John Gelnar

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1964-1971)

John Gelnar was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1964 to 1971 for the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Seattle Pilots, and the Milwaukee Brewers, a span of 8 seasons. Across 111 career appearances, he went 7-14 with a 4.18 ERA and 126 strikeouts. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 1151.1.

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 7–14
ERA 4.18
WHIP 1.33
SO 126
Pitcher PIV 1151.1
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
6'2" / 185 lb
Born
6/25/1943 in Granite, OK, USA
MLB Debut
1964-08-04
Last Game
1971-04-30

Full name: John Richard Gelnar

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Career Pitching Statistics

John Gelnar — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
7 14 111 11 0 0 7 230.1 245 107 20 62 126 4.18 1151.1

Career ERA 4.18 vs. league average 3.58 across their career seasons — 16.8% worse than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

John Gelnar — Season-by-Season Pitching
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1964 PIT NL 0 0 7 0 0 0 0 9.0 11 5 1 4 5.00 3.58 (-40%) 0.0
1967 PIT NL 0 1 10 1 0 0 0 19.0 30 17 11 5 8.05 3.30 (-144%) -1661.9
1969 SE1 AL 3 10 39 10 0 0 3 108.2 103 40 26 69 3.31 3.61 (+8%) 1891.2
1970 ML4 AL 4 3 53 0 0 0 4 92.1 98 43 23 48 4.19 3.89 (-8%) 921.8
1971 ML4 AL 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 1.1 3 2 1 0 13.50 — 0.0
Career · 5 seasons 7 14 111 11 0 0 7 230.1 245 107 62 126 4.18 — 1,151

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

John Gelnar — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
112 37 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 16 .081 .128 .081 .209 0

Career AVG .081 vs. league average .249 across their career seasons — 67.4% below league average.

Career OBP .128 vs. league average .317 across their career seasons — 59.5% below league average.

Career SLG .081 vs. league average .371 across their career seasons — 78.2% below league average.

Career OPS .209 vs. league average .688 across their career seasons — 69.6% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

John Gelnar — 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
1964 PIT NL 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1967 PIT NL 10 6 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 .167 — — — — 0.0
1969 SE1 AL 40 19 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 .053 — — — — 0.0
1970 ML4 AL 53 12 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 6 .083 — — — — 0.0
1971 ML4 AL 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
Career · 5 seasons 112 37 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 16 .081 — — — — 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 (223 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

John Gelnar — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home62242200.083
Away50131100.077

Pitching — Home / Away

John Gelnar — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home61140.01435535863.54
Away5090.11045227405.18

Last 10 Games — Batting

John Gelnar — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1971-04-30 MILNYYL 000000000
1971-04-28 MILBOSL 000000000
1970-09-25 MILCHWW 000000000
1970-09-24 MILLAAW 000000000
1970-09-21 MILLAAL 000000000
1970-09-19 MILKCRL 000000000
1970-09-16 MILOAKL 000000000
1970-09-15 MILOAKL 000000000
1970-09-12 MILLAAW 100000000
1970-09-07 MILMINL 000000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

John Gelnar — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1971-04-30 MILNYY — 0.1222100
1971-04-28 MILBOS — 1.0100000
1970-09-25 MILCHW — 0.2211111
1970-09-24 MILLAA — 2.0200020
1970-09-21 MILLAA — 1.2000010
1970-09-19 MILKCR — 1.0111110
1970-09-16 MILOAK — 2.0111011
1970-09-15 MILOAK — 0.1100100
1970-09-12 MILLAA W 3.0100000
1970-09-07 MILMIN — 2.0100050

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

John Gelnar — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 111 11 14 41 2 2

Season-by-Season Fielding

John Gelnar — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1964 PIT P 7 0 1 1 1 0
1967 PIT P 10 1 0 5 0 0
1969 SE1 P 39 10 7 14 0 0
1970 ML4 P 53 0 6 20 1 2
1971 ML4 P 2 0 0 1 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

John Gelnar — Career Games by Position
Position Games
Pitcher 111

John Gelnar: the record in brief

The profile opens with John Gelnar's first major league game on August 4, 1964; the last one listed came on April 30, 1971. The team column moves through the Pittsburgh Pirates (1964 to 1967), the Seattle Pilots (1969), and the Milwaukee Brewers (1970 to 1971). Gelnar is listed as a pitcher at 6-foot-2 and 185 pounds. The bio says Gelnar both batted and threw right-handed. The recorded birth is June 25, 1943, in Granite, OK, USA. John Gelnar was the playing name; the full given name is John Richard.

The pitching table credits Gelnar with a 7-14 record and a 4.18 ERA in 111 games. The totals include 126 strikeouts. The league ERA over Gelnar's seasons was 3.58, so the 4.18 figure ran 16.8% worse than average. 1969 produced Gelnar's most strikeouts, 69. In 1969, one of the busiest seasons, Gelnar posted a 3.31 ERA; the league figure that year was 3.61. Gelnar's career Pitcher PIV, which scores run prevention against each season's league, is 1,151.1.

Frequently Asked Questions about John Gelnar

What years did John Gelnar play?
John Gelnar played in Major League Baseball from 1964 to 1971.
Was John Gelnar a pitcher?
Yes. John Gelnar pitched in the major leagues, recording 7 wins and 126 strikeouts.
How many home runs did John Gelnar hit?
John Gelnar hit 0 career home runs with 3 hits.
What teams did John Gelnar play for?
John Gelnar played for 2 teams: the Pittsburgh Pirates (1964, 1967) and the Milwaukee Brewers (1969–1971).
What were John Gelnar's career stats?
In 111 games, John Gelnar went 7-14 with a 4.18 ERA, 126 strikeouts, 230.1 innings pitched, and 7 saves.
What position did John Gelnar play?
John Gelnar played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was John Gelnar and how much did he weigh?
John Gelnar was listed at 6 feet 2 inches and 185 pounds.
What was John Gelnar's career ERA?
John Gelnar finished with a 4.18 career ERA, going 7-14 with 126 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did John Gelnar have?
John Gelnar recorded 126 career strikeouts.
Is John Gelnar in the Hall of Fame?
No. John Gelnar has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.