Newt Joseph

Third Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records

Newt Joseph was a third baseman who played in Major League Baseball for the Kansas City Monarchs. In 659 career games, he hit .291 with 666 hits, 31 home runs, and 401 RBI. 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 2,908.

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 .291
HR 31
RBI 401
H 666
OPS .790
PIV 2,908
Position
Third Baseman
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
5'7" / 165 lb
Born
10/27/1896 in Montgomery, AL, USA
Died
1/18/1953 in Kansas City, MO, USA

Full name: Walter Lee Joseph

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Negro Leagues Career Statistics

Batting

Newt Joseph — Batting
PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB BA OBP SLG OPS
246.0 220.0 32.0 49.0 11.0 4.0 3.0 7.0 12.0 24.0 10.0 .223 .272 .350 .622

Career Batting Statistics

Newt Joseph — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
659 2,292 380 666 129 38 31 401 94 262 28 .291 .369 .421 .790 2,908

Career AVG .291 vs. league average .282 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .369 vs. league average .344 across their career seasons — +7.3% above league average.

Career SLG .421 vs. league average .397 across their career seasons — +5.9% above league average.

Career OPS .790 vs. league average .741 across their career seasons — +6.5% above league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Newt Joseph 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
1922 KCM NNL 71 243 37 65 17 2 2 39 9 20 2 .267 .285 (-6%) .345 (-5%) .397 (-5%) .743 (-5%) -206.5
1923 KCM NNL 69 234 39 63 6 10 5 39 4 26 0 .269 .282 (-5%) .344 (+2%) .390 (+14%) .734 (+8%) 335.4
1924 KCM NNL 71 267 58 100 21 6 4 68 7 23 4 .375 .283 (+32%) .345 (+24%) .389 (+39%) .734 (+32%) 1557.5
1925 KCM NNL 52 198 26 64 12 2 1 30 8 11 0 .323 .288 (+12%) .349 (+3%) .407 (+3%) .756 (+3%) 82.1
1926 KCM NNL 64 210 40 62 12 5 4 47 8 32 4 .295 .279 (+6%) .345 (+13%) .390 (+17%) .735 (+15%) 628.7
1927 KCM NNL 79 264 47 72 15 5 5 44 13 51 0 .273 .282 (-3%) .344 (+16%) .392 (+8%) .736 (+12%) 767.7
1928 KCM NNL 76 277 43 72 12 2 2 38 20 29 2 .260 .280 (-7%) .342 (-2%) .395 (-14%) .737 (-9%) -343.4
1929 KCM NNL 69 226 38 65 7 2 4 41 8 33 0 .288 .289 (-1%) .353 (+10%) .415 (-6%) .769 (+1%) 169.6
1930 KCM NNL 60 204 34 53 13 2 4 31 13 28 6 .260 .293 (-12%) .354 (avg) .429 (-6%) .784 (-4%) -86.7
1931 KCM IND 19 67 9 20 6 0 0 8 3 4 7 .299 .276 (+8%) .338 (avg) .388 (avg) .726 (avg) -7.3
1932 KCM IND 3 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 .000 — — — — 0.0
1933 KCM IND 6 20 2 9 2 1 0 7 0 0 0 .450 — — — — 0.0
1934 KCM IND 7 27 3 7 2 0 0 4 1 1 0 .259 — — — — 0.0
1935 KCM IND 13 47 4 14 4 1 0 5 0 3 1 .298 — — — — 11.4
Career · 14 seasons 659 2,292 380 666 129 38 31 401 94 262 28 .291 — — — — 2,908

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

Newt Joseph — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
31 111 16 19 3 2 1 8 10 17 .171

Playoff Batting by Year

Newt Joseph — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1926 NNC KCM 8 30 4 8 2 0 0 1 1 2 .267
1925 NNC KCM 7 21 3 2 0 1 0 3 4 0 .095
1925 NWS KCM 6 22 3 4 0 1 0 0 2 3 .182
1924 NWS KCM 10 38 6 5 1 0 1 4 3 12 .132

Game Log & Splits

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

Batting — Home / Away

Newt Joseph — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home4122300.250
Away130100.333

Last 5 Games — Batting

Newt Joseph — Last 5 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1929-06-29 KCMCAGW 301000000
1927-08-15 KCMBIRL 210000000
1925-08-11 KCMSSNL 402000010
1924-04-27 KCMSSNW 301000000
1923-08-05 KCMMILW 310000000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Newt Joseph — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
2B 27 23 33 74 15 3
3B 619 565 477 968 110 69
OF 5 5 0 1 0 0
SS 5 3 3 6 0 0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Newt Joseph — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1922 KCM 2B 26 22 32 67 13 3
1922 KCM 3B 35 33 35 69 7 5
1922 KCM OF 5 5 0 1 0 0
1922 KCM SS 4 3 2 4 0 0
1923 KCM 3B 68 67 71 110 13 6
1924 KCM 2B 1 1 1 7 2 0
1924 KCM 3B 70 70 87 129 14 8
1925 KCM 3B 52 1 2 1 0 0
1926 KCM 3B 62 62 43 88 12 6
1926 KCM SS 1 0 1 2 0 0
1927 KCM 3B 79 79 73 140 14 12
1928 KCM 3B 76 76 62 131 14 6
1929 KCM 3B 69 69 41 135 13 15
1930 KCM 3B 60 60 29 93 11 8
1931 KCM 3B 19 19 12 25 8 3
1932 KCM 3B 3 3 3 5 0 0
1933 KCM 3B 6 6 2 9 1 0
1934 KCM 3B 7 7 7 14 1 0
1935 KCM 3B 13 13 10 19 2 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Newt Joseph Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Second Base 27
Third Base 619
Shortstop 5
Right Field 5

Most Similar Players

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

  1. 98
    Bill Riggins
    .296 avg, 45 HR
  2. 80
    Ed Cartwright
    .295 avg, 24 HR
  3. 68
    Candy Jim Taylor
    .287 avg, 37 HR
  4. 63
    Jim West
    .285 avg, 34 HR
  5. 60
    Sam Leslie
    .304 avg, 36 HR
  6. 50
    Henry Reitz
    .292 avg, 11 HR

Newt Joseph: the record in brief

The season rows for Newt Joseph begin in 1922. Joseph's only club in the season tables is the Kansas City Monarchs. Born on October 27, 1896, in Montgomery, AL, USA, Joseph is listed as a third baseman and batted and threw right-handed. Joseph's listed size is 165 pounds on a 5-foot-7 frame. The bio records the death on January 18, 1953, in Kansas City, MO, USA. The given name on file is Walter Lee Joseph.

Across 659 games at the plate, Joseph's career line reads 666 hits in 2,292 at bats for a .291 average, adding 31 homers, 401 RBI, and 94 stolen bases. The on-base percentage is .369 and the slugging percentage .421, for an OPS of .790. The .291 career average is close to the .282 the league hit across the same seasons. No season topped the 100 hits of 1924. 1924 brought the most runs batted in, 68. Joseph stole 20 bases in 1928, the most of any season listed.

Frequently Asked Questions about Newt Joseph

Was Newt Joseph a pitcher?
No. Newt Joseph was a position player (Third Baseman).
How many home runs did Newt Joseph hit?
Newt Joseph hit 31 career home runs with 666 hits.
What teams did Newt Joseph play for?
Newt Joseph played for one team, the Kansas City Monarchs (1922–1935).
What were Newt Joseph's career stats?
In 659 games, Newt Joseph had 666 hits, 31 home runs, 401 RBI, 380 runs, and 94 stolen bases, with a .291 batting average.
What position did Newt Joseph play?
Newt Joseph played primarily as a third baseman, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Newt Joseph and how much did he weigh?
Newt Joseph was listed at 5 feet 7 inches and 165 pounds.
How many home runs did Newt Joseph hit each season?
Newt Joseph's home runs by season: 2 in 1922, 5 in 1923, 4 in 1924, 1 in 1925, 4 in 1926, 5 in 1927, 2 in 1928, 4 in 1929, 4 in 1930, 0 in 1931, 0 in 1932, 0 in 1933, 0 in 1934, and 0 in 1935. His most in one season was 5, in 1923 and 1927.
What was Newt Joseph's career batting average?
Newt Joseph batted .291 over his career, with 666 hits in 2,292 at bats.
How many RBI did Newt Joseph have?
Newt Joseph drove in 401 runs in his career.
Is Newt Joseph in the Hall of Fame?
No. Newt Joseph has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.