What years did Sam Jones play?

Sam Jones played in Major League Baseball from 1951 to 1964.

Was Sam Jones a pitcher?

Yes. Sam Jones pitched in the major leagues, recording 103 wins and 1393 strikeouts.

How many home runs did Sam Jones hit?

Sam Jones hit 1 career home runs with 81 hits.

What was Sam Jones's career batting average?

Sam Jones batted .152 over his career, with 81 hits in 533 at bats.

How many RBI did Sam Jones have?

Sam Jones drove in 30 runs in his career.

What was Sam Jones's career ERA?

Sam Jones finished with a 3.63 career ERA, going 103-104 with 1,393 strikeouts.

Sam Jones

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1951-1964)

Sam Jones was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1951 to 1964 for 7 teams, including the Cleveland Buckeyes, a span of 14 seasons. Across 327 career appearances, he went 103-104 with a 3.63 ERA and 1,393 strikeouts. He also batted .152 with 1 home runs. Sam Jones was a 2-time All-Star. His totals include Negro Leagues seasons, which MLB recognized as major league in 2020. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 12443.5.

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 October 12, 2026

W–L 103–104

ERA 3.63

WHIP 1.36

SO 1,393

Pitcher PIV 12443.5

Position: Pitcher
Bats / Throws: R / R
Height / Weight: 6'4" / 192 lb
Born: 12/14/1925 in Stewartsville, OH, USA
Died: 11/5/1971 in Morgantown, WV, USA
MLB Debut: 1951-09-22
Last Game: 1964-10-03
Awards: 2× All-Star

Full name: Samuel Jones

📊 Compare This Player 📈 View Career Timeline

Negro Leagues Career Statistics

Batting

Sam Jones — Batting
PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	SB	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS
17.0	17.0	3.0	3.0	0	0	0	3.0	0	0	0	.176	.176	.176	.352

Pitching

Sam Jones — Pitching
W	L	GS	CG	GF	SV	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	ERA	WHIP
13	16	33	13	10	0	189.0	152	133	31	9	37	42	1.48	1.00

Negro Leagues (season totals). Additive Retrosheet-digitized totals for seasons not already in the logs above; they are not summed into the career line. No team/league breakdown is available, and coverage may be partial.

Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Batting

Sam Jones — Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Batting
Season	PA	AB	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS
1946	2.0	2.0	.000	.000	.000	.000
1949	4.0	4.0	.000	.000	.000	.000
Listed seasons · 2	6	6	.000	—	—	—

Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Pitching

Sam Jones — Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Pitching
Season	W	L	GS	CG	GF	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	ERA	WHIP
1946	1	1	4	1	2	26.1	17	11	4	0	8	8	1.37	0.95
1949	0	6	8	1	1	37.0	21	36	14	2	9	3	3.40	0.81
Listed seasons · 2	1	7	12	2	3	63.1	38	47	18	2	17	11	2.56	0.87

Career Pitching Statistics

Sam Jones — Career Pitching Statistics
W	L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	SO	ERA	Pitcher PIV
103	104	327	225	77	17	9	1669.1	1,437	674	152	840	1,393	3.63	12443.5

Career ERA 3.63 vs. league average 3.86 across their career seasons — 6.0% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Sam Jones Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year	Team	Lg	W	L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA	Lg ERA	Pitcher PIV
1947	CBE	NAL	0	1	1	1	1	0	0	8.0	11	3	2	5	3.38	—	0.0
1948	CBE	NAL	1	2	4	2	0	0	0	18.0	23	16	16	12	8.00	4.10 (-95%)	-326.6
1951	CLE	AL	0	1	2	1	0	0	0	8.2	4	2	5	4	2.08	—	0.0
1952	CLE	AL	2	3	14	4	0	0	1	36.0	38	29	37	28	7.25	3.70 (-96%)	-2444.2
1955	CHN	NL	14	20	36	34	12	4	0	241.2	175	110	185	198	4.10	4.00 (-2%)	-2324.6
1956	CHN	NL	9	14	33	28	8	2	0	188.2	155	82	115	176	3.91	3.96 (+1%)	285.0
1957	SLN	NL	12	9	28	27	10	2	0	182.2	164	73	71	154	3.60	3.83 (+6%)	2792.0
1958	SLN	NL	14	13	35	35	14	2	0	250.0	204	80	107	225	2.88	3.86 (+25%)	4171.3
1959	SFN	NL	21	15	50	35	16	4	4	270.2	232	85	109	209	2.83	3.90 (+28%)	5329.2
1960	SFN	NL	18	14	39	35	13	3	0	234.0	200	83	91	190	3.19	3.82 (+16%)	4278.7
1961	SFN	NL	8	8	37	17	2	0	1	128.1	134	64	57	105	4.49	4.03 (-11%)	1164.7
1962	DET	AL	2	4	30	6	1	0	1	81.1	77	33	35	73	3.65	3.96 (+8%)	-629.2
1963	SLN	NL	2	0	11	0	0	0	2	11.0	15	11	5	8	9.00	3.46 (-160%)	295.1
1964	BAL	AL	0	0	7	0	0	0	0	10.1	5	3	5	6	2.61	3.58 (+27%)	-148.0
Career · 14 seasons			103	104	327	225	77	17	9	1,669.1	1,437	674	840	1,393	3.63	—	12,443

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

Sam Jones — Career Batting Statistics
G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
327	533	19	81	7	0	1	30	0	17	167	.152	.178	.171	.349	-3,742

Career AVG .152 vs. league average .257 across their career seasons — 40.8% below league average.

Career OBP .178 vs. league average .327 across their career seasons — 45.4% below league average.

Career SLG .171 vs. league average .386 across their career seasons — 55.8% below league average.

Career OPS .349 vs. league average .712 across their career seasons — 51.0% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Sam Jones Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year	Team	Lg	G	AB	R	H	2B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG	Lg AVG	Lg OBP	Lg SLG	Lg OPS	PIV
1947	CBE	NAL	1	3	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1948	CBE	NAL	4	8	2	3	0	0	3	0	0	.375	—	—	—	—	0.0
1951	CLE	AL	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1952	CLE	AL	14	10	0	1	0	0	0	0	4	.100	—	—	—	—	0.0
1955	CHN	NL	36	77	2	14	1	0	5	3	27	.182	.258 (-30%)	.332 (-36%)	.393 (-51%)	.726 (-44%)	-538.6
1956	CHN	NL	33	57	3	10	0	0	1	4	19	.175	.258 (-32%)	.331 (-31%)	.397 (-56%)	.728 (-44%)	-397.5
1957	SLN	NL	28	63	2	10	1	0	3	1	25	.159	.257 (-38%)	.323 (-44%)	.391 (-55%)	.715 (-50%)	-506.5
1958	SLN	NL	35	90	2	9	0	0	4	2	26	.100	.257 (-61%)	.324 (-64%)	.394 (-75%)	.719 (-70%)	-1000.9
1959	SFN	NL	50	85	3	11	1	0	8	3	30	.129	.256 (-50%)	.323 (-51%)	.392 (-64%)	.715 (-58%)	-792.3
1960	SFN	NL	39	80	3	16	2	0	5	1	20	.200	.255 (-22%)	.323 (-36%)	.387 (-42%)	.711 (-39%)	-506.5
1961	SFN	NL	37	36	0	5	2	0	0	1	7	.139	—	—	—	—	0.0
1962	DET	AL	30	21	1	2	0	1	1	0	9	.095	—	—	—	—	0.0
1963	SLN	NL	11	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1964	BAL	AL	7	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
Career · 14 seasons			327	533	19	81	7	1	30	17	167	.152	—	—	—	—	-3,742

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

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

Playoff Batting by Year

Sam Jones — Playoff Batting by Year
Year	Round	Team	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
1947	NWS	CBE	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000

Playoff Career Pitching

Sam Jones — Playoff Career Pitching
W	L	G	GS	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
0	1	1	0	0	0.2	4	5	2	1	67.50

Playoff Pitching by Year

Sam Jones — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year	Round	Team	W	L	G	GS	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
1947	NWS	CBE	0	1	1	0	0	0.2	4	5	2	1	67.50

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (728 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Sam Jones — Batting — Home / Away
Split	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	AVG
Home	180	244	7	47	1	16	.193
Away	184	292	10	34	0	14	.116

Pitching — Home / Away

Sam Jones — Pitching — Home / Away
Split	G	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
Home	180	952.2	779	327	414	758	3.09
Away	184	868.0	754	355	438	656	3.68

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Sam Jones — Last 10 Games — Pitching
Date	Tm	Opp	Dec	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR
1964-10-03	BAL	DET	—	1.1	0	0	0	0	1	0
1964-09-30	BAL	TEX	—	1.0	0	0	0	1	0	0
1964-09-23	BAL	DET	—	1.0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1964-09-13	BAL	KC1	—	1.0	1	1	1	1	0	0
1964-09-11	BAL	KC1	—	3.0	2	0	0	2	4	0
1964-09-07	BAL	KC1	—	1.0	0	0	0	0	1	0
1964-09-04	BAL	LAA	—	2.0	2	2	2	1	0	1
1963-09-07	STL	PIT	—	1.2	3	2	2	0	2	0
1963-09-04	STL	NYN	W	0.1	0	0	0	0	0	0
1963-09-03	STL	PIT	—	0.1	1	1	0	0	0	0

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Sam Jones — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
P	327	221	84	219	21	12

Season-by-Season Fielding

Sam Jones — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1947	CBE	P	1	1	0	3	0	0
1948	CBE	P	4	3	0	7	0	0
1951	CLE	P	2	0	1	1	0	0
1952	CLE	P	14	0	0	4	0	0
1955	CHN	P	36	34	14	36	5	0
1956	CHN	P	33	28	7	21	4	3
1957	SLN	P	28	27	13	27	1	1
1958	SLN	P	35	35	14	31	1	3
1959	SFN	P	50	35	10	34	3	2
1960	SFN	P	39	35	6	34	5	1
1961	SFN	P	37	17	7	11	1	1
1962	DET	P	30	6	11	8	1	0
1963	SLN	P	11	0	1	1	0	0
1964	BAL	P	7	0	0	1	0	1

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Sam Jones Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position	Games
Pitcher	327

Awards & Honors

Sam Jones — Awards & Honors
Year	Award	Notes
1959	TSN All-Star	P
1959	TSN Pitcher of the Year

Award Voting History

Sam Jones — Award Voting History
Year	Award	League	Finish	Points Won	Points Max	Votes First
1959	Cy Young Award	ML	2nd	2.0	16	2
1959	Most Valuable Player	NL	5th	130.0	336	0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Sam Jones (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

Sam Jones: the record in brief

Sam Jones's season table begins in 1947 with Negro Leagues seasons, which MLB now counts as major league; the bio gives the date of the MLB debut as September 22, 1951, and the final game as October 3, 1964. By club, Jones's seasons break down as the Cleveland Buckeyes (1947 through 1948), the Cleveland Indians (1951 to 1952), the Chicago Cubs (1955 to 1956), the St. Louis Cardinals (1957 to 1963), the San Francisco Giants (1959 through 1961), the Detroit Tigers (1962), and the Baltimore Orioles (1964). Jones is listed as a pitcher at 192 pounds on a 6-foot-4 frame. The bio says Jones threw and hit right-handed. Jones was born on December 14, 1925, in Stewartsville, OH, USA. The bio records the death on November 5, 1971, in Morgantown, WV, USA. Jones's full given name, per the bio, is Samuel Jones.

Jones went 103-104 with a 3.63 ERA in 327 games, 225 of them starts. The same table counts 1,393 strikeouts, 77 complete games, and 17 shutouts.

Frequently Asked Questions about Sam Jones

What years did Sam Jones play?: Sam Jones played in Major League Baseball from 1951 to 1964.
Was Sam Jones a pitcher?: Yes. Sam Jones pitched in the major leagues, recording 103 wins and 1393 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Sam Jones hit?: Sam Jones hit 1 career home runs with 81 hits.
What was Sam Jones's career batting average?: Sam Jones batted .152 over his career, with 81 hits in 533 at bats.
How many RBI did Sam Jones have?: Sam Jones drove in 30 runs in his career.
What was Sam Jones's career ERA?: Sam Jones finished with a 3.63 career ERA, going 103-104 with 1,393 strikeouts.