Russ Ford

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1909-1915)

Russ Ford was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1909 to 1915 for the New York Yankees and the Buffalo Blues, a span of 7 seasons. Across 199 career appearances, he went 99-71 with a 2.59 ERA and 710 strikeouts. He also batted .209 with 1 home runs. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 9912.1.

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

W–L 99–71
ERA 2.59
WHIP 1.15
SO 710
Pitcher PIV 9912.1
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
5'11" / 175 lb
Born
4/25/1883 in Brandon, MB, CAN
Died
1/24/1960 in Rockingham, NC, USA
MLB Debut
1909-04-28
Last Game
1915-08-16

Full name: Russell William Ford

📊 Compare This Player 📈 View Career Timeline

Career Pitching Statistics

Russ Ford — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
99 71 199 170 126 15 9 1487.1 1,340 428 44 376 710 2.59 9912.1

Career ERA 2.59 vs. league average 2.98 across their career seasons — 13.2% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Russ Ford Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1909 NYA AL 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 3.0 4 3 4 2 9.00 — 0.0
1910 NYA AL 26 6 36 33 29 8 1 299.2 194 55 70 209 1.65 2.79 (+41%) 7039.3
1911 NYA AL 22 11 37 33 26 1 0 281.1 251 71 76 158 2.27 3.37 (+33%) 5282.5
1912 NYA AL 13 21 36 35 30 0 0 291.2 317 115 79 112 3.55 3.36 (-6%) -345.2
1913 NYA AL 12 18 33 28 15 1 2 237.0 244 70 58 72 2.66 3.07 (+13%) -1157.2
1914 BUF FL 21 6 35 26 19 5 6 247.1 190 50 41 123 1.82 2.93 (+38%) 1967.2
1915 BUF FL 5 9 21 15 7 0 0 127.1 140 64 48 34 4.52 2.90 (-56%) -2874.4
Career · 7 seasons 99 71 199 170 126 15 9 1,487.1 1,340 428 376 710 2.59 — 9,912

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

Russ Ford — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
204 506 55 106 17 8 1 37 14 34 161 .209 .262 .281 .543 -1,564

Career AVG .209 vs. league average .256 across their career seasons — 18.2% below league average.

Career OBP .262 vs. league average .323 across their career seasons — 18.9% below league average.

Career SLG .281 vs. league average .339 across their career seasons — 17.1% below league average.

Career OPS .543 vs. league average .662 across their career seasons — 18.0% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Russ Ford — Season-by-Season Batting
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1909 NYA AL 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1910 NYA AL 36 96 8 20 1 5 0 7 1 9 33 .208 .249 (-17%) .317 (-11%) .326 (-1%) .644 (-6%) -111.0
1911 NYA AL 37 102 10 20 2 1 0 8 2 3 31 .196 .266 (-26%) .336 (-35%) .356 (-34%) .693 (-34%) -561.4
1912 NYA AL 40 112 15 32 8 0 1 8 2 6 31 .286 .268 (+6%) .335 (-4%) .358 (+7%) .694 (+2%) 4.0
1913 NYA AL 33 74 5 12 1 1 0 3 5 7 29 .162 .259 (-38%) .325 (-25%) .345 (-41%) .670 (-33%) -363.9
1914 BUF FL 35 78 10 10 1 0 0 7 3 8 28 .128 .255 (-50%) .322 (-35%) .339 (-58%) .661 (-47%) -531.7
1915 BUF FL 22 43 7 12 4 1 0 4 1 1 9 .279 — — — — 0.0
Career · 7 seasons 204 506 55 106 17 8 1 37 14 34 161 .209 — — — — -1,564

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 (403 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Russ Ford — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home1082452446117.188
Away962633061019.232

Pitching — Home / Away

Russ Ford — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home108803.17622492104112.79
Away91686.05821771653082.32

Last 10 Games — Batting

Russ Ford — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1915-08-16 BUFKCFL 200000001
1915-08-07 BUFPTFL 422200101
1915-08-01 BUFSLFL 201000000
1915-07-12 BUFBRFL 100000001
1915-07-05 BUFBLFW 000000000
1915-06-29 BUFSLFW 301000000
1915-06-25 BUFPTFL 311010001
1915-06-19 BUFKCFL 200000010
1915-06-16 BUFCHFL 200000100
1915-06-13 BUFNEWL 000000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Russ Ford — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1915-08-16 BUFKCF L 9.0655430
1915-08-07 BUFPTF — 7.01688211
1915-08-01 BUFSLF — 7.0611310
1915-07-12 BUFBRF L 4.1966110
1915-07-05 BUFBLF — 2.1655000
1915-06-29 BUFSLF W 9.0944510
1915-06-25 BUFPTF L 8.01066521
1915-06-19 BUFKCF L 9.0522120
1915-06-16 BUFCHF L 9.0733321
1915-06-13 BUFNEW — 1.0230011

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Russ Ford — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
2B 2 0 2 8 2 0
OF 2 0 3 1 0 0
P 199 33 59 403 27 15

Season-by-Season Fielding

Russ Ford — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1909 NYA P 1 0 1 2 1 1
1910 NYA P 36 33 7 75 7 4
1911 NYA P 37 0 16 70 5 0
1912 NYA 2B 2 0 2 8 2 0
1912 NYA OF 2 0 3 1 0 0
1912 NYA P 36 0 13 88 5 6
1913 NYA P 33 0 11 56 8 1
1914 BUF P 35 0 9 72 1 2
1915 BUF P 21 0 2 40 0 1

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Russ Ford — Career Games by Position
Position Games
Pitcher 199
Second Base 2
Left Field 2

Award Voting History

Russ Ford — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1911 Most Valuable Player AL 18th 3.0 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

Russ Ford (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Juan Padrón
    68-72, 2.74 ERA
  2. 97
    Al Demaree
    80-72, 2.77 ERA
  3. 96
    Harry Coveleski
    81-55, 2.39 ERA
  4. 95
    Joe Benz
    76-75, 2.43 ERA
  5. 93
    Carl Weilman
    85-95, 2.67 ERA
  6. 92
    Phil Douglas
    94-93, 2.80 ERA

Russ Ford: the record in brief

Russ Ford played a first major league game on April 28, 1909 and a last one on August 16, 1915. Ford played for the New York Highlanders (1909 through 1912), the New York Yankees (1913), the Buffalo Buffeds (1914), and the Buffalo Blues (1915). The bio lists Ford as a pitcher who both batted and threw right-handed. The recorded size is 175 pounds on a 5-foot-11 frame. Ford was born on April 25, 1883, in Brandon, MB, CAN. The bio records the death on January 24, 1960, in Rockingham, NC, USA. On the record, Russ Ford was born Russell William Ford.

Ford's career pitching line is 99 wins, 71 losses and a 2.59 ERA over 199 appearances. Also on Ford's record: 710 strikeouts, 126 complete games, and 15 shutouts. That 2.59 ERA compares with a 2.98 league average across the same seasons, 13.2% better. The best win total was 26, in 1910. 1910 was Ford's sharpest full season, a 1.65 ERA against the league's 2.79.

Frequently Asked Questions about Russ Ford

What years did Russ Ford play?
Russ Ford played in Major League Baseball from 1909 to 1915.
Was Russ Ford a pitcher?
Yes. Russ Ford pitched in the major leagues, recording 99 wins and 710 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Russ Ford hit?
Russ Ford hit 1 career home run with 106 hits.
What teams did Russ Ford play for?
Russ Ford played for 2 teams: the New York Yankees (1909–1913) and the Buffalo Blues (1914–1915).
What were Russ Ford's career stats?
In 199 games, Russ Ford went 99-71 with a 2.59 ERA, 710 strikeouts, 1,487.1 innings pitched, and 9 saves. At the plate he had 106 hits and 1 home runs.
What position did Russ Ford play?
Russ Ford played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Russ Ford and how much did he weigh?
Russ Ford was listed at 5 feet 11 inches and 175 pounds.
What was Russ Ford's career ERA?
Russ Ford finished with a 2.59 career ERA, going 99-71 with 710 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Russ Ford have?
Russ Ford recorded 710 career strikeouts.
Is Russ Ford in the Hall of Fame?
No. Russ Ford has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.