Willie Horton
Outfielder · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1963-1980)
Willie Horton was an outfielder who played in Major League Baseball from 1963 to 1980 for 6 teams, including the Detroit Tigers, a span of 18 seasons. In 2,028 career games, he hit .273 with 1,993 hits, 325 home runs, and 1,163 RBI. Willie Horton was a 4-time All-Star. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 18,228.
- AVG (Batting Average):
- Hits divided by at bats. .300 is the traditional mark of an excellent hitter.
- HR (Home Runs):
- Hits on which the batter circled the bases and scored, almost always by clearing the outfield fence.
- RBI (Runs Batted In):
- Runs that scored as a direct result of a batter's plate appearance.
- OPS (On-Base Plus Slugging):
- On-base percentage plus slugging percentage, the quickest single summary of offensive value. .900 or better is star-level.
Data updated
- Position
- Outfielder
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 5'11" / 209 lb
- MLB Debut
- 1963-09-10
- Last Game
- 1980-10-05
- Awards
- 4× All-Star
Full name: William Wattison Horton
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2,028 | 7,298 | 873 | 1,993 | 284 | 40 | 325 | 1,163 | 20 | 620 | 1,313 | .273 | .332 | .457 | .789 | 18,228 |
Career AVG .273 vs. league average .253 across their career seasons — +7.9% above league average.
Career OBP .332 vs. league average .319 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career SLG .457 vs. league average .374 across their career seasons — +22.1% above league average.
Career OPS .789 vs. league average .693 across their career seasons — +13.8% above 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | DET | AL | 15 | 43 | 6 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 8 | .326 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1964 | DET | AL | 25 | 80 | 6 | 13 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 11 | 20 | .163 | .250 (-35%) | .312 (-13%) | .377 (-24%) | .690 (-19%) | -227.6 |
| 1965 | DET | AL | 143 | 512 | 69 | 140 | 20 | 2 | 29 | 104 | 5 | 48 | 101 | .273 | .245 (+11%) | .310 (+9%) | .371 (+32%) | .682 (+22%) | 2070.6 |
| 1966 | DET | AL | 146 | 526 | 72 | 138 | 22 | 6 | 27 | 100 | 1 | 44 | 103 | .262 | .248 (+6%) | .309 (+4%) | .376 (+28%) | .685 (+17%) | 1581.7 |
| 1967 | DET | AL | 122 | 401 | 47 | 110 | 20 | 3 | 19 | 67 | 0 | 36 | 80 | .274 | .242 (+13%) | .306 (+10%) | .357 (+35%) | .663 (+23%) | 1622.5 |
| 1968 | DET | AL | 143 | 512 | 68 | 146 | 20 | 2 | 36 | 85 | 0 | 49 | 110 | .285 | .236 (+20%) | .298 (+18%) | .340 (+60%) | .638 (+40%) | 3592.5 |
| 1969 | DET | AL | 141 | 508 | 66 | 133 | 17 | 1 | 28 | 91 | 3 | 52 | 93 | .262 | .248 (+5%) | .320 (+4%) | .369 (+26%) | .689 (+16%) | 1434.1 |
| 1970 | DET | AL | 96 | 371 | 53 | 113 | 18 | 2 | 17 | 69 | 0 | 28 | 43 | .305 | .253 (+20%) | .325 (+9%) | .385 (+30%) | .711 (+20%) | 1295.0 |
| 1971 | DET | AL | 119 | 450 | 64 | 130 | 25 | 1 | 22 | 72 | 1 | 37 | 75 | .289 | .249 (+16%) | .316 (+10%) | .365 (+36%) | .682 (+24%) | 1894.3 |
| 1972 | DET | AL | 108 | 333 | 44 | 77 | 9 | 5 | 11 | 36 | 0 | 27 | 47 | .231 | .243 (-5%) | .310 (-6%) | .353 (+9%) | .664 (+2%) | 63.3 |
| 1973 | DET | AL | 111 | 411 | 42 | 130 | 19 | 3 | 17 | 53 | 1 | 23 | 57 | .316 | .256 (+23%) | .325 (+11%) | .378 (+32%) | .703 (+23%) | 1659.8 |
| 1974 | DET | AL | 72 | 238 | 32 | 71 | 8 | 1 | 15 | 47 | 0 | 21 | 36 | .298 | .256 (+16%) | .324 (+11%) | .369 (+43%) | .693 (+28%) | 1144.2 |
| 1975 | DET | AL | 159 | 615 | 62 | 169 | 13 | 1 | 25 | 92 | 1 | 44 | 109 | .275 | .257 (+7%) | .327 (-2%) | .374 (+13%) | .701 (+6%) | 522.6 |
| 1976 | DET | AL | 114 | 401 | 40 | 105 | 17 | 0 | 14 | 56 | 0 | 49 | 63 | .262 | .255 (+3%) | .320 (+7%) | .360 (+13%) | .681 (+10%) | 815.1 |
| 1977 | DET | AL | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .250 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1977 | TEX | AL | 139 | 519 | 55 | 150 | 23 | 3 | 15 | 75 | 2 | 42 | 117 | .289 | .264 (+9%) | .329 (+3%) | .401 (+8%) | .730 (+5%) | 0.0 |
| 1978 | CLE | AL | 50 | 169 | 15 | 42 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 22 | 3 | 15 | 25 | .249 | .257 (-4%) | .323 (-3%) | .378 (avg) | .702 (-1%) | -27.4 |
| 1978 | OAK | AL | 32 | 102 | 11 | 32 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 19 | 0 | 9 | 15 | .314 | .257 (+22%) | .323 (+14%) | .378 (+27%) | .702 (+21%) | -27.4 |
| 1978 | TOR | AL | 33 | 122 | 12 | 25 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 19 | 0 | 4 | 29 | .205 | .257 (-21%) | .323 (-29%) | .378 (-13%) | .702 (-21%) | -27.4 |
| 1979 | SEA | AL | 162 | 646 | 77 | 180 | 19 | 5 | 29 | 106 | 1 | 42 | 112 | .279 | .265 (+5%) | .329 (-1%) | .397 (+15%) | .727 (+8%) | 934.6 |
| 1980 | SEA | AL | 97 | 335 | 32 | 74 | 10 | 1 | 8 | 36 | 0 | 39 | 70 | .221 | .264 (-17%) | .326 (-6%) | .387 (-15%) | .714 (-11%) | -538.7 |
| Career · 21 seasons | 2,028 | 7,298 | 873 | 1,993 | 284 | 40 | 325 | 1,163 | 20 | 620 | 1,313 | .273 | — | — | — | — | 17,782 | ||
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
Playoff Batting by Year
Game Log & Splits
View full game log (2028 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 987 | 3391 | 421 | 949 | 153 | 555 | .280 |
| Away | 1041 | 3907 | 452 | 1044 | 172 | 608 | .267 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980-10-05 | SEA | TEX | L | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1980-10-04 | SEA | TEX | L | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1980-10-03 | SEA | TEX | L | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1980-10-02 | SEA | KCR | L | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1980-10-01 | SEA | KCR | L | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1980-09-27 | SEA | TEX | L | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1980-09-26 | SEA | TEX | W | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1980-09-25 | SEA | TEX | W | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1980-09-24 | SEA | KCR | W | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1980-09-23 | SEA | KCR | W | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| OF | 1190 | 1167 | 1921 | 58 | 58 | 8 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | DET | OF | 9 | 9 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1964 | DET | OF | 23 | 21 | 33 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 1965 | DET | 3B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1965 | DET | OF | 141 | 138 | 249 | 7 | 3 | 1 |
| 1966 | DET | OF | 137 | 133 | 233 | 4 | 5 | 1 |
| 1967 | DET | OF | 110 | 108 | 165 | 5 | 5 | 2 |
| 1968 | DET | OF | 139 | 137 | 212 | 6 | 6 | 2 |
| 1969 | DET | OF | 136 | 135 | 272 | 8 | 8 | 0 |
| 1970 | DET | OF | 96 | 96 | 154 | 10 | 3 | 1 |
| 1971 | DET | OF | 118 | 117 | 176 | 8 | 7 | 1 |
| 1972 | DET | OF | 98 | 93 | 131 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| 1973 | DET | OF | 107 | 106 | 160 | 2 | 10 | 0 |
| 1974 | DET | OF | 64 | 64 | 106 | 2 | 6 | 0 |
| 1977 | DET | OF | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1977 | TEX | OF | 10 | 9 | 15 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1978 | OAK | OF | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Third Base | 1 |
| Left Field | 1112 |
| Right Field | 126 |
| Designated Hitter | 753 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Outstanding DH Award | |
| 1979 | TSN Comeback Player of the Year | |
| 1976 | Player of the Month | April |
| 1976 | Player of the Week | Week of 1976-04-23 |
| 1975 | Outstanding DH Award | |
| 1975 | Player of the Week | Week of 1975-08-01 |
| 1975 | TSN All-Star | DH |
| 1968 | TSN All-Star | OF |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 24th | 3.0 | 392 | 0 |
| 1973 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 29th | 3.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1968 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 4th | 102.0 | 280 | 0 |
| 1966 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 21th | 4.0 | 280 | 0 |
| 1965 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 8th | 24.0 | 280 | 0 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Willie Horton (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Willie Horton: the record in brief
September 10, 1963 and October 5, 1980 bracket Willie Horton's time in the majors: the debut and the last game on record. Horton played for the Detroit Tigers (1963 to 1977), the Texas Rangers (1977), the Cleveland Indians (1978), the Oakland Athletics (1978), the Toronto Blue Jays (1978), and the Seattle Mariners (1979 through 1980). Horton is listed as an outfielder at 209 pounds on a 5-foot-11 frame. The bio says Horton threw and hit right-handed. The recorded birth is October 18, 1942, in Arno, VA, USA. The given name on file is William Wattison Horton.
Horton's career batting table shows 2,028 games, 7,298 at bats and 1,993 hits, a .273 average, plus 325 homers, 1,163 runs batted in, and 20 stolen bases. Horton's career OPS of .789 combines a .332 on-base mark with .457 slugging. Horton's .273 average ran 7.9% above the .253 that the league posted over the same seasons. For power, 1968 stands out: 36 home runs with the Detroit Tigers.
Frequently Asked Questions about Willie Horton
- What years did Willie Horton play?
- Willie Horton played in Major League Baseball from 1963 to 1980.
- Was Willie Horton a pitcher?
- No. Willie Horton was a position player (Outfielder).
- How many home runs did Willie Horton hit?
- Willie Horton hit 325 career home runs with 1,993 hits.
- What teams did Willie Horton play for?
- Willie Horton played for 6 teams: the Detroit Tigers (1963–1977), the Texas Rangers (1977), the Cleveland Indians (1978), the Oakland Athletics (1978), the Toronto Blue Jays (1978), and the Seattle Mariners (1979–1980).
- Did Willie Horton win an MVP award?
- No. Willie Horton did not win the MVP award.
- What awards did Willie Horton win?
- Willie Horton was selected to 4 All-Star Games.
- What were Willie Horton's career stats?
- In 2,028 games, Willie Horton had 1,993 hits, 325 home runs, 1,163 RBI, 873 runs, and 20 stolen bases, with a .273 batting average.
- What position did Willie Horton play?
- Willie Horton played primarily as an outfielder, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Willie Horton and how much did he weigh?
- Willie Horton was listed at 5 feet 11 inches and 209 pounds.
- How many home runs did Willie Horton hit each season?
- Willie Horton's home runs by season: 1 in 1963, 1 in 1964, 29 in 1965, 27 in 1966, 19 in 1967, 36 in 1968, 28 in 1969, 17 in 1970, 22 in 1971, 11 in 1972, 17 in 1973, 15 in 1974, 25 in 1975, 14 in 1976, 15 in 1977, 11 in 1978, 29 in 1979, and 8 in 1980. His most in one season was 36, in 1968.
- What was Willie Horton's career batting average?
- Willie Horton batted .273 over his career, with 1,993 hits in 7,298 at bats.
- How many RBI did Willie Horton have?
- Willie Horton drove in 1,163 runs in his career.
- Is Willie Horton in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Willie Horton has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
- How many All-Star Games did Willie Horton make?
- Willie Horton was selected to 4 All-Star Games.