Webster McDonald

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (Final season: 1940)

Webster McDonald was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball for 7 teams, including the Wilmington Potomacs. Across 208 career appearances, he went 80-54 with a 3.80 ERA and 553 strikeouts. He also batted .216 with 4 home runs. His totals include Negro Leagues seasons, which MLB recognized as major league in 2020. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 16504.0.

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 80–54
ERA 3.80
WHIP 1.25
SO 553
Pitcher PIV 16504.0
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
L / R
Height / Weight
5'11" / 190 lb
Born
1/1/1900 in Glasgow, DE, USA
Died
6/12/1982 in Philadelphia, PA, USA
Last Game
1940-06-22

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Negro Leagues Career Statistics

Batting

Webster McDonald — Batting
PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB BA OBP SLG OPS
207.0 198.0 23.0 44.0 6.0 2.0 2.0 17.0 4.0 3.0 0 .222 .238 .303 .541

Pitching

Webster McDonald — Pitching
W L GS CG GF SV IP H R ER HR BB SO ERA WHIP
31 30 69 33 21 5 525.2 575 331 145 29 105 143 2.48 1.29

Career Pitching Statistics

Webster McDonald — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
80 54 208 145 89 9 6 1266.1 1,277 535 62 302 553 3.80 16504.0

Career ERA 3.80 vs. league average 4.30 across their career seasons — 11.6% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Webster McDonald Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1925 WMP ECL 3 4 12 5 3 0 0 48.0 52 19 17 25 3.56 4.55 (+22%) 1126.3
1925 CAG NNL 6 2 10 6 6 0 0 75.0 64 26 17 41 3.12 4.55 (+31%) 2597.2
1926 CAG NNL 10 3 21 13 8 0 1 116.1 108 48 23 77 3.71 4.11 (+10%) 1991.8
1927 CAG NNL 9 5 17 13 10 1 0 121.1 107 33 17 54 2.45 4.08 (+40%) 3243.2
1928 CAG NNL 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 8.0 3 1 2 1 1.12 — 0.0
1928 HG EAS 1 0 1 1 1 1 0 7.0 4 0 1 7 0.00 — 0.0
1929 HG ANL 2 0 2 1 1 0 0 11.2 7 1 1 6 0.77 4.60 (+83%) 592.9
1929 CAG NNL 4 1 5 5 4 2 0 44.1 27 4 10 16 0.81 4.60 (+82%) 1456.0
1930 HIL IND 0 2 3 3 1 0 0 21.2 29 14 5 8 5.82 4.80 (-21%) -204.0
1930 BBS IND 2 1 3 3 3 1 0 25.0 18 4 3 17 1.44 4.80 (+70%) 1151.6
1931 HIL IND 4 0 4 4 4 2 0 37.0 25 4 8 21 0.97 4.10 (+76%) 1273.9
1932 WAP EWL 5 5 16 13 7 1 0 103.1 129 47 18 51 4.09 4.13 (+1%) 2742.3
1933 PS IND 4 3 11 7 5 0 1 59.1 68 27 10 24 4.10 3.86 (-6%) 558.8
1934 PS NN2 7 5 17 13 9 1 1 119.2 105 37 25 37 2.78 4.29 (+35%) 1029.7
1935 PS NN2 8 4 21 15 10 0 0 142.1 156 68 40 47 4.30 4.35 (+1%) -108.7
1936 PS NN2 5 5 19 11 3 0 1 108.1 128 65 42 35 5.40 4.59 (-18%) -896.1
1937 PS NN2 3 3 11 11 4 0 0 63.1 72 38 13 24 5.40 4.34 (-24%) -326.5
1938 PS NN2 5 6 19 14 6 0 2 97.2 106 58 33 38 5.34 4.35 (-23%) -586.5
1939 PS NN2 1 4 11 6 4 0 0 43.0 51 27 13 17 5.65 4.28 (-32%) 713.3
1940 PS NN2 0 1 4 1 0 0 0 14.0 18 14 4 7 9.00 4.21 (-114%) 148.9
Career · 20 seasons 80 54 208 145 89 9 6 1,266.1 1,277 535 302 553 3.80 — 16,504

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

Webster McDonald — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
223 473 42 102 11 2 4 42 0 26 2 .216 .257 .273 .529 -684

Career AVG .216 vs. league average .280 across their career seasons — 22.9% below league average.

Career OBP .257 vs. league average .343 across their career seasons — 25.3% below league average.

Career SLG .273 vs. league average .398 across their career seasons — 31.4% below league average.

Career OPS .529 vs. league average .741 across their career seasons — 28.6% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Webster McDonald 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
1925 WMP ECL 12 20 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 .150 — — — — 0.0
1925 CAG NNL 12 28 2 10 1 0 0 2 0 2 0 .357 — — — — 0.0
1926 CAG NNL 21 41 5 7 1 0 1 6 0 2 1 .171 — — — — 0.0
1927 CAG NNL 20 48 2 9 0 0 0 3 0 3 0 .188 — — — — -326.4
1928 CAG NNL 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1928 HG EAS 1 3 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 .333 — — — — 0.0
1929 HG ANL 2 5 1 3 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 .600 — — — — 0.0
1929 CAG NNL 5 17 2 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .176 — — — — 0.0
1930 HIL IND 3 10 1 2 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 .200 — — — — 0.0
1930 BBS IND 3 10 2 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 .300 — — — — 0.0
1931 HIL IND 4 14 4 6 1 1 0 3 0 0 0 .429 — — — — 0.0
1932 WAP EWL 19 39 1 13 1 1 0 5 0 2 0 .333 — — — — 0.0
1933 PS IND 11 20 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .150 — — — — 0.0
1934 PS NN2 19 42 5 8 2 0 0 2 0 4 1 .190 — — — — 0.0
1935 PS NN2 21 49 6 7 0 0 1 3 0 4 0 .143 — — — — -357.2
1936 PS NN2 19 44 3 5 1 0 0 1 0 3 0 .114 — — — — 0.0
1937 PS NN2 11 22 3 6 0 0 1 3 0 1 0 .273 — — — — 0.0
1938 PS NN2 20 32 3 7 2 0 0 5 0 4 0 .219 — — — — 0.0
1939 PS NN2 14 21 1 5 0 0 1 3 0 0 0 .238 — — — — 0.0
1940 PS NN2 5 5 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 .200 — — — — 0.0
Career · 20 seasons 223 473 42 102 11 2 4 42 0 26 2 .216 — — — — -684

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.

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

Webster McDonald — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
8 17 2 6 3 0 0 2 0 0 .353

Playoff Batting by Year

Webster McDonald — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1934 NLC PS 1 2 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 .500
1927 NNC CAG 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000
1927 NWS CAG 2 6 1 2 1 0 0 2 0 0 .333
1926 NNC CAG 1 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .333
1926 NWS CAG 3 5 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 .200

Playoff Career Pitching

Webster McDonald — Playoff Career Pitching
W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1 2 7 5 1 41.0 50 14 11 21 3.07

Playoff Pitching by Year

Webster McDonald — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1934 NLC PS 0 0 1 0 0 6.2 5 1 0 8 1.35
1927 NNC CAG 0 0 1 1 0 2.2 7 2 1 2 6.75
1927 NWS CAG 1 0 2 2 0 13.0 14 3 2 8 2.08
1926 NNC CAG 0 1 1 1 0 8.0 9 1 3 1 1.12
1926 NWS CAG 0 1 2 1 1 10.2 15 7 5 2 5.91

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (190 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Webster McDonald — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home62101161915.188
Away358051328.163

Pitching — Home / Away

Webster McDonald — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home59283.23055143171.62
Away34205.12479149493.99

Last 10 Games — Batting

Webster McDonald — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1940-06-15 PH5NW2L 200000000
1940-06-09 PH5NY6L 101000000
1940-05-30 PH5NY6L 100000000
1939-08-12 PH5NW2W 100000000
1939-08-10 PH5NY5W 000000000
1939-07-23 PH5HOML 000000000
1939-06-18 PH5HOML 000000000
1939-06-17 PH5NW2L 000000000
1939-06-11 PH5NY6L 401000000
1939-06-10 PH5NY5W 100000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Webster McDonald — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1940-06-15 PH5NW2 — 4.1550100
1940-06-09 PH5NY6 L 3.0550110
1940-05-30 PH5NY6 — 2.1320100
1939-08-12 PH5NW2 — 4.0640000
1939-08-10 PH5NY5 — 0.1210100
1939-07-23 PH5HOM — 2.0220310
1939-06-18 PH5HOM L 1.1340200
1939-06-17 PH5NW2 — 1.0440100
1939-06-11 PH5NY6 L 9.0760000
1939-06-08 PH5BLG L 6.11060000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Webster McDonald — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 208 145 25 282 14 8

Season-by-Season Fielding

Webster McDonald — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1925 WMP P 12 5 0 0 0 0
1925 CAG P 10 6 0 0 0 0
1926 CAG P 21 13 2 27 3 1
1927 CAG P 17 13 5 31 4 2
1928 CAG P 1 0 0 3 0 0
1928 HG P 1 1 0 0 0 0
1929 HG P 2 1 0 3 1 0
1929 CAG P 5 5 1 18 1 0
1930 HIL P 3 3 0 4 1 0
1930 BBS P 3 3 0 4 0 0
1931 HIL P 4 4 0 6 1 0
1932 WAP P 16 13 6 29 0 0
1933 PS P 11 7 1 4 0 0
1934 PS P 17 13 1 33 0 1
1935 PS P 21 15 3 46 0 1
1936 PS P 19 11 1 29 1 0
1937 PS P 11 11 1 16 0 1
1938 PS P 19 14 4 16 1 2
1939 PS P 11 6 0 8 0 0
1940 PS P 4 1 0 5 1 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Webster McDonald Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 208

Most Similar Players

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

  1. 98
    Rube Curry
    84-60, 3.57 ERA
  2. 88
    Fred Hutchinson
    95-71, 3.73 ERA
  3. 88
    Luke Hamlin
    73-76, 3.77 ERA
  4. 81
    Harry Salmon
    76-58, 3.61 ERA
  5. 78
    Atlee Hammaker
    59-67, 3.66 ERA
  6. 77
    LaMarr Hoyt
    98-68, 3.99 ERA

Webster McDonald: the record in brief

Webster McDonald's record on this page is drawn from the season tables, which run from 1925 to 1940. The team column moves through the Wilmington Potomacs (1925), the Chicago American Giants (1925 through 1929), the Homestead Grays (1928 through 1929), the Hilldale Club (1930 through 1931), the Baltimore Black Sox (1930), the Washington Pilots (1932), and the Philadelphia Stars (1933 through 1940). Listed as a pitcher, McDonald threw right-handed and batted left-handed. The recorded size is 190 pounds on a 5-foot-11 frame. McDonald was born on January 1, 1900, in Glasgow, DE, USA. McDonald's death is recorded on June 12, 1982, in Philadelphia, PA, USA.

Across 208 games (145 starts), McDonald recorded 80 wins against 54 losses with a 3.80 ERA. Also on McDonald's record: 553 strikeouts, 89 complete games, and 9 shutouts. The leagues McDonald pitched in allowed 4.30 earned runs per nine over those seasons, so the career ERA was 11.6% better than average. No season topped the 10 wins of 1926.

Frequently Asked Questions about Webster McDonald

Was Webster McDonald a pitcher?
Yes. Webster McDonald pitched in the major leagues, recording 80 wins and 553 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Webster McDonald hit?
Webster McDonald hit 4 career home runs with 102 hits.
What was Webster McDonald's career batting average?
Webster McDonald batted .216 over his career, with 102 hits in 473 at bats.
How many RBI did Webster McDonald have?
Webster McDonald drove in 42 runs in his career.
What was Webster McDonald's career ERA?
Webster McDonald finished with a 3.80 career ERA, going 80-54 with 553 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Webster McDonald have?
Webster McDonald recorded 553 career strikeouts.