Kirby Higbe
Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1937-1950)
Kirby Higbe was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1937 to 1950 for 5 teams, including the Chicago Cubs, a span of 14 seasons. Across 418 career appearances, he went 118-101 with a 3.69 ERA, 971 strikeouts, and 24 saves. He also batted .153 with 3 home runs. Kirby Higbe was a 2-time All-Star.
- 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
- 5'11" / 190 lb
- Died
- 5/6/1985 in Columbia, SC, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1937-10-03
- Last Game
- 1950-07-07
- Awards
- 2× All-Star
Full name: Walter Kirby Higbe
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1937 | CHN | NL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 5.40 | — | 0.0 |
| 1938 | CHN | NL | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10.0 | 10 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 5.40 | 4.35 (-24%) | -261.3 |
| 1939 | CHN | NL | 2 | 1 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22.2 | 12 | 8 | 22 | 16 | 3.18 | 4.28 (+26%) | -161.2 |
| 1939 | PHI | NL | 10 | 14 | 34 | 26 | 14 | 1 | 2 | 187.1 | 208 | 101 | 101 | 79 | 4.85 | 4.28 (-13%) | -1932.0 |
| 1940 | PHI | NL | 14 | 19 | 41 | 36 | 20 | 1 | 1 | 283.0 | 242 | 117 | 121 | 137 | 3.72 | 4.21 (+12%) | 2345.4 |
| 1941 | BRO | NL | 22 | 9 | 48 | 39 | 19 | 2 | 3 | 298.0 | 244 | 104 | 132 | 121 | 3.14 | 3.94 (+20%) | -1395.7 |
| 1942 | BRO | NL | 16 | 11 | 38 | 32 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 221.2 | 180 | 80 | 106 | 115 | 3.25 | 3.57 (+9%) | -2380.4 |
| 1943 | BRO | NL | 13 | 10 | 35 | 27 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 185.0 | 189 | 76 | 95 | 108 | 3.70 | 3.50 (-6%) | 559.5 |
| 1946 | BRO | NL | 17 | 8 | 42 | 29 | 11 | 3 | 1 | 210.2 | 178 | 71 | 107 | 134 | 3.03 | 3.59 (+16%) | 2029.0 |
| 1947 | BRO | NL | 2 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15.2 | 18 | 9 | 12 | 10 | 5.17 | 3.97 (-30%) | 24.7 |
| 1947 | PIT | NL | 11 | 17 | 46 | 30 | 10 | 1 | 5 | 225.0 | 204 | 93 | 110 | 99 | 3.72 | 3.97 (+6%) | -3499.8 |
| 1948 | PIT | NL | 8 | 7 | 56 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 158.0 | 140 | 59 | 83 | 86 | 3.36 | 4.10 (+18%) | -472.7 |
| 1949 | PIT | NL | 0 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15.1 | 25 | 23 | 12 | 5 | 13.50 | 4.12 (-228%) | -684.0 |
| 1949 | NY1 | NL | 2 | 0 | 37 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 80.1 | 72 | 31 | 41 | 38 | 3.47 | 4.12 (+16%) | -1922.8 |
| 1950 | NY1 | NL | 0 | 3 | 18 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34.2 | 37 | 19 | 30 | 17 | 4.93 | 4.36 (-13%) | -511.9 |
| Career · 15 seasons | 118 | 101 | 418 | 238 | 98 | 11 | 24 | 1,952.1 | 1,763 | 800 | 979 | 971 | 3.69 | — | -8,263 | ||
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 418 | 660 | 35 | 101 | 14 | 2 | 3 | 47 | 0 | 15 | 135 | .153 | .172 | .194 | .366 | -4,491 |
Career AVG .153 vs. league average .264 across their career seasons — 42.1% below league average.
Career OBP .172 vs. league average .336 across their career seasons — 48.9% below league average.
Career SLG .194 vs. league average .378 across their career seasons — 48.7% below league average.
Career OPS .366 vs. league average .714 across their career seasons — 48.8% 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1937 | CHN | NL | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1938 | CHN | NL | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1939 | CHN | NL | 9 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .286 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1939 | PHI | NL | 34 | 66 | 5 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 15 | .167 | .274 (-39%) | .342 (-51%) | .393 (-54%) | .735 (-53%) | 0.0 |
| 1940 | PHI | NL | 41 | 103 | 5 | 17 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 26 | .165 | .267 (-38%) | .335 (-44%) | .387 (-50%) | .722 (-47%) | -783.7 |
| 1941 | BRO | NL | 48 | 112 | 6 | 21 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 4 | 23 | .188 | .262 (-28%) | .332 (-35%) | .373 (-38%) | .705 (-37%) | -659.5 |
| 1942 | BRO | NL | 38 | 77 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 16 | .104 | .253 (-59%) | .323 (-68%) | .349 (-63%) | .672 (-65%) | -763.9 |
| 1943 | BRO | NL | 35 | 65 | 2 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 12 | .138 | .255 (-46%) | .324 (-46%) | .346 (-47%) | .671 (-46%) | -456.1 |
| 1946 | BRO | NL | 42 | 77 | 5 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 11 | .130 | .256 (-49%) | .328 (-61%) | .358 (-57%) | .687 (-58%) | -699.5 |
| 1947 | BRO | NL | 4 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .200 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1947 | PIT | NL | 46 | 72 | 6 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 11 | .139 | .262 (-47%) | .336 (-52%) | .376 (-45%) | .712 (-48%) | 0.0 |
| 1948 | PIT | NL | 56 | 48 | 4 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 11 | .208 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1949 | PIT | NL | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1949 | NY1 | NL | 37 | 15 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 | .067 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1950 | NY1 | NL | 18 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .250 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 15 seasons | 418 | 660 | 35 | 101 | 14 | 2 | 3 | 47 | 0 | 15 | 135 | .153 | — | — | — | — | -3,363 | ||
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 (832 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 199 | 319 | 24 | 54 | 2 | 31 | .169 |
| Away | 217 | 340 | 11 | 47 | 1 | 15 | .138 |
Pitching — Home / Away
| Split | G | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 199 | 983.2 | 852 | 386 | 492 | 493 | 3.53 |
| Away | 217 | 965.2 | 906 | 404 | 491 | 480 | 3.77 |
Last 10 Games — Pitching
| Date | Tm | Opp | Dec | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950-07-07 | NY1 | BSN | — | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1950-07-05 | NY1 | PHI | — | 1.1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1950-07-02 | NY1 | BSN | — | 2.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1950-06-25 | NY1 | CIN | — | 0.1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1950-06-21 | NY1 | STL | L | 1.1 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1950-06-19 | NY1 | BRO | — | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 1950-06-11 | NY1 | STL | — | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1950-06-11 | NY1 | STL | — | 2.0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 1950-06-10 | NY1 | STL | — | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1950-06-04 | NY1 | PIT | — | 0.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1937 | CHN | P | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1938 | CHN | P | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| 1939 | CHN | P | 9 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1939 | PHI | P | 34 | 0 | 8 | 16 | 0 | 0 |
| 1940 | PHI | P | 41 | 0 | 15 | 47 | 3 | 4 |
| 1941 | BRO | P | 48 | 0 | 13 | 39 | 1 | 2 |
| 1942 | BRO | P | 38 | 0 | 12 | 36 | 2 | 5 |
| 1943 | BRO | P | 35 | 0 | 9 | 27 | 0 | 2 |
| 1946 | BRO | P | 42 | 0 | 13 | 40 | 3 | 2 |
| 1947 | BRO | P | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1947 | PIT | P | 46 | 0 | 9 | 23 | 1 | 0 |
| 1948 | PIT | P | 56 | 0 | 5 | 22 | 1 | 0 |
| 1949 | PIT | P | 7 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1949 | NY1 | P | 37 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 1 |
| 1950 | NY1 | P | 18 | 0 | 3 | 11 | 0 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 418 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1941 | Baseball Magazine All-Star | P4 |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1946 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 15th | 18.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1941 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 7th | 64.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1940 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 21th | 10.0 | 336 | 0 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Kirby Higbe (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Kirby Higbe: the record in brief
Kirby Higbe's major league career runs from a debut on October 3, 1937 to a final game on July 7, 1950. Club by club, the record runs the Chicago Cubs (1937 through 1939), the Philadelphia Phillies (1939 through 1940), the Brooklyn Dodgers (1941 to 1947), the Pittsburgh Pirates (1947 through 1949), and the New York Giants (1949 to 1950). Higbe, a pitcher by primary position, batted and threw right-handed. The recorded size is 190 pounds on a 5-foot-11 frame. The birth record reads April 8, 1915, in Columbia, SC, USA. The bio records the death on May 6, 1985, in Columbia, SC, USA. The bio lists the given name Walter Kirby.
The pitching table credits Higbe with a 118-101 record and a 3.69 ERA in 418 games. Higbe had 971 strikeouts, 98 complete games, 11 shutouts, and 24 saves. The leagues Higbe pitched in allowed 4.02 earned runs per nine over those seasons, so the career ERA was 8.2% better than average. The best win total was 22, in 1941.
Frequently Asked Questions about Kirby Higbe
- What years did Kirby Higbe play?
- Kirby Higbe played in Major League Baseball from 1937 to 1950.
- Was Kirby Higbe a pitcher?
- Yes. Kirby Higbe pitched in the major leagues, recording 118 wins and 971 strikeouts.
- How many home runs did Kirby Higbe hit?
- Kirby Higbe hit 3 career home runs with 101 hits.
- What teams did Kirby Higbe play for?
- Kirby Higbe played for 5 teams: the Chicago Cubs (1937–1939), the Philadelphia Phillies (1939–1940), the Brooklyn Dodgers (1941–1943, 1946–1947), the Pittsburgh Pirates (1947–1949), and the New York Giants (1949–1950).
- What awards did Kirby Higbe win?
- Kirby Higbe was selected to 2 All-Star Games.
- What were Kirby Higbe's career stats?
- In 418 games, Kirby Higbe went 118-101 with a 3.69 ERA, 971 strikeouts, 1,952.1 innings pitched, and 24 saves. At the plate he had 101 hits and 3 home runs.
- What position did Kirby Higbe play?
- Kirby Higbe played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Kirby Higbe and how much did he weigh?
- Kirby Higbe was listed at 5 feet 11 inches and 190 pounds.
- What was Kirby Higbe's career ERA?
- Kirby Higbe finished with a 3.69 career ERA, going 118-101 with 971 strikeouts.
- How many strikeouts did Kirby Higbe have?
- Kirby Higbe recorded 971 career strikeouts.
- Is Kirby Higbe in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Kirby Higbe has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
- How many All-Star Games did Kirby Higbe make?
- Kirby Higbe was selected to 2 All-Star Games.