What years did Bob Gibson play?

Bob Gibson played in Major League Baseball from 1959 to 1975.

Was Bob Gibson a pitcher?

Yes. Bob Gibson pitched in the major leagues, recording 251 wins and 3117 strikeouts.

How many home runs did Bob Gibson hit?

Bob Gibson hit 24 career home runs with 274 hits.

What teams did Bob Gibson play for?

Bob Gibson played for one team, the St. Louis Cardinals (1959–1975).

How many MVP awards did Bob Gibson win?

Bob Gibson won 1 MVP award, in 1968.

How many Cy Young Awards did Bob Gibson win?

Bob Gibson won 2 Cy Young Awards, in 1968 and 1970.

What awards did Bob Gibson win?

Bob Gibson won the MVP award (1968), 2 Cy Young Awards (1968 and 1970), 2 World Series MVP awards (1964 and 1967), and 9 Gold Gloves (1965–1973). He was selected to 8 All-Star Games.

What were Bob Gibson's career stats?

In 528 games, Bob Gibson went 251-174 with a 2.91 ERA, 3,117 strikeouts, 3,884.1 innings pitched, and 6 saves. At the plate he had 274 hits and 24 home runs.

What position did Bob Gibson play?

Bob Gibson played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.

How tall was Bob Gibson and how much did he weigh?

Bob Gibson was listed at 6 feet 1 inch and 189 pounds.

What was Bob Gibson's career ERA?

Bob Gibson finished with a 2.91 career ERA, going 251-174 with 3,117 strikeouts.

How many strikeouts did Bob Gibson have?

Bob Gibson recorded 3,117 career strikeouts.

How many All-Star Games did Bob Gibson make?

Bob Gibson was selected to 8 All-Star Games.

Bob Gibson

Pitcher · Career Stats, Hall of Fame Bio & Records (1959-1975)

Bob Gibson was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1959 to 1975 for the St. Louis Cardinals, a span of 17 seasons. Across 528 career appearances, he went 251-174 with a 2.91 ERA and 3,117 strikeouts. He also batted .206 with 24 home runs. Bob Gibson was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1981 and was a 8-time All-Star, an MVP, a 2-time Cy Young, a 2-time World Series MVP, a 9-time Gold Glove, and a Babe Ruth Award. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 69719.6.

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 October 15, 2026

⭐ Hall of Fame 1981

W–L 251–174

ERA 2.91

WHIP 1.19

SO 3,117

Pitcher PIV 69719.6

Position: Pitcher
Bats / Throws: R / R
Height / Weight: 6'1" / 189 lb
Born: 11/9/1935 in Omaha, NE, USA
Died: 10/2/2020 in Omaha, NE, USA
MLB Debut: 1959-04-15
Last Game: 1975-09-03
Hall of Fame: Inducted 1981 (BBWAA)
Awards: 8× All-Star · MVP · 2× Cy Young · 2× World Series MVP · 9× Gold Glove · Babe Ruth Award

Full name: Robert Gibson

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Career Pitching Statistics

Bob Gibson — Career Pitching Statistics
W	L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	SO	ERA	Pitcher PIV
251	174	528	482	255	56	6	3884.1	3,279	1,258	257	1,336	3,117	2.91	69719.6

Career ERA 2.91 vs. league average 3.60 across their career seasons — 19.1% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Bob Gibson (b. 1935) Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year	Team	Lg	W	L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA	Lg ERA	Pitcher PIV
1959	SLN	NL	3	5	13	9	2	1	0	75.2	77	28	39	48	3.33	3.90 (+15%)	685.6
1960	SLN	NL	3	6	27	12	2	0	0	86.2	97	54	48	69	5.61	3.82 (-47%)	300.9
1961	SLN	NL	13	12	35	27	10	2	1	211.1	186	76	119	166	3.24	4.03 (+20%)	2476.6
1962	SLN	NL	15	13	32	30	15	5	1	233.2	174	74	95	208	2.85	3.96 (+28%)	5729.4
1963	SLN	NL	18	9	36	33	14	2	0	254.2	224	96	96	204	3.39	3.46 (+2%)	2198.3
1964	SLN	NL	19	12	40	36	17	2	1	287.1	250	96	86	245	3.01	3.58 (+16%)	4244.9
1965	SLN	NL	20	12	38	36	20	6	1	299.0	243	102	103	270	3.07	3.50 (+12%)	1313.8
1966	SLN	NL	21	12	35	35	20	5	0	280.1	210	76	78	225	2.44	3.52 (+31%)	5600.4
1967	SLN	NL	13	7	24	24	10	2	0	175.1	151	58	40	147	2.98	3.30 (+10%)	4378.1
1968	SLN	NL	22	9	34	34	28	13	0	304.2	198	38	62	268	1.12	2.98 (+62%)	9773.2
1969	SLN	NL	20	13	35	35	28	4	0	314.0	251	76	95	269	2.18	3.61 (+40%)	11011.6
1970	SLN	NL	23	7	34	34	23	3	0	294.0	262	102	88	274	3.12	3.89 (+20%)	12454.3
1971	SLN	NL	16	13	31	31	20	5	0	245.2	215	83	76	185	3.04	3.47 (+12%)	4963.4
1972	SLN	NL	19	11	34	34	23	4	0	278.0	226	76	88	208	2.46	3.26 (+25%)	5324.7
1973	SLN	NL	12	10	25	25	13	1	0	195.0	159	60	57	142	2.77	3.75 (+26%)	4632.9
1974	SLN	NL	11	13	33	33	9	1	0	240.0	236	102	104	129	3.83	3.63 (-5%)	-3230.4
1975	SLN	NL	3	10	22	14	1	0	2	109.0	120	61	62	60	5.04	3.71 (-36%)	-2138.2
Career · 17 seasons			251	174	528	482	255	56	6	3,884.1	3,279	1,258	1,336	3,117	2.91	—	69,720

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

Bob Gibson — Career Batting Statistics
G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
596	1,328	132	274	44	5	24	144	13	63	415	.206	.243	.301	.545	-3,939

Career AVG .206 vs. league average .251 across their career seasons — 17.7% below league average.

Career OBP .243 vs. league average .318 across their career seasons — 23.4% below league average.

Career SLG .301 vs. league average .374 across their career seasons — 19.4% below league average.

Career OPS .545 vs. league average .691 across their career seasons — 21.2% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Bob Gibson (b. 1935) Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year	Team	Lg	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	Lg AVG	Lg OBP	Lg SLG	Lg OPS	PIV
1959	SLN	NL	21	26	1	3	2	0	0	1	0	0	10	.115	—	—	—	—	0.0
1960	SLN	NL	40	28	4	5	1	0	0	1	0	0	7	.179	—	—	—	—	0.0
1961	SLN	NL	40	66	4	13	5	0	1	10	0	3	23	.197	.258 (-24%)	.328 (-28%)	.399 (-20%)	.727 (-24%)	-286.4
1962	SLN	NL	42	76	11	20	0	0	2	5	0	4	28	.263	.257 (+2%)	.326 (-1%)	.393 (-13%)	.719 (-8%)	-80.0
1963	SLN	NL	41	87	12	18	3	1	3	20	0	8	35	.207	.246 (-16%)	.308 (-11%)	.371 (-1%)	.680 (-6%)	-85.9
1964	SLN	NL	40	96	8	15	3	1	0	4	0	3	38	.156	.250 (-38%)	.312 (-40%)	.377 (-45%)	.690 (-43%)	-644.1
1965	SLN	NL	42	104	14	25	2	0	5	19	2	3	26	.240	.245 (-2%)	.310 (-16%)	.371 (+9%)	.682 (-3%)	-92.0
1966	SLN	NL	46	100	11	20	4	0	1	8	3	3	35	.200	.248 (-20%)	.309 (-29%)	.376 (-28%)	.685 (-28%)	-450.4
1967	SLN	NL	27	60	7	8	0	0	0	3	0	8	26	.133	.242 (-45%)	.306 (-23%)	.357 (-63%)	.663 (-44%)	-368.2
1968	SLN	NL	35	94	3	16	5	0	0	6	1	7	32	.170	.236 (-28%)	.298 (-22%)	.340 (-34%)	.638 (-29%)	-385.9
1969	SLN	NL	37	118	11	29	6	0	1	8	5	3	36	.246	.248 (-1%)	.320 (-18%)	.369 (-13%)	.689 (-15%)	-310.9
1970	SLN	NL	40	109	14	33	3	1	2	19	0	8	25	.303	.253 (+19%)	.325 (+7%)	.385 (+5%)	.711 (+6%)	95.9
1971	SLN	NL	31	87	5	15	0	1	2	10	1	3	24	.172	.249 (-31%)	.316 (-36%)	.365 (-28%)	.682 (-31%)	-447.1
1972	SLN	NL	34	103	12	20	6	0	5	12	0	1	25	.194	.243 (-20%)	.310 (-35%)	.353 (+12%)	.664 (-10%)	-206.7
1973	SLN	NL	25	65	8	12	0	0	2	8	1	3	17	.185	.256 (-28%)	.325 (-33%)	.378 (-27%)	.703 (-30%)	-318.3
1974	SLN	NL	33	81	6	17	4	1	0	6	0	3	19	.210	.256 (-18%)	.324 (-28%)	.369 (-23%)	.693 (-26%)	-358.6
1975	SLN	NL	22	28	1	5	0	0	0	4	0	3	9	.179	—	—	—	—	0.0
Career · 17 seasons			596	1,328	132	274	44	5	24	144	13	63	415	.206	—	—	—	—	-3,939

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

Bob Gibson — Playoff Career Batting
G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
9	28	4	4	0	0	2	3	2	7	.143

Playoff Batting by Year

Bob Gibson — Playoff Batting by Year
Year	Round	Team	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
1968	WS	SLN	3	8	2	1	1	2	1	2	.125
1967	WS	SLN	3	11	1	1	1	1	1	2	.091
1964	WS	SLN	3	9	1	2	0	0	0	3	.222

Playoff Career Pitching

Bob Gibson — Playoff Career Pitching
W	L	G	GS	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
7	2	9	9	0	81.0	55	17	17	92	1.89

Playoff Pitching by Year

Bob Gibson — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year	Round	Team	W	L	G	GS	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
1968	WS	SLN	2	1	3	3	27.0	18	5	4	35	1.67
1967	WS	SLN	3	0	3	3	27.0	14	3	5	26	1.00
1964	WS	SLN	2	1	3	3	27.0	23	9	8	31	3.00

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (1125 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Bob Gibson — Batting — Home / Away
Split	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	AVG
Home	293	606	54	115	11	60	.190
Away	304	722	78	159	13	84	.220

Pitching — Home / Away

Bob Gibson — Pitching — Home / Away
Split	G	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
Home	258	1914.0	1703	654	628	1571	3.08
Away	270	1970.1	1576	604	708	1546	2.76

Last 10 Games — Batting

Bob Gibson — Last 10 Games — Batting
Date	Tm	Opp	Res	AB	R	H	RBI	SO
1975-09-03	STL	CHC	L	0	0	0	0	0
1975-08-29	STL	CIN	L	0	0	0	0	0
1975-08-22	STL	ATL	L	0	0	0	0	0
1975-08-16	STL	ATL	L	0	0	0	0	0
1975-08-13	STL	HOU	W	0	0	0	0	0
1975-08-01	STL	CHC	W	1	0	1	1	0
1975-07-27	STL	PHI	W	1	0	0	0	0
1975-07-08	STL	SFG	L	1	0	0	0	0
1975-07-03	STL	PHI	L	2	0	1	0	1
1975-06-27	STL	WSN	W	3	1	1	1	1

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Bob Gibson — Last 10 Games — Pitching
Date	Tm	Opp	Dec	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR
1975-09-03	STL	CHC	L	1.0	2	5	5	3	0	1
1975-08-29	STL	CIN	—	1.1	0	0	0	0	2	0
1975-08-22	STL	ATL	—	1.0	0	0	0	2	0	0
1975-08-16	STL	ATL	L	2.1	3	2	2	3	1	0
1975-08-13	STL	HOU	SV	1.0	0	0	0	0	3	0
1975-08-01	STL	CHC	SV	3.2	4	0	0	0	3	0
1975-07-27	STL	PHI	W	4.0	3	0	0	1	4	0
1975-07-08	STL	SFG	L	5.0	8	4	4	1	3	1
1975-07-03	STL	PHI	L	7.0	8	7	6	6	3	0
1975-06-27	STL	WSN	W	6.0	5	2	2	6	1	0

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Bob Gibson — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
P	528	482	291	484	42	46

Season-by-Season Fielding

Bob Gibson — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1959	SLN	P	13	9	6	10	2	2
1960	SLN	P	27	12	7	14	0	3
1961	SLN	P	35	27	14	35	2	4
1962	SLN	P	32	30	18	35	3	6
1963	SLN	P	36	33	27	28	5	0
1964	SLN	P	40	36	24	36	6	4
1965	SLN	P	38	36	27	33	3	1
1966	SLN	P	35	35	26	28	2	4
1967	SLN	P	24	24	19	23	0	0
1968	SLN	P	34	34	21	28	1	2
1969	SLN	P	35	35	21	32	3	5
1970	SLN	P	34	34	22	32	4	3
1971	SLN	P	31	31	10	39	3	1
1972	SLN	P	34	34	12	46	1	3
1973	SLN	P	25	25	11	24	2	2
1974	SLN	P	33	33	20	26	2	4
1975	SLN	P	22	14	6	15	3	2

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Bob Gibson (b. 1935) Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position	Games
Pitcher	528

Awards & Honors

Bob Gibson — Awards & Honors
Year	Award	Notes
1973	Gold Glove	P
1972	Gold Glove	P
1971	Gold Glove	P
1970	Cy Young Award
1970	Gold Glove	P
1970	TSN All-Star	RHP
1970	TSN Pitcher of the Year
1969	Gold Glove	P
1968	Cy Young Award
1968	Gold Glove	P
1968	Most Valuable Player
1968	TSN All-Star	P
1968	TSN Pitcher of the Year
1967	Gold Glove	P
1967	World Series MVP
1966	Gold Glove	P
1965	Gold Glove	P
1964	Babe Ruth Award	P
1964	World Series MVP

College History

Bob Gibson — College History
School Name	City	State	Years Attended
Creighton University	Omaha	NE	1954, 1955, 1956, 1957

Award Voting History

Bob Gibson — Award Voting History
Year	Award	League	Finish	Points Won	Points Max	Votes First
1972	Cy Young Award	NL	9th	3.0	120	0
1971	Cy Young Award	NL	5th	3.0	120	0
1971	Most Valuable Player	NL	23th	3.0	336	0
1970	Cy Young Award	NL	1st	118.0	120	23
1970	Most Valuable Player	NL	4th	110.0	336	0
1969	Most Valuable Player	NL	30th	2.0	336	0
1968	Cy Young Award	NL	1st	20.0	20	20
1968	Most Valuable Player	NL	1st	242.0	280	14
1967	Most Valuable Player	NL	22th	5.0	280	0
1964	Most Valuable Player	NL	23th	2.0	280	0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Bob Gibson (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

Compare Bob Gibson

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See Bob Gibson in Another Era

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Bob Gibson: the record in brief

April 15, 1959 and September 3, 1975 bracket Bob Gibson's time in the majors: the debut and the last game on record. All of the seasons listed were played for the St. Louis Cardinals. Gibson played primarily as a pitcher and threw and hit right-handed. The bio adds a birth date on November 9, 1935, in Omaha, NE, USA and a listed size of 6 feet, 1 inch and 189 pounds. Gibson died on October 2, 2020, in Omaha, NE, USA. Bob Gibson was the playing name; the full given name is Robert.

Gibson pitched in 528 games, starting 482, and finished with a 251-174 record and 2.91 ERA. The totals include 3,117 strikeouts, 255 complete games, and 56 shutouts. That 2.91 ERA compares with a 3.60 league average across the same seasons, 19.1% better. The best win total was 23, in 1970. In 1968, one of the busiest seasons, Gibson posted a 1.12 ERA; the league figure that year was 2.98.

Frequently Asked Questions about Bob Gibson

What years did Bob Gibson play?: Bob Gibson played in Major League Baseball from 1959 to 1975.
Was Bob Gibson a pitcher?: Yes. Bob Gibson pitched in the major leagues, recording 251 wins and 3117 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Bob Gibson hit?: Bob Gibson hit 24 career home runs with 274 hits.
Is Bob Gibson in the Hall of Fame?: Yes. Bob Gibson was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1981.
What teams did Bob Gibson play for?: Bob Gibson played for one team, the St. Louis Cardinals (1959–1975).
How many MVP awards did Bob Gibson win?: Bob Gibson won 1 MVP award, in 1968.
How many Cy Young Awards did Bob Gibson win?: Bob Gibson won 2 Cy Young Awards, in 1968 and 1970.
What awards did Bob Gibson win?: Bob Gibson won the MVP award (1968), 2 Cy Young Awards (1968 and 1970), 2 World Series MVP awards (1964 and 1967), and 9 Gold Gloves (1965–1973). He was selected to 8 All-Star Games.
What were Bob Gibson's career stats?: In 528 games, Bob Gibson went 251-174 with a 2.91 ERA, 3,117 strikeouts, 3,884.1 innings pitched, and 6 saves. At the plate he had 274 hits and 24 home runs.
What position did Bob Gibson play?: Bob Gibson played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Bob Gibson and how much did he weigh?: Bob Gibson was listed at 6 feet 1 inch and 189 pounds.
What was Bob Gibson's career ERA?: Bob Gibson finished with a 2.91 career ERA, going 251-174 with 3,117 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Bob Gibson have?: Bob Gibson recorded 3,117 career strikeouts.
How many All-Star Games did Bob Gibson make?: Bob Gibson was selected to 8 All-Star Games.