Mike Fornieles

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1952-1963)

Mike Fornieles was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1952 to 1963 for 5 teams, including the Washington Senators, a span of 12 seasons. Across 432 career appearances, he went 63-64 with a 3.96 ERA, 576 strikeouts, and 55 saves. He also batted .169 with 1 home runs. Mike Fornieles was an All-Star. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 4560.1.

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 63–64
ERA 3.96
WHIP 1.37
SO 576
Pitcher PIV 4560.1
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
5'11" / 155 lb
Born
1/18/1932 in Havana, La Habana, Cuba
Died
2/11/1998 in St. Petersburg, FL, USA
MLB Debut
1952-09-02
Last Game
1963-07-14
Awards
All-Star

Full name: Jose Miguel Fornieles

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Career Pitching Statistics

Mike Fornieles — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
63 64 432 76 20 4 55 1156.2 1,165 509 98 421 576 3.96 4560.1

Career ERA 3.96 vs. league average 3.87 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Mike Fornieles Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1952 WS1 AL 2 2 4 2 2 1 0 26.1 13 4 11 12 1.37 3.70 (+63%) 315.5
1953 CHA AL 8 7 39 16 5 0 3 153.0 160 61 61 72 3.59 4.14 (+13%) 2261.6
1954 CHA AL 1 2 15 6 0 0 1 42.0 41 20 14 18 4.29 3.90 (-10%) 125.3
1955 CHA AL 6 3 26 9 2 0 2 86.1 84 37 29 23 3.86 4.00 (+4%) -1556.0
1956 CHA AL 0 1 6 0 0 0 0 15.2 22 8 6 6 4.60 3.96 (-16%) 150.3
1956 BAL AL 4 7 30 11 1 1 1 111.0 109 49 25 53 3.97 3.96 (avg) 2996.9
1957 BAL AL 2 6 15 4 1 1 0 57.0 57 27 17 43 4.26 3.83 (-11%) 1555.4
1957 BOS AL 8 7 25 18 7 1 2 125.1 136 49 38 64 3.52 3.83 (+8%) 2221.6
1958 BOS AL 4 6 37 7 1 0 1 110.2 123 61 33 49 4.96 3.86 (-29%) 109.8
1959 BOS AL 5 3 46 0 0 0 11 82.0 77 28 29 54 3.07 3.90 (+21%) 1312.9
1960 BOS AL 10 5 70 0 0 0 14 109.0 86 32 49 64 2.64 3.82 (+31%) 655.8
1961 BOS AL 9 8 57 2 1 0 15 119.1 121 62 54 70 4.68 4.03 (-16%) -2217.1
1962 BOS AL 3 6 42 1 0 0 5 82.1 96 49 37 36 5.36 3.96 (-35%) -3370.8
1963 BOS AL 0 0 9 0 0 0 0 14.0 16 10 5 5 6.43 3.46 (-86%) 218.6
1963 MIN AL 1 1 11 0 0 0 0 22.2 24 12 13 7 4.76 3.46 (-38%) -219.7
Career · 15 seasons 63 64 432 76 20 4 55 1,156.2 1,165 509 421 576 3.96 — 4,560

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

Mike Fornieles — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
440 308 25 52 7 1 1 16 1 3 63 .169 .177 .208 .385 0

Career AVG .169 vs. league average .257 across their career seasons — 34.3% below league average.

Career OBP .177 vs. league average .326 across their career seasons — 45.8% below league average.

Career SLG .208 vs. league average .390 across their career seasons — 46.7% below league average.

Career OPS .385 vs. league average .716 across their career seasons — 46.3% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Mike Fornieles 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
1952 WS1 AL 4 10 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 .000 — — — — 0.0
1953 CHA AL 39 41 2 4 1 0 0 5 0 1 5 .098 — — — — 0.0
1954 CHA AL 16 11 2 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .273 — — — — 0.0
1955 CHA AL 28 29 6 3 1 0 0 1 0 0 5 .103 — — — — 0.0
1956 CHA AL 6 5 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .200 — — — — 0.0
1956 BAL AL 33 30 2 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 5 .167 — — — — 0.0
1957 BAL AL 16 18 1 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 .278 — — — — 0.0
1957 BOS AL 26 44 3 6 0 0 0 2 0 2 4 .136 — — — — 0.0
1958 BOS AL 37 29 2 6 0 0 0 1 0 0 5 .207 — — — — 0.0
1959 BOS AL 46 19 0 3 1 0 0 1 0 0 7 .158 — — — — 0.0
1960 BOS AL 70 15 2 6 0 0 0 1 0 0 3 .400 — — — — 0.0
1961 BOS AL 57 32 2 5 1 0 1 4 0 0 8 .156 — — — — 0.0
1962 BOS AL 42 16 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 .188 — — — — 0.0
1963 BOS AL 9 3 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 .333 — — — — 0.0
1963 MIN AL 11 6 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 3 .167 — — — — 0.0
Career · 15 seasons 440 308 25 52 7 1 1 16 1 3 63 .169 — — — — 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 (872 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Mike Fornieles — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home2211641935111.213
Away21914461705.118

Pitching — Home / Away

Mike Fornieles — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home218621.06312842293144.12
Away214535.15342251912643.78

Last 10 Games — Batting

Mike Fornieles — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1963-07-14 MINCLEW 000000000
1963-07-10 MINBOSL 000000000
1963-07-05 MINBALW 000000000
1963-07-04 MINDETL 000000000
1963-07-03 MINDETL 000000000
1963-06-30 MINTEXW 200000001
1963-06-23 MINBALL 100000001
1963-06-21 MINBALL 000000000
1963-06-19 MINCHWL 000000000
1963-06-16 MINLAAL 100000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Mike Fornieles — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1963-07-14 MINCLE — 0.2000100
1963-07-10 MINBOS — 2.0100010
1963-07-05 MINBAL — 0.1200000
1963-07-04 MINDET — 2.0000100
1963-07-03 MINDET — 2.0211120
1963-06-30 MINTEX W 4.1222400
1963-06-23 MINBAL — 3.1322420
1963-06-21 MINBAL — 0.1320010
1963-06-19 MINCHW — 2.1522100
1963-06-16 MINLAA L 2.0111000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Mike Fornieles — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 432 58 74 209 15 17

Season-by-Season Fielding

Mike Fornieles — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1952 WS1 P 4 0 1 4 0 0
1953 CHA P 39 0 16 30 2 2
1954 CHA P 15 6 1 11 2 1
1955 CHA P 26 9 1 18 1 2
1956 CHA P 6 0 1 2 0 0
1956 BAL P 30 11 4 28 0 3
1957 BAL P 15 4 5 10 0 1
1957 BOS P 25 18 8 15 3 1
1958 BOS P 37 7 5 18 1 1
1959 BOS P 46 0 5 13 1 0
1960 BOS P 70 0 7 19 3 3
1961 BOS P 57 2 12 25 1 2
1962 BOS P 42 1 5 14 1 1
1963 BOS P 9 0 2 1 0 0
1963 MIN P 11 0 1 1 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Mike Fornieles Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 432

Awards & Honors

Mike Fornieles — Awards & Honors
Year Award Notes
1960 TSN Fireman of the Year

Award Voting History

Mike Fornieles — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1960 Most Valuable Player AL 28th 2.0 336 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Mike Fornieles (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Tom Hume
    57-71, 3.85 ERA
  2. 95
    Gene Nelson
    53-64, 4.13 ERA
  3. 94
    Don Aase
    66-60, 3.80 ERA
  4. 93
    Ted Power
    68-69, 4.00 ERA
  5. 89
    Clyde Shoun
    73-59, 3.91 ERA
  6. 88
    Cal Koonce
    47-49, 3.78 ERA

Mike Fornieles: the record in brief

Mike Fornieles played a first major league game on September 2, 1952 and a last one on July 14, 1963. Fornieles played for the Washington Senators (1952), the Chicago White Sox (1953 to 1956), the Baltimore Orioles (1956 through 1957), the Boston Red Sox (1957 through 1963), and the Minnesota Twins (1963). Born on January 18, 1932, in Havana, La Habana, Cuba, Fornieles is listed as a pitcher and both batted and threw right-handed. The bio gives 5 feet, 11 inches and 155 pounds. Fornieles died on February 11, 1998, in St. Petersburg, FL, USA. Mike Fornieles was the playing name; the full given name is Jose Miguel.

Fornieles pitched in 432 games, starting 76, and finished with a 63-64 record and 3.96 ERA. Fornieles had 576 strikeouts, 20 complete games, and 55 saves. Fornieles's 3.96 ERA was close to the 3.87 league figure for those seasons. No season topped the 10 wins of 1960. 1953 produced Fornieles's most strikeouts, 72.

Frequently Asked Questions about Mike Fornieles

What years did Mike Fornieles play?
Mike Fornieles played in Major League Baseball from 1952 to 1963.
Was Mike Fornieles a pitcher?
Yes. Mike Fornieles pitched in the major leagues, recording 63 wins and 576 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Mike Fornieles hit?
Mike Fornieles hit 1 career home run with 52 hits.
What teams did Mike Fornieles play for?
Mike Fornieles played for 4 teams: the Minnesota Twins (1952, 1963), the Chicago White Sox (1953–1956), the Baltimore Orioles (1956–1957), and the Boston Red Sox (1957–1963).
Did Mike Fornieles win a Cy Young Award?
No. Mike Fornieles did not win the Cy Young Award.
What awards did Mike Fornieles win?
Mike Fornieles was selected to 1 All-Star Game.
What were Mike Fornieles's career stats?
In 432 games, Mike Fornieles went 63-64 with a 3.96 ERA, 576 strikeouts, 1,156.2 innings pitched, and 55 saves. At the plate he had 52 hits and 1 home runs.
What position did Mike Fornieles play?
Mike Fornieles played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Mike Fornieles and how much did he weigh?
Mike Fornieles was listed at 5 feet 11 inches and 155 pounds.
What was Mike Fornieles's career ERA?
Mike Fornieles finished with a 3.96 career ERA, going 63-64 with 576 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Mike Fornieles have?
Mike Fornieles recorded 576 career strikeouts.
Is Mike Fornieles in the Hall of Fame?
No. Mike Fornieles has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
How many All-Star Games did Mike Fornieles make?
Mike Fornieles was selected to 1 All-Star Game.