Don Ferrarese
Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1955-1962)
Don Ferrarese was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1955 to 1962 for 5 teams, including the Baltimore Orioles, a span of 8 seasons. Across 183 career appearances, he went 19-36 with a 4.00 ERA and 350 strikeouts. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 1690.2.
- 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
- Position
- Pitcher
- Bats / Throws
- R / L
- Height / Weight
- 5'9" / 170 lb
- Died
- 11/4/2024 in Durango, CO, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1955-04-11
- Last Game
- 1962-09-22
Full name: Donald Hugh Ferrarese
Season-by-Season Pitching
Click a stat to plot it across every season.
| Year | Team | Lg | W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA | Lg ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | BAL | AL | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9.0 | 8 | 3 | 11 | 5 | 3.00 | 4.00 (+25%) | 0.0 |
| 1956 | BAL | AL | 4 | 10 | 36 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 102.0 | 86 | 57 | 64 | 81 | 5.03 | 3.96 (-27%) | 503.5 |
| 1957 | BAL | AL | 1 | 1 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19.0 | 14 | 10 | 12 | 13 | 4.74 | 3.83 (-24%) | 79.1 |
| 1958 | CLE | AL | 3 | 4 | 28 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 94.2 | 91 | 39 | 46 | 62 | 3.71 | 3.86 (+4%) | 1253.3 |
| 1959 | CLE | AL | 5 | 3 | 15 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 76.0 | 58 | 27 | 51 | 45 | 3.20 | 3.90 (+18%) | -1014.1 |
| 1960 | CHA | AL | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4.0 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 4 | 18.00 | — | 0.0 |
| 1961 | PHI | NL | 5 | 12 | 42 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 138.2 | 120 | 58 | 68 | 89 | 3.76 | 4.03 (+7%) | -240.1 |
| 1962 | PHI | NL | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6.2 | 9 | 6 | 3 | 6 | 8.10 | — | 0.0 |
| 1962 | SLN | NL | 1 | 4 | 38 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 56.2 | 55 | 17 | 31 | 45 | 2.70 | 3.96 (+32%) | 1108.4 |
| Career · 9 seasons | 19 | 36 | 183 | 50 | 12 | 2 | 5 | 506.2 | 449 | 225 | 295 | 350 | 4.00 | — | 1,690 | ||
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
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 184 | 128 | 5 | 20 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 26 | .156 | .182 | .211 | .393 | 0 |
Career AVG .156 vs. league average .258 across their career seasons — 39.3% below league average.
Career OBP .182 vs. league average .327 across their career seasons — 44.4% below league average.
Career SLG .211 vs. league average .394 across their career seasons — 46.4% below league average.
Career OPS .393 vs. league average .721 across their career seasons — 45.5% below 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | BAL | AL | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1956 | BAL | AL | 36 | 28 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | .036 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1957 | BAL | AL | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1958 | CLE | AL | 28 | 26 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | .115 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1959 | CLE | AL | 15 | 27 | 1 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 9 | .259 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1960 | CHA | AL | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .500 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1961 | PHI | NL | 43 | 35 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | .171 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1962 | PHI | NL | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1962 | SLN | NL | 38 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .200 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 9 seasons | 184 | 128 | 5 | 20 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 26 | .156 | — | — | — | — | 0 | ||
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 (367 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 94 | 65 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 2 | .108 |
| Away | 90 | 63 | 4 | 13 | 1 | 6 | .206 |
Pitching — Home / Away
| Split | G | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 93 | 269.1 | 264 | 128 | 131 | 190 | 4.28 |
| Away | 90 | 237.1 | 185 | 97 | 164 | 162 | 3.68 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1962-09-22 | STL | LAD | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1962-09-19 | STL | SFG | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1962-09-16 | STL | PHI | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1962-09-15 | STL | PHI | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1962-09-11 | STL | CIN | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1962-09-10 | STL | CIN | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1962-09-08 | STL | CIN | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1962-09-03 | STL | CHC | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1962-09-03 | STL | CHC | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1962-09-01 | STL | NYN | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Last 10 Games — Pitching
| Date | Tm | Opp | Dec | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1962-09-22 | STL | LAD | — | 0.2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1962-09-19 | STL | SFG | — | 4.1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 0 |
| 1962-09-16 | STL | PHI | — | 1.0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 1962-09-15 | STL | PHI | — | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1962-09-11 | STL | CIN | — | 0.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1962-09-10 | STL | CIN | — | 0.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1962-09-08 | STL | CIN | SV | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1962-09-03 | STL | CHC | L | 0.0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1962-09-03 | STL | CHC | — | 0.1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1962-09-01 | STL | NYN | — | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OF | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| P | 183 | 50 | 25 | 74 | 5 | 9 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | BAL | P | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1956 | BAL | P | 36 | 14 | 10 | 14 | 1 | 2 |
| 1957 | BAL | P | 8 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 1958 | CLE | P | 28 | 10 | 2 | 13 | 3 | 1 |
| 1959 | CLE | P | 15 | 10 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 2 |
| 1960 | CHA | P | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1961 | PHI | OF | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1961 | PHI | P | 42 | 14 | 8 | 12 | 1 | 1 |
| 1962 | PHI | P | 5 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1962 | SLN | P | 38 | 0 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 3 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 183 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Don Ferrarese (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Don Ferrarese: the record in brief
Don Ferrarese's major league career runs from a debut on April 11, 1955 to a final game on September 22, 1962. The team column moves through the Baltimore Orioles (1955 to 1957), the Cleveland Indians (1958 to 1959), the Chicago White Sox (1960), the Philadelphia Phillies (1961 through 1962), and the St. Louis Cardinals (1962). Ferrarese played primarily as a pitcher and batted right-handed and threw left-handed. The bio adds a birth date on June 19, 1929, in Oakland, CA, USA and a listed size of 5'9" and 170 pounds. Ferrarese's death is recorded on November 4, 2024, in Durango, CO, USA. The given name on file is Donald Hugh Ferrarese.
The pitching table credits Ferrarese with a 19-36 record and a 4.00 ERA in 183 games. Ferrarese had 350 strikeouts and 12 complete games. Ferrarese's 4.00 ERA was close to the 3.92 league figure for those seasons. 1959 brought Ferrarese a season-high 5 wins. Ferrarese struck out 89 batters in 1961, a career high.
Frequently Asked Questions about Don Ferrarese
- What years did Don Ferrarese play?
- Don Ferrarese played in Major League Baseball from 1955 to 1962.
- Was Don Ferrarese a pitcher?
- Yes. Don Ferrarese pitched in the major leagues, recording 19 wins and 350 strikeouts.
- How many home runs did Don Ferrarese hit?
- Don Ferrarese hit 1 career home run with 20 hits.
- What teams did Don Ferrarese play for?
- Don Ferrarese played for 5 teams: the Baltimore Orioles (1955–1957), the Cleveland Indians (1958–1959), the Chicago White Sox (1960), the Philadelphia Phillies (1961–1962), and the St. Louis Cardinals (1962).
- What were Don Ferrarese's career stats?
- In 183 games, Don Ferrarese went 19-36 with a 4.00 ERA, 350 strikeouts, 506.2 innings pitched, and 5 saves.
- What position did Don Ferrarese play?
- Don Ferrarese played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Don Ferrarese and how much did he weigh?
- Don Ferrarese was listed at 5 feet 9 inches and 170 pounds.
- What was Don Ferrarese's career ERA?
- Don Ferrarese finished with a 4.00 career ERA, going 19-36 with 350 strikeouts.
- How many strikeouts did Don Ferrarese have?
- Don Ferrarese recorded 350 career strikeouts.
- Is Don Ferrarese in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Don Ferrarese has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.