Willie Jones
Third Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1947-1961)
Willie Jones was a third baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1947 to 1961 for the Philadelphia Phillies, the Cleveland Guardians, and the Cincinnati Reds, a span of 15 seasons. In 1,691 career games, he hit .258 with 1,502 hits, 190 home runs, and 812 RBI. Willie Jones was a 2-time All-Star. His totals include Negro Leagues seasons, which MLB recognized as major league in 2020. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 5,715.
- 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
- Third Baseman
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 6'1" / 188 lb
- Died
- 10/18/1983 in Cincinnati, OH, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1947-09-10
- Last Game
- 1961-05-07
- Awards
- 2× All-Star
Full name: Willie Edward Jones
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
| Season | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1926 | 38.0 | 34.0 | 4.0 | 8.0 | 4.0 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 5.0 | 0 | .235 | .316 | .353 | .669 |
| 1927 | 35.0 | 30.0 | 2.0 | 11.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | .367 | .412 | .367 | .779 |
| 1935 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .250 | .400 | .500 | .900 |
| Listed seasons · 3 | 78 | 68 | 6 | 20 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 3 | .294 | — | — | — |
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,691 | 5,826 | 786 | 1,502 | 252 | 33 | 190 | 812 | 40 | 755 | 541 | .258 | .343 | .410 | .753 | 5,715 |
Career AVG .258 vs. league average .260 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OBP .343 vs. league average .333 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career SLG .410 vs. league average .389 across their career seasons — +5.4% above league average.
Career OPS .753 vs. league average .722 across their career seasons — near 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1947 | PHI | NL | 18 | 62 | 5 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 2 | 7 | 0 | .226 | .262 (-14%) | .336 (-10%) | .376 (-31%) | .712 (-21%) | -197.3 |
| 1948 | PHI | NL | 17 | 60 | 9 | 20 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 5 | .333 | .263 (+26%) | .340 (+7%) | .379 (+23%) | .719 (+16%) | 141.0 |
| 1949 | PHI | NL | 149 | 532 | 71 | 130 | 35 | 1 | 19 | 77 | 3 | 65 | 66 | .244 | .262 (-7%) | .343 (-5%) | .384 (+10%) | .727 (+3%) | 210.9 |
| 1950 | PHI | NL | 157 | 610 | 100 | 163 | 28 | 6 | 25 | 88 | 5 | 61 | 40 | .267 | .265 (avg) | .346 (-3%) | .401 (+13%) | .747 (+6%) | 623.0 |
| 1951 | PHI | NL | 148 | 564 | 79 | 161 | 28 | 5 | 22 | 81 | 6 | 60 | 47 | .285 | .260 (+9%) | .336 (+6%) | .385 (+22%) | .721 (+15%) | 1637.2 |
| 1952 | PHI | NL | 147 | 541 | 60 | 135 | 12 | 3 | 18 | 72 | 5 | 53 | 36 | .250 | .252 (-1%) | .326 (-1%) | .369 (+4%) | .696 (+1%) | 158.6 |
| 1953 | PHI | NL | 149 | 481 | 61 | 108 | 16 | 2 | 19 | 70 | 1 | 85 | 45 | .225 | .264 (-15%) | .335 (+2%) | .397 (-3%) | .733 (-1%) | 84.2 |
| 1954 | PHI | NL | 142 | 535 | 64 | 145 | 28 | 3 | 12 | 56 | 4 | 61 | 54 | .271 | .261 (+4%) | .333 (+3%) | .390 (+3%) | .723 (+3%) | 314.3 |
| 1955 | PHI | NL | 146 | 516 | 65 | 133 | 20 | 3 | 16 | 81 | 6 | 77 | 51 | .258 | .258 (avg) | .332 (+6%) | .393 (+2%) | .726 (+4%) | 498.4 |
| 1956 | PHI | NL | 149 | 520 | 88 | 144 | 20 | 4 | 17 | 78 | 5 | 92 | 49 | .277 | .258 (+7%) | .331 (+16%) | .397 (+8%) | .728 (+11%) | 1521.7 |
| 1957 | PHI | NL | 133 | 440 | 58 | 96 | 19 | 2 | 9 | 47 | 1 | 61 | 41 | .218 | .257 (-15%) | .323 (-4%) | .391 (-15%) | .715 (-10%) | -672.0 |
| 1958 | PHI | NL | 118 | 398 | 52 | 108 | 15 | 1 | 14 | 60 | 1 | 49 | 45 | .271 | .257 (+5%) | .324 (+8%) | .394 (+6%) | .719 (+7%) | 637.5 |
| 1959 | PHI | NL | 47 | 160 | 23 | 43 | 9 | 1 | 7 | 24 | 0 | 19 | 14 | .269 | .256 (+5%) | .323 (+6%) | .392 (+20%) | .715 (+13%) | 350.2 |
| 1959 | CLE | AL | 11 | 18 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | .222 | — | — | — | — | 350.2 |
| 1959 | CIN | NL | 72 | 233 | 33 | 58 | 12 | 1 | 7 | 31 | 0 | 28 | 26 | .249 | .256 (-3%) | .323 (+2%) | .392 (+2%) | .715 (+2%) | 350.2 |
| 1960 | CIN | NL | 79 | 149 | 16 | 40 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 27 | 1 | 31 | 16 | .268 | .255 (+5%) | .323 (+20%) | .387 (-3%) | .711 (+7%) | 319.1 |
| 1961 | CIN | NL | 9 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 17 seasons | 1,691 | 5,826 | 786 | 1,502 | 252 | 33 | 190 | 812 | 40 | 755 | 541 | .258 | — | — | — | — | 6,327 | ||
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.
Game Log & Splits
View full game log (1691 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 845 | 2845 | 412 | 724 | 95 | 390 | .254 |
| Away | 846 | 2981 | 375 | 777 | 95 | 419 | .261 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961-05-07 | CIN | ATL | W | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1961-05-03 | CIN | PHI | W | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1961-04-30 | CIN | PIT | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1961-04-27 | CIN | CHC | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1961-04-22 | CIN | LAD | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1961-04-21 | CIN | LAD | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1961-04-20 | CIN | SFG | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1961-04-16 | CIN | STL | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1961-04-14 | CIN | STL | W | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1960-10-02 | CIN | PHI | L | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1B | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2B | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 3B | 1614 | 810 | 2045 | 2934 | 192 | 273 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1947 | PHI | 3B | 17 | 0 | 19 | 41 | 6 | 3 |
| 1948 | PHI | 3B | 17 | 0 | 30 | 33 | 5 | 1 |
| 1949 | PHI | 3B | 145 | 0 | 181 | 308 | 27 | 19 |
| 1950 | PHI | 3B | 157 | 0 | 190 | 323 | 25 | 30 |
| 1951 | PHI | 3B | 147 | 0 | 190 | 286 | 17 | 33 |
| 1952 | PHI | 3B | 147 | 0 | 216 | 281 | 16 | 31 |
| 1953 | PHI | 3B | 147 | 0 | 176 | 253 | 11 | 36 |
| 1954 | PHI | 3B | 141 | 140 | 184 | 277 | 15 | 23 |
| 1955 | PHI | 3B | 146 | 146 | 202 | 235 | 18 | 22 |
| 1956 | PHI | 3B | 149 | 149 | 202 | 264 | 13 | 23 |
| 1957 | PHI | 3B | 126 | 121 | 140 | 197 | 12 | 18 |
| 1958 | PHI | 1B | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1958 | PHI | 3B | 110 | 105 | 137 | 186 | 11 | 13 |
| 1959 | PHI | 3B | 46 | 46 | 40 | 76 | 3 | 5 |
| 1959 | CLE | 3B | 4 | 4 | 3 | 10 | 1 | 2 |
| 1959 | CIN | 3B | 68 | 64 | 92 | 105 | 7 | 9 |
| 1960 | CIN | 2B | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1960 | CIN | 3B | 46 | 35 | 43 | 59 | 4 | 5 |
| 1961 | CIN | 3B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| First Base | 1 |
| Second Base | 1 |
| Third Base | 1614 |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 36th | 1.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1949 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 27th | 2.0 | 336 | 0 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Willie Jones (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Willie Jones: the record in brief
Willie Jones played a first major league game on September 10, 1947 and a last one on May 7, 1961. Club by club, the record runs the Philadelphia Phillies (1947 through 1959), the Cleveland Indians (1959), the Cincinnati Redlegs (1959), and the Cincinnati Reds (1960 through 1961). Jones played primarily as a third baseman and batted and threw right-handed. The bio adds a birth date on August 16, 1925, in Dillon, SC, USA and a listed size of 6 feet, 1 inch and 188 pounds. The bio records the death on October 18, 1983, in Cincinnati, OH, USA. The given name on file is Willie Edward Jones.
The batting record for Jones: 1,691 games, 1,502 hits in 5,826 at bats, and a .258 average, along with 190 homers, 812 runs batted in, and 40 stolen bases. Reaching base at a .343 clip and slugging .410, Jones finished with a .753 OPS. Against a .260 league average for those years, Jones's .258 average was near the norm.
Frequently Asked Questions about Willie Jones
- What years did Willie Jones play?
- Willie Jones played in Major League Baseball from 1947 to 1961.
- Was Willie Jones a pitcher?
- No. Willie Jones was a position player (Third Baseman).
- How many home runs did Willie Jones hit?
- Willie Jones hit 190 career home runs with 1,502 hits.
- What teams did Willie Jones play for?
- Willie Jones played for 3 teams: the Philadelphia Phillies (1947–1959), the Cleveland Indians (1959), and the Cincinnati Reds (1959–1961).
- Did Willie Jones win an MVP award?
- No. Willie Jones did not win the MVP award.
- What awards did Willie Jones win?
- Willie Jones was selected to 2 All-Star Games.
- What were Willie Jones's career stats?
- In 1,691 games, Willie Jones had 1,502 hits, 190 home runs, 812 RBI, 786 runs, and 40 stolen bases, with a .258 batting average.
- What position did Willie Jones play?
- Willie Jones played primarily as a third baseman, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Willie Jones and how much did he weigh?
- Willie Jones was listed at 6 feet 1 inch and 188 pounds.
- How many home runs did Willie Jones hit each season?
- Willie Jones's home runs by season: 0 in 1947, 2 in 1948, 19 in 1949, 25 in 1950, 22 in 1951, 18 in 1952, 19 in 1953, 12 in 1954, 16 in 1955, 17 in 1956, 9 in 1957, 14 in 1958, 14 in 1959, 3 in 1960, and 0 in 1961. His most in one season was 25, in 1950.
- What was Willie Jones's career batting average?
- Willie Jones batted .258 over his career, with 1,502 hits in 5,826 at bats.
- How many RBI did Willie Jones have?
- Willie Jones drove in 812 runs in his career.
- Is Willie Jones in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Willie Jones has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
- How many All-Star Games did Willie Jones make?
- Willie Jones was selected to 2 All-Star Games.