Lynn Nelson

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1930-1940)

Lynn Nelson was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1930 to 1940 for the Chicago Cubs, the Philadelphia Athletics, and the Detroit Tigers, a span of 11 seasons. Across 166 career appearances, he went 33-42 with a 5.25 ERA and 255 strikeouts. He also batted .281 with 5 home runs.

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 33–42
ERA 5.25
WHIP 1.54
SO 255
Pitcher PIV -15721.9
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
L / R
Height / Weight
5'10" / 170 lb
Born
2/24/1905 in Sheldon, ND, USA
Died
2/15/1955 in Kansas City, MO, USA
MLB Debut
1930-04-18
Last Game
1940-07-03

Full name: Lynn Bernard Nelson

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Career Pitching Statistics

Lynn Nelson — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
33 42 166 60 29 2 6 676.2 777 395 86 262 255 5.25 -15721.9

Career ERA 5.25 vs. league average 4.31 across their career seasons — 21.8% worse than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Lynn Nelson — Season-by-Season Pitching
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1930 CHN NL 3 2 37 3 0 0 0 81.1 97 46 28 29 5.09 4.80 (-6%) -1924.9
1933 CHN NL 5 5 24 3 3 0 1 75.2 65 27 30 20 3.21 3.86 (+17%) -112.5
1934 CHN NL 0 1 2 1 0 0 0 1.0 4 4 1 0 36.00 — 0.0
1937 PHA AL 4 9 30 4 1 0 2 116.0 140 76 51 49 5.90 4.34 (-36%) -2130.9
1938 PHA AL 10 11 32 23 13 0 2 191.0 215 120 79 75 5.65 4.35 (-30%) -5984.0
1939 PHA AL 10 13 35 24 12 2 1 197.2 233 105 64 75 4.78 4.28 (-12%) -4043.0
1940 DET AL 1 1 6 2 0 0 0 14.0 23 17 9 7 10.93 4.21 (-159%) -1526.5
Career · 7 seasons 33 42 166 60 29 2 6 676.2 777 395 262 255 5.25 — -15,722

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

Lynn Nelson — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
268 367 42 103 10 4 5 55 1 16 48 .281 .312 .371 .683 -347

Career AVG .281 vs. league average .276 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .312 vs. league average .341 across their career seasons — 8.4% below league average.

Career SLG .371 vs. league average .397 across their career seasons — 6.5% below league average.

Career OPS .683 vs. league average .738 across their career seasons — 7.4% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Lynn Nelson — Season-by-Season Batting
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1930 CHN NL 37 18 0 4 1 1 0 2 0 0 1 .222 — — — — 0.0
1933 CHN NL 29 21 5 5 1 1 0 1 0 1 3 .238 — — — — 0.0
1934 CHN NL 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1937 PHA AL 74 113 18 40 6 2 4 29 1 6 13 .354 .276 (+28%) .342 (+13%) .398 (+38%) .740 (+26%) 512.2
1938 PHA AL 67 112 12 31 0 0 0 15 0 7 12 .277 .272 (+1%) .341 (-7%) .392 (-30%) .734 (-19%) -317.9
1939 PHA AL 40 80 3 15 2 0 0 5 0 2 13 .188 .274 (-32%) .342 (-37%) .393 (-46%) .735 (-42%) -541.6
1940 DET AL 19 23 4 8 0 0 1 3 0 0 6 .348 — — — — 0.0
Career · 7 seasons 268 367 42 103 10 4 5 55 1 16 48 .281 — — — — -347

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 (433 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Lynn Nelson — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home1462022660334.297
Away1211641643221.262

Pitching — Home / Away

Lynn Nelson — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home85359.14232151291585.38
Away81318.0354180132985.09

Last 10 Games — Batting

Lynn Nelson — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1940-07-03 DETCHWL 311000000
1940-06-25 DETBOSL 100000001
1940-06-22 DETNYYW 100000001
1940-06-21 DETNYYL 111001200
1940-06-20 DETPHAL 100000001
1940-06-12 DETNYYL 100000000
1940-06-06 DETPHAL 111000000
1940-06-04 DETPHAL 101000000
1940-06-03 DETMINL 202000100
1940-05-22 DETNYYL 100000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Lynn Nelson — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1940-07-03 DETCHW — 4.1777442
1940-06-21 DETNYY — 1.0433012
1940-06-03 DETMIN — 2.0333111
1940-05-12 DETCHW L 0.2433000
1940-05-01 DETMIN W 5.0200310
1940-04-22 DETCHW — 1.0332100
1939-09-30 PHAMIN L 4.0966030
1939-09-24 PHABOS L 7.11177321
1939-09-20 PHADET — 12.0844331
1939-09-15 PHACHW W 9.0820330

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Lynn Nelson — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
OF 6 0 16 1 0 0
P 166 0 25 122 5 8

Season-by-Season Fielding

Lynn Nelson — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1930 CHN P 37 0 6 22 1 1
1933 CHN P 24 0 1 20 0 1
1934 CHN P 2 0 0 0 0 0
1937 PHA OF 6 0 16 1 0 0
1937 PHA P 30 0 3 14 0 0
1938 PHA P 32 0 4 36 2 0
1939 PHA P 35 0 11 27 2 6
1940 DET P 6 0 0 3 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Lynn Nelson — Career Games by Position
Position Games
Pitcher 166
Left Field 6

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Lynn Nelson (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Bill Bayne
    31-32, 4.84 ERA
  2. 97
    Davy Dunkle
    17-30, 5.02 ERA
  3. 96
    Lev Shreve
    19-37, 4.89 ERA
  4. 95
    Cy Moore
    16-26, 4.86 ERA
  5. 95
    Scott Bailes
    39-44, 4.95 ERA
  6. 94
    Bill Hawke
    32-31, 4.98 ERA

Lynn Nelson: the record in brief

April 18, 1930 and July 3, 1940 bracket Lynn Nelson's time in the majors: the debut and the last game on record. By club, Nelson's seasons break down as the Chicago Cubs (1930 through 1934), the Philadelphia Athletics (1937 to 1939), and the Detroit Tigers (1940). Nelson played primarily as a pitcher and batted left-handed and threw right-handed. Born on February 24, 1905, in Sheldon, ND, USA, Nelson was listed at 5 feet, 10 inches and 170 pounds. The bio records the death on February 15, 1955, in Kansas City, MO, USA. The bio lists the given name Lynn Bernard.

Nelson went 33-42 with a 5.25 ERA in 166 games, 60 of them starts. The totals include 255 strikeouts and 29 complete games. The league ERA over Nelson's seasons was 4.31, so the 5.25 figure ran 21.8% worse than average. Nelson won 10 games in 1938, the most of any season listed.

Frequently Asked Questions about Lynn Nelson

What years did Lynn Nelson play?
Lynn Nelson played in Major League Baseball from 1930 to 1940.
Was Lynn Nelson a pitcher?
Yes. Lynn Nelson pitched in the major leagues, recording 33 wins and 255 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Lynn Nelson hit?
Lynn Nelson hit 5 career home runs with 103 hits.
What teams did Lynn Nelson play for?
Lynn Nelson played for 3 teams: the Chicago Cubs (1930, 1933–1934), the Philadelphia Athletics (1937–1939), and the Detroit Tigers (1940).
What were Lynn Nelson's career stats?
In 166 games, Lynn Nelson went 33-42 with a 5.25 ERA, 255 strikeouts, 676.2 innings pitched, and 6 saves. At the plate he had 103 hits and 5 home runs.
What position did Lynn Nelson play?
Lynn Nelson played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Lynn Nelson and how much did he weigh?
Lynn Nelson was listed at 5 feet 10 inches and 170 pounds.
What was Lynn Nelson's career ERA?
Lynn Nelson finished with a 5.25 career ERA, going 33-42 with 255 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Lynn Nelson have?
Lynn Nelson recorded 255 career strikeouts.
Is Lynn Nelson in the Hall of Fame?
No. Lynn Nelson has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.