Red Lucas

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1923-1938)

Red Lucas was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1923 to 1938 for 4 teams, including the New York Giants, a span of 16 seasons. Across 396 career appearances, he went 157-135 with a 3.72 ERA and 602 strikeouts. He also batted .281 with 3 home runs. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 19701.5.

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

W–L 157–135
ERA 3.72
WHIP 1.26
SO 602
Pitcher PIV 19701.5
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
L / R
Height / Weight
5'9" / 170 lb
Born
4/28/1902 in Columbia, TN, USA
Died
7/9/1986 in Nashville, TN, USA
MLB Debut
1923-04-19
Last Game
1938-10-01

Full name: Charles Fred Lucas

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Career Pitching Statistics

Red Lucas — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
157 135 396 301 204 22 7 2542.0 2,736 1,051 136 455 602 3.72 19701.5

Career ERA 3.72 vs. league average 4.25 across their career seasons — 12.5% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Red Lucas Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1923 NY1 NL 0 0 3 0 0 0 1 5.1 9 0 4 3 0.00 — 0.0
1924 BSN NL 1 4 27 4 1 0 0 83.2 112 48 18 30 5.16 4.13 (-25%) 1.4
1926 CIN NL 8 5 39 11 7 1 2 154.0 161 63 30 34 3.68 4.11 (+10%) 1389.8
1927 CIN NL 18 11 37 23 19 4 2 239.2 231 90 39 51 3.38 4.08 (+17%) 3808.7
1928 CIN NL 13 9 27 19 13 4 1 167.1 164 63 42 35 3.39 4.13 (+18%) 25.5
1929 CIN NL 19 12 32 32 28 2 0 270.0 267 108 58 72 3.60 4.60 (+22%) 3205.7
1930 CIN NL 14 16 33 28 18 1 1 210.2 270 126 44 53 5.38 4.80 (-12%) 712.4
1931 CIN NL 14 13 29 29 24 3 0 238.0 261 95 39 56 3.59 4.10 (+12%) 2462.7
1932 CIN NL 13 17 31 31 28 0 0 269.1 261 88 35 63 2.94 4.13 (+29%) 4159.9
1933 CIN NL 10 16 29 29 21 3 0 219.2 248 83 18 40 3.40 3.86 (+12%) 1534.0
1934 PIT NL 10 9 29 21 12 1 0 172.2 198 84 40 44 4.38 4.29 (-2%) -877.4
1935 PIT NL 8 6 20 19 8 2 0 125.2 136 48 23 29 3.44 4.35 (+21%) -40.7
1936 PIT NL 15 4 27 22 12 0 0 175.2 178 62 26 53 3.18 4.59 (+31%) 3734.7
1937 PIT NL 8 10 20 20 9 1 0 126.1 150 60 23 20 4.27 4.34 (+1%) -1112.5
1938 PIT NL 6 3 13 13 4 0 0 84.0 90 33 16 19 3.54 4.35 (+19%) 697.2
Career · 15 seasons 157 135 396 301 204 22 7 2,542.0 2,736 1,051 455 602 3.72 — 19,701

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

Red Lucas — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
907 1,439 155 404 61 13 3 190 2 124 133 .281 .340 .347 .687 -790

Career AVG .281 vs. league average .281 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .340 vs. league average .344 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .347 vs. league average .397 across their career seasons — 12.6% below league average.

Career OPS .687 vs. league average .741 across their career seasons — 7.3% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Red Lucas 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
1923 NY1 NL 3 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 — — — — 0.0
1924 BSN NL 33 33 5 11 1 0 0 5 0 1 4 .333 — — — — 0.0
1925 BSN NL 6 20 1 3 0 0 0 2 0 2 4 .150 — — — — 0.0
1926 CIN NL 66 76 15 23 4 4 0 14 0 10 13 .303 .279 (+8%) .345 (+11%) .390 (+18%) .735 (+15%) 194.5
1927 CIN NL 80 150 14 47 5 2 0 28 0 12 10 .313 .282 (+11%) .344 (+7%) .392 (-5%) .736 (+1%) 42.0
1928 CIN NL 39 73 8 23 2 1 0 7 0 4 6 .315 .280 (+12%) .342 (+2%) .395 (-6%) .737 (-2%) -27.0
1929 CIN NL 76 140 15 41 6 0 0 13 1 13 15 .293 .289 (+1%) .353 (avg) .415 (-19%) .769 (-10%) -214.9
1930 CIN NL 80 113 18 38 4 1 2 19 0 17 4 .336 .293 (+14%) .354 (+19%) .429 (+3%) .784 (+10%) 304.0
1931 CIN NL 97 153 15 43 4 0 0 17 0 12 9 .281 .276 (+2%) .338 (-1%) .388 (-21%) .726 (-12%) -255.8
1932 CIN NL 76 150 13 43 11 2 0 19 0 10 9 .287 .275 (+4%) .335 (avg) .391 (-1%) .726 (-1%) -28.1
1933 CIN NL 75 122 14 35 6 1 1 15 0 12 6 .287 .270 (+6%) .329 (+8%) .377 (avg) .707 (+4%) 104.6
1934 PIT NL 68 105 11 23 5 1 0 8 1 6 16 .219 .278 (-21%) .340 (-23%) .392 (-27%) .733 (-25%) -445.5
1935 PIT NL 47 66 6 21 6 0 0 10 0 7 11 .318 .279 (+14%) .342 (+14%) .399 (+2%) .742 (+8%) 113.8
1936 PIT NL 69 108 11 26 4 1 0 14 0 8 17 .241 .283 (-15%) .349 (-16%) .404 (-27%) .753 (-22%) -393.9
1937 PIT NL 59 82 8 22 3 0 0 17 0 7 6 .268 .276 (-3%) .342 (-5%) .398 (-23%) .740 (-15%) -183.9
1938 PIT NL 33 46 1 5 0 0 0 2 0 3 2 .109 — — — — 0.0
Career · 16 seasons 907 1,439 155 404 61 13 3 190 2 124 133 .281 — — — — -790

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 (1304 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Red Lucas — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home47175280220198.293
Away43768675184293.268

Pitching — Home / Away

Red Lucas — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home2131458.215325352623353.30
Away1831081.212045121942644.26

Last 10 Games — Batting

Red Lucas — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1938-10-01 PITCINL 000000000
1938-09-25 PITCINW 301000101
1938-09-05 PITCHCL 200000000
1938-08-31 PITNY1W 301000100
1938-08-25 PITPHIL 401000000
1938-08-23 PITBSNW 100000000
1938-08-20 PITCHCW 300000000
1938-08-05 PITNY1L 100000000
1938-07-31 PITBROL 300000000
1938-06-18 PITPHIL 100000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Red Lucas — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1938-10-01 PITCIN — 1.0322000
1938-09-25 PITCIN W 8.01133230
1938-09-05 PITCHC — 7.21033000
1938-08-31 PITNY1 W 9.0833301
1938-08-25 PITPHI L 11.0722240
1938-08-20 PITCHC W 6.0711110
1938-07-31 PITBRO — 7.0622111
1938-06-06 PITBRO L 0.1566100
1938-05-29 PITCHC W 9.0811100
1938-05-20 PITBRO L 1.1433011

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Red Lucas — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
2B 12 0 16 30 2 6
3B 2 0 0 1 0 0
OF 1 0 0 0 0 0
P 396 0 109 516 12 33
SS 3 0 0 3 2 0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Red Lucas — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1923 NY1 P 3 0 1 3 0 0
1924 BSN 3B 2 0 0 1 0 0
1924 BSN P 27 0 5 22 0 1
1925 BSN 2B 6 0 9 21 1 4
1926 CIN 2B 1 0 0 0 0 0
1926 CIN P 39 0 6 36 0 1
1927 CIN 2B 5 0 7 9 1 2
1927 CIN OF 1 0 0 0 0 0
1927 CIN P 37 0 7 51 1 2
1927 CIN SS 3 0 0 3 2 0
1928 CIN P 27 0 8 37 0 3
1929 CIN P 32 0 12 63 4 3
1930 CIN P 33 0 8 30 0 2
1931 CIN P 29 0 8 54 1 3
1932 CIN P 31 0 17 55 2 4
1933 CIN P 29 0 3 52 0 5
1934 PIT P 29 0 7 24 2 2
1935 PIT P 20 0 7 23 1 1
1936 PIT P 27 0 8 33 1 4
1937 PIT P 20 0 9 19 0 1
1938 PIT P 13 0 3 14 0 1

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Red Lucas Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 396
Second Base 12
Third Base 2
Shortstop 3
Left Field 1

Awards & Honors

Red Lucas — Awards & Honors
Year Award Notes
1929 Baseball Magazine All-Star P4
1929 Baseball Magazine All-Star P3

Award Voting History

Red Lucas — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1933 Most Valuable Player NL 21th 3.0 80 0
1931 Most Valuable Player NL 14th 10.0 80 0
1929 Most Valuable Player NL 6th 29.0 80 0
1927 Most Valuable Player NL 11th 10.0 80 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Red Lucas (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Jesse Barnes
    152-150, 3.22 ERA
  2. 95
    Bob Purkey
    129-115, 3.79 ERA
  3. 91
    Pete Donohue
    134-118, 3.87 ERA
  4. 90
    Ken Raffensberger
    119-154, 3.60 ERA
  5. 87
    Vern Law
    162-147, 3.77 ERA
  6. 87
    Scott McGregor
    138-108, 3.99 ERA

Red Lucas: the record in brief

Red Lucas played a first major league game on April 19, 1923 and a last one on October 1, 1938. Club by club, the record runs the New York Giants (1923), the Boston Braves (1924 through 1925), the Cincinnati Reds (1926 through 1933), and the Pittsburgh Pirates (1934 to 1938). At 5-foot-9 and 170 pounds, Lucas is listed as a pitcher. The bio says Lucas threw right-handed and batted left-handed. Lucas was born on April 28, 1902, in Columbia, TN, USA. Lucas died on July 9, 1986, in Nashville, TN, USA. The given name on file is Charles Fred Lucas.

Lucas went 157-135 with a 3.72 ERA in 396 games, 301 of them starts. Also on Lucas's record: 602 strikeouts, 204 complete games, and 22 shutouts. The leagues Lucas pitched in allowed 4.25 earned runs per nine over those seasons, so the career ERA was 12.5% better than average. Lucas won 19 games in 1929, the most of any season listed.

Frequently Asked Questions about Red Lucas

What years did Red Lucas play?
Red Lucas played in Major League Baseball from 1923 to 1938.
Was Red Lucas a pitcher?
Yes. Red Lucas pitched in the major leagues, recording 157 wins and 602 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Red Lucas hit?
Red Lucas hit 3 career home runs with 404 hits.
What teams did Red Lucas play for?
Red Lucas played for 4 teams: the New York Giants (1923), the Boston Braves (1924–1925), the Cincinnati Reds (1926–1933), and the Pittsburgh Pirates (1934–1938).
What were Red Lucas's career stats?
In 396 games, Red Lucas went 157-135 with a 3.72 ERA, 602 strikeouts, 2,542.0 innings pitched, and 7 saves. At the plate he had 404 hits and 3 home runs.
What position did Red Lucas play?
Red Lucas played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Red Lucas and how much did he weigh?
Red Lucas was listed at 5 feet 9 inches and 170 pounds.
What was Red Lucas's career ERA?
Red Lucas finished with a 3.72 career ERA, going 157-135 with 602 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Red Lucas have?
Red Lucas recorded 602 career strikeouts.
Is Red Lucas in the Hall of Fame?
No. Red Lucas has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.