Oral Hildebrand

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1931-1940)

Oral Hildebrand was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1931 to 1940 for the Cleveland Guardians, the St. Louis Browns, and the New York Yankees, a span of 10 seasons. Across 258 career appearances, he went 83-78 with a 4.35 ERA and 527 strikeouts. He also batted .187 with 0 home runs. Oral Hildebrand was an 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

W–L 83–78
ERA 4.35
WHIP 1.48
SO 527
Pitcher PIV -14214.6
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
6'3" / 175 lb
Born
4/7/1907 in Indianapolis, IN, USA
Died
9/8/1977 in Southport, IN, USA
MLB Debut
1931-09-08
Last Game
1940-07-28
Awards
All-Star

Full name: Oral Clyde Hildebrand

📊 Compare This Player 📈 View Career Timeline

Career Pitching Statistics

Oral Hildebrand — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
83 78 258 182 80 9 13 1430.2 1,490 692 99 623 527 4.35 -14214.6

Career ERA 4.35 vs. league average 4.25 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Oral Hildebrand Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1931 CLE AL 2 1 5 2 2 0 0 26.2 25 13 13 6 4.39 4.10 (-7%) -259.4
1932 CLE AL 8 6 27 15 7 0 0 129.1 124 53 62 49 3.69 4.13 (+11%) -1242.9
1933 CLE AL 16 11 36 31 15 6 0 220.1 205 92 88 90 3.76 3.86 (+3%) 450.6
1934 CLE AL 11 9 33 28 10 1 1 198.0 225 99 99 72 4.50 4.29 (-5%) -3299.2
1935 CLE AL 9 8 34 20 8 0 5 171.1 171 75 63 49 3.94 4.35 (+9%) -1445.0
1936 CLE AL 10 11 36 21 9 0 4 174.2 197 95 83 65 4.90 4.59 (-7%) -1157.8
1937 SLA AL 8 17 30 27 12 1 1 201.1 228 115 87 75 5.14 4.34 (-19%) -3132.7
1938 SLA AL 8 10 23 23 10 0 0 163.0 194 103 73 66 5.69 4.35 (-31%) -3137.3
1939 NYA AL 10 4 21 15 7 1 2 126.2 102 43 41 50 3.06 4.28 (+29%) -375.6
1940 NYA AL 1 1 13 0 0 0 0 19.1 19 4 14 5 1.86 4.21 (+56%) -615.2
Career · 10 seasons 83 78 258 182 80 9 13 1,430.2 1,490 692 623 527 4.35 — -14,215

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

Oral Hildebrand — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
259 513 43 96 13 3 0 50 0 18 47 .187 .215 .224 .439 -2,495

Career AVG .187 vs. league average .275 across their career seasons — 32.0% below league average.

Career OBP .215 vs. league average .340 across their career seasons — 36.8% below league average.

Career SLG .224 vs. league average .393 across their career seasons — 42.9% below league average.

Career OPS .439 vs. league average .732 across their career seasons — 40.1% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Oral Hildebrand 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
1931 CLE AL 5 11 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 .182 — — — — 0.0
1932 CLE AL 27 48 1 7 1 0 0 3 0 1 5 .146 — — — — 0.0
1933 CLE AL 36 84 4 16 0 2 0 10 0 1 7 .190 .270 (-29%) .329 (-39%) .377 (-37%) .707 (-38%) -516.2
1934 CLE AL 33 76 5 13 3 0 0 8 0 3 5 .171 .278 (-38%) .340 (-40%) .392 (-46%) .733 (-44%) -543.4
1935 CLE AL 34 55 9 9 1 1 0 4 0 2 7 .164 .279 (-42%) .342 (-44%) .399 (-45%) .742 (-45%) -411.3
1936 CLE AL 36 63 7 12 2 0 0 8 0 6 7 .190 .283 (-33%) .349 (-25%) .404 (-45%) .753 (-36%) -371.0
1937 SLA AL 30 70 9 14 3 0 0 7 0 2 2 .200 .276 (-28%) .342 (-35%) .398 (-39%) .740 (-37%) -431.9
1938 SLA AL 24 59 3 15 2 0 0 5 0 2 6 .254 .272 (-7%) .341 (-18%) .392 (-27%) .734 (-23%) -221.0
1939 NYA AL 21 44 5 8 1 0 0 5 0 1 5 .182 — — — — 0.0
1940 NYA AL 13 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
Career · 10 seasons 259 513 43 96 13 3 0 50 0 18 47 .187 — — — — -2,495

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

Oral Hildebrand — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000

Playoff Batting by Year

Oral Hildebrand — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1939 WS NYA 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

Oral Hildebrand — Playoff Career Pitching
W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
0 0 1 1 0 4.0 2 0 0 3 0.00

Playoff Pitching by Year

Oral Hildebrand — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1939 WS NYA 0 0 1 1 0 4.0 2 0 0 3 0.00

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (517 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Oral Hildebrand — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home1362802461035.218
Away1232331835016.150

Pitching — Home / Away

Oral Hildebrand — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home135800.18103643223134.09
Away123630.06803283022144.69

Last 10 Games — Batting

Oral Hildebrand — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1940-07-28 NYYCHWW 200000000
1940-07-24 NYYSLAL 000000000
1940-07-07 NYYPHAL 000000000
1940-06-25 NYYCLEL 000000000
1940-06-22 NYYDETL 000000000
1940-06-16 NYYSLAL 000000000
1940-06-15 NYYSLAW 000000000
1940-06-11 NYYDETL 000000000
1940-06-04 NYYCHWL 000000000
1940-05-30 NYYBOSL 100000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Oral Hildebrand — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1940-07-28 NYYCHW W 2.2420300
1940-07-24 NYYSLA — 1.1000010
1940-07-07 NYYPHA — 2.0210400
1940-06-25 NYYCLE — 2.0100010
1940-06-22 NYYDET L 0.1211100
1940-06-16 NYYSLA — 1.0100100
1940-06-15 NYYSLA — 0.2100000
1940-06-11 NYYDET — 1.2211100
1940-06-04 NYYCHW — 1.0100100
1940-05-30 NYYBOS — 2.2100010

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Oral Hildebrand — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 258 0 52 236 10 11

Season-by-Season Fielding

Oral Hildebrand — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1931 CLE P 5 0 1 4 0 0
1932 CLE P 27 0 9 13 1 2
1933 CLE P 36 0 11 43 2 4
1934 CLE P 33 0 5 44 0 1
1935 CLE P 34 0 6 35 2 1
1936 CLE P 36 0 4 26 0 1
1937 SLA P 30 0 5 36 2 1
1938 SLA P 23 0 5 14 1 0
1939 NYA P 21 0 5 18 1 1
1940 NYA P 13 0 1 3 1 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Oral Hildebrand Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 258

College History

Oral Hildebrand — College History
School Name City State Years Attended
Butler University Indianapolis IN 1927, 1928, 1929, 1930

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Oral Hildebrand (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Ray Scarborough
    80-85, 4.13 ERA
  2. 85
    Vic Sorrell
    92-101, 4.43 ERA
  3. 80
    Bob Weiland
    62-94, 4.24 ERA
  4. 77
    Rick Waits
    79-92, 4.25 ERA
  5. 75
    Jack Kramer
    95-103, 4.24 ERA
  6. 70
    Ken Heintzelman
    77-98, 3.93 ERA

Oral Hildebrand: the record in brief

Between the debut on September 8, 1931 and the final game on July 28, 1940, Oral Hildebrand built the record summarized on this page. The team column moves through the Cleveland Indians (1931 to 1936), the St. Louis Browns (1937 through 1938), and the New York Yankees (1939 to 1940). Born on April 7, 1907, in Indianapolis, IN, USA, Hildebrand is listed as a pitcher and threw and hit right-handed. Size on record: 6-foot-3 and 175 pounds. The bio records the death on September 8, 1977, in Southport, IN, USA. Hildebrand's full given name, per the bio, is Oral Clyde Hildebrand.

Hildebrand went 83-78 with a 4.35 ERA in 258 games, 182 of them starts. The totals include 527 strikeouts, 80 complete games, 9 shutouts, and 13 saves. Hildebrand's 4.35 ERA was close to the 4.25 league figure for those seasons. The best win total was 16, in 1933. In 1933, one of the busiest seasons, Hildebrand posted a 3.76 ERA; the league figure that year was 3.86.

Frequently Asked Questions about Oral Hildebrand

What years did Oral Hildebrand play?
Oral Hildebrand played in Major League Baseball from 1931 to 1940.
Was Oral Hildebrand a pitcher?
Yes. Oral Hildebrand pitched in the major leagues, recording 83 wins and 527 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Oral Hildebrand hit?
Oral Hildebrand hit 0 career home runs with 96 hits.
What teams did Oral Hildebrand play for?
Oral Hildebrand played for 3 teams: the Cleveland Indians (1931–1936), the St. Louis Browns (1937–1938), and the New York Yankees (1939–1940).
What awards did Oral Hildebrand win?
Oral Hildebrand was selected to 1 All-Star Game.
What were Oral Hildebrand's career stats?
In 258 games, Oral Hildebrand went 83-78 with a 4.35 ERA, 527 strikeouts, 1,430.2 innings pitched, and 13 saves. At the plate he had 96 hits and 0 home runs.
What position did Oral Hildebrand play?
Oral Hildebrand played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Oral Hildebrand and how much did he weigh?
Oral Hildebrand was listed at 6 feet 3 inches and 175 pounds.
What was Oral Hildebrand's career ERA?
Oral Hildebrand finished with a 4.35 career ERA, going 83-78 with 527 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Oral Hildebrand have?
Oral Hildebrand recorded 527 career strikeouts.
Is Oral Hildebrand in the Hall of Fame?
No. Oral Hildebrand has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
How many All-Star Games did Oral Hildebrand make?
Oral Hildebrand was selected to 1 All-Star Game.