Joey Jay

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1953-1966)

Joey Jay was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1953 to 1966 for the Milwaukee Braves, the Cincinnati Reds, and the Atlanta Braves, a span of 14 seasons. Across 310 career appearances, he went 99-91 with a 3.77 ERA and 999 strikeouts. He also batted .114 with 2 home runs. Joey Jay 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 99–91
ERA 3.77
WHIP 1.34
SO 999
Pitcher PIV -558.2
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
B / R
Height / Weight
6'4" / 228 lb
Born
8/15/1935 in Middletown, CT, USA
Died
9/27/2024 in Lutz, FL, USA
MLB Debut
1953-07-21
Last Game
1966-10-02
Awards
All-Star

Full name: Joseph Richard Jay

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Career Pitching Statistics

Joey Jay — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
99 91 310 203 63 16 7 1546.1 1,460 648 153 607 999 3.77 -558.2

Career ERA 3.77 vs. league average 3.79 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Joey Jay Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1953 ML1 NL 1 0 3 1 1 1 0 10.0 6 0 5 4 0.00 4.14 (+100%) 212.0
1954 ML1 NL 1 0 15 1 0 0 0 18.0 21 13 16 13 6.50 3.90 (-67%) -600.4
1955 ML1 NL 0 0 12 1 0 0 0 19.0 23 10 13 3 4.74 4.00 (-18%) -700.5
1957 ML1 NL 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0.2 0 0 0 0 0.00 — 0.0
1958 ML1 NL 7 5 18 12 6 3 0 96.2 60 23 43 74 2.14 3.86 (+45%) 1171.4
1959 ML1 NL 6 11 34 19 4 1 0 136.1 130 62 64 88 4.09 3.90 (-5%) 297.2
1960 ML1 NL 9 8 32 11 3 0 1 133.1 128 48 59 90 3.24 3.82 (+15%) 695.0
1961 CIN NL 21 10 34 34 14 4 0 247.1 217 97 92 157 3.53 4.03 (+12%) 1503.4
1962 CIN NL 21 14 39 37 16 4 0 273.0 269 114 100 155 3.76 3.96 (+5%) 667.9
1963 CIN NL 7 18 30 22 4 1 1 170.0 172 81 73 116 4.29 3.46 (-24%) -1910.3
1964 CIN NL 11 11 34 23 10 0 2 183.0 167 69 36 134 3.39 3.58 (+5%) 2815.5
1965 CIN NL 9 8 37 24 4 1 1 155.2 150 73 63 102 4.22 3.50 (-21%) -2929.9
1966 CIN NL 6 2 12 10 1 1 0 73.2 78 32 23 44 3.91 3.52 (-11%) -571.0
1966 ATL NL 0 4 9 8 0 0 1 29.2 39 26 20 19 7.89 3.52 (-124%) -1208.6
Career · 14 seasons 99 91 310 203 63 16 7 1,546.1 1,460 648 607 999 3.77 — -558

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

Joey Jay — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
310 483 17 55 7 0 2 19 0 28 206 .114 .164 .141 .305 -2,973

Career AVG .114 vs. league average .255 across their career seasons — 55.3% below league average.

Career OBP .164 vs. league average .322 across their career seasons — 49.1% below league average.

Career SLG .141 vs. league average .387 across their career seasons — 63.6% below league average.

Career OPS .305 vs. league average .708 across their career seasons — 57.0% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Joey Jay 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
1953 ML1 NL 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000 — — — — 0.0
1954 ML1 NL 15 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1955 ML1 NL 12 3 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .667 — — — — 0.0
1957 ML1 NL 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1958 ML1 NL 18 32 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 4 16 .094 — — — — 0.0
1959 ML1 NL 34 35 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 15 .086 — — — — 0.0
1960 ML1 NL 32 45 2 7 0 0 0 1 0 3 23 .156 — — — — 0.0
1961 CIN NL 34 89 3 8 3 0 0 5 0 2 29 .090 .258 (-65%) .328 (-67%) .399 (-69%) .727 (-68%) -975.8
1962 CIN NL 39 90 7 15 0 0 2 9 0 10 36 .167 .257 (-35%) .326 (-23%) .393 (-41%) .719 (-33%) -453.6
1963 CIN NL 30 50 0 8 1 0 0 0 0 2 22 .160 .246 (-35%) .308 (-38%) .371 (-52%) .680 (-45%) -339.3
1964 CIN NL 34 53 0 3 1 0 0 2 0 1 23 .057 .250 (-77%) .312 (-71%) .377 (-80%) .690 (-76%) -613.5
1965 CIN NL 37 49 3 2 1 0 0 0 0 2 24 .041 — — — — -591.2
1966 CIN NL 12 26 2 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 13 .115 — — — — 0.0
1966 ATL NL 9 8 0 1 1 0 0 2 0 0 3 .125 — — — — 0.0
Career · 14 seasons 310 483 17 55 7 0 2 19 0 28 206 .114 — — — — -2,973

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

Joey Jay — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
2 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000

Playoff Batting by Year

Joey Jay — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1961 WS CIN 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

Joey Jay — Playoff Career Pitching
W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1 1 2 2 0 9.2 8 6 6 6 5.59

Playoff Pitching by Year

Joey Jay — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1961 WS CIN 1 1 2 2 0 9.2 8 6 6 6 5.59

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (618 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Joey Jay — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home148223122717.121
Away161259528112.108

Pitching — Home / Away

Joey Jay — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home148778.17273262825313.77
Away161765.27323223244673.78

Last 10 Games — Batting

Joey Jay — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1966-10-02 ATLCINW 101100200
1966-08-30 ATLCHCL 000000000
1966-08-23 ATLLADL 100000000
1966-08-06 ATLPHIL 000000000
1966-07-27 ATLSTLL 100000000
1966-07-07 ATLLADL 000000000
1966-07-02 ATLSFGW 300000002
1966-06-27 ATLCHCL 200000001
1966-06-22 ATLPHIL 000000000
1966-06-13 CINPITL 300000002

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Joey Jay — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1966-10-02 ATLCIN SV 3.0422030
1966-08-30 ATLCHC L 2.0553221
1966-08-23 ATLLAD — 2.1444121
1966-08-06 ATLPHI — 1.2333510
1966-07-27 ATLSTL L 3.2877112
1966-07-07 ATLLAD — 0.2100000
1966-07-02 ATLSFG — 7.1411370
1966-06-27 ATLCHC L 6.2844420
1966-06-22 ATLPHI L 2.1232410
1966-06-13 CINPIT — 7.0744340

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Joey Jay — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 310 202 105 221 14 15

Season-by-Season Fielding

Joey Jay — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1953 ML1 P 3 0 0 0 0 0
1954 ML1 P 15 1 0 3 0 0
1955 ML1 P 12 1 0 1 0 1
1957 ML1 P 1 0 0 1 0 0
1958 ML1 P 18 12 9 13 1 0
1959 ML1 P 34 19 13 28 2 3
1960 ML1 P 32 11 13 18 1 1
1961 CIN P 34 34 23 32 2 2
1962 CIN P 39 37 14 39 1 3
1963 CIN P 30 22 14 24 3 3
1964 CIN P 34 23 6 24 1 1
1965 CIN P 37 24 9 26 1 1
1966 CIN P 12 10 3 8 2 0
1966 ATL P 9 8 1 4 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Joey Jay Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 310

Awards & Honors

Joey Jay — Awards & Honors
Year Award Notes
1961 TSN All-Star P

Award Voting History

Joey Jay — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1961 Most Valuable Player NL 5th 74.0 224 1

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Joey Jay (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Jim Bibby
    111-101, 3.76 ERA
  2. 94
    Eric Show
    101-89, 3.66 ERA
  3. 92
    George Brunet
    69-93, 3.62 ERA
  4. 91
    Pete Vuckovich
    93-69, 3.66 ERA
  5. 88
    Steve Hargan
    87-107, 3.92 ERA
  6. 88
    Steve Blass
    103-76, 3.63 ERA

Joey Jay: the record in brief

Joey Jay's major league career runs from a debut on July 21, 1953 to a final game on October 2, 1966. The season rows list, in order, the Milwaukee Braves (1953 through 1960), the Cincinnati Reds (1961 to 1966), and the Atlanta Braves (1966). Jay played primarily as a pitcher and switch-hit and threw right-handed. The bio adds a birth date on August 15, 1935, in Middletown, CT, USA and a listed size of 228 pounds on a 6-foot-4 frame. The bio records the death on September 27, 2024, in Lutz, FL, USA. Jay's full given name, per the bio, is Joseph Richard Jay.

Across 310 games (203 starts), Jay recorded 99 wins against 91 losses with a 3.77 ERA. Jay had 999 strikeouts, 63 complete games, and 16 shutouts. Jay's 3.77 ERA was close to the 3.79 league figure for those seasons. No season topped the 21 wins of 1961. Among the heaviest workloads, the lowest ERA was 3.39 in 1964, when the league's was 3.58.

Frequently Asked Questions about Joey Jay

What years did Joey Jay play?
Joey Jay played in Major League Baseball from 1953 to 1966.
Was Joey Jay a pitcher?
Yes. Joey Jay pitched in the major leagues, recording 99 wins and 999 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Joey Jay hit?
Joey Jay hit 2 career home runs with 55 hits.
What was Joey Jay's career batting average?
Joey Jay batted .114 over his career, with 55 hits in 483 at bats.
How many RBI did Joey Jay have?
Joey Jay drove in 19 runs in his career.
What was Joey Jay's career ERA?
Joey Jay finished with a 3.77 career ERA, going 99-91 with 999 strikeouts.