Willie Foster

Pitcher · Career Stats, Hall of Fame Bio & Records (Final season: 1938)

⭐ Hall of Fame 1996
W–L 125–60
ERA 2.66
WHIP 1.15
SO 1,062
Pitcher PIV 41671.8
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
B / L
Height / Weight
6'0" / 190 lb
Born
6/12/1904 in Calvert, TX, USA
Died
9/16/1978 in Lorman, MS, USA
Last Game
1938-04-10
Hall of Fame
Inducted 1996 (Veterans)
Awards
3× All-Star

Full name: William Hendrick Foster

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Negro Leagues Career Statistics

Batting

PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB BA OBP SLG OPS
156.0 133.0 14.0 23.0 5.0 1.0 1.0 5.0 13.0 7.0 0 .173 .247 .248 .495

Pitching

W L GS CG GF SV IP H R ER HR BB SO ERA WHIP
34 22 52 38 18 5 432.1 369 193 86 16 122 232 1.79 1.14

Negro Leagues (season totals). Additive Retrosheet-digitized totals for seasons not already in the logs above; they are not summed into the career line. No team/league breakdown is available, and coverage may be partial.

Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Pitching

Season W L GS CG GF SV IP H R ER HR BB SO ERA WHIP
1938 0 0 0 0 1 1 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0.00
Listed seasons · 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0.00

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
125 60 262 185 142 34 14 1665.0 1,397 492 41 522 1,062 2.66 41671.8

Career ERA 2.66 vs. league average 4.27 across their career seasons — 37.7% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

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
1923 MRS IND 6 2 9 8 6 1 0 62.0 43 12 12 46 1.74 4.03 (+57%) 2987.8
1923 CAG NNL 0 0 3 2 0 0 0 8.0 6 5 4 4 5.62 — 0.0
1924 MRS NNL 1 0 1 1 1 1 0 9.0 1 0 3 14 0.00 4.13 (+100%) 0.0
1924 CAG NNL 6 1 12 9 4 2 0 57.7 46 16 21 39 2.50 4.13 (+40%) 1648.1
1925 BBB NNL 1 0 1 1 1 1 0 9.0 1 0 3 4 0.00 4.55 (+100%) 0.0
1925 CAG NNL 5 0 11 8 4 1 0 69.0 56 14 18 45 1.83 4.55 (+60%) 2500.1
1926 CAG NNL 13 4 27 17 12 5 1 174.7 115 35 56 111 1.80 4.11 (+56%) 4209.4
1927 CAG NNL 20 5 31 24 20 6 2 207.7 178 52 61 121 2.25 4.08 (+45%) 4756.6
1928 CAG NNL 13 8 27 20 19 3 3 195.0 184 64 61 119 2.95 4.13 (+29%) 3458.9
1929 CAG NNL 9 7 25 17 13 2 3 145.7 130 57 50 87 3.52 4.60 (+23%) 4177.0
1930 CAG NNL 11 8 26 15 12 1 2 159.0 146 51 55 132 2.89 4.80 (+40%) 4645.4
1931 HG IND 9 2 12 11 10 2 0 96.0 76 25 29 76 2.34 4.10 (+43%) 3604.4
1931 KCM IND 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 7.0 3 1 5 12 1.29 — 0.0
1932 CAG NSL 8 5 17 13 13 2 2 116.3 102 31 24 76 2.40 4.13 (+42%) 5030.8
1933 CAG NN2 6 4 13 9 7 1 1 83.7 63 23 18 61 2.47 3.86 (+36%) 2699.5
1934 CAG NN2 3 2 11 6 5 1 0 56.3 52 22 22 17 3.51 4.29 (+18%) 564.9
1935 CAG NN2 5 4 11 8 6 2 0 82.3 73 26 32 31 2.84 4.35 (+35%) 744.1
1936 PC NN2 4 3 8 7 5 1 0 46.0 45 23 18 21 4.50 4.59 (+2%) -261.5
1937 CAG NAL 4 5 16 8 3 2 0 80.7 77 35 30 46 3.90 4.34 (+10%) 906.3
Career · 19 seasons 125 60 262 185 142 34 14 1,665.0 1,397 492 522 1,062 2.66 — 41,672

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
290 639 71 129 11 6 4 53 3 34 12 .202 .242 .257 .499 -1,656

Career AVG .202 vs. league average .282 across their career seasons — 28.3% below league average.

Career OBP .242 vs. league average .344 across their career seasons — 29.6% below league average.

Career SLG .257 vs. league average .398 across their career seasons — 35.5% below league average.

Career OPS .499 vs. league average .742 across their career seasons — 32.8% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

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
1923 MRS IND 9 21 2 4 0 0 0 2 1 2 0 .190 — — — — 0.0
1923 CAG NNL 3 3 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 .333 — — — — 0.0
1924 MRS NNL 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1924 CAG NNL 12 19 1 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 .158 — — — — 0.0
1925 BBB NNL 1 2 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 .500 — — — — 0.0
1925 CAG NNL 11 23 2 5 0 1 0 2 0 1 0 .217 — — — — 0.0
1926 CAG NNL 27 60 6 15 2 0 1 5 0 4 2 .250 .279 (-11%) .345 (-14%) .390 (-15%) .735 (-14%) -142.4
1927 CAG NNL 39 82 11 19 1 1 0 8 0 3 0 .232 .282 (-18%) .344 (-25%) .392 (-32%) .736 (-28%) -385.0
1928 CAG NNL 29 77 9 17 3 0 0 8 0 3 4 .221 .280 (-21%) .342 (-27%) .395 (-34%) .737 (-31%) -390.1
1929 CAG NNL 30 55 9 10 1 0 0 2 1 4 1 .182 .289 (-37%) .353 (-33%) .415 (-52%) .769 (-43%) -397.1
1930 CAG NNL 33 71 6 17 3 0 0 6 0 4 0 .239 .293 (-19%) .354 (-21%) .429 (-34%) .784 (-28%) -341.6
1931 HG IND 13 38 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 .000 — — — — 0.0
1931 KCM IND 1 3 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 .333 — — — — 0.0
1932 CAG NSL 17 42 3 7 0 1 1 4 0 0 0 .167 — — — — 0.0
1933 CAG NN2 14 32 6 9 0 2 1 5 0 2 0 .281 — — — — 0.0
1934 CAG NN2 13 32 4 7 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 .219 — — — — 0.0
1935 CAG NN2 12 31 2 6 0 0 0 2 0 3 0 .194 — — — — 0.0
1936 PC NN2 8 20 2 2 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 .100 — — — — 0.0
1937 CAG NAL 17 25 5 5 1 0 0 3 0 6 3 .200 — — — — 0.0
Career · 19 seasons 290 639 71 129 11 6 4 53 3 34 12 .202 — — — — -1,656

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.

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
26 57 6 10 3 1 0 2 4 2 .175

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1937 ALC CAG 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 .000
1934 NLC CAG 3 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1932 NSC CAG 2 7 4 4 0 1 0 1 1 0 .571
1928 NNC CAG 4 13 0 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 .231
1927 NNC CAG 3 6 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 .167
1927 NWS CAG 5 8 1 2 2 0 0 0 1 0 .250
1926 NNC CAG 4 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 .000
1926 NWS CAG 4 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
12 7 25 19 1 170.3 156 48 59 116 2.54

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1937 ALC CAG 0 0 1 1 0 6.3 5 1 1 2 1.42
1934 NLC CAG 1 1 3 2 0 18.0 14 3 9 20 1.50
1932 NSC CAG 2 0 2 2 0 18.0 17 3 3 20 1.50
1928 NNC CAG 2 2 4 4 0 35.0 34 19 12 20 4.89
1927 NNC CAG 2 0 3 2 0 18.0 13 4 3 12 2.00
1927 NWS CAG 2 2 4 2 0 24.0 27 8 10 13 3.00
1926 NNC CAG 1 2 4 3 1 22.7 20 6 8 10 2.38
1926 NWS CAG 2 0 4 3 0 28.3 26 4 13 19 1.27

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (73 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home21244701.292
Away17303511.167

Pitching — Home / Away

SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home20113.2761021220.79
Away1594.2924137293.90

Last 10 Games — Batting

DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1937-09-05 CAGMEMW 000000000
1937-08-18 CAGKCML 000000010
1937-08-17 CAGKCML 000000000
1937-08-15 CAGIN6L 000000000
1937-07-27 CAGKCML 221000021
1937-07-25 CAGKCML 100000000
1937-07-25 CAGKCML 100000000
1937-07-21 CAGATNL 100000011
1937-07-11 CAGIN6W 000000000
1937-07-04 CAGKCML 100000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1937-09-05 CAGMEM W 0.0000000
1937-08-18 CAGKCM — 3.0200130
1937-08-17 CAGKCM — 1.0100010
1937-08-15 CAGIN6 — 5.0200000
1937-07-27 CAGKCM L 8.11186651
1937-07-25 CAGKCM — 1.2333311
1937-07-21 CAGATN L 5.2844231
1937-07-11 CAGIN6 — 0.0000000
1937-07-04 CAGKCM L 5.0442220
1937-06-30 CAGDT2 W 9.0400270

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 4 1 19 0 1 1
OF 9 4 7 0 0 0
P 262 185 51 469 28 9

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1923 MRS P 9 8 3 11 0 0
1923 CAG P 3 2 0 3 1 0
1924 MRS P 1 1 1 5 0 0
1924 CAG P 12 9 2 19 0 0
1925 BBB P 1 1 0 0 0 0
1925 CAG P 11 8 0 0 0 0
1926 CAG P 27 17 4 52 1 1
1927 CAG OF 2 0 0 0 0 0
1927 CAG P 31 24 4 73 6 2
1928 CAG P 27 20 5 61 3 1
1929 CAG 1B 2 0 9 0 1 0
1929 CAG OF 3 2 4 0 0 0
1929 CAG P 25 17 5 37 1 1
1930 CAG 1B 2 1 10 0 0 1
1930 CAG OF 1 0 1 0 0 0
1930 CAG P 26 15 6 54 1 2
1931 HG P 12 11 4 22 2 0
1931 KCM P 1 1 0 2 0 0
1932 CAG P 17 13 4 38 2 0
1933 CAG OF 1 0 0 0 0 0
1933 CAG P 13 9 4 18 2 0
1934 CAG OF 2 2 2 0 0 0
1934 CAG P 11 6 6 19 2 1
1935 CAG P 11 8 2 19 3 1
1936 PC P 8 7 0 7 2 0
1937 CAG P 16 8 1 29 2 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Position Games
Pitcher 262
First Base 4
Left Field 2
Center Field 3
Right Field 4

Most Similar Players

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

  1. 98
    Bullet Rogan HOF
    117-52, 2.74 ERA
  2. 90
    Jeff Tesreau
    115-72, 2.43 ERA
  3. 86
    Orval Overall
    108-71, 2.23 ERA
  4. 82
    Dick Redding
    106-72, 2.88 ERA
  5. 79
    Mort Cooper
    128-75, 2.97 ERA
  6. 74
    Don Gullett
    109-50, 3.11 ERA

Compare Willie Foster

Side-by-side career stat comparisons against Foster's closest peers by position and era.

vs Walter Johnson
vs Lefty Grove
vs Satchel Paige
vs Pete Alexander
vs Dazzy Vance
vs Carl Hubbell

Browse all MLB player comparisons →

See Willie Foster in Another Era

What would Foster's 1926 season look like in a different era's run environment? Try the cross-era translation with a live slider.

Translate Willie Foster's peak season across eras →

Frequently Asked Questions about Willie Foster

Was Willie Foster a pitcher?
Yes. Willie Foster pitched in the major leagues, recording 125 wins and 1062 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Willie Foster hit?
Willie Foster hit 4 career home runs with 129 hits.
Is Willie Foster in the Hall of Fame?
Yes. Willie Foster was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1996.