Ted Lyons

Pitcher · Career Stats, Hall of Fame Bio & Records (1923-1946)

Ted Lyons was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1923 to 1946 for the Chicago White Sox, a span of 24 seasons. Across 594 career appearances, he went 260-230 with a 3.67 ERA, 1,073 strikeouts, and 23 saves. He also batted .233 with 5 home runs. Ted Lyons was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1955 and was an All-Star. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 8642.4.

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

⭐ Hall of Fame 1955
W–L 260–230
ERA 3.67
WHIP 1.35
SO 1,073
Pitcher PIV 8642.4
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
B / R
Height / Weight
5'11" / 200 lb
Born
12/28/1900 in Lake Charles, LA, USA
Died
7/25/1986 in Sulphur, LA, USA
MLB Debut
1923-07-02
Last Game
1946-05-19
Hall of Fame
Inducted 1955 (BBWAA)
Awards
All-Star

Full name: Theodore Amar Lyons

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Career Pitching Statistics

Ted Lyons — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
260 230 594 484 356 27 23 4161.0 4,489 1,696 223 1,121 1,073 3.67 8642.4

Career ERA 3.67 vs. league average 4.19 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.

Ted Lyons 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 CHA AL 2 1 9 1 0 0 0 22.7 30 16 15 6 6.35 4.03 (-58%) -984.0
1924 CHA AL 12 11 41 22 12 0 3 216.3 279 117 72 52 4.87 4.13 (-18%) -1218.9
1925 CHA AL 21 11 43 32 19 5 3 262.7 274 95 83 45 3.26 4.55 (+28%) -163.4
1926 CHA AL 18 16 39 31 24 3 2 283.7 268 95 106 51 3.01 4.11 (+27%) -66.3
1927 CHA AL 22 14 39 34 30 2 2 307.7 291 97 67 71 2.84 4.08 (+30%) 4141.5
1928 CHA AL 15 14 39 27 21 0 6 240.0 276 106 68 60 3.98 4.13 (+4%) 435.0
1929 CHA AL 14 20 37 31 21 1 2 259.3 276 118 76 57 4.10 4.60 (+11%) 1656.8
1930 CHA AL 22 15 42 36 29 1 1 297.7 331 125 57 69 3.78 4.80 (+21%) 4258.1
1931 CHA AL 4 6 22 12 7 0 0 101.0 117 45 33 16 4.01 4.10 (+2%) -1198.9
1932 CHA AL 10 15 33 26 19 1 2 230.7 243 84 71 58 3.28 4.13 (+21%) -135.5
1933 CHA AL 10 21 36 27 14 2 1 228.0 260 111 74 74 4.38 3.86 (-14%) 300.3
1934 CHA AL 11 13 30 24 21 0 1 205.3 249 111 66 53 4.87 4.29 (-13%) -1827.9
1935 CHA AL 15 8 23 22 19 3 0 190.7 194 64 56 54 3.02 4.35 (+30%) -1085.8
1936 CHA AL 10 13 26 24 15 1 0 182.0 227 104 45 48 5.14 4.59 (-12%) -2432.5
1937 CHA AL 12 7 22 22 11 0 0 169.3 182 78 45 45 4.15 4.34 (+4%) -3216.4
1938 CHA AL 9 11 23 23 17 1 0 194.7 238 80 52 54 3.70 4.35 (+15%) 709.7
1939 CHA AL 14 6 21 21 16 0 0 172.7 162 53 26 65 2.76 4.28 (+36%) 4354.1
1940 CHA AL 12 8 22 22 17 4 0 186.3 188 67 37 72 3.24 4.21 (+23%) 973.9
1941 CHA AL 12 10 22 22 19 2 0 187.3 199 77 37 63 3.70 3.94 (+6%) 2548.3
1942 CHA AL 14 6 20 20 20 1 0 180.3 167 42 26 50 2.10 3.57 (+41%) 1345.6
1946 CHA AL 1 4 5 5 5 0 0 42.7 38 11 9 10 2.32 3.59 (+35%) 248.8
Career · 21 seasons 260 230 594 484 356 27 23 4,161.0 4,489 1,696 1,121 1,073 3.67 — 8,642

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

Ted Lyons — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
705 1,563 162 364 49 9 5 149 0 73 201 .233 .270 .285 .556 -5,832

Career AVG .233 vs. league average .277 across their career seasons — 15.9% below league average.

Career OBP .270 vs. league average .341 across their career seasons — 20.8% below league average.

Career SLG .285 vs. league average .392 across their career seasons — 27.2% below league average.

Career OPS .556 vs. league average .733 across their career seasons — 24.2% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Ted Lyons 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 CHA AL 9 5 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 3 .200 — — — — 0.0
1924 CHA AL 41 77 10 17 0 1 0 6 0 5 13 .221 .283 (-22%) .345 (-20%) .389 (-37%) .734 (-29%) -350.9
1925 CHA AL 43 97 6 18 3 0 0 7 0 3 13 .186 .288 (-36%) .349 (-38%) .407 (-47%) .756 (-43%) -689.0
1926 CHA AL 41 104 7 22 1 1 0 3 0 1 10 .212 .279 (-24%) .345 (-37%) .390 (-38%) .735 (-38%) -645.8
1927 CHA AL 41 110 16 28 6 2 1 9 0 6 17 .255 .282 (-10%) .344 (-15%) .392 (-5%) .736 (-10%) -203.5
1928 CHA AL 49 91 10 23 2 0 0 8 0 1 9 .253 .280 (-10%) .342 (-24%) .395 (-31%) .737 (-27%) -407.4
1929 CHA AL 40 91 7 20 4 0 0 11 0 9 13 .220 .289 (-24%) .353 (-18%) .415 (-37%) .769 (-28%) -420.8
1930 CHA AL 57 122 20 38 6 3 1 15 0 2 18 .311 .293 (+6%) .354 (-9%) .429 (+1%) .784 (-3%) -108.0
1931 CHA AL 42 33 6 5 0 0 0 3 0 2 1 .152 — — — — 0.0
1932 CHA AL 49 73 11 19 2 1 1 10 0 4 10 .260 .275 (-5%) .335 (-8%) .391 (-9%) .726 (-9%) -103.7
1933 CHA AL 51 91 11 26 2 1 1 11 0 4 6 .286 .270 (+6%) .329 (-4%) .377 (-4%) .707 (-4%) -66.3
1934 CHA AL 50 97 9 20 4 0 1 16 0 3 19 .206 .278 (-26%) .340 (-28%) .392 (-29%) .733 (-29%) -456.0
1935 CHA AL 29 82 5 18 4 0 0 6 0 3 4 .220 .279 (-22%) .342 (-25%) .399 (-33%) .742 (-29%) -397.1
1936 CHA AL 26 70 2 11 0 0 0 5 0 5 12 .157 .283 (-45%) .349 (-39%) .404 (-61%) .753 (-51%) -584.8
1937 CHA AL 23 57 6 12 0 0 0 3 0 9 14 .211 .276 (-24%) .342 (-7%) .398 (-47%) .740 (-29%) -234.9
1938 CHA AL 24 72 9 14 2 0 0 4 0 2 9 .194 .272 (-29%) .341 (-37%) .392 (-43%) .734 (-40%) -475.1
1939 CHA AL 21 61 5 18 3 0 0 8 0 5 7 .295 .274 (+8%) .342 (+2%) .393 (-12%) .735 (-6%) -49.1
1940 CHA AL 22 75 4 18 4 0 0 7 0 2 7 .240 .267 (-10%) .335 (-23%) .387 (-24%) .722 (-24%) -292.6
1941 CHA AL 22 74 8 20 2 0 0 6 0 2 6 .270 .262 (+3%) .332 (-13%) .373 (-20%) .705 (-17%) -200.6
1942 CHA AL 20 67 10 16 4 0 0 10 0 3 7 .239 .253 (-6%) .323 (-13%) .349 (-15%) .672 (-14%) -146.7
1946 CHA AL 5 14 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 .000 — — — — 0.0
Career · 21 seasons 705 1,563 162 364 49 9 5 149 0 73 201 .233 — — — — -5,832

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 (1298 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Ted Lyons — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home35172388179269.248
Away35384276184379.219

Pitching — Home / Away

Ted Lyons — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home2872068.222168125395893.53
Away3072090.022748775864833.78

Last 10 Games — Batting

Ted Lyons — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1946-05-19 CHWMINL 200000010
1946-05-12 CHWDETL 300000000
1946-05-05 CHWNYYL 300000002
1946-04-28 CHWSLAW 200000000
1946-04-21 CHWSLAL 400000001
1942-09-24 CHWCLEW 310000011
1942-09-10 CHWMINW 200000000
1942-08-30 CHWPHAW 300000002
1942-08-23 CHWCLEW 400000000
1942-08-16 CHWDETL 400000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Ted Lyons — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1946-05-19 CHWMIN L 9.0943131
1946-05-12 CHWDET L 8.0844400
1946-05-05 CHWNYY L 8.0841121
1946-04-28 CHWSLA W 9.0933130
1946-04-21 CHWSLA L 8.2420220
1942-09-24 CHWCLE W 9.0911040
1942-09-10 CHWMIN W 9.0710410
1942-08-30 CHWPHA W 9.01011100
1942-08-23 CHWCLE W 9.0310030
1942-08-16 CHWDET L 10.11233310

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Ted Lyons — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
OF 1 0 0 0 0 0
P 594 0 219 943 51 57

Season-by-Season Fielding

Ted Lyons — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1923 CHA P 9 0 3 7 0 1
1924 CHA P 41 0 3 43 5 2
1925 CHA P 43 0 8 80 4 3
1926 CHA P 39 0 16 91 5 3
1927 CHA P 39 0 13 79 2 3
1928 CHA P 39 0 20 60 7 6
1929 CHA OF 1 0 0 0 0 0
1929 CHA P 37 0 21 66 5 4
1930 CHA P 42 0 14 77 6 5
1931 CHA P 22 0 4 18 1 3
1932 CHA P 33 0 11 42 2 1
1933 CHA P 36 0 10 49 1 3
1934 CHA P 30 0 12 50 4 4
1935 CHA P 23 0 9 31 0 2
1936 CHA P 26 0 12 38 0 2
1937 CHA P 22 0 6 33 0 3
1938 CHA P 23 0 9 46 1 1
1939 CHA P 21 0 9 22 3 3
1940 CHA P 22 0 12 24 3 1
1941 CHA P 22 0 17 36 1 3
1942 CHA P 20 0 8 41 1 4
1946 CHA P 5 0 2 10 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Ted Lyons Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 594
Right Field 1

Awards & Honors

Ted Lyons — Awards & Honors
Year Award Notes
1930 Baseball Magazine All-Star P1
1927 Baseball Magazine All-Star P1
1927 Baseball Magazine All-Star P2
1927 TSN All-Star P
1926 Baseball Magazine All-Star P3
1926 Baseball Magazine All-Star P4
1925 Baseball Magazine All-Star P2

College History

Ted Lyons — College History
School Name City State Years Attended
Baylor University Waco TX 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923

Award Voting History

Ted Lyons — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1942 Most Valuable Player AL 12th 23.0 336 0
1941 Most Valuable Player AL 15th 12.0 336 0
1940 Most Valuable Player AL 27th 2.0 336 0
1939 Most Valuable Player AL 17th 13.0 336 0
1935 Most Valuable Player AL 13th 10.0 80 0
1932 Most Valuable Player AL 19th 5.0 80 0
1928 Most Valuable Player AL 22th 2.0 64 0
1927 Most Valuable Player AL 3rd 34.0 64 0
1925 Most Valuable Player AL 20th 5.0 64 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Ted Lyons (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Burleigh Grimes HOF
    270-212, 3.53 ERA
  2. 89
    Red Faber HOF
    254-213, 3.15 ERA
  3. 85
    Mel Harder
    223-186, 3.80 ERA
  4. 82
    Sad Sam Jones
    229-217, 3.84 ERA
  5. 81
    Eppa Rixey HOF
    266-251, 3.15 ERA
  6. 80
    Herb Pennock HOF
    240-162, 3.60 ERA

Compare Ted Lyons

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

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Frequently Asked Questions about Ted Lyons

What years did Ted Lyons play?
Ted Lyons played in Major League Baseball from 1923 to 1946.
Was Ted Lyons a pitcher?
Yes. Ted Lyons pitched in the major leagues, recording 260 wins and 1073 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Ted Lyons hit?
Ted Lyons hit 5 career home runs with 364 hits.
Is Ted Lyons in the Hall of Fame?
Yes. Ted Lyons was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1955.
What was Ted Lyons's career batting average?
Ted Lyons batted .233 over his career, with 364 hits in 1,563 at bats.
How many RBI did Ted Lyons have?
Ted Lyons drove in 149 runs in his career.