Billy Gardner
Second Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1954-1963)
Billy Gardner was a second baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1954 to 1963 for 6 teams, including the New York Giants, a span of 10 seasons. In 1,034 career games, he hit .237 with 841 hits, 41 home runs, and 271 RBI.
- AVG (Batting Average):
- Hits divided by at bats. .300 is the traditional mark of an excellent hitter.
- HR (Home Runs):
- Hits on which the batter circled the bases and scored, almost always by clearing the outfield fence.
- RBI (Runs Batted In):
- Runs that scored as a direct result of a batter's plate appearance.
- OPS (On-Base Plus Slugging):
- On-base percentage plus slugging percentage, the quickest single summary of offensive value. .900 or better is star-level.
Data updated
- Position
- Second Baseman
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 6'0" / 170 lb
- Died
- 1/3/2024 in Waterford, CT, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1954-04-22
- Last Game
- 1963-09-11
Full name: William Frederick Gardner
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,034 | 3,544 | 356 | 841 | 159 | 18 | 41 | 271 | 19 | 246 | 439 | .237 | .292 | .327 | .619 | -7,810 |
Career AVG .237 vs. league average .256 across their career seasons — 7.5% below league average.
Career OBP .292 vs. league average .325 across their career seasons — 10.2% below league average.
Career SLG .327 vs. league average .391 across their career seasons — 16.3% below league average.
Career OPS .619 vs. league average .716 across their career seasons — 13.5% below 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1954 | NY1 | NL | 62 | 108 | 10 | 23 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 19 | .213 | .261 (-18%) | .333 (-22%) | .390 (-26%) | .723 (-24%) | -422.1 |
| 1955 | NY1 | NL | 59 | 187 | 26 | 38 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 17 | 0 | 13 | 19 | .203 | .258 (-21%) | .332 (-21%) | .393 (-20%) | .726 (-21%) | -651.6 |
| 1956 | BAL | AL | 144 | 515 | 53 | 119 | 16 | 2 | 11 | 50 | 5 | 29 | 53 | .231 | .258 (-11%) | .331 (-15%) | .397 (-16%) | .728 (-16%) | -1322.7 |
| 1957 | BAL | AL | 154 | 644 | 79 | 169 | 36 | 3 | 6 | 55 | 10 | 53 | 67 | .262 | .257 (+2%) | .323 (avg) | .391 (-9%) | .715 (-5%) | -424.3 |
| 1958 | BAL | AL | 151 | 560 | 32 | 126 | 28 | 2 | 3 | 33 | 2 | 34 | 53 | .225 | .257 (-13%) | .324 (-17%) | .394 (-24%) | .719 (-21%) | -1896.0 |
| 1959 | BAL | AL | 140 | 401 | 34 | 87 | 13 | 2 | 6 | 27 | 2 | 38 | 61 | .217 | .256 (-15%) | .323 (-12%) | .392 (-22%) | .715 (-18%) | -1120.6 |
| 1960 | WS1 | AL | 145 | 592 | 71 | 152 | 26 | 5 | 9 | 56 | 0 | 43 | 76 | .257 | .255 (+1%) | .323 (-3%) | .387 (-6%) | .711 (-5%) | -464.1 |
| 1961 | MIN | AL | 45 | 154 | 13 | 36 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 10 | 14 | .234 | .258 (-10%) | .328 (-15%) | .399 (-22%) | .727 (-19%) | -463.5 |
| 1961 | NYA | AL | 41 | 99 | 11 | 21 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 18 | .212 | .258 (-18%) | .328 (-15%) | .399 (-27%) | .727 (-22%) | -463.5 |
| 1962 | NYA | AL | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1962 | BOS | AL | 53 | 199 | 22 | 54 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 10 | 39 | .271 | .257 (+5%) | .326 (-5%) | .393 (-14%) | .719 (-10%) | 0.0 |
| 1963 | BOS | AL | 36 | 84 | 4 | 16 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 19 | .190 | .246 (-23%) | .308 (-24%) | .371 (-36%) | .680 (-30%) | -384.1 |
| Career · 12 seasons | 1,034 | 3,544 | 356 | 841 | 159 | 18 | 41 | 271 | 19 | 246 | 439 | .237 | — | — | — | — | -7,613 | ||
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 (1034 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 521 | 1733 | 192 | 403 | 15 | 139 | .233 |
| Away | 513 | 1810 | 164 | 438 | 26 | 132 | .242 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1963-09-11 | BOS | LAA | L | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1963-09-10 | BOS | LAA | L | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1963-09-09 | BOS | LAA | W | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1963-09-08 | BOS | BAL | W | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1963-09-07 | BOS | BAL | W | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1963-09-06 | BOS | BAL | L | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1963-09-05 | BOS | DET | L | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1963-09-04 | BOS | DET | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1963-09-03 | BOS | BAL | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1963-08-30 | BOS | TEX | L | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2B | 839 | 805 | 1923 | 2173 | 91 | 559 |
| 3B | 92 | 57 | 63 | 159 | 10 | 10 |
| SS | 108 | 54 | 125 | 236 | 16 | 40 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1954 | NY1 | 2B | 13 | 5 | 17 | 17 | 1 | 1 |
| 1954 | NY1 | 3B | 30 | 21 | 18 | 56 | 1 | 2 |
| 1954 | NY1 | SS | 5 | 0 | 7 | 9 | 0 | 1 |
| 1955 | NY1 | 2B | 4 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| 1955 | NY1 | 3B | 10 | 5 | 7 | 13 | 0 | 1 |
| 1955 | NY1 | SS | 38 | 36 | 65 | 122 | 12 | 28 |
| 1956 | BAL | 2B | 132 | 126 | 274 | 331 | 16 | 76 |
| 1956 | BAL | 3B | 6 | 3 | 3 | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| 1956 | BAL | SS | 25 | 8 | 24 | 46 | 2 | 1 |
| 1957 | BAL | 2B | 148 | 148 | 393 | 424 | 11 | 96 |
| 1957 | BAL | SS | 9 | 6 | 13 | 26 | 1 | 7 |
| 1958 | BAL | 2B | 151 | 150 | 349 | 350 | 11 | 113 |
| 1958 | BAL | SS | 13 | 0 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| 1959 | BAL | 2B | 139 | 129 | 333 | 392 | 18 | 104 |
| 1959 | BAL | 3B | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1959 | BAL | SS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1960 | WS1 | 2B | 145 | 145 | 355 | 407 | 21 | 101 |
| 1960 | WS1 | SS | 13 | 0 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 2 |
| 1961 | MIN | 2B | 41 | 41 | 86 | 96 | 5 | 32 |
| 1961 | MIN | 3B | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| 1961 | NYA | 2B | 6 | 3 | 9 | 7 | 0 | 2 |
| 1961 | NYA | 3B | 33 | 22 | 26 | 54 | 4 | 6 |
| 1962 | NYA | 2B | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1962 | NYA | 3B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1962 | BOS | 2B | 38 | 38 | 66 | 91 | 6 | 21 |
| 1962 | BOS | 3B | 7 | 4 | 7 | 17 | 3 | 1 |
| 1962 | BOS | SS | 4 | 4 | 6 | 15 | 1 | 1 |
| 1963 | BOS | 2B | 21 | 18 | 36 | 54 | 1 | 13 |
| 1963 | BOS | 3B | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Second Base | 840 |
| Third Base | 91 |
| Shortstop | 109 |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1957 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 12th | 22.0 | 336 | 0 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Billy Gardner (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Billy Gardner: the record in brief
Billy Gardner's major league career runs from a debut on April 22, 1954 to a final game on September 11, 1963. Club by club, the record runs the New York Giants (1954 to 1955), the Baltimore Orioles (1956 to 1959), the Washington Senators (1960), the Minnesota Twins (1961), the New York Yankees (1961 through 1962), and the Boston Red Sox (1962 to 1963). Gardner played primarily as a second baseman and threw and hit right-handed. The bio adds a birth date on July 19, 1927, in New London, CT, USA and a listed size of 170 pounds on a 6-foot-0 frame. The bio records the death on January 3, 2024, in Waterford, CT, USA. Gardner's full given name, per the bio, is William Frederick Gardner.
Across 1,034 games at the plate, Gardner's career line reads 841 hits in 3,544 at bats for a .237 average, adding 41 homers and 271 RBI. Reaching base at a .292 clip and slugging .327, Gardner finished with a .619 OPS. Set against a .256 league average for the same years, Gardner's .237 average sits 7.5% below it.
Frequently Asked Questions about Billy Gardner
- What years did Billy Gardner play?
- Billy Gardner played in Major League Baseball from 1954 to 1963.
- Was Billy Gardner a pitcher?
- No. Billy Gardner was a position player (Second Baseman).
- How many home runs did Billy Gardner hit?
- Billy Gardner hit 41 career home runs with 841 hits.
- What teams did Billy Gardner play for?
- Billy Gardner played for 5 teams: the New York Giants (1954–1955), the Baltimore Orioles (1956–1959), the Minnesota Twins (1960–1961), the New York Yankees (1961–1962), and the Boston Red Sox (1962–1963).
- What were Billy Gardner's career stats?
- In 1,034 games, Billy Gardner had 841 hits, 41 home runs, 271 RBI, 356 runs, and 19 stolen bases, with a .237 batting average.
- What position did Billy Gardner play?
- Billy Gardner played primarily as a second baseman, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Billy Gardner and how much did he weigh?
- Billy Gardner was listed at 6 feet and 170 pounds.
- How many home runs did Billy Gardner hit each season?
- Billy Gardner's home runs by season: 1 in 1954, 3 in 1955, 11 in 1956, 6 in 1957, 3 in 1958, 6 in 1959, 9 in 1960, 2 in 1961, 0 in 1962, and 0 in 1963. His most in one season was 11, in 1956.
- What was Billy Gardner's career batting average?
- Billy Gardner batted .237 over his career, with 841 hits in 3,544 at bats.
- How many RBI did Billy Gardner have?
- Billy Gardner drove in 271 runs in his career.
- Is Billy Gardner in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Billy Gardner has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.