Clark Griffith
Pitcher · Career Stats, Hall of Fame Bio & Records (1891-1914)
Clark Griffith was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1891 to 1914 for 7 teams, including the St. Louis Browns, a span of 24 seasons. Across 453 career appearances, he went 237-146 with a 3.31 ERA and 955 strikeouts. He also batted .233 with 8 home runs. Clark Griffith was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1946. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 27947.3.
- 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
- Position
- Pitcher
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 5'6" / 156 lb
- Died
- 10/27/1955 in Washington, DC, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1891-04-11
- Last Game
- 1914-10-07
- Hall of Fame
- Inducted 1946 (BBWAA)
Full name: Clark Calvin Griffith
Season-by-Season Pitching
Click a stat to plot it across every season.
| Year | Team | Lg | W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA | Lg ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1891 | SL4 | AA | 11 | 8 | 27 | 17 | 12 | 0 | 2 | 186.1 | 195 | 69 | 58 | 68 | 3.33 | 3.52 (+5%) | -27.5 |
| 1891 | BS2 | AA | 3 | 1 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 40.0 | 47 | 25 | 15 | 20 | 5.62 | 3.52 (-60%) | -477.3 |
| 1893 | CHN | NL | 1 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 19.2 | 24 | 11 | 5 | 9 | 5.03 | 4.66 (-8%) | 373.3 |
| 1894 | CHN | NL | 21 | 14 | 36 | 30 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 261.1 | 328 | 143 | 85 | 71 | 4.92 | 5.33 (+8%) | 2230.5 |
| 1895 | CHN | NL | 26 | 14 | 42 | 41 | 39 | 0 | 0 | 353.0 | 434 | 154 | 91 | 79 | 3.93 | 4.77 (+18%) | 2615.2 |
| 1896 | CHN | NL | 23 | 11 | 36 | 35 | 35 | 0 | 0 | 317.2 | 370 | 125 | 70 | 81 | 3.54 | 4.36 (+19%) | 5796.5 |
| 1897 | CHN | NL | 21 | 18 | 41 | 38 | 38 | 1 | 1 | 343.2 | 410 | 142 | 86 | 102 | 3.72 | 4.30 (+14%) | 5281.7 |
| 1898 | CHN | NL | 24 | 10 | 38 | 38 | 36 | 4 | 0 | 325.2 | 305 | 68 | 64 | 97 | 1.88 | 3.59 (+48%) | 5403.5 |
| 1899 | CHN | NL | 22 | 14 | 38 | 38 | 35 | 0 | 0 | 319.2 | 329 | 99 | 65 | 73 | 2.79 | 3.85 (+28%) | 3635.4 |
| 1900 | CHN | NL | 14 | 13 | 30 | 30 | 27 | 4 | 0 | 248.0 | 245 | 84 | 51 | 61 | 3.05 | 3.68 (+17%) | 1518.4 |
| 1901 | CHA | AL | 24 | 7 | 35 | 30 | 26 | 5 | 1 | 266.2 | 275 | 79 | 50 | 67 | 2.67 | 3.49 (+24%) | 1847.7 |
| 1902 | CHA | AL | 15 | 9 | 28 | 24 | 20 | 3 | 0 | 213.0 | 247 | 99 | 47 | 51 | 4.18 | 3.17 (-32%) | -3068.8 |
| 1903 | NYA | AL | 14 | 11 | 25 | 24 | 22 | 2 | 0 | 213.0 | 201 | 64 | 33 | 69 | 2.70 | 3.10 (+13%) | 1507.3 |
| 1904 | NYA | AL | 7 | 5 | 16 | 11 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 100.1 | 91 | 32 | 16 | 36 | 2.87 | 2.66 (-8%) | -70.9 |
| 1905 | NYA | AL | 9 | 6 | 25 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 101.2 | 82 | 19 | 15 | 46 | 1.68 | 2.82 (+40%) | 1560.2 |
| 1906 | NYA | AL | 2 | 2 | 17 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 59.2 | 58 | 20 | 15 | 16 | 3.02 | 2.68 (-13%) | -177.8 |
| 1907 | NYA | AL | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8.1 | 15 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 8.64 | — | 0.0 |
| 1909 | CIN | NL | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6.0 | 11 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 6.00 | — | 0.0 |
| 1912 | WS1 | AL | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | — | 0.0 |
| 1913 | WS1 | AL | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | — | 0.0 |
| 1914 | WS1 | AL | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.00 | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 21 seasons | 237 | 146 | 453 | 372 | 337 | 22 | 8 | 3,385.2 | 3,670 | 1,246 | 774 | 955 | 3.31 | — | 27,947 | ||
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
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 485 | 1,380 | 202 | 321 | 49 | 17 | 8 | 166 | 22 | 166 | 126 | .233 | .318 | .310 | .628 | -2,116 |
Career AVG .233 vs. league average .265 across their career seasons — 12.1% below league average.
Career OBP .318 vs. league average .328 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career SLG .310 vs. league average .348 across their career seasons — 11.0% below league average.
Career OPS .628 vs. league average .676 across their career seasons — 7.1% 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1891 | SL4 | AA | 27 | 77 | 11 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 2 | 8 | 15 | .156 | .254 (-39%) | .331 (-24%) | .343 (-40%) | .675 (-32%) | -357.3 |
| 1891 | BS2 | AA | 10 | 23 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 5 | .174 | — | — | — | — | -357.3 |
| 1893 | CHN | NL | 4 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .182 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1894 | CHN | NL | 46 | 142 | 27 | 33 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 15 | 6 | 23 | 9 | .232 | .309 (-25%) | .379 (-10%) | .435 (-26%) | .814 (-19%) | -464.1 |
| 1895 | CHN | NL | 43 | 144 | 20 | 46 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 27 | 2 | 16 | 9 | .319 | .296 (+8%) | .361 (+8%) | .399 (-10%) | .761 (-1%) | 33.2 |
| 1896 | CHN | NL | 38 | 135 | 22 | 36 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 16 | 3 | 9 | 7 | .267 | .290 (-8%) | .354 (-12%) | .387 (-8%) | .741 (-10%) | -240.8 |
| 1897 | CHN | NL | 46 | 162 | 27 | 38 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 21 | 2 | 18 | 8 | .235 | .291 (-20%) | .354 (-12%) | .387 (-14%) | .741 (-13%) | -367.4 |
| 1898 | CHN | NL | 38 | 122 | 15 | 20 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 15 | 1 | 13 | 6 | .164 | .270 (-39%) | .333 (-27%) | .347 (-34%) | .680 (-30%) | -577.3 |
| 1899 | CHN | NL | 39 | 120 | 15 | 31 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 14 | 9 | .258 | .282 (-9%) | .343 (+1%) | .366 (-18%) | .710 (-9%) | -128.1 |
| 1900 | CHN | NL | 30 | 95 | 16 | 24 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 8 | 7 | .253 | .279 (-9%) | .338 (-8%) | .366 (-5%) | .705 (-7%) | -107.2 |
| 1901 | CHA | AL | 35 | 89 | 21 | 27 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 14 | 0 | 23 | 5 | .303 | .271 (+12%) | .326 (+37%) | .359 (+19%) | .686 (+27%) | 530.8 |
| 1902 | CHA | AL | 35 | 92 | 11 | 20 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 7 | 4 | .217 | .266 (-19%) | .321 (-15%) | .343 (-27%) | .665 (-21%) | -283.4 |
| 1903 | NYA | AL | 25 | 69 | 5 | 11 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 11 | 13 | .159 | .261 (-39%) | .316 (-10%) | .345 (-25%) | .662 (-18%) | -154.3 |
| 1904 | NYA | AL | 16 | 42 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 13 | .143 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1905 | NYA | AL | 26 | 32 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 11 | .219 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1906 | NYA | AL | 17 | 18 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 | .111 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1907 | NYA | AL | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1909 | CIN | NL | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1910 | CIN | NL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1912 | WS1 | AL | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1913 | WS1 | AL | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1914 | WS1 | AL | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 22 seasons | 485 | 1,380 | 202 | 321 | 49 | 17 | 8 | 166 | 22 | 166 | 126 | .233 | — | — | — | — | -2,473 | ||
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 (534 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 123 | 329 | 38 | 74 | 2 | 39 | .225 |
| Away | 150 | 360 | 50 | 76 | 2 | 34 | .211 |
Pitching — Home / Away
| Split | G | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 121 | 939.0 | 848 | 225 | 173 | 266 | 2.16 |
| Away | 140 | 922.1 | 1015 | 308 | 189 | 264 | 3.01 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1914-10-07 | MIN | BOS | W | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1913-10-04 | MIN | BOS | W | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1912-10-05 | MIN | NYY | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1910-05-30 | CIN | PIT | L | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1909-10-03 | CIN | STL | L | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1907-08-13 | NYY | CLE | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1907-07-17 | NYY | CHW | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1907-06-22 | NYY | BOS | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1907-06-01 | NYY | BOS | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1907-05-26 | NYY | CHW | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Last 10 Games — Pitching
| Date | Tm | Opp | Dec | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1914-10-07 | MIN | BOS | SV | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1913-10-04 | MIN | BOS | — | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1912-10-05 | MIN | NYY | — | 0.0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1909-10-03 | CIN | STL | L | 6.0 | 11 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| 1907-08-13 | NYY | CLE | — | 4.0 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 0 |
| 1907-06-22 | NYY | BOS | — | 1.0 | 7 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1907-06-01 | NYY | BOS | — | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1907-05-26 | NYY | CHW | — | 1.1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1906-09-27 | NYY | CLE | — | 3.0 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 0 |
| 1906-09-20 | NYY | SLA | — | 4.0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 3B | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| OF | 18 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
| P | 453 | 21 | 179 | 863 | 64 | 22 |
| SS | 4 | 0 | 6 | 9 | 6 | 1 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1891 | SL4 | P | 27 | 0 | 8 | 45 | 4 | 1 |
| 1891 | BS2 | OF | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1891 | BS2 | P | 7 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 0 |
| 1893 | CHN | P | 4 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| 1894 | CHN | OF | 7 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| 1894 | CHN | P | 36 | 0 | 20 | 45 | 4 | 1 |
| 1894 | CHN | SS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 1895 | CHN | OF | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1895 | CHN | P | 42 | 0 | 27 | 81 | 9 | 2 |
| 1896 | CHN | P | 36 | 0 | 20 | 79 | 9 | 3 |
| 1897 | CHN | 1B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1897 | CHN | 3B | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| 1897 | CHN | OF | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 1897 | CHN | P | 41 | 0 | 23 | 85 | 6 | 3 |
| 1897 | CHN | SS | 2 | 0 | 5 | 8 | 1 | 1 |
| 1898 | CHN | P | 38 | 0 | 18 | 82 | 5 | 2 |
| 1899 | CHN | P | 38 | 0 | 17 | 109 | 9 | 3 |
| 1899 | CHN | SS | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 1900 | CHN | P | 30 | 0 | 9 | 57 | 6 | 0 |
| 1901 | CHA | P | 35 | 0 | 9 | 78 | 5 | 3 |
| 1902 | CHA | OF | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1902 | CHA | P | 28 | 0 | 10 | 55 | 0 | 1 |
| 1903 | NYA | P | 25 | 0 | 8 | 50 | 1 | 1 |
| 1904 | NYA | P | 16 | 11 | 3 | 32 | 2 | 0 |
| 1905 | NYA | OF | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1905 | NYA | P | 25 | 7 | 1 | 23 | 1 | 0 |
| 1906 | NYA | P | 17 | 2 | 1 | 23 | 0 | 2 |
| 1907 | NYA | P | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| 1909 | CIN | P | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 1912 | WS1 | 2B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1912 | WS1 | P | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1913 | WS1 | OF | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1913 | WS1 | P | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1914 | WS1 | P | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 453 |
| First Base | 1 |
| Second Base | 1 |
| Third Base | 1 |
| Shortstop | 4 |
| Left Field | 6 |
| Center Field | 5 |
| Right Field | 8 |
College History
| School Name | City | State | Years Attended |
|---|---|---|---|
| Illinois State University | Normal | IL | 1887 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Clark Griffith (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Clark Griffith: the record in brief
According to the bio, Clark Griffith debuted on April 11, 1891 and played a final game on October 7, 1914. The team column moves through the St. Louis Browns (1891), the Boston Reds (1891), the Chicago Colts (1893 to 1897), the Chicago Orphans (1898 through 1900), the Chicago White Sox (1901 through 1902), the New York Highlanders (1903 to 1907), the Cincinnati Reds (1909 through 1910), and the Washington Senators (1912 to 1914). Griffith is listed as a pitcher at 156 pounds on a 5-foot-6 frame. The bio says Griffith batted and threw right-handed. The recorded birth is November 20, 1869, in Clear Creek, MO, USA. Griffith's death is recorded on October 27, 1955, in Washington, DC, USA. Griffith's full given name, per the bio, is Clark Calvin Griffith.
Across 453 games (372 starts), Griffith recorded 237 wins against 146 losses with a 3.31 ERA. The totals include 955 strikeouts, 337 complete games, and 22 shutouts. Griffith's 3.31 ERA was close to the 3.36 league figure for those seasons.
Frequently Asked Questions about Clark Griffith
- What years did Clark Griffith play?
- Clark Griffith played in Major League Baseball from 1891 to 1914.
- Was Clark Griffith a pitcher?
- Yes. Clark Griffith pitched in the major leagues, recording 237 wins and 955 strikeouts.
- How many home runs did Clark Griffith hit?
- Clark Griffith hit 8 career home runs with 321 hits.
- Is Clark Griffith in the Hall of Fame?
- Yes. Clark Griffith was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1946.
- What was Clark Griffith's career batting average?
- Clark Griffith batted .233 over his career, with 321 hits in 1,380 at bats.
- How many RBI did Clark Griffith have?
- Clark Griffith drove in 166 runs in his career.