Thornton Lee
Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1933-1948)
Thornton Lee was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1933 to 1948 for the Cleveland Guardians, the Chicago White Sox, and the New York Giants, a span of 16 seasons. Across 374 career appearances, he went 117-124 with a 3.56 ERA and 937 strikeouts. He also batted .200 with 4 home runs. Thornton Lee was a 2-time All-Star. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 7384.6.
- 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
- L / L
- Height / Weight
- 6'3" / 205 lb
- Died
- 6/9/1997 in Tucson, AZ, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1933-09-19
- Last Game
- 1948-06-18
- Awards
- 2× All-Star
Full name: Thornton Starr Lee
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1933 | CLE | AL | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 17.1 | 13 | 8 | 11 | 7 | 4.15 | 3.86 (-8%) | -390.5 |
| 1934 | CLE | AL | 1 | 1 | 24 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 85.2 | 105 | 48 | 44 | 41 | 5.04 | 4.29 (-18%) | -1781.6 |
| 1935 | CLE | AL | 7 | 10 | 32 | 20 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 180.2 | 179 | 81 | 71 | 81 | 4.04 | 4.35 (+7%) | 1766.4 |
| 1936 | CLE | AL | 3 | 5 | 43 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 127.0 | 138 | 69 | 67 | 49 | 4.89 | 4.59 (-7%) | 542.0 |
| 1937 | CHA | AL | 12 | 10 | 30 | 25 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 204.2 | 209 | 80 | 60 | 80 | 3.52 | 4.34 (+19%) | -288.0 |
| 1938 | CHA | AL | 13 | 12 | 33 | 30 | 18 | 1 | 1 | 245.1 | 252 | 95 | 94 | 77 | 3.49 | 4.35 (+20%) | 389.9 |
| 1939 | CHA | AL | 15 | 11 | 33 | 29 | 15 | 2 | 3 | 235.0 | 260 | 110 | 70 | 81 | 4.21 | 4.28 (+2%) | 1225.9 |
| 1940 | CHA | AL | 12 | 13 | 28 | 27 | 24 | 1 | 0 | 228.0 | 223 | 88 | 56 | 87 | 3.47 | 4.21 (+18%) | 2803.3 |
| 1941 | CHA | AL | 22 | 11 | 35 | 34 | 30 | 3 | 1 | 300.1 | 258 | 79 | 92 | 130 | 2.37 | 3.94 (+40%) | 2071.8 |
| 1942 | CHA | AL | 2 | 6 | 11 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 76.0 | 82 | 28 | 31 | 25 | 3.32 | 3.57 (+7%) | -641.1 |
| 1943 | CHA | AL | 5 | 9 | 19 | 19 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 127.0 | 129 | 59 | 50 | 35 | 4.18 | 3.50 (-19%) | -2196.6 |
| 1944 | CHA | AL | 3 | 9 | 15 | 14 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 113.1 | 105 | 38 | 25 | 39 | 3.02 | 3.57 (+16%) | 1603.2 |
| 1945 | CHA | AL | 15 | 12 | 29 | 28 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 228.1 | 208 | 62 | 76 | 108 | 2.44 | 3.67 (+33%) | 2541.0 |
| 1946 | CHA | AL | 2 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 43.1 | 39 | 17 | 23 | 23 | 3.53 | 3.59 (+2%) | 114.3 |
| 1947 | CHA | AL | 3 | 7 | 21 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 86.2 | 86 | 43 | 56 | 57 | 4.47 | 3.97 (-12%) | -361.2 |
| 1948 | NY1 | NL | 1 | 3 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 32.2 | 41 | 16 | 12 | 17 | 4.41 | 4.10 (-7%) | -14.1 |
| Career · 16 seasons | 117 | 124 | 374 | 272 | 155 | 14 | 10 | 2,331.1 | 2,327 | 921 | 838 | 937 | 3.56 | — | 7,385 | ||
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 375 | 835 | 63 | 167 | 24 | 4 | 4 | 66 | 0 | 27 | 208 | .200 | .226 | .253 | .479 | -2,503 |
Career AVG .200 vs. league average .267 across their career seasons — 25.2% below league average.
Career OBP .226 vs. league average .335 across their career seasons — 32.6% below league average.
Career SLG .253 vs. league average .377 across their career seasons — 33.1% below league average.
Career OPS .479 vs. league average .713 across their career seasons — 32.8% 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1933 | CLE | AL | 3 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .375 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1934 | CLE | AL | 24 | 21 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 11 | .095 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1935 | CLE | AL | 32 | 61 | 6 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 17 | .197 | .279 (-30%) | .342 (-28%) | .399 (-43%) | .742 (-36%) | -355.1 |
| 1936 | CLE | AL | 43 | 41 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 12 | .122 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1937 | CHA | AL | 30 | 71 | 5 | 15 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 16 | .211 | .276 (-24%) | .342 (-35%) | .398 (-22%) | .740 (-28%) | -354.4 |
| 1938 | CHA | AL | 34 | 97 | 14 | 25 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 23 | .258 | .272 (-6%) | .341 (-25%) | .392 (+10%) | .734 (-6%) | -139.8 |
| 1939 | CHA | AL | 33 | 91 | 8 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 18 | .165 | .274 (-40%) | .342 (-42%) | .393 (-50%) | .735 (-46%) | -684.7 |
| 1940 | CHA | AL | 28 | 84 | 7 | 23 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 30 | .274 | .267 (+2%) | .335 (-8%) | .387 (-17%) | .722 (-13%) | -178.7 |
| 1941 | CHA | AL | 35 | 114 | 7 | 29 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 4 | 20 | .254 | .262 (-3%) | .332 (-16%) | .373 (-20%) | .705 (-18%) | -336.7 |
| 1942 | CHA | AL | 11 | 30 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 10 | .200 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1943 | CHA | AL | 19 | 42 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 | .071 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1944 | CHA | AL | 15 | 42 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | .095 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1945 | CHA | AL | 29 | 78 | 6 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 15 | .179 | .260 (-31%) | .328 (-30%) | .354 (-46%) | .683 (-38%) | -453.3 |
| 1946 | CHA | AL | 7 | 15 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | .267 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1947 | CHA | AL | 21 | 29 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 11 | .207 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1948 | NY1 | NL | 11 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .091 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 16 seasons | 375 | 835 | 63 | 167 | 24 | 4 | 4 | 66 | 0 | 27 | 208 | .200 | — | — | — | — | -2,503 | ||
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 (749 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 177 | 382 | 34 | 74 | 1 | 35 | .194 |
| Away | 198 | 454 | 29 | 93 | 3 | 30 | .205 |
Pitching — Home / Away
| Split | G | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 177 | 1147.1 | 1120 | 435 | 380 | 512 | 3.41 |
| Away | 197 | 1184.1 | 1206 | 491 | 457 | 430 | 3.73 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1948-06-18 | NY1 | STL | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1948-06-16 | NY1 | PIT | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1948-06-13 | NY1 | STL | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1948-06-10 | NY1 | CHC | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1948-06-05 | NY1 | CIN | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1948-05-29 | NY1 | PHI | W | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1948-05-26 | NY1 | STL | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1948-05-21 | NY1 | CHC | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1948-05-05 | NY1 | CIN | L | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1948-04-29 | NY1 | BRO | L | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Last 10 Games — Pitching
| Date | Tm | Opp | Dec | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1948-06-18 | NY1 | STL | — | 1.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 1948-06-16 | NY1 | PIT | — | 0.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1948-06-13 | NY1 | STL | — | 1.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1948-06-10 | NY1 | CHC | — | 2.2 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1948-06-05 | NY1 | CIN | L | 3.2 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 1948-05-29 | NY1 | PHI | W | 9.0 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 1 |
| 1948-05-26 | NY1 | STL | — | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 1948-05-21 | NY1 | CHC | — | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1948-05-05 | NY1 | CIN | — | 5.2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 1948-04-29 | NY1 | BRO | L | 1.2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1933 | CLE | P | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1934 | CLE | P | 24 | 0 | 4 | 18 | 2 | 1 |
| 1935 | CLE | P | 32 | 0 | 11 | 41 | 3 | 3 |
| 1936 | CLE | P | 43 | 0 | 3 | 35 | 2 | 0 |
| 1937 | CHA | P | 30 | 0 | 9 | 34 | 3 | 0 |
| 1938 | CHA | P | 33 | 0 | 1 | 46 | 5 | 2 |
| 1939 | CHA | P | 33 | 0 | 6 | 45 | 2 | 0 |
| 1940 | CHA | P | 28 | 0 | 5 | 31 | 4 | 2 |
| 1941 | CHA | P | 35 | 0 | 10 | 52 | 5 | 2 |
| 1942 | CHA | P | 11 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 2 |
| 1943 | CHA | P | 19 | 0 | 3 | 17 | 3 | 1 |
| 1944 | CHA | P | 15 | 0 | 3 | 32 | 2 | 2 |
| 1945 | CHA | P | 29 | 0 | 6 | 38 | 2 | 4 |
| 1946 | CHA | P | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 1 |
| 1947 | CHA | P | 21 | 0 | 4 | 15 | 2 | 1 |
| 1948 | NY1 | P | 11 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 374 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1941 | Baseball Magazine All-Star | P2 |
| 1941 | Baseball Magazine All-Star | P3 |
| 1941 | TSN All-Star | P |
College History
| School Name | City | State | Years Attended |
|---|---|---|---|
| California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo | San Luis Obispo | CA | 1925, 1926 |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1941 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 4th | 144.0 | 336 | 1 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Thornton Lee (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Thornton Lee: the record in brief
September 19, 1933 and June 18, 1948 bracket Thornton Lee's time in the majors: the debut and the last game on record. By club, Lee's seasons break down as the Cleveland Indians (1933 through 1936), the Chicago White Sox (1937 through 1947), and the New York Giants (1948). Lee, a pitcher by primary position, both batted and threw left-handed. Height and weight on file: 205 pounds on a 6-foot-3 frame. The birth record reads September 13, 1906, in Sonoma, CA, USA. The bio records the death on June 9, 1997, in Tucson, AZ, USA. On the record, Thornton Lee was born Thornton Starr Lee.
Lee went 117-124 with a 3.56 ERA in 374 games, 272 of them starts. Also on Lee's record: 937 strikeouts, 155 complete games, 14 shutouts, and 10 saves. That 3.56 ERA compares with a 4.01 league average across the same seasons, 11.3% better. Lee won 22 games in 1941, the most of any season listed.
Frequently Asked Questions about Thornton Lee
- What years did Thornton Lee play?
- Thornton Lee played in Major League Baseball from 1933 to 1948.
- Was Thornton Lee a pitcher?
- Yes. Thornton Lee pitched in the major leagues, recording 117 wins and 937 strikeouts.
- How many home runs did Thornton Lee hit?
- Thornton Lee hit 4 career home runs with 167 hits.
- What was Thornton Lee's career batting average?
- Thornton Lee batted .200 over his career, with 167 hits in 835 at bats.
- How many RBI did Thornton Lee have?
- Thornton Lee drove in 66 runs in his career.
- What was Thornton Lee's career ERA?
- Thornton Lee finished with a 3.56 career ERA, going 117-124 with 937 strikeouts.