Charlie James

Outfielder · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1960-1965)

Charlie James was an outfielder who played in Major League Baseball from 1960 to 1965 for the St. Louis Cardinals and the Cincinnati Reds, a span of 6 seasons. In 510 career games, he hit .255 with 358 hits, 29 home runs, and 172 RBI.

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

AVG .255
HR 29
RBI 172
H 358
OPS .652
PIV -1,735
Position
Outfielder
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
6'1" / 195 lb
Born
12/22/1937 in St. Louis, MO, USA
MLB Debut
1960-08-02
Last Game
1965-09-27

Full name: Charles Wesley James

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Career Batting Statistics

Charlie James — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
510 1,406 158 358 56 9 29 172 7 48 260 .255 .283 .369 .652 -1,735

Career AVG .255 vs. league average .252 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .283 vs. league average .318 across their career seasons — 11.0% below league average.

Career SLG .369 vs. league average .383 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OPS .652 vs. league average .701 across their career seasons — 7.0% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Charlie James — Season-by-Season Batting
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1960 SLN NL 43 50 5 9 1 0 2 5 0 1 12 .180 .255 (-29%) .323 (-39%) .387 (-17%) .711 (-27%) -228.2
1961 SLN NL 108 349 43 89 19 2 4 44 2 15 59 .255 .258 (-1%) .328 (-12%) .399 (-11%) .727 (-12%) -723.1
1962 SLN NL 129 388 50 107 13 4 8 59 3 10 58 .276 .257 (+7%) .326 (-8%) .393 (avg) .719 (-4%) -298.8
1963 SLN NL 116 347 34 93 14 2 10 45 2 10 64 .268 .246 (+9%) .308 (-6%) .371 (+9%) .680 (+2%) 31.3
1964 SLN NL 88 233 24 52 9 1 5 17 0 11 58 .223 .250 (-11%) .312 (-16%) .377 (-11%) .690 (-14%) -515.8
1965 CIN NL 26 39 2 8 0 0 0 2 0 1 9 .205 — — — — 0.0
Career · 6 seasons 510 1,406 158 358 56 9 29 172 7 48 260 .255 — — — — -1,735

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

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

Playoff Batting by Year

Charlie James — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1964 WS SLN 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (510 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Charlie James — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home256671861792093.267
Away25473572179979.244

Last 10 Games — Batting

Charlie James — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1965-09-27 CINLADL 100000000
1965-09-10 CINPITL 101000000
1965-09-06 CINPITL 100000000
1965-09-06 CINPITL 401000001
1965-08-24 CINATLW 100000000
1965-08-23 CINATLL 100000000
1965-08-15 CINSTLL 100000000
1965-08-06 CINLADW 400000001
1965-08-05 CINSFGL 000000000
1965-07-28 CINLADW 411000001

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Charlie James — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
OF 411 322 583 18 15 4

Season-by-Season Fielding

Charlie James — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1960 SLN OF 37 7 21 1 2 1
1961 SLN OF 90 84 151 3 6 1
1962 SLN OF 116 95 156 7 2 1
1963 SLN OF 101 78 169 4 1 1
1964 SLN OF 60 52 76 3 3 0
1965 CIN OF 7 6 10 0 1 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Charlie James — Career Games by Position
Position Games
Left Field 214
Center Field 13
Right Field 209

College History

Charlie James — College History
School Name City State Years Attended
University of Missouri Columbia Columbia MO 1957

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Charlie James (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Wendell Magee
    .247 avg, 24 HR
  2. 94
    Oscar Walker
    .254 avg, 11 HR
  3. 90
    George Wright
    .245 avg, 42 HR
  4. 90
    Dave Rowe
    .263 avg, 8 HR
  5. 89
    Brandon Barnes
    .242 avg, 20 HR
  6. 87
    Lee King
    .247 avg, 15 HR

Charlie James: the record in brief

Charlie James's major league career runs from a debut on August 2, 1960 to a final game on September 27, 1965. The season rows list, in order, the St. Louis Cardinals (1960 to 1964) and the Cincinnati Reds (1965). The bio lists James as an outfielder who batted and threw right-handed. Height and weight on file: 195 pounds on a 6-foot-1 frame. James was born on December 22, 1937, in St. Louis, MO, USA. James's full given name, per the bio, is Charles Wesley James.

James collected 358 hits in 1,406 at bats across 510 games, good for a .255 batting average, adding 29 homers and 172 runs batted in. James's career OPS of .652 combines a .283 on-base mark with .369 slugging. James hit .255 while the league hit .252 over the same span, a figure close to average. 1963 was James's biggest home run year, with 10. James collected a career-high 107 hits in 1962. The RBI column peaks at 59 in 1962. The Lg AVG column puts James's 1962 at .276 against .257, the widest margin among the busiest seasons at 7%.

Frequently Asked Questions about Charlie James

What years did Charlie James play?
Charlie James played in Major League Baseball from 1960 to 1965.
Was Charlie James a pitcher?
No. Charlie James was a position player (Outfielder).
How many home runs did Charlie James hit?
Charlie James hit 29 career home runs with 358 hits.
What teams did Charlie James play for?
Charlie James played for 2 teams: the St. Louis Cardinals (1960–1964) and the Cincinnati Reds (1965).
What were Charlie James's career stats?
In 510 games, Charlie James had 358 hits, 29 home runs, 172 RBI, 158 runs, and 7 stolen bases, with a .255 batting average.
What position did Charlie James play?
Charlie James played primarily as an outfielder, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Charlie James and how much did he weigh?
Charlie James was listed at 6 feet 1 inch and 195 pounds.
How many home runs did Charlie James hit each season?
Charlie James's home runs by season: 2 in 1960, 4 in 1961, 8 in 1962, 10 in 1963, 5 in 1964, and 0 in 1965. His most in one season was 10, in 1963.
What was Charlie James's career batting average?
Charlie James batted .255 over his career, with 358 hits in 1,406 at bats.
How many RBI did Charlie James have?
Charlie James drove in 172 runs in his career.
Is Charlie James in the Hall of Fame?
No. Charlie James has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.