Bill Freehan
Catcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1961-1976)
- Position
- Catcher
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 6'3" / 203 lb
- Died
- 8/19/2021 in Petoskey, MI, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1961-09-26
- Last Game
- 1976-10-03
- Awards
- 11× All-Star · 5× Gold Glove
Full name: William Ashley Freehan
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,774 | 6,073 | 706 | 1,591 | 241 | 35 | 200 | 758 | 24 | 626 | 753 | .262 | .340 | .412 | .752 | 12,940 |
Career AVG .262 vs. league average .250 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OBP .340 vs. league average .317 across their career seasons — +7.2% above league average.
Career SLG .412 vs. league average .370 across their career seasons — +11.4% above league average.
Career OPS .752 vs. league average .687 across their career seasons — +9.5% above league average.
Season-by-Season Batting
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | DET | AL | 4 | 10 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .400 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1963 | DET | AL | 100 | 300 | 37 | 73 | 12 | 2 | 9 | 36 | 2 | 39 | 56 | .243 | .246 (-1%) | .308 (+7%) | .371 (+4%) | .680 (+5%) | 361.1 |
| 1964 | DET | AL | 144 | 520 | 69 | 156 | 14 | 8 | 18 | 80 | 5 | 36 | 68 | .300 | .250 (+20%) | .312 (+12%) | .377 (+22%) | .690 (+18%) | 1696.1 |
| 1965 | DET | AL | 130 | 431 | 45 | 101 | 15 | 0 | 10 | 43 | 4 | 39 | 63 | .234 | .245 (-5%) | .310 (-2%) | .371 (-9%) | .682 (-6%) | -299.4 |
| 1966 | DET | AL | 136 | 492 | 47 | 115 | 22 | 0 | 12 | 46 | 5 | 40 | 72 | .234 | .248 (-6%) | .309 (-5%) | .376 (-7%) | .685 (-6%) | -421.7 |
| 1967 | DET | AL | 155 | 517 | 66 | 146 | 23 | 1 | 20 | 74 | 1 | 73 | 71 | .282 | .242 (+17%) | .306 (+27%) | .357 (+25%) | .663 (+26%) | 2961.3 |
| 1968 | DET | AL | 155 | 540 | 73 | 142 | 24 | 2 | 25 | 84 | 0 | 65 | 64 | .263 | .236 (+11%) | .298 (+22%) | .340 (+33%) | .638 (+28%) | 3104.3 |
| 1969 | DET | AL | 143 | 489 | 61 | 128 | 16 | 3 | 16 | 49 | 1 | 53 | 55 | .262 | .248 (+5%) | .320 (+7%) | .369 (+10%) | .689 (+8%) | 853.7 |
| 1970 | DET | AL | 117 | 395 | 44 | 95 | 17 | 3 | 16 | 52 | 0 | 52 | 48 | .241 | .253 (-5%) | .325 (+2%) | .385 (+9%) | .711 (+6%) | 444.5 |
| 1971 | DET | AL | 148 | 516 | 57 | 143 | 26 | 4 | 21 | 71 | 2 | 54 | 48 | .277 | .249 (+11%) | .316 (+12%) | .365 (+27%) | .682 (+20%) | 1990.8 |
| 1972 | DET | AL | 111 | 374 | 51 | 98 | 18 | 2 | 10 | 56 | 0 | 48 | 51 | .262 | .243 (+7%) | .310 (+14%) | .353 (+13%) | .664 (+14%) | 1046.7 |
| 1973 | DET | AL | 110 | 380 | 33 | 89 | 10 | 1 | 6 | 29 | 0 | 40 | 30 | .234 | .256 (-9%) | .325 (-1%) | .378 (-17%) | .703 (-10%) | -462.7 |
| 1974 | DET | AL | 130 | 445 | 58 | 132 | 17 | 5 | 18 | 60 | 2 | 42 | 44 | .297 | .256 (+15%) | .324 (+11%) | .369 (+30%) | .693 (+21%) | 1739.8 |
| 1975 | DET | AL | 120 | 427 | 42 | 105 | 17 | 3 | 14 | 47 | 2 | 32 | 56 | .246 | .257 (-5%) | .327 (-6%) | .374 (+6%) | .701 (avg) | -36.3 |
| 1976 | DET | AL | 71 | 237 | 22 | 64 | 10 | 1 | 5 | 27 | 0 | 12 | 27 | .270 | .255 (+6%) | .320 (-5%) | .360 (+6%) | .681 (+1%) | -38.6 |
| Career · 15 seasons | 1,774 | 6,073 | 706 | 1,591 | 241 | 35 | 200 | 758 | 24 | 626 | 753 | .262 | — | — | — | — | 12,940 | ||
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 (1774 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 873 | 2918 | 345 | 737 | 100 | 374 | .253 |
| Away | 901 | 3156 | 361 | 854 | 100 | 384 | .271 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976-10-03 | DET | MIL | W | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 1976-10-01 | DET | MIL | W | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1976-09-29 | DET | CLE | L | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1976-09-28 | DET | CLE | L | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1976-09-25 | DET | NYY | L | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1976-09-20 | DET | BOS | L | 5 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1976-09-19 | DET | BOS | L | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1976-09-18 | DET | BOS | L | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1976-09-15 | DET | BAL | L | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1976-09-14 | DET | BAL | L | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1B | 157 | 159 | 1294 | 92 | 9 | 98 |
| C | 1581 | 1506 | 9941 | 721 | 72 | 98 |
| OF | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | DET | C | 3 | 3 | 14 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 1963 | DET | 1B | 19 | 19 | 147 | 16 | 1 | 14 |
| 1963 | DET | C | 73 | 61 | 407 | 22 | 2 | 5 |
| 1964 | DET | 1B | 1 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1964 | DET | C | 141 | 137 | 923 | 61 | 7 | 7 |
| 1965 | DET | C | 129 | 120 | 865 | 57 | 4 | 4 |
| 1966 | DET | 1B | 5 | 5 | 44 | 4 | 0 | 3 |
| 1966 | DET | C | 132 | 130 | 898 | 56 | 4 | 11 |
| 1967 | DET | 1B | 11 | 12 | 77 | 5 | 0 | 6 |
| 1967 | DET | C | 147 | 137 | 950 | 63 | 8 | 9 |
| 1968 | DET | 1B | 21 | 21 | 162 | 10 | 1 | 11 |
| 1968 | DET | C | 138 | 129 | 971 | 73 | 6 | 15 |
| 1968 | DET | OF | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1969 | DET | 1B | 20 | 21 | 138 | 7 | 3 | 7 |
| 1969 | DET | C | 120 | 113 | 821 | 49 | 7 | 7 |
| 1970 | DET | C | 114 | 110 | 742 | 42 | 2 | 6 |
| 1971 | DET | C | 144 | 142 | 912 | 50 | 4 | 6 |
| 1971 | DET | OF | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1972 | DET | 1B | 1 | 2 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1972 | DET | C | 105 | 99 | 648 | 57 | 8 | 9 |
| 1973 | DET | 1B | 7 | 7 | 54 | 3 | 0 | 2 |
| 1973 | DET | C | 98 | 94 | 584 | 50 | 3 | 3 |
| 1974 | DET | 1B | 65 | 64 | 590 | 36 | 4 | 49 |
| 1974 | DET | C | 63 | 59 | 312 | 45 | 5 | 6 |
| 1975 | DET | 1B | 5 | 5 | 53 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| 1975 | DET | C | 113 | 112 | 582 | 64 | 6 | 8 |
| 1976 | DET | 1B | 2 | 2 | 16 | 6 | 0 | 2 |
| 1976 | DET | C | 61 | 60 | 312 | 28 | 6 | 2 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Catcher | 1577 |
| First Base | 164 |
| Left Field | 1 |
| Right Field | 1 |
| Designated Hitter | 7 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | TSN All-Star | C |
| 1969 | Gold Glove | C |
| 1969 | TSN All-Star | C |
| 1968 | Gold Glove | C |
| 1968 | TSN All-Star | C |
| 1967 | Gold Glove | C |
| 1967 | TSN All-Star | C |
| 1966 | Gold Glove | C |
| 1965 | Gold Glove | C |
College History
| School Name | City | State | Years Attended |
|---|---|---|---|
| University of Michigan | Ann Arbor | MI | 1961 |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1972 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 26th | 3.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1969 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 26th | 3.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1968 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 2nd | 161.0 | 280 | 0 |
| 1967 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 3rd | 137.0 | 280 | 0 |
| 1966 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 16th | 9.0 | 280 | 0 |
| 1964 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 7th | 44.0 | 280 | 0 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Bill Freehan (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Compare Bill Freehan
Frequently Asked Questions about Bill Freehan
- What years did Bill Freehan play?
- Bill Freehan played in Major League Baseball from 1961 to 1976.
- Was Bill Freehan a pitcher?
- No. Bill Freehan was a position player (Catcher).
- How many home runs did Bill Freehan hit?
- Bill Freehan hit 200 career home runs with 1591 hits.