Ken Holtzman

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1965-1979)

W–L 174–150
ERA 3.49
WHIP 1.29
SO 1,601
Pitcher PIV 1954.5
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
R / L
Height / Weight
6'2" / 175 lb
Born
11/3/1945 in St. Louis, MO, USA
Died
4/14/2024 in St. Louis, MO, USA
MLB Debut
1965-09-04
Last Game
1979-09-19
Awards
2× All-Star

Full name: Kenneth Dale Holtzman

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Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
174 150 451 410 127 31 3 2867.3 2,787 1,111 249 910 1,601 3.49 1954.5

Career ERA 3.49 vs. league average 3.61 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

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
1965 CHN NL 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 4.0 2 1 3 3 2.25 — 0.0
1966 CHN NL 11 16 34 33 9 0 0 220.7 194 93 68 171 3.79 3.52 (-8%) -296.0
1967 CHN NL 9 0 12 12 3 0 0 92.7 76 26 44 62 2.53 3.30 (+24%) -2154.1
1968 CHN NL 11 14 34 32 6 3 1 215.0 201 80 76 151 3.35 2.98 (-12%) -916.5
1969 CHN NL 17 13 39 39 12 6 0 261.3 248 104 93 176 3.58 3.61 (+1%) 2965.8
1970 CHN NL 17 11 39 38 15 1 0 287.7 271 108 94 202 3.38 3.89 (+13%) 2167.5
1971 CHN NL 9 15 30 29 9 3 0 195.0 213 97 64 143 4.48 3.47 (-29%) 1363.3
1972 OAK AL 19 11 39 37 16 4 0 265.3 232 74 52 134 2.51 3.26 (+23%) 804.4
1973 OAK AL 21 13 40 40 16 4 0 297.3 275 98 66 157 2.97 3.75 (+21%) 4482.4
1974 OAK AL 19 17 39 38 9 3 0 255.3 273 87 51 117 3.07 3.63 (+15%) 4154.1
1975 OAK AL 18 14 39 38 13 2 0 266.3 217 93 108 122 3.14 3.71 (+15%) -243.7
1976 BAL AL 5 4 13 13 6 1 0 97.7 100 31 35 25 2.86 3.51 (+19%) -597.5
1976 NYA AL 9 7 21 21 10 2 0 149.0 165 69 35 41 4.17 3.51 (-19%) -1841.1
1977 NYA AL 2 3 18 11 0 0 0 71.7 105 46 24 14 5.78 4.00 (-44%) -1191.7
1978 NYA AL 1 0 5 3 0 0 0 17.7 21 8 9 3 4.08 3.69 (-11%) -688.2
1978 CHN NL 0 3 23 6 0 0 2 53.0 61 36 35 36 6.11 3.69 (-66%) -2689.7
1979 CHN NL 6 9 23 20 3 2 0 117.7 133 60 53 44 4.59 4.00 (-15%) -3364.5
Career · 17 seasons 174 150 451 410 127 31 3 2,867.1 2,787 1,111 910 1,601 3.49 — 1,954

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
456 607 35 99 19 1 2 34 0 17 170 .163 .186 .208 .393 -3,598

Career AVG .163 vs. league average .253 across their career seasons — 35.5% below league average.

Career OBP .186 vs. league average .319 across their career seasons — 41.9% below league average.

Career SLG .208 vs. league average .373 across their career seasons — 44.3% below league average.

Career OPS .393 vs. league average .692 across their career seasons — 43.2% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

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
1965 CHN NL 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1966 CHN NL 34 73 2 9 1 0 0 2 0 1 25 .123 .248 (-50%) .309 (-56%) .376 (-64%) .685 (-60%) -665.7
1967 CHN NL 12 35 4 7 1 0 0 2 0 0 11 .200 — — — — 0.0
1968 CHN NL 35 80 4 10 1 0 0 5 0 1 26 .125 .236 (-47%) .298 (-55%) .340 (-60%) .638 (-57%) -653.6
1969 CHN NL 39 100 5 15 1 1 1 7 0 2 32 .150 .248 (-40%) .320 (-48%) .369 (-43%) .689 (-45%) -712.7
1970 CHN NL 40 105 6 21 5 0 0 6 0 5 22 .200 .253 (-21%) .325 (-27%) .385 (-36%) .711 (-32%) -535.0
1971 CHN NL 30 69 4 9 2 0 1 5 0 3 15 .130 .249 (-48%) .316 (-48%) .365 (-44%) .682 (-46%) -503.9
1972 OAK AL 40 90 6 16 4 0 0 6 0 1 25 .178 .243 (-27%) .310 (-40%) .353 (-37%) .664 (-38%) -527.5
1973 OAK AL 41 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1974 OAK AL 39 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1975 OAK AL 39 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1976 BAL AL 13 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1976 NYA AL 21 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1977 NYA AL 18 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1978 NYA AL 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1978 CHN NL 23 10 2 2 1 0 0 0 0 1 5 .200 — — — — 0.0
1979 CHN NL 24 43 2 10 3 0 0 1 0 2 9 .233 — — — — 0.0
Career · 17 seasons 456 607 35 99 19 1 2 34 0 17 170 .163 — — — — -3,598

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

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
13 13 4 4 3 0 1 1 1 2 .308

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1975 ALCS OAK 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1974 ALCS OAK 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1974 WS OAK 2 4 2 2 1 0 1 1 1 1 .500
1973 ALCS OAK 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1973 WS OAK 3 3 2 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 .667
1972 ALCS OAK 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000
1972 WS OAK 3 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
6 4 13 12 0 70.3 61 18 18 39 2.30

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1975 ALCS OAK 0 2 2 2 0 11.0 12 5 1 7 4.09
1974 ALCS OAK 1 0 1 1 0 9.0 5 0 2 3 0.00
1974 WS OAK 1 0 2 2 0 12.0 13 2 4 10 1.50
1973 ALCS OAK 1 0 1 1 0 11.0 3 1 1 7 0.82
1973 WS OAK 2 1 3 3 0 10.7 13 5 5 6 4.22
1972 ALCS OAK 0 1 1 1 0 4.0 4 2 2 2 4.50
1972 WS OAK 1 0 3 2 0 12.7 11 3 3 4 2.13

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (907 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home2272842054118.190
Away2293231545116.139

Pitching — Home / Away

SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home2231474.214305424288563.31
Away2281392.113575694827453.68

Last 10 Games — Batting

DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1979-09-19 CHCSTLW 200000002
1979-08-10 CHCSTLL 000000000
1979-08-05 CHCSTLL 100000000
1979-08-01 CHCWSNL 100000001
1979-07-28 CHCNYNL 201000000
1979-07-24 CHCHOUL 100000000
1979-07-22 CHCCINL 100000000
1979-07-12 CHCCINW 100000000
1979-07-07 CHCHOUW 411100101
1979-07-01 CHCNYNW 201100001

Last 10 Games — Pitching

DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1979-09-19 CHCSTL — 7.0400220
1979-08-10 CHCSTL — 0.0211000
1979-08-05 CHCSTL L 5.0744101
1979-07-28 CHCNYN L 4.0853102
1979-07-24 CHCHOU — 3.1521110
1979-07-22 CHCCIN L 4.1544700
1979-07-12 CHCCIN — 3.1452300
1979-07-07 CHCHOU W 9.0300320
1979-07-01 CHCNYN — 6.0433630
1979-06-22 CHCPIT L 6.0944330

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
P 451 410 117 471 26 27

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1965 CHN P 3 0 0 1 0 0
1966 CHN P 34 33 12 24 4 2
1967 CHN P 12 12 4 17 0 0
1968 CHN P 34 32 2 42 1 3
1969 CHN P 39 39 6 40 3 2
1970 CHN P 39 38 11 44 2 1
1971 CHN P 30 29 6 28 3 2
1972 OAK P 39 37 7 47 1 4
1973 OAK P 40 40 15 42 5 2
1974 OAK P 39 38 5 43 1 2
1975 OAK P 39 38 11 58 1 3
1976 BAL P 13 13 8 21 1 1
1976 NYA P 21 21 11 21 2 3
1977 NYA P 18 11 8 21 1 1
1978 NYA P 5 3 0 6 0 0
1978 CHN P 23 6 3 5 0 1
1979 CHN P 23 20 8 11 1 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Position Games
Pitcher 451

Awards & Honors

Year Award Notes
1973 TSN All-Star LHP

College History

School Name City State Years Attended
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Champaign IL 1965

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Ken Holtzman (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Dave Stieb
    176-137, 3.44 ERA
  2. 95
    Bob Knepper
    146-155, 3.68 ERA
  3. 94
    Frank Viola
    176-150, 3.73 ERA
  4. 92
    Tom Candiotti
    151-164, 3.73 ERA
  5. 90
    Rick Rhoden
    151-125, 3.59 ERA
  6. 89
    Steve Rogers
    158-152, 3.17 ERA

Frequently Asked Questions about Ken Holtzman

What years did Ken Holtzman play?
Ken Holtzman played in Major League Baseball from 1965 to 1979.
Was Ken Holtzman a pitcher?
Yes. Ken Holtzman pitched in the major leagues, recording 174 wins and 1601 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Ken Holtzman hit?
Ken Holtzman hit 2 career home runs with 99 hits.