King Kelly

Outfielder · Career Stats, Hall of Fame Bio & Records (1878-1893)

King Kelly was an outfielder who played in Major League Baseball from 1878 to 1893 for 7 teams, including the Cincinnati Reds, a span of 16 seasons. In 1,456 career games, he hit .307 with 1,813 hits, 69 home runs, and 950 RBI. King Kelly was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1945. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 27,425.

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

⭐ Hall of Fame 1945
AVG .307
HR 69
RBI 950
H 1,813
OPS .806
PIV 27,425
Position
Outfielder
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
5'10" / 170 lb
Born
12/31/1857 in Troy, NY, USA
Died
11/8/1894 in Boston, MA, USA
MLB Debut
1878-05-01
Last Game
1893-09-02
Hall of Fame
Inducted 1945 (Veterans)

Full name: Michael Joseph Kelly

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Career Batting Statistics

King Kelly — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
1,456 5,896 1,357 1,813 359 102 69 950 368 549 418 .307 .368 .438 .806 27,425

Career AVG .307 vs. league average .254 across their career seasons — +21.0% above league average.

Career OBP .368 vs. league average .309 across their career seasons — +18.8% above league average.

Career SLG .438 vs. league average .341 across their career seasons — +28.4% above league average.

Career OPS .806 vs. league average .651 across their career seasons — +23.8% above league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

King Kelly 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
1878 CN1 NL 60 237 29 67 7 1 0 27 0 7 7 .283 .259 (+9%) .278 (+9%) .319 (+1%) .597 (+4%) 186.6
1879 CN1 NL 77 345 78 120 20 12 2 47 0 8 14 .348 .255 (+36%) .270 (+34%) .328 (+50%) .599 (+43%) 2162.2
1880 CHN NL 84 344 72 100 17 9 1 60 0 12 22 .291 .244 (+19%) .267 (+18%) .319 (+25%) .586 (+22%) 1110.9
1881 CHN NL 82 353 84 114 27 3 2 55 0 16 14 .323 .260 (+24%) .290 (+21%) .338 (+28%) .628 (+25%) 1425.7
1882 CHN NL 84 377 81 115 37 4 1 55 0 10 27 .305 .248 (+23%) .275 (+17%) .329 (+31%) .605 (+25%) 1366.1
1883 CHN NL 98 428 92 109 28 10 3 61 0 16 35 .255 .257 (-1%) .285 (-2%) .345 (+12%) .631 (+6%) 332.5
1884 CHN NL 108 452 120 160 28 5 13 95 0 46 24 .354 .243 (+46%) .278 (+48%) .327 (+60%) .606 (+55%) 4270.1
1885 CHN NL 107 438 124 126 24 7 9 75 0 46 24 .288 .244 (+18%) .287 (+23%) .325 (+34%) .613 (+29%) 2222.0
1886 CHN NL 118 451 155 175 32 11 4 79 53 83 33 .388 .246 (+57%) .302 (+60%) .331 (+61%) .634 (+60%) 5335.3
1887 BSN NL 116 484 120 156 34 11 8 63 84 55 40 .322 .270 (+19%) .331 (+18%) .373 (+30%) .705 (+25%) 2350.3
1888 BSN NL 107 440 85 140 22 11 9 71 56 31 39 .318 .238 (+33%) .290 (+27%) .319 (+50%) .610 (+39%) 2773.0
1889 BSN NL 125 507 120 149 41 5 9 78 68 65 40 .294 .263 (+11%) .334 (+13%) .357 (+25%) .691 (+19%) 1907.7
1890 BSP PL 90 342 83 111 18 6 4 66 51 52 22 .325 .260 (+25%) .336 (+24%) .351 (+27%) .687 (+26%) 1729.0
1891 CN3 AA 82 283 56 84 15 7 1 53 22 51 28 .297 .254 (+17%) .331 (+23%) .343 (+19%) .675 (+21%) 1212.4
1891 BS2 AA 4 15 2 4 0 0 1 4 1 0 2 .267 — — — — 1212.4
1891 BSN NL 16 52 7 12 1 0 0 5 6 6 10 .231 .254 (-9%) .331 (-3%) .343 (-27%) .675 (-15%) 1212.4
1892 BSN NL 78 281 40 53 7 0 2 41 24 39 32 .189 .244 (-23%) .316 (-9%) .327 (-28%) .644 (-19%) -685.7
1893 NY1 NL 20 67 9 18 1 0 0 15 3 6 5 .269 .279 (-4%) .356 (-8%) .379 (-25%) .735 (-17%) -172.8
Career · 18 seasons 1,456 5,896 1,357 1,813 359 102 69 950 368 549 418 .307 — — — — 29,950

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 Pitching Statistics

King Kelly — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
2 2 12 0 0 0 0 45.2 63 21 5 30 4 4.14 -1951.5

Career ERA 4.14 vs. league average 3.49 across their career seasons — 18.6% worse than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

King Kelly — Season-by-Season Pitching
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1880 CHN NL 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 3.0 3 0 1 1 0.00 — 0.0
1883 CHN NL 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1.0 1 0 0 0 0.00 — 0.0
1884 CHN NL 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 5.1 12 5 2 1 8.44 — 0.0
1887 BSN NL 1 0 3 0 0 0 0 13.0 17 5 14 0 3.46 4.17 (+17%) -1083.9
1890 BSP PL 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 2.0 1 1 2 2 4.50 — 0.0
1891 CN3 AA 0 1 3 0 0 0 0 15.1 21 9 7 0 5.28 3.52 (-50%) -867.6
1892 BSN NL 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 6.0 8 1 4 0 1.50 — 0.0
Career · 7 seasons 2 2 12 0 0 0 0 45.2 63 21 30 4 4.14 — -1,951

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

King Kelly — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
15 58 13 14 3 1 1 1 4 4 .241

Playoff Batting by Year

King Kelly — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1892 CS BSN 2 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000
1886 WS CHN 6 24 4 5 0 0 1 1 2 2 .208
1885 WS CHN 7 26 9 9 3 1 0 0 2 0 .346

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

King Kelly — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 25 0 125 14 19 7
2B 54 0 122 158 52 27
3B 96 0 108 182 59 9
C 584 0 2198 857 368 57
OF 750 0 892 285 259 26
P 12 0 0 10 2 0
SS 90 0 128 243 92 19

Season-by-Season Fielding

King Kelly — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1878 CN1 3B 2 0 0 2 0 0
1878 CN1 C 17 0 99 39 20 3
1878 CN1 OF 47 0 51 24 23 2
1879 CN1 2B 1 0 0 2 1 0
1879 CN1 3B 33 0 36 88 25 3
1879 CN1 C 21 0 82 36 12 1
1879 CN1 OF 29 0 46 13 20 0
1880 CHN 2B 1 0 0 1 0 0
1880 CHN 3B 14 0 22 20 7 0
1880 CHN C 17 0 40 15 12 2
1880 CHN OF 64 0 49 32 23 1
1880 CHN P 1 0 0 0 0 0
1880 CHN SS 1 0 0 0 0 0
1881 CHN 3B 8 0 8 12 1 0
1881 CHN C 11 0 28 9 10 1
1881 CHN OF 72 0 85 31 22 2
1882 CHN 1B 1 0 3 2 2 0
1882 CHN 3B 3 0 1 6 1 0
1882 CHN C 12 0 13 3 4 0
1882 CHN OF 38 0 50 21 9 3
1882 CHN SS 42 0 66 117 43 9
1883 CHN 2B 3 0 6 11 8 0
1883 CHN 3B 2 0 3 4 2 0
1883 CHN C 38 0 73 37 21 2
1883 CHN OF 82 0 101 38 32 5
1883 CHN P 1 0 0 1 0 0
1884 CHN 1B 2 0 8 2 2 1
1884 CHN 2B 1 0 0 0 0 0
1884 CHN 3B 10 0 12 16 8 2
1884 CHN C 28 0 105 55 32 3
1884 CHN OF 63 0 69 31 26 1
1884 CHN P 2 0 0 0 0 0
1884 CHN SS 12 0 7 37 18 3
1885 CHN 1B 2 0 9 1 3 0
1885 CHN 2B 6 0 7 15 3 1
1885 CHN 3B 2 0 2 3 3 0
1885 CHN C 37 0 146 64 30 2
1885 CHN OF 69 0 95 29 19 2
1886 CHN 1B 9 0 41 4 2 0
1886 CHN 2B 6 0 14 12 5 4
1886 CHN 3B 8 0 8 6 3 2
1886 CHN C 53 0 259 94 28 3
1886 CHN OF 56 0 62 24 20 1
1886 CHN SS 5 0 3 1 1 1
1887 BSN 2B 30 0 88 105 35 19
1887 BSN 3B 2 0 1 1 2 0
1887 BSN C 24 0 80 35 15 3
1887 BSN OF 61 0 78 11 15 2
1887 BSN P 3 0 0 4 2 0
1887 BSN SS 2 0 5 7 3 0
1888 BSN C 76 0 367 146 54 8
1888 BSN OF 34 0 28 4 12 2
1889 BSN C 23 0 56 29 12 2
1889 BSN OF 113 0 155 24 32 4
1890 BSP 1B 4 0 18 5 3 3
1890 BSP 3B 2 0 2 3 1 0
1890 BSP C 57 0 199 60 24 2
1890 BSP OF 6 0 13 2 0 1
1890 BSP P 1 0 0 0 0 0
1890 BSP SS 27 0 43 75 27 6
1891 CN3 1B 5 0 27 0 4 1
1891 CN3 2B 6 0 7 12 0 3
1891 CN3 3B 8 0 11 18 4 2
1891 CN3 C 66 0 217 102 34 11
1891 CN3 OF 7 0 8 1 1 0
1891 CN3 P 3 0 0 5 0 0
1891 CN3 SS 1 0 4 6 0 0
1891 BS2 C 4 0 16 3 1 0
1891 BSN C 11 0 44 10 10 2
1891 BSN OF 6 0 2 0 2 0
1892 BSN 1B 2 0 19 0 3 2
1892 BSN 3B 2 0 2 3 2 0
1892 BSN C 72 0 319 98 40 11
1892 BSN OF 2 0 0 0 2 0
1892 BSN P 1 0 0 0 0 0
1893 NY1 C 17 0 55 22 9 1
1893 NY1 OF 1 0 0 0 1 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

King Kelly Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 12
Catcher 584
First Base 25
Second Base 54
Third Base 96
Shortstop 90
Left Field 2
Center Field 8
Right Field 742

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

King Kelly (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Ben Chapman
    .302 avg, 90 HR
  2. 90
    Thomas Burns
    .300 avg, 65 HR
  3. 88
    Bobby Veach
    .310 avg, 64 HR
  4. 88
    Kip Selbach
    .293 avg, 44 HR
  5. 86
    Mike Griffin
    .296 avg, 42 HR
  6. 84
    Elmer Flick HOF
    .313 avg, 48 HR

Compare King Kelly

Side-by-side career stat comparisons against Kelly's closest peers by position and era.

vs Cap Anson
vs Ed Delahanty
vs Jesse Burkett
vs Billy Hamilton
vs John Clarkson
vs Joe Kelley

Browse all MLB player comparisons →

King Kelly: the record in brief

King Kelly's major league career runs from a debut on May 1, 1878 to a final game on September 2, 1893. The team column moves through the Cincinnati Reds (1878 through 1879), the Chicago White Stockings (1880 to 1886), the Boston Beaneaters (1887 through 1892), the Boston Reds (1890 through 1891), the Cincinnati Kelly's Killers (1891), and the New York Giants (1893). Kelly, born on December 31, 1857, in Troy, NY, USA, is listed as an outfielder and threw and hit right-handed. Kelly's listed size is 5-foot-10 and 170 pounds. Kelly's death is recorded on November 8, 1894, in Boston, MA, USA. The bio lists the given name Michael Joseph.

Kelly collected 1,813 hits in 5,896 at bats across 1,456 games, good for a .307 batting average, along with 69 homers, 950 runs batted in, and 368 stolen bases. Kelly's career OPS of .806 combines a .368 on-base mark with .438 slugging. Set against a .254 league average for the same years, Kelly's .307 average sits 21.0% above it.

Frequently Asked Questions about King Kelly

What years did King Kelly play?
King Kelly played in Major League Baseball from 1878 to 1893.
Was King Kelly a pitcher?
No. King Kelly was a position player (Outfielder), though he did pitch in 12 career games.
How many home runs did King Kelly hit?
King Kelly hit 69 career home runs with 1,813 hits.
Is King Kelly in the Hall of Fame?
Yes. King Kelly was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1945.
What teams did King Kelly play for?
King Kelly played for 6 teams: the Cincinnati Reds (1878–1879), the Chicago White Stockings (1880–1886), the Boston Beaneaters (1887–1889, 1891–1892), the Boston Reds (1890–1891), the Cincinnati Kelly's Killers (1891), and the New York Giants (1893).
What were King Kelly's career stats?
In 1,456 games, King Kelly had 1,813 hits, 69 home runs, 950 RBI, 1,357 runs, and 368 stolen bases, with a .307 batting average.
What position did King Kelly play?
King Kelly played primarily as an outfielder, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was King Kelly and how much did he weigh?
King Kelly was listed at 5 feet 10 inches and 170 pounds.
How many home runs did King Kelly hit each season?
King Kelly's home runs by season: 0 in 1878, 2 in 1879, 1 in 1880, 2 in 1881, 1 in 1882, 3 in 1883, 13 in 1884, 9 in 1885, 4 in 1886, 8 in 1887, 9 in 1888, 9 in 1889, 4 in 1890, 2 in 1891, 2 in 1892, and 0 in 1893. His most in one season was 13, in 1884.
What was King Kelly's career batting average?
King Kelly batted .307 over his career, with 1,813 hits in 5,896 at bats.
How many RBI did King Kelly have?
King Kelly drove in 950 runs in his career.
What was King Kelly's career ERA?
King Kelly finished with a 4.14 career ERA, going 2-2 with 4 strikeouts.