0.133 | 0.0 |
| 1955 | PIT | NL | 43 | 26 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0.115 | 0.0 |
| 1956 | PIT | NL | 69 | 26 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0.192 | 0.0 |
| 1957 | PIT | NL | 59 | 16 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0.125 | 0.0 |
| 1958 | PIT | NL | 57 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.000 | 0.0 |
| 1959 | PIT | NL | 58 | 13 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.231 | 0.0 |
| 1960 | PIT | NL | 68 | 17 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0.412 | 0.0 |
| 1961 | PIT | NL | 62 | 11 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.273 | 0.0 |
| 1962 | PIT | NL | 63 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.083 | 0.0 |
| 1963 | PIT | NL | 56 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0.250 | 0.0 |
| 1964 | PIT | NL | 55 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0.000 | 0.0 |
| 1965 | PIT | NL | 16 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.0 |
| 1966 | PIT | NL | 54 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0.000 | 0.0 |
| 1967 | PIT | NL | 61 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.000 | 0.0 |
| 1968 | DET | AL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1968 | PIT | NL | 43 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.000 | 0.0 |
| 1969 | WSN | NL | 44 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.500 | 0.0 |
Postseason Statistics
Playoff Career Batting
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.000 |
Playoff Batting by Year
| Year | Round | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | WS | PIT | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.000 |
Playoff Career Pitching
| W | L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 10.3 | 9 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 5.23 |
Playoff Pitching by Year
| Year | Round | Team | W | L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | WS | PIT | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 10.3 | 9 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 5.23 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | 848 | 14 | 104 | 212 | 14 | 15 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1953 | PIT | P | 41 | 0 | 11 | 12 | 0 | 1 |
| 1955 | PIT | P | 42 | 10 | 14 | 13 | 1 | 1 |
| 1956 | PIT | P | 68 | 3 | 10 | 25 | 1 | 2 |
| 1957 | PIT | P | 59 | 1 | 4 | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| 1958 | PIT | P | 57 | 0 | 6 | 18 | 0 | 0 |
| 1959 | PIT | P | 57 | 0 | 7 | 12 | 1 | 0 |
| 1960 | PIT | P | 68 | 0 | 12 | 21 | 0 | 1 |
| 1961 | PIT | P | 62 | 0 | 13 | 22 | 3 | 2 |
| 1962 | PIT | P | 63 | 0 | 4 | 12 | 2 | 3 |
| 1963 | PIT | P | 56 | 0 | 6 | 17 | 3 | 1 |
| 1964 | PIT | P | 55 | 0 | 8 | 11 | 0 | 1 |
| 1965 | PIT | P | 16 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1966 | PIT | P | 54 | 0 | 2 | 15 | 2 | 1 |
| 1967 | PIT | P | 61 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 1 |
| 1968 | DET | P | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1968 | PIT | P | 43 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 1 |
| 1969 | MON | P | 44 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 848 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1962 | TSN Fireman of the Year |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 12th | 47.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1959 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 7th | 67.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1958 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 17th | 8.0 | 336 | 0 |