Joe Ferguson

Catcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1970-1983)

Joe Ferguson was a catcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1970 to 1983 for 4 teams, including the Los Angeles Dodgers, a span of 14 seasons. In 1,013 career games, he hit .240 with 719 hits, 122 home runs, and 445 RBI. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 6,607.

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

AVG .240
HR 122
RBI 445
H 719
OPS .767
PIV 6,607
Position
Catcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
6'2" / 200 lb
Born
9/19/1946 in San Francisco, CA, USA
MLB Debut
1970-09-12
Last Game
1983-06-17

Full name: Joseph Vance Ferguson

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Career Batting Statistics

Joe Ferguson — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
1,013 3,001 407 719 121 11 122 445 22 562 607 .240 .358 .409 .767 6,607

Career AVG .240 vs. league average .258 across their career seasons — 7.0% below league average.

Career OBP .358 vs. league average .324 across their career seasons — +10.5% above league average.

Career SLG .409 vs. league average .379 across their career seasons — +7.9% above league average.

Career OPS .767 vs. league average .703 across their career seasons — +9.1% above league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Joe Ferguson 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
1970 LAN NL 5 4 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 2 2 .250 — — — — 0.0
1971 LAN NL 36 102 13 22 3 0 2 7 1 12 15 .216 .249 (-13%) .316 (-4%) .365 (-17%) .682 (-11%) -140.0
1972 LAN NL 8 24 2 7 3 0 1 5 0 2 4 .292 — — — — 0.0
1973 LAN NL 136 487 84 128 26 0 25 88 1 87 81 .263 .256 (+2%) .325 (+14%) .378 (+24%) .703 (+19%) 1962.6
1974 LAN NL 111 349 54 88 14 1 16 57 2 75 73 .252 .256 (-2%) .324 (+17%) .369 (+18%) .693 (+18%) 1374.5
1975 LAN NL 66 202 15 42 2 1 5 23 2 35 47 .208 .257 (-19%) .327 (-1%) .374 (-19%) .701 (-11%) -251.2
1976 LAN NL 54 185 24 41 7 0 6 18 2 25 41 .222 .255 (-13%) .320 (-1%) .360 (-1%) .681 (-1%) 18.0
1976 SLN NL 71 189 22 38 8 4 4 21 4 32 40 .201 .255 (-21%) .320 (-1%) .360 (-3%) .681 (-2%) 18.0
1977 HOU NL 132 421 59 108 21 3 16 61 6 85 79 .257 .264 (-3%) .329 (+15%) .401 (+8%) .730 (+11%) 1240.0
1978 HOU NL 51 150 20 31 5 0 7 22 0 37 30 .207 .257 (-20%) .323 (+12%) .378 (avg) .702 (+6%) 278.5
1978 LAN NL 67 198 20 47 11 0 7 28 1 34 41 .237 .257 (-8%) .323 (+8%) .378 (+5%) .702 (+7%) 278.5
1979 LAN NL 122 363 54 95 14 0 20 69 1 70 68 .262 .265 (-1%) .329 (+15%) .397 (+17%) .727 (+16%) 1367.8
1980 LAN NL 77 172 20 41 3 2 9 29 2 38 46 .238 .264 (-10%) .326 (+14%) .387 (+12%) .714 (+13%) 506.9
1981 LAN NL 17 14 2 2 1 0 0 1 0 2 5 .143 — — — — 0.0
1981 CAL AL 12 30 5 7 1 0 1 5 0 9 8 .233 — — — — 0.0
1982 CAL AL 36 84 10 19 2 0 3 8 0 12 19 .226 .261 (-13%) .324 (avg) .388 (-8%) .712 (-5%) -33.6
1983 CAL AL 12 27 3 2 0 0 0 2 0 5 8 .074 — — — — 0.0
Career · 17 seasons 1,013 3,001 407 719 121 11 122 445 22 562 607 .240 — — — — 6,620

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

Joe Ferguson — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
13 35 6 7 2 0 1 4 9 9 .200

Playoff Batting by Year

Joe Ferguson — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1978 NLCS LAN 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000
1978 WS LAN 2 4 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 1 .500
1974 NLCS LAN 4 13 3 3 0 0 0 2 5 1 .231
1974 WS LAN 5 16 2 2 0 0 1 2 4 6 .125

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (1012 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Joe Ferguson — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home512146421136267234.247
Away500153319635655211.232

Last 10 Games — Batting

Joe Ferguson — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1983-06-17 LAATORL 200000000
1983-06-13 LAACHWW 412000101
1983-06-09 LAACHWW 300000011
1983-06-05 LAAMILL 400000002
1983-05-30 LAACLEL 200000010
1983-05-15 LAAMINL 210000011
1983-05-13 LAAMINL 000000000
1983-05-07 LAADETW 100000001
1983-05-01 LAABOSL 200000001
1983-04-22 LAABALW 100000010

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Joe Ferguson — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 1 1 10 0 0 0
C 766 679 3905 376 56 54
OF 207 171 338 8 12 5

Season-by-Season Fielding

Joe Ferguson — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1970 LAN C 3 0 9 0 0 0
1971 LAN C 35 30 167 9 3 0
1972 LAN C 7 6 37 1 0 1
1972 LAN OF 2 2 5 0 0 0
1973 LAN C 122 118 757 57 3 17
1973 LAN OF 20 16 29 0 2 0
1974 LAN C 82 70 436 40 6 2
1974 LAN OF 32 28 50 0 1 0
1975 LAN C 35 31 158 16 1 1
1975 LAN OF 34 26 57 4 1 3
1976 LAN C 17 12 74 10 3 2
1976 LAN OF 39 38 82 2 3 0
1976 SLN C 48 45 238 32 6 6
1976 SLN OF 14 8 15 0 2 0
1977 HOU 1B 1 1 10 0 0 0
1977 HOU C 122 116 634 80 11 10
1978 HOU C 51 46 288 29 2 0
1978 LAN C 62 57 284 23 5 2
1978 LAN OF 3 2 1 0 0 0
1979 LAN C 67 62 326 35 7 6
1979 LAN OF 52 45 88 2 2 2
1980 LAN C 66 50 297 23 6 4
1980 LAN OF 1 0 0 0 1 0
1981 LAN OF 1 0 0 0 0 0
1981 CAL C 8 8 35 5 1 1
1981 CAL OF 4 3 6 0 0 0
1982 CAL C 32 22 138 13 1 2
1982 CAL OF 2 1 1 0 0 0
1983 CAL C 9 6 27 3 1 0
1983 CAL OF 3 2 4 0 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Joe Ferguson Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Catcher 765
First Base 1
Left Field 16
Right Field 196

College History

Joe Ferguson — College History
School Name City State Years Attended
University of the Pacific Stockton CA 1965, 1966, 1967

Award Voting History

Joe Ferguson — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1973 Most Valuable Player NL 21th 7.0 336 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Joe Ferguson (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Ed Bailey
    .256 avg, 155 HR
  2. 96
    Alex Avila
    .233 avg, 105 HR
  3. 96
    John Romano
    .255 avg, 129 HR
  4. 94
    Chris Iannetta
    .230 avg, 141 HR
  5. 94
    Darren Daulton
    .245 avg, 137 HR
  6. 94
    Andy Seminick
    .243 avg, 164 HR

Joe Ferguson: the record in brief

The profile opens with Joe Ferguson's first major league game on September 12, 1970; the last one listed came on June 17, 1983. Ferguson played for the Los Angeles Dodgers (1970 through 1981), the St. Louis Cardinals (1976), the Houston Astros (1977 to 1978), and the California Angels (1981 to 1983). Ferguson played primarily as a catcher and batted and threw right-handed. Born on September 19, 1946, in San Francisco, CA, USA, Ferguson was listed at 200 pounds on a 6-foot-2 frame. Ferguson's full given name, per the bio, is Joseph Vance Ferguson.

Ferguson's career batting table shows 1,013 games, 3,001 at bats and 719 hits, a .240 average; the totals also include 122 homers, 445 runs batted in, and 22 stolen bases. On-base and slugging figures of .358 and .409 give Ferguson a career OPS of .767. Measured against the leagues Ferguson played in, the .240 career average compares with a .258 league average over the same seasons, 7.0% below the league. In OPS terms, Ferguson's .767 stands 9.1% above the league's .703.

Frequently Asked Questions about Joe Ferguson

What years did Joe Ferguson play?
Joe Ferguson played in Major League Baseball from 1970 to 1983.
Was Joe Ferguson a pitcher?
No. Joe Ferguson was a position player (Catcher).
How many home runs did Joe Ferguson hit?
Joe Ferguson hit 122 career home runs with 719 hits.
What was Joe Ferguson's career batting average?
Joe Ferguson batted .240 over his career, with 719 hits in 3,001 at bats.
How many RBI did Joe Ferguson have?
Joe Ferguson drove in 445 runs in his career.
Is Joe Ferguson in the Hall of Fame?
No. Joe Ferguson has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.