Clay Kirby
Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1969-1976)
Clay Kirby was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1969 to 1976 for the San Diego Padres, the Cincinnati Reds, and the Montreal Expos, a span of 8 seasons. Across 261 career appearances, he went 75-104 with a 3.84 ERA and 1,061 strikeouts. He also batted .098 with 0 home runs.
- 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
- Position
- Pitcher
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 6'3" / 175 lb
- Died
- 10/11/1991 in Arlington, VA, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1969-04-11
- Last Game
- 1976-09-28
Full name: Clayton Laws Kirby
Season-by-Season Pitching
Click a stat to plot it across every season.
| Year | Team | Lg | W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA | Lg ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | SDN | NL | 7 | 20 | 35 | 35 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 215.2 | 204 | 91 | 100 | 113 | 3.80 | 3.61 (-5%) | -2196.2 |
| 1970 | SDN | NL | 10 | 16 | 36 | 34 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 214.2 | 198 | 108 | 120 | 154 | 4.53 | 3.89 (-17%) | -4705.3 |
| 1971 | SDN | NL | 15 | 13 | 38 | 36 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 267.1 | 213 | 84 | 103 | 231 | 2.83 | 3.47 (+18%) | 4115.4 |
| 1972 | SDN | NL | 12 | 14 | 34 | 34 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 238.2 | 197 | 83 | 116 | 175 | 3.13 | 3.26 (+4%) | -1763.9 |
| 1973 | SDN | NL | 8 | 18 | 34 | 31 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 191.2 | 214 | 102 | 66 | 129 | 4.79 | 3.75 (-28%) | -2669.2 |
| 1974 | CIN | NL | 12 | 9 | 36 | 35 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 230.2 | 210 | 84 | 91 | 160 | 3.28 | 3.63 (+10%) | 2304.2 |
| 1975 | CIN | NL | 10 | 6 | 26 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 110.2 | 113 | 58 | 54 | 48 | 4.72 | 3.71 (-27%) | -3141.4 |
| 1976 | MON | NL | 1 | 8 | 22 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 78.2 | 81 | 50 | 63 | 51 | 5.72 | 3.51 (-63%) | -3841.2 |
| Career · 8 seasons | 75 | 104 | 261 | 239 | 42 | 8 | 0 | 1,548.0 | 1,430 | 660 | 713 | 1,061 | 3.84 | — | -11,898 | ||
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
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 265 | 478 | 22 | 47 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 32 | 217 | .098 | .157 | .109 | .265 | -4,123 |
Career AVG .098 vs. league average .253 across their career seasons — 61.1% below league average.
Career OBP .157 vs. league average .321 across their career seasons — 51.3% below league average.
Career SLG .109 vs. league average .370 across their career seasons — 70.6% below league average.
Career OPS .265 vs. league average .691 across their career seasons — 61.6% below 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | SDN | NL | 35 | 66 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 37 | .061 | .248 (-76%) | .320 (-49%) | .369 (-79%) | .689 (-65%) | -655.7 |
| 1970 | SDN | NL | 36 | 74 | 4 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 38 | .149 | .253 (-41%) | .325 (-38%) | .385 (-58%) | .711 (-49%) | -561.8 |
| 1971 | SDN | NL | 40 | 86 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 35 | .093 | .249 (-63%) | .316 (-52%) | .365 (-75%) | .682 (-64%) | -826.6 |
| 1972 | SDN | NL | 35 | 74 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 30 | .068 | .243 (-72%) | .310 (-63%) | .353 (-81%) | .664 (-72%) | -788.9 |
| 1973 | SDN | NL | 35 | 54 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 21 | .093 | .256 (-64%) | .325 (-66%) | .378 (-71%) | .703 (-69%) | -580.2 |
| 1974 | CIN | NL | 36 | 74 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 36 | .095 | .256 (-63%) | .324 (-50%) | .369 (-74%) | .693 (-63%) | -709.3 |
| 1975 | CIN | NL | 26 | 32 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 15 | .188 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1976 | MON | NL | 22 | 18 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 5 | .056 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 8 seasons | 265 | 478 | 22 | 47 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 32 | 217 | .098 | — | — | — | — | -4,123 | ||
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 (526 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 138 | 232 | 11 | 23 | 0 | 4 | .099 |
| Away | 127 | 246 | 11 | 24 | 0 | 11 | .098 |
Pitching — Home / Away
| Split | G | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 137 | 843.0 | 764 | 337 | 358 | 588 | 3.60 |
| Away | 124 | 705.0 | 666 | 324 | 355 | 473 | 4.14 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976-09-28 | WSN | NYN | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1976-09-07 | WSN | STL | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1976-09-03 | WSN | PIT | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1976-08-24 | WSN | LAD | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1976-08-17 | WSN | PHI | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1976-08-03 | WSN | NYN | L | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1976-07-24 | WSN | NYN | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1976-07-18 | WSN | HOU | L | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1976-07-10 | WSN | HOU | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1976-07-06 | WSN | CIN | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Last 10 Games — Pitching
| Date | Tm | Opp | Dec | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976-09-28 | WSN | NYN | — | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1976-09-07 | WSN | STL | — | 0.0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1976-09-03 | WSN | PIT | — | 1.0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 1976-08-24 | WSN | LAD | — | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1976-08-17 | WSN | PHI | — | 1.1 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| 1976-08-03 | WSN | NYN | — | 5.2 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 4 | 0 |
| 1976-07-24 | WSN | NYN | L | 3.1 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 0 |
| 1976-07-18 | WSN | HOU | — | 6.0 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| 1976-07-10 | WSN | HOU | L | 6.0 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 |
| 1976-07-06 | WSN | CIN | L | 4.0 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
Season-by-Season Fielding
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 261 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Clay Kirby (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Clay Kirby: the record in brief
The profile opens with Clay Kirby's first major league game on April 11, 1969; the last one listed came on September 28, 1976. Club by club, the record runs the San Diego Padres (1969 to 1973), the Cincinnati Reds (1974 through 1975), and the Montreal Expos (1976). Kirby played primarily as a pitcher and batted and threw right-handed. Born on June 25, 1948, in Washington, DC, USA, Kirby was listed at 6 feet, 3 inches and 175 pounds. Kirby died on October 11, 1991, in Arlington, VA, USA. On the record, Clay Kirby was born Clayton Laws Kirby.
Kirby went 75-104 with a 3.84 ERA in 261 games, 239 of them starts. Also on Kirby's record: 1,061 strikeouts, 42 complete games, and 8 shutouts. The league ERA over Kirby's seasons was 3.61, so the 3.84 figure ran 6.4% worse than average. Kirby won 15 games in 1971, the most of any season listed. 1971 was Kirby's sharpest full season, a 2.83 ERA against the league's 3.47.
Frequently Asked Questions about Clay Kirby
- What years did Clay Kirby play?
- Clay Kirby played in Major League Baseball from 1969 to 1976.
- Was Clay Kirby a pitcher?
- Yes. Clay Kirby pitched in the major leagues, recording 75 wins and 1061 strikeouts.
- How many home runs did Clay Kirby hit?
- Clay Kirby hit 0 career home runs with 47 hits.
- What teams did Clay Kirby play for?
- Clay Kirby played for 3 teams: the San Diego Padres (1969–1973), the Cincinnati Reds (1974–1975), and the Montreal Expos (1976).
- What were Clay Kirby's career stats?
- In 261 games, Clay Kirby went 75-104 with a 3.84 ERA, 1,061 strikeouts, and 1,548.0 innings pitched. At the plate he had 47 hits and 0 home runs.
- What position did Clay Kirby play?
- Clay Kirby played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Clay Kirby and how much did he weigh?
- Clay Kirby was listed at 6 feet 3 inches and 175 pounds.
- What was Clay Kirby's career ERA?
- Clay Kirby finished with a 3.84 career ERA, going 75-104 with 1,061 strikeouts.
- How many strikeouts did Clay Kirby have?
- Clay Kirby recorded 1,061 career strikeouts.
- Is Clay Kirby in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Clay Kirby has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.