Bill Melton

Third Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1968-1977)

AVG .253
HR 160
RBI 591
H 1,004
OPS .756
PIV 7,390
Position
Third Baseman
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
6'2" / 200 lb
Born
7/7/1945 in Gulfport, MS, USA
Died
12/5/2024 in Phoenix, AZ, USA
MLB Debut
1968-05-04
Last Game
1977-08-30
Awards
All-Star

Full name: William Edwin Melton

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Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
1,144 3,971 496 1,004 162 9 160 591 23 479 669 .253 .337 .419 .756 7,390

Career AVG .253 vs. league average .253 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .337 vs. league average .320 across their career seasons — +5.1% above league average.

Career SLG .419 vs. league average .371 across their career seasons — +13.0% above league average.

Career OPS .756 vs. league average .691 across their career seasons — +9.3% above 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
1968 CHA AL 34 109 5 29 8 0 2 16 1 10 32 .266 .236 (+12%) .298 (+8%) .340 (+16%) .638 (+12%) 183.8
1969 CHA AL 157 556 67 142 26 2 23 87 1 56 106 .255 .248 (+3%) .320 (+2%) .369 (+17%) .689 (+10%) 1014.7
1970 CHA AL 141 514 74 135 15 1 33 96 2 56 107 .263 .253 (+3%) .325 (+4%) .385 (+27%) .711 (+16%) 1611.6
1971 CHA AL 150 543 72 146 18 2 33 86 3 61 87 .269 .249 (+8%) .316 (+11%) .365 (+35%) .682 (+24%) 2502.9
1972 CHA AL 57 208 22 51 5 0 7 30 1 23 31 .245 .243 (+1%) .310 (+3%) .353 (+5%) .664 (+4%) 150.7
1973 CHA AL 152 560 83 155 29 1 20 87 4 75 66 .277 .256 (+8%) .325 (+12%) .378 (+16%) .703 (+14%) 1682.7
1974 CHA AL 136 495 63 120 17 0 21 63 3 59 60 .242 .256 (-6%) .324 (avg) .369 (+9%) .693 (+5%) 519.2
1975 CHA AL 149 512 62 123 16 0 15 70 5 78 106 .240 .257 (-7%) .327 (+6%) .374 (-4%) .701 (+1%) 300.3
1976 CAL AL 118 341 31 71 17 3 6 42 2 44 53 .208 .255 (-18%) .320 (-6%) .360 (-9%) .681 (-8%) -381.2
1977 CLE AL 50 133 17 32 11 0 0 14 1 17 21 .241 .264 (-9%) .329 (+1%) .401 (-19%) .730 (-10%) -194.7
Career · 10 seasons 1,144 3,971 496 1,004 162 9 160 591 23 479 669 .253 — — — — 7,390

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 (1144 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home565194027550493310.260
Away579203122150067281.246

Last 10 Games — Batting

DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1977-08-30 CLECHWL 100000001
1977-08-26 CLESEAL 400000001
1977-08-22 CLESEAL 400000001
1977-08-22 CLESEAW 100000011
1977-08-20 CLEOAKW 200000000
1977-08-19 CLEOAKW 400000000
1977-08-15 CLEOAKW 320000011
1977-08-14 CLEMILW 523200101
1977-08-14 CLEMILW 100000000
1977-08-13 CLEMILL 300000001

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 45 38 354 23 2 30
3B 901 881 700 2045 147 184
OF 82 80 124 11 0 3

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1968 CHA 3B 33 32 17 75 3 5
1969 CHA 3B 148 139 112 322 22 36
1969 CHA OF 11 9 13 3 0 0
1970 CHA 3B 70 70 47 179 18 19
1970 CHA OF 71 71 111 8 0 3
1971 CHA 3B 148 148 116 371 16 26
1972 CHA 3B 56 56 47 125 12 12
1973 CHA 3B 151 151 115 347 23 31
1974 CHA 3B 123 123 100 272 24 29
1975 CHA 3B 138 138 131 313 26 23
1976 CAL 1B 30 27 220 15 2 20
1976 CAL 3B 21 14 7 21 1 2
1977 CLE 1B 15 11 134 8 0 10
1977 CLE 3B 13 10 8 20 2 1

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Position Games
First Base 45
Third Base 903
Left Field 3
Right Field 78
Designated Hitter 88

College History

School Name City State Years Attended
Citrus College Glendora CA 1964

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1971 Most Valuable Player AL 13th 18.0 336 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Bill Melton (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    John Milner
    .249 avg, 131 HR
  2. 96
    Travis Lee
    .256 avg, 115 HR
  3. 95
    Scott Brosius
    .257 avg, 141 HR
  4. 94
    Gleyber Torres
    .264 avg, 162 HR
  5. 93
    Scott Spiezio
    .255 avg, 119 HR
  6. 92
    Jeff King
    .256 avg, 154 HR

Frequently Asked Questions about Bill Melton

What years did Bill Melton play?
Bill Melton played in Major League Baseball from 1968 to 1977.
Was Bill Melton a pitcher?
No. Bill Melton was a position player (Third Baseman).
How many home runs did Bill Melton hit?
Bill Melton hit 160 career home runs with 1004 hits.