Walt Masterson
Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1939-1956)
Walt Masterson was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1939 to 1956 for the Washington Senators, the Boston Red Sox, and the Detroit Tigers, a span of 18 seasons. Across 399 career appearances, he went 78-100 with a 4.15 ERA, 815 strikeouts, and 20 saves. He also batted .140 with 0 home runs. Walt Masterson was a 2-time All-Star.
- 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
- 6'2" / 189 lb
- Died
- 4/5/2008 in Durham, NC, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1939-05-08
- Last Game
- 1956-09-24
- Awards
- 2× All-Star
Full name: Walter Edward Masterson
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1939 | WS1 | AL | 2 | 2 | 24 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 58.1 | 66 | 36 | 48 | 12 | 5.55 | 4.28 (-30%) | -2027.3 |
| 1940 | WS1 | AL | 3 | 13 | 31 | 19 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 130.1 | 128 | 71 | 88 | 68 | 4.90 | 4.21 (-16%) | -1432.7 |
| 1941 | WS1 | AL | 4 | 3 | 34 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 78.1 | 101 | 52 | 53 | 40 | 5.97 | 3.94 (-52%) | -809.2 |
| 1942 | WS1 | AL | 5 | 9 | 25 | 15 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 142.2 | 138 | 53 | 54 | 63 | 3.34 | 3.57 (+6%) | 552.9 |
| 1945 | WS1 | AL | 1 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 25.0 | 21 | 3 | 10 | 14 | 1.08 | 3.67 (+71%) | 219.8 |
| 1946 | WS1 | AL | 5 | 6 | 29 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 91.1 | 105 | 61 | 67 | 61 | 6.01 | 3.59 (-67%) | -2506.3 |
| 1947 | WS1 | AL | 12 | 16 | 35 | 31 | 14 | 4 | 1 | 253.0 | 215 | 88 | 97 | 135 | 3.13 | 3.97 (+21%) | 4027.2 |
| 1948 | WS1 | AL | 8 | 15 | 33 | 27 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 188.0 | 171 | 80 | 122 | 72 | 3.83 | 4.10 (+7%) | -3500.4 |
| 1949 | WS1 | AL | 3 | 2 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 53.0 | 42 | 19 | 21 | 17 | 3.23 | 4.12 (+22%) | -120.8 |
| 1949 | BOS | AL | 3 | 4 | 18 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 55.0 | 58 | 26 | 35 | 19 | 4.25 | 4.12 (-3%) | -115.5 |
| 1950 | BOS | AL | 8 | 6 | 33 | 15 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 129.1 | 145 | 81 | 82 | 60 | 5.64 | 4.36 (-29%) | -2361.8 |
| 1951 | BOS | AL | 3 | 0 | 30 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 59.1 | 53 | 22 | 32 | 39 | 3.34 | 4.04 (+17%) | 1559.6 |
| 1952 | BOS | AL | 1 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9.1 | 18 | 12 | 11 | 3 | 11.57 | 3.70 (-213%) | 0.0 |
| 1952 | WS1 | AL | 9 | 8 | 24 | 21 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 160.2 | 153 | 66 | 72 | 89 | 3.70 | 3.70 (avg) | 538.1 |
| 1953 | WS1 | AL | 10 | 12 | 29 | 20 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 166.1 | 145 | 67 | 62 | 95 | 3.63 | 4.14 (+12%) | 1144.2 |
| 1956 | DET | AL | 1 | 1 | 35 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 49.2 | 54 | 23 | 32 | 28 | 4.17 | 3.96 (-5%) | 258.4 |
| Career · 16 seasons | 78 | 100 | 399 | 184 | 70 | 15 | 20 | 1,649.2 | 1,613 | 760 | 886 | 815 | 4.15 | — | -4,574 | ||
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 402 | 486 | 37 | 68 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 26 | 1 | 34 | 221 | .140 | .196 | .167 | .363 | -1,797 |
Career AVG .140 vs. league average .262 across their career seasons — 46.6% below league average.
Career OBP .196 vs. league average .335 across their career seasons — 41.4% below league average.
Career SLG .167 vs. league average .378 across their career seasons — 56.0% below league average.
Career OPS .363 vs. league average .713 across their career seasons — 49.1% 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1939 | WS1 | AL | 24 | 13 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 | .154 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1940 | WS1 | AL | 31 | 38 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 17 | .184 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1941 | WS1 | AL | 34 | 19 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 10 | .105 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1942 | WS1 | AL | 26 | 45 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 19 | .156 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1945 | WS1 | AL | 4 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | .111 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1946 | WS1 | AL | 29 | 25 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 14 | .080 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1947 | WS1 | AL | 36 | 83 | 4 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 43 | .133 | .262 (-49%) | .336 (-49%) | .376 (-52%) | .712 (-50%) | -680.8 |
| 1948 | WS1 | AL | 33 | 57 | 8 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 22 | .193 | .263 (-27%) | .340 (-35%) | .379 (-31%) | .719 (-33%) | -316.4 |
| 1949 | WS1 | AL | 11 | 18 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 11 | .056 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1949 | BOS | AL | 18 | 17 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | .118 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1950 | BOS | AL | 33 | 44 | 2 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 18 | .136 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1951 | BOS | AL | 30 | 11 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | .182 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1952 | BOS | AL | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1952 | WS1 | AL | 24 | 50 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 21 | .120 | .252 (-53%) | .326 (-43%) | .369 (-62%) | .696 (-53%) | 0.0 |
| 1953 | WS1 | AL | 29 | 51 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 21 | .137 | .264 (-48%) | .335 (-32%) | .397 (-61%) | .733 (-47%) | -387.0 |
| 1956 | DET | AL | 35 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .250 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 16 seasons | 402 | 486 | 37 | 68 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 26 | 1 | 34 | 221 | .140 | — | — | — | — | -1,384 | ||
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 (801 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 196 | 246 | 18 | 36 | 0 | 16 | .146 |
| Away | 206 | 242 | 19 | 32 | 0 | 10 | .132 |
Pitching — Home / Away
| Split | G | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 195 | 868.1 | 820 | 352 | 447 | 426 | 3.65 |
| Away | 204 | 780.2 | 794 | 412 | 439 | 391 | 4.75 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1956-09-24 | DET | CHW | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1956-09-16 | DET | BOS | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1956-09-14 | DET | NYY | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1956-09-07 | DET | KC1 | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1956-09-04 | DET | CHW | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1956-09-03 | DET | CHW | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1956-08-29 | DET | BOS | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1956-08-26 | DET | NYY | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1956-08-23 | DET | BAL | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1956-08-16 | DET | CLE | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Last 10 Games — Pitching
| Date | Tm | Opp | Dec | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1956-09-24 | DET | CHW | — | 2.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1956-09-16 | DET | BOS | W | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1956-09-14 | DET | NYY | — | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1956-09-07 | DET | KC1 | — | 0.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1956-09-04 | DET | CHW | — | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1956-09-03 | DET | CHW | — | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1956-08-29 | DET | BOS | — | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1956-08-26 | DET | NYY | — | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1956-08-23 | DET | BAL | — | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1956-08-16 | DET | CLE | — | 2.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1939 | WS1 | P | 24 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 2 | 0 |
| 1940 | WS1 | P | 31 | 0 | 5 | 16 | 1 | 0 |
| 1941 | WS1 | P | 34 | 0 | 4 | 17 | 1 | 2 |
| 1942 | WS1 | P | 25 | 0 | 8 | 22 | 7 | 0 |
| 1945 | WS1 | P | 4 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 1946 | WS1 | P | 29 | 0 | 5 | 15 | 1 | 0 |
| 1947 | WS1 | P | 35 | 0 | 14 | 51 | 6 | 4 |
| 1948 | WS1 | P | 33 | 0 | 10 | 24 | 3 | 1 |
| 1949 | WS1 | P | 10 | 0 | 3 | 14 | 0 | 0 |
| 1949 | BOS | P | 18 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 1 |
| 1950 | BOS | P | 33 | 0 | 8 | 26 | 2 | 6 |
| 1951 | BOS | P | 30 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 1 | 0 |
| 1952 | BOS | P | 5 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1952 | WS1 | P | 24 | 0 | 14 | 28 | 1 | 3 |
| 1953 | WS1 | P | 29 | 0 | 10 | 27 | 4 | 1 |
| 1956 | DET | P | 35 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 2 | 1 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 399 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Walt Masterson (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Walt Masterson: the record in brief
According to the bio, Walt Masterson debuted on May 8, 1939 and played a final game on September 24, 1956. The season rows list, in order, the Washington Senators (1939 to 1953), the Boston Red Sox (1949 through 1952), and the Detroit Tigers (1956). Masterson, a pitcher by primary position, threw and hit right-handed. The recorded size is 6'2" and 189 pounds. Masterson was born on June 22, 1920, in Philadelphia, PA, USA. The bio records the death on April 5, 2008, in Durham, NC, USA. The given name on file is Walter Edward Masterson.
Masterson pitched in 399 games, starting 184, and finished with a 78-100 record and 4.15 ERA. The same table counts 815 strikeouts, 70 complete games, 15 shutouts, and 20 saves. Masterson's 4.15 ERA was close to the 3.97 league figure for those seasons. Masterson won 12 games in 1947, the most of any season listed. 1947 was Masterson's sharpest full season, a 3.13 ERA against the league's 3.97.
The bio's awards line reads 2× All-Star.
Frequently Asked Questions about Walt Masterson
- What years did Walt Masterson play?
- Walt Masterson played in Major League Baseball from 1939 to 1956.
- Was Walt Masterson a pitcher?
- Yes. Walt Masterson pitched in the major leagues, recording 78 wins and 815 strikeouts.
- How many home runs did Walt Masterson hit?
- Walt Masterson hit 0 career home runs with 68 hits.
- What was Walt Masterson's career batting average?
- Walt Masterson batted .140 over his career, with 68 hits in 486 at bats.
- How many RBI did Walt Masterson have?
- Walt Masterson drove in 26 runs in his career.
- What was Walt Masterson's career ERA?
- Walt Masterson finished with a 4.15 career ERA, going 78-100 with 815 strikeouts.