Willis Flournoy
Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records
Willis Flournoy was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball for the Hilldale Club, the Brooklyn Royal Giants, and the Baltimore Black Sox. Across 137 career appearances, he went 46-54 with a 4.07 ERA and 447 strikeouts. He also batted .235 with 2 home runs. His totals include Negro Leagues seasons, which MLB recognized as major league in 2020. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 8740.8.
- 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
- L / L
- Height / Weight
- — / 221 lb
- Died
- 11/22/1964
Full name: Willis Jefferson Flournoy
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1919 | HIL | EAS | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12.0 | 11 | 6 | 9 | 5 | 4.50 | 3.09 (-46%) | -401.2 |
| 1920 | HIL | EAS | 0 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 26.2 | 20 | 6 | 7 | 16 | 2.02 | 3.45 (+41%) | 713.6 |
| 1921 | HIL | EAS | 4 | 5 | 12 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 84.0 | 75 | 37 | 37 | 62 | 3.96 | 4.02 (+1%) | 783.1 |
| 1922 | HIL | IND | 3 | 6 | 12 | 11 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 81.1 | 81 | 40 | 33 | 57 | 4.43 | 4.18 (-6%) | 1528.0 |
| 1923 | HIL | ECL | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4.0 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 9.00 | — | 0.0 |
| 1923 | BRG | ECL | 3 | 2 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 49.0 | 43 | 13 | 13 | 18 | 2.39 | 4.03 (+41%) | 1009.2 |
| 1924 | BRG | ECL | 4 | 5 | 12 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 89.0 | 82 | 25 | 24 | 47 | 2.53 | 4.13 (+39%) | 840.1 |
| 1925 | BRG | ECL | 2 | 5 | 11 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 63.1 | 68 | 35 | 17 | 29 | 4.97 | 4.55 (-9%) | 1625.7 |
| 1926 | BRG | ECL | 5 | 2 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 62.0 | 47 | 18 | 24 | 34 | 2.61 | 4.11 (+36%) | 160.5 |
| 1927 | BRG | ECL | 3 | 7 | 12 | 12 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 89.1 | 105 | 53 | 30 | 44 | 5.34 | 4.08 (-31%) | -233.7 |
| 1929 | BBS | ANL | 11 | 3 | 21 | 12 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 121.2 | 127 | 51 | 55 | 40 | 3.77 | 4.60 (+18%) | -254.3 |
| 1930 | BBS | IND | 7 | 3 | 11 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 68.2 | 93 | 49 | 13 | 27 | 6.42 | 4.80 (-34%) | 910.7 |
| 1931 | BBS | IND | 1 | 6 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 58.1 | 61 | 35 | 12 | 18 | 5.40 | 4.10 (-32%) | 862.0 |
| 1932 | BBS | EWL | 3 | 7 | 15 | 11 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 90.0 | 111 | 35 | 18 | 46 | 3.50 | 4.13 (+15%) | 1197.0 |
| Career · 14 seasons | 46 | 54 | 137 | 109 | 75 | 6 | 2 | 899.1 | 930 | 407 | 294 | 447 | 4.07 | — | 8,741 | ||
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 151 | 353 | 45 | 83 | 13 | 4 | 2 | 38 | 3 | 24 | 2 | .235 | .284 | .312 | .595 | -136 |
Career AVG .235 vs. league average .282 across their career seasons — 16.6% below league average.
Career OBP .284 vs. league average .343 across their career seasons — 17.4% below league average.
Career SLG .312 vs. league average .393 across their career seasons — 20.8% below league average.
Career OPS .595 vs. league average .737 across their career seasons — 19.2% 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1919 | HIL | EAS | 2 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .333 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1920 | HIL | EAS | 5 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1921 | HIL | EAS | 13 | 29 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .138 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1922 | HIL | IND | 12 | 29 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .069 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1923 | HIL | ECL | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1923 | BRG | ECL | 8 | 19 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | .368 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1924 | BRG | ECL | 13 | 31 | 3 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | .258 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1925 | BRG | ECL | 12 | 25 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | .240 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1926 | BRG | ECL | 8 | 23 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | .217 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1927 | BRG | ECL | 12 | 39 | 8 | 15 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | .385 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1929 | BBS | ANL | 24 | 50 | 9 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 0 | .240 | .289 (-17%) | .353 (-9%) | .415 (-23%) | .769 (-17%) | -135.6 |
| 1930 | BBS | IND | 12 | 30 | 8 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 0 | .300 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1931 | BBS | IND | 9 | 25 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | .240 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1932 | BBS | EWL | 20 | 36 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | .167 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 14 seasons | 151 | 353 | 45 | 83 | 13 | 4 | 2 | 38 | 3 | 24 | 2 | .235 | — | — | — | — | -136 | ||
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
Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Away | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
Pitching — Home / Away
| Split | G | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Away | 1 | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.00 |
Last 1 Games — Pitching
| Date | Tm | Opp | Dec | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1929-06-06 | BLS | NYL | L | 2.0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OF | 6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| P | 137 | 109 | 27 | 195 | 17 | 9 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1919 | HIL | P | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 1920 | HIL | OF | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1920 | HIL | P | 4 | 4 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 1 |
| 1921 | HIL | OF | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1921 | HIL | P | 12 | 12 | 1 | 13 | 4 | 0 |
| 1922 | HIL | P | 12 | 11 | 3 | 23 | 0 | 2 |
| 1923 | HIL | P | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1923 | BRG | P | 8 | 8 | 2 | 9 | 1 | 0 |
| 1924 | BRG | P | 12 | 9 | 5 | 21 | 4 | 3 |
| 1925 | BRG | P | 11 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1926 | BRG | P | 8 | 7 | 1 | 14 | 0 | 0 |
| 1927 | BRG | P | 12 | 12 | 2 | 27 | 5 | 1 |
| 1929 | BBS | OF | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1929 | BBS | P | 21 | 12 | 4 | 27 | 2 | 1 |
| 1930 | BBS | OF | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1930 | BBS | P | 11 | 7 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 1 |
| 1931 | BBS | P | 8 | 6 | 5 | 16 | 0 | 0 |
| 1932 | BBS | OF | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1932 | BBS | P | 15 | 11 | 2 | 20 | 0 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 137 |
| Right Field | 6 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Willis Flournoy: the record in brief
Willis Flournoy's record on this page is drawn from the season tables, which run from 1919 to 1932. The team column moves through the Hilldale Club (1919 through 1923), the Brooklyn Royal Giants (1923 through 1927), and the Baltimore Black Sox (1929 to 1932). Flournoy is listed as a pitcher. Flournoy batted and threw left-handed, per the bio block. Flournoy was born on August 9, 1895, in Monticello, GA, USA. Flournoy died on November 22, 1964. The bio lists the given name Willis Jefferson.
Flournoy's career pitching line is 46 wins, 54 losses and a 4.07 ERA over 137 appearances. The same table counts 447 strikeouts, 75 complete games, and 6 shutouts. Flournoy's 4.07 ERA was close to the 4.12 league figure for those seasons. Flournoy won 11 games in 1929, the most of any season listed. The strikeout high was 62 in 1921. Among the heaviest workloads, the lowest ERA was 2.53 in 1924, when the league's was 4.13.
Frequently Asked Questions about Willis Flournoy
- Was Willis Flournoy a pitcher?
- Yes. Willis Flournoy pitched in the major leagues, recording 46 wins and 447 strikeouts.
- How many home runs did Willis Flournoy hit?
- Willis Flournoy hit 2 career home runs with 83 hits.
- What was Willis Flournoy's career batting average?
- Willis Flournoy batted .235 over his career, with 83 hits in 353 at bats.
- How many RBI did Willis Flournoy have?
- Willis Flournoy drove in 38 runs in his career.
- What was Willis Flournoy's career ERA?
- Willis Flournoy finished with a 4.07 career ERA, going 46-54 with 447 strikeouts.
- How many strikeouts did Willis Flournoy have?
- Willis Flournoy recorded 447 career strikeouts.