Lew Fonseca

First Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1921-1933)

Lew Fonseca was a first baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1921 to 1933 for 4 teams, including the Cincinnati Reds, a span of 13 seasons. In 937 career games, he hit .316 with 1,075 hits, 31 home runs, and 485 RBI. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 4,049.

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 .316
HR 31
RBI 485
H 1,075
OPS .788
PIV 4,049
Position
First Baseman
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
5'10" / 180 lb
Born
1/21/1899 in Oakland, CA, USA
Died
11/26/1989 in Ely, IA, USA
MLB Debut
1921-04-13
Last Game
1933-09-11

Full name: Lewis Albert Fonseca

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Career Batting Statistics

Lew Fonseca — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
937 3,404 518 1,075 203 50 31 485 64 186 199 .316 .355 .432 .788 4,049

Career AVG .316 vs. league average .283 across their career seasons — +11.6% above league average.

Career OBP .355 vs. league average .344 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .432 vs. league average .398 across their career seasons — +8.6% above league average.

Career OPS .788 vs. league average .742 across their career seasons — +6.1% above league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Lew Fonseca 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
1921 CIN NL 82 297 38 82 10 3 1 41 2 8 13 .276 .286 (-4%) .344 (-12%) .395 (-14%) .739 (-13%) -642.8
1922 CIN NL 81 291 55 105 20 3 4 45 7 14 18 .361 .285 (+26%) .345 (+13%) .397 (+24%) .743 (+19%) 961.0
1923 CIN NL 65 237 33 66 11 4 3 28 4 9 16 .278 .282 (-2%) .344 (-10%) .390 (+2%) .734 (-4%) -206.4
1924 CIN NL 20 57 5 13 2 1 0 9 1 4 4 .228 .283 (-20%) .345 (-19%) .389 (-23%) .734 (-21%) -205.9
1925 PHI NL 126 467 78 149 30 5 7 60 6 21 42 .319 .288 (+11%) .349 (+1%) .407 (+10%) .756 (+6%) 471.2
1927 CLE AL 112 428 60 133 20 7 2 40 12 12 17 .311 .282 (+10%) .344 (-3%) .392 (+3%) .736 (avg) -101.8
1928 CLE AL 75 263 38 86 19 4 3 36 4 13 17 .327 .280 (+16%) .342 (+5%) .395 (+17%) .737 (+12%) 505.0
1929 CLE AL 148 566 97 209 44 15 6 103 19 50 23 .369 .289 (+28%) .353 (+21%) .415 (+28%) .769 (+25%) 3025.3
1930 CLE AL 40 129 20 36 9 2 0 17 1 7 7 .279 .293 (-5%) .354 (-11%) .429 (-12%) .784 (-11%) -268.5
1931 CLE AL 26 108 21 40 9 1 1 14 3 8 7 .370 .276 (+34%) .338 (+24%) .388 (+29%) .726 (+26%) 483.7
1931 CHA AL 121 465 65 139 26 5 2 71 4 32 22 .299 .276 (+8%) .338 (+3%) .388 (avg) .726 (+1%) 483.7
1932 CHA AL 18 37 0 5 1 0 0 6 0 1 7 .135 — — — — 0.0
1933 CHA AL 23 59 8 12 2 0 2 15 1 7 6 .203 .270 (-25%) .329 (-13%) .377 (-10%) .707 (-11%) -101.5
Career · 13 seasons 937 3,404 518 1,075 203 50 31 485 64 186 199 .316 — — — — 4,403

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 Pitching Statistics

Lew Fonseca — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0.0

Career ERA 0.00 vs. league average 4.13 across their career seasons — 100.0% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Lew Fonseca — Season-by-Season Pitching
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1932 CHA AL 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1.0 0 0 0 0 0.00 — 0.0
Career · 1 season 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1.0 0 0 0 0 0.00 — 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 (938 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Lew Fonseca — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home45715852394977228.314
Away480181928057824253.318

Pitching — Home / Away

Lew Fonseca — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Away11.000000.00

Last 10 Games — Batting

Lew Fonseca — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1933-09-11 CHWPHAL 100000000
1933-09-09 CHWMINL 100000001
1933-08-21 CHWNYYL 000000010
1933-07-25 CHWCLEL 100000000
1933-07-23 CHWBOSL 100000000
1933-07-10 CHWPHAL 100000000
1933-06-25 CHWPHAL 101100100
1933-06-18 CHWNYYW 100000000
1933-06-10 CHWDETL 100000000
1933-06-08 CHWDETL 100000000

Last 1 Games — Pitching

Lew Fonseca — Last 1 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1932-09-23 CHWCLE — 1.0000000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Lew Fonseca — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 375 0 3674 242 24 323
2B 363 0 882 1172 72 180
3B 22 0 14 38 6 1
OF 119 0 229 6 7 2
P 1 0 0 0 0 0
SS 4 0 0 1 0 1

Season-by-Season Fielding

Lew Fonseca — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1921 CIN 1B 16 0 150 6 1 11
1921 CIN 2B 50 0 125 149 11 20
1921 CIN OF 16 0 32 0 2 0
1922 CIN 2B 71 0 197 251 14 40
1923 CIN 1B 14 0 129 7 2 10
1923 CIN 2B 45 0 123 169 13 27
1924 CIN 1B 6 0 51 3 1 1
1924 CIN 2B 10 0 11 27 0 3
1925 PHI 1B 55 0 498 26 3 37
1925 PHI 2B 69 0 150 219 17 31
1927 CLE 1B 13 0 118 1 1 9
1927 CLE 2B 96 0 229 304 15 51
1928 CLE 1B 56 0 541 41 0 65
1928 CLE 2B 1 0 1 4 0 0
1928 CLE 3B 15 0 11 32 3 1
1928 CLE SS 4 0 0 1 0 1
1929 CLE 1B 147 0 1486 107 8 141
1930 CLE 1B 28 0 274 24 6 15
1930 CLE 3B 6 0 3 6 3 0
1931 CLE 1B 26 0 284 15 2 18
1931 CHA 1B 2 0 5 0 0 1
1931 CHA 2B 21 0 46 49 2 8
1931 CHA 3B 1 0 0 0 0 0
1931 CHA OF 95 0 183 4 5 1
1932 CHA OF 8 0 14 2 0 1
1932 CHA P 1 0 0 0 0 0
1933 CHA 1B 12 0 138 12 0 15

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Lew Fonseca Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 1
First Base 375
Second Base 363
Third Base 22
Shortstop 4
Left Field 99
Right Field 21

Awards & Honors

Lew Fonseca — Awards & Honors
Year Award Notes
1929 Baseball Magazine All-Star 1B

Award Voting History

Lew Fonseca — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1928 Most Valuable Player AL 22th 2.0 64 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Lew Fonseca (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Johnny Hodapp
    .311 avg, 28 HR
  2. 96
    Harvey Hendrick
    .308 avg, 48 HR
  3. 86
    Luis Arraez
    .316 avg, 42 HR
  4. 82
    Bill Keister
    .312 avg, 18 HR
  5. 80
    Russ Wrightstone
    .297 avg, 60 HR
  6. 79
    Sammy Hale
    .302 avg, 30 HR

Lew Fonseca: the record in brief

The profile opens with Lew Fonseca's first major league game on April 13, 1921; the last one listed came on September 11, 1933. By club, Fonseca's seasons break down as the Cincinnati Reds (1921 through 1924), the Philadelphia Phillies (1925), the Cleveland Indians (1927 to 1931), and the Chicago White Sox (1931 to 1933). Fonseca, born on January 21, 1899, in Oakland, CA, USA, is listed as a first baseman and threw and hit right-handed. Size on record: 5-foot-10 and 180 pounds. Fonseca died on November 26, 1989, in Ely, IA, USA. Lew Fonseca was the playing name; the full given name is Lewis Albert.

In 937 games and 3,404 at bats, Fonseca batted .316 with 1,075 hits, plus 31 homers, 485 RBI, and 64 stolen bases. On-base and slugging figures of .355 and .432 give Fonseca a career OPS of .788. Fonseca's .316 average ran 11.6% above the .283 that the league posted over the same seasons. In OPS terms, Fonseca's .788 stands 6.1% above the league's .742.

Frequently Asked Questions about Lew Fonseca

What years did Lew Fonseca play?
Lew Fonseca played in Major League Baseball from 1921 to 1933.
Was Lew Fonseca a pitcher?
No. Lew Fonseca was a position player (First Baseman), though he did pitch in 1 career game.
How many home runs did Lew Fonseca hit?
Lew Fonseca hit 31 career home runs with 1,075 hits.
What teams did Lew Fonseca play for?
Lew Fonseca played for 4 teams: the Cincinnati Reds (1921–1924), the Philadelphia Phillies (1925), the Cleveland Indians (1927–1931), and the Chicago White Sox (1931–1933).
What were Lew Fonseca's career stats?
In 937 games, Lew Fonseca had 1,075 hits, 31 home runs, 485 RBI, 518 runs, and 64 stolen bases, with a .316 batting average.
What position did Lew Fonseca play?
Lew Fonseca played primarily as a first baseman, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Lew Fonseca and how much did he weigh?
Lew Fonseca was listed at 5 feet 10 inches and 180 pounds.
How many home runs did Lew Fonseca hit each season?
Lew Fonseca's home runs by season: 1 in 1921, 4 in 1922, 3 in 1923, 0 in 1924, 7 in 1925, 2 in 1927, 3 in 1928, 6 in 1929, 0 in 1930, 3 in 1931, 0 in 1932, and 2 in 1933. His most in one season was 7, in 1925.
What was Lew Fonseca's career batting average?
Lew Fonseca batted .316 over his career, with 1,075 hits in 3,404 at bats.
How many RBI did Lew Fonseca have?
Lew Fonseca drove in 485 runs in his career.
What was Lew Fonseca's career ERA?
Lew Fonseca finished with a 0.00 career ERA, going 0-0 with 0 strikeouts.
Is Lew Fonseca in the Hall of Fame?
No. Lew Fonseca has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.