Earl Francis

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1960-1965)

Earl Francis was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1960 to 1965 for the Pittsburgh Pirates and the St. Louis Cardinals, a span of 6 seasons. Across 103 career appearances, he went 16-23 with a 3.77 ERA and 263 strikeouts. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 5706.5.

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 16–23
ERA 3.77
WHIP 1.43
SO 263
Pitcher PIV 5706.5
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
6'2" / 210 lb
Born
7/14/1935 in Slab Fork, WV, USA
Died
7/3/2002 in Pittsburgh, PA, USA
MLB Debut
1960-06-30
Last Game
1965-09-27

Full name: Earl Coleman Francis

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Career Pitching Statistics

Earl Francis — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
16 23 103 52 5 1 0 405.2 398 170 21 181 263 3.77 5706.5

Career ERA 3.77 vs. league average 3.71 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Earl Francis — Season-by-Season Pitching
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1960 PIT NL 1 0 7 0 0 0 0 18.0 14 4 4 8 2.00 3.82 (+48%) 607.9
1961 PIT NL 2 8 23 15 0 0 0 102.2 110 48 47 53 4.21 4.03 (-4%) 1509.0
1962 PIT NL 9 8 36 23 5 1 0 176.0 153 60 83 121 3.07 3.96 (+22%) 3069.8
1963 PIT NL 4 6 33 13 0 0 0 97.1 107 49 43 72 4.53 3.46 (-31%) 519.7
1964 PIT NL 0 1 2 1 0 0 0 6.1 7 6 1 6 8.53 — 0.0
1965 SLN NL 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 5.1 7 3 3 3 5.06 — 0.0
Career · 6 seasons 16 23 103 52 5 1 0 405.2 398 170 181 263 3.77 — 5,706

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

Earl Francis — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
104 122 5 21 6 0 1 10 1 3 56 .172 .198 .246 .444 -390

Career AVG .172 vs. league average .252 across their career seasons — 31.7% below league average.

Career OBP .198 vs. league average .318 across their career seasons — 37.6% below league average.

Career SLG .246 vs. league average .383 across their career seasons — 35.8% below league average.

Career OPS .444 vs. league average .701 across their career seasons — 36.6% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Earl Francis — 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
1960 PIT NL 7 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 .000 — — — — 0.0
1961 PIT NL 23 28 0 3 0 0 0 0 1 2 17 .107 — — — — 0.0
1962 PIT NL 36 61 4 10 3 0 1 7 0 1 23 .164 .257 (-36%) .326 (-46%) .393 (-33%) .719 (-39%) -390.2
1963 PIT NL 34 26 1 8 3 0 0 3 0 0 12 .308 — — — — 0.0
1964 PIT NL 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1965 SLN NL 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 — — — — 0.0
Career · 6 seasons 104 122 5 21 6 0 1 10 1 3 56 .172 — — — — -390

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 (207 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Earl Francis — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home53522815.154
Away517031305.186

Pitching — Home / Away

Earl Francis — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home53198.221185801363.85
Away50207.0187851011263.70

Last 10 Games — Batting

Earl Francis — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1965-09-27 STLSFGL 000000000
1965-09-06 STLPHIL 100000001
1964-10-04 PITATLL 100000000
1964-09-19 PITSFGL 000000000
1963-09-24 PITHOUL 200000001
1963-09-15 PITSFGL 000000000
1963-09-13 PITSFGW 000000000
1963-09-11 PITLADL 000000000
1963-09-07 PITSTLL 000000000
1963-09-05 PITATLL 000000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Earl Francis — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1965-09-27 STLSFG — 2.0311111
1965-09-06 STLPHI — 3.1432220
1964-10-04 PITATL L 5.0665161
1964-09-19 PITSFG — 1.1111001
1963-09-24 PITHOU L 6.0533430
1963-09-15 PITSFG — 0.2222110
1963-09-13 PITSFG — 1.2000030
1963-09-11 PITLAD — 1.0233110
1963-09-07 PITSTL — 2.1100010
1963-09-05 PITATL — 2.2120330

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Earl Francis — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 103 52 25 74 7 8

Season-by-Season Fielding

Earl Francis — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1960 PIT P 7 0 1 2 0 1
1961 PIT P 23 15 8 20 1 1
1962 PIT P 36 23 12 33 1 3
1963 PIT P 33 13 4 19 4 3
1964 PIT P 2 1 0 0 0 0
1965 SLN P 2 0 0 0 1 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Earl Francis — Career Games by Position
Position Games
Pitcher 103

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Earl Francis (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Brian Barnes
    14-22, 3.94 ERA
  2. 97
    Lefty Harvey
    29-29, 3.91 ERA
  3. 96
    Jarred Cosart
    16-23, 3.98 ERA
  4. 90
    Dave Stenhouse
    16-28, 4.14 ERA
  5. 90
    Tom Kelley
    20-22, 3.75 ERA
  6. 90
    Willie Ramsdell
    24-39, 3.83 ERA

Earl Francis: the record in brief

According to the bio, Earl Francis debuted on June 30, 1960 and played a final game on September 27, 1965. The season rows list, in order, the Pittsburgh Pirates (1960 through 1964) and the St. Louis Cardinals (1965). Francis played primarily as a pitcher and batted and threw right-handed. The bio adds a birth date on July 14, 1935, in Slab Fork, WV, USA and a listed size of 6'2" and 210 pounds. Francis's death is recorded on July 3, 2002, in Pittsburgh, PA, USA. Earl Francis was the playing name; the full given name is Earl Coleman.

Francis went 16-23 with a 3.77 ERA in 103 games, 52 of them starts. The same table counts 263 strikeouts. Francis's 3.77 ERA was close to the 3.71 league figure for those seasons. The best win total was 9, in 1962. In 1962, one of the busiest seasons, Francis posted a 3.07 ERA; the league figure that year was 3.96. Pitcher PIV, the site's era-adjusted run-prevention measure, totals 5,706.5 for Francis's career.

Frequently Asked Questions about Earl Francis

What years did Earl Francis play?
Earl Francis played in Major League Baseball from 1960 to 1965.
Was Earl Francis a pitcher?
Yes. Earl Francis pitched in the major leagues, recording 16 wins and 263 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Earl Francis hit?
Earl Francis hit 1 career home run with 21 hits.
What teams did Earl Francis play for?
Earl Francis played for 2 teams: the Pittsburgh Pirates (1960–1964) and the St. Louis Cardinals (1965).
What were Earl Francis's career stats?
In 103 games, Earl Francis went 16-23 with a 3.77 ERA, 263 strikeouts, and 405.2 innings pitched.
What position did Earl Francis play?
Earl Francis played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Earl Francis and how much did he weigh?
Earl Francis was listed at 6 feet 2 inches and 210 pounds.
What was Earl Francis's career ERA?
Earl Francis finished with a 3.77 career ERA, going 16-23 with 263 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Earl Francis have?
Earl Francis recorded 263 career strikeouts.
Is Earl Francis in the Hall of Fame?
No. Earl Francis has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.