Merrill May

Third Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1939-1943)

AVG .275
HR 4
RBI 215
H 610
OPS .691
PIV 150
Position
Third Baseman
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
5'11" / 165 lb
Born
1/18/1911 in Laconia, IN, USA
Died
9/4/2000 in Corydon, IN, USA
MLB Debut
1939-04-21
Last Game
1943-10-03
Awards
All-Star

Full name: Merrill Glend May

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Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
665 2,215 210 610 102 11 4 215 13 261 121 .275 .354 .337 .691 150

Career AVG .275 vs. league average .263 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .354 vs. league average .332 across their career seasons — +6.8% above league average.

Career SLG .337 vs. league average .370 across their career seasons — 8.9% below league average.

Career OPS .691 vs. league average .701 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

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 PHI NL 135 464 49 133 27 3 2 62 4 41 20 .287 .274 (+5%) .342 (+1%) .393 (-6%) .735 (-3%) -174.7
1940 PHI NL 136 501 59 147 24 2 1 48 2 58 33 .293 .267 (+10%) .335 (+11%) .387 (-8%) .722 (avg) 267.7
1941 PHI NL 142 490 46 131 17 4 0 39 2 55 30 .267 .262 (+2%) .332 (+3%) .373 (-15%) .705 (-6%) -357.4
1942 PHI NL 115 345 25 82 15 0 0 18 3 51 17 .238 .253 (-6%) .323 (+4%) .349 (-20%) .672 (-8%) -265.7
1943 PHI NL 137 415 31 117 19 2 1 48 2 56 21 .282 .255 (+10%) .324 (+13%) .346 (-1%) .671 (+6%) 680.1
Career · 5 seasons 665 2,215 210 610 102 11 4 215 13 261 121 .275 — — — — 150

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 (666 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home3211040102279094.268
Away34511741083314118.282

Last 10 Games — Batting

DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1943-10-03 PHIPITW 521000100
1943-10-03 PHIPITW 503000100
1943-09-29 PHICINL 300000010
1943-09-28 PHICINL 200000010
1943-09-28 PHICINL 401000000
1943-09-27 PHICINL 200000020
1943-09-26 PHISTLW 502000100
1943-09-26 PHISTLL 300000000
1943-09-25 PHISTLL 400000000
1943-09-24 PHICHCL 211000000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
3B 646 0 737 1391 84 114
SS 1 0 1 6 1 1

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1939 PHI 3B 132 0 153 263 19 28
1940 PHI 3B 135 0 139 297 21 12
1940 PHI SS 1 0 1 6 1 1
1941 PHI 3B 140 0 194 324 15 31
1942 PHI 3B 107 0 109 227 13 23
1943 PHI 3B 132 0 142 280 16 20

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Position Games
Third Base 648
Shortstop 1

College History

School Name City State Years Attended
Indiana University-Bloomington Bloomington IN 1930, 1931, 1932

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1940 Most Valuable Player NL 29th 3.0 336 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Merrill May (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Fred Haney
    .275 avg, 8 HR
  2. 94
    Jim Viox
    .273 avg, 7 HR
  3. 92
    Jerry Coleman
    .263 avg, 16 HR
  4. 91
    Tommy Butts
    .272 avg, 4 HR
  5. 90
    Johnny Burnett
    .284 avg, 9 HR
  6. 89
    Alex Arias
    .265 avg, 18 HR

Frequently Asked Questions about Merrill May

What years did Merrill May play?
Merrill May played in Major League Baseball from 1939 to 1943.
Was Merrill May a pitcher?
No. Merrill May was a position player (Third Baseman).
How many home runs did Merrill May hit?
Merrill May hit 4 career home runs with 610 hits.