Bob O'Farrell
Catcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1915-1935)
Bob O'Farrell was a catcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1915 to 1935 for 4 teams, including the Chicago Cubs, a span of 21 seasons. In 1,492 career games, he hit .273 with 1,120 hits, 51 home runs, and 549 RBI. Bob O'Farrell was an MVP. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 3,306.
- AVG (Batting Average):
- Hits divided by at bats. .300 is the traditional mark of an excellent hitter.
- HR (Home Runs):
- Hits on which the batter circled the bases and scored, almost always by clearing the outfield fence.
- RBI (Runs Batted In):
- Runs that scored as a direct result of a batter's plate appearance.
- OPS (On-Base Plus Slugging):
- On-base percentage plus slugging percentage, the quickest single summary of offensive value. .900 or better is star-level.
Data updated
- Position
- Catcher
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 5'9" / 180 lb
- Died
- 2/20/1988 in Waukegan, IL, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1915-09-05
- Last Game
- 1935-09-23
- Awards
- MVP
Full name: Robert Arthur O'Farrell
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,492 | 4,101 | 517 | 1,120 | 201 | 58 | 51 | 549 | 35 | 547 | 408 | .273 | .360 | .388 | .748 | 3,306 |
Career AVG .273 vs. league average .276 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OBP .360 vs. league average .338 across their career seasons — +6.6% above league average.
Career SLG .388 vs. league average .382 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OPS .748 vs. league average .720 across their career seasons — near 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1915 | CHN | NL | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .333 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1916 | CHN | NL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1917 | CHN | NL | 3 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | .375 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1918 | CHN | NL | 52 | 113 | 9 | 32 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 15 | .283 | .255 (+11%) | .318 (+9%) | .326 (+30%) | .645 (+20%) | 324.7 |
| 1919 | CHN | NL | 49 | 125 | 11 | 27 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 7 | 10 | .216 | .262 (-18%) | .322 (-20%) | .347 (-20%) | .670 (-20%) | -391.5 |
| 1920 | CHN | NL | 94 | 270 | 29 | 67 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 19 | 1 | 34 | 23 | .248 | .271 (-9%) | .331 (avg) | .363 (-3%) | .694 (-2%) | -30.0 |
| 1921 | CHN | NL | 96 | 260 | 32 | 65 | 12 | 7 | 4 | 32 | 2 | 18 | 14 | .250 | .286 (-13%) | .344 (-13%) | .395 (avg) | .739 (-6%) | -334.9 |
| 1922 | CHN | NL | 128 | 392 | 68 | 127 | 18 | 8 | 4 | 60 | 5 | 79 | 34 | .324 | .285 (+13%) | .345 (+27%) | .397 (+11%) | .743 (+18%) | 1857.2 |
| 1923 | CHN | NL | 131 | 452 | 73 | 144 | 25 | 4 | 12 | 84 | 10 | 67 | 38 | .319 | .282 (+13%) | .344 (+18%) | .390 (+21%) | .734 (+20%) | 1993.2 |
| 1924 | CHN | NL | 71 | 183 | 25 | 44 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 28 | 2 | 30 | 13 | .240 | .283 (-15%) | .345 (+1%) | .389 (-12%) | .734 (-6%) | -115.5 |
| 1925 | CHN | NL | 17 | 22 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 5 | .182 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1925 | SLN | NL | 94 | 317 | 37 | 88 | 13 | 2 | 3 | 32 | 0 | 46 | 26 | .278 | .288 (-4%) | .349 (+7%) | .407 (-12%) | .756 (-3%) | 0.0 |
| 1926 | SLN | NL | 147 | 492 | 63 | 144 | 30 | 9 | 7 | 68 | 1 | 61 | 44 | .293 | .279 (+5%) | .345 (+7%) | .390 (+11%) | .735 (+9%) | 966.8 |
| 1927 | SLN | NL | 61 | 178 | 19 | 47 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 18 | 3 | 23 | 22 | .264 | .282 (-6%) | .344 (+1%) | .392 (-16%) | .736 (-8%) | -179.5 |
| 1928 | SLN | NL | 16 | 52 | 6 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 13 | 9 | .212 | .280 (-25%) | .342 (+8%) | .395 (-42%) | .737 (-19%) | -102.1 |
| 1928 | NY1 | NL | 75 | 133 | 23 | 26 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 20 | 2 | 34 | 16 | .195 | .280 (-30%) | .342 (+5%) | .395 (-28%) | .737 (-13%) | -102.1 |
| 1929 | NY1 | NL | 91 | 248 | 35 | 76 | 14 | 3 | 4 | 42 | 3 | 28 | 30 | .306 | .289 (+6%) | .353 (+8%) | .415 (+5%) | .769 (+6%) | 371.7 |
| 1930 | NY1 | NL | 94 | 249 | 37 | 75 | 16 | 4 | 4 | 54 | 1 | 31 | 21 | .301 | .293 (+2%) | .354 (+7%) | .429 (+4%) | .784 (+5%) | 316.7 |
| 1931 | NY1 | NL | 85 | 174 | 11 | 39 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 19 | 0 | 21 | 23 | .224 | .276 (-19%) | .338 (-8%) | .388 (-17%) | .726 (-13%) | -346.1 |
| 1932 | NY1 | NL | 50 | 67 | 7 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 11 | 10 | .239 | .275 (-13%) | .335 (+6%) | .391 (-28%) | .726 (-12%) | -86.1 |
| 1933 | SLN | NL | 55 | 163 | 16 | 39 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 20 | 0 | 15 | 25 | .239 | .270 (-11%) | .329 (-8%) | .377 (-14%) | .707 (-11%) | -276.3 |
| 1934 | CIN | NL | 44 | 123 | 10 | 30 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 11 | 19 | .244 | .278 (-12%) | .340 (-10%) | .392 (-3%) | .733 (-6%) | -153.6 |
| 1934 | CHN | NL | 22 | 67 | 3 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 11 | .224 | .278 (-19%) | .340 (-24%) | .392 (-32%) | .733 (-28%) | -153.6 |
| 1935 | SLN | NL | 14 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 24 seasons | 1,492 | 4,101 | 517 | 1,120 | 201 | 58 | 51 | 549 | 35 | 547 | 408 | .273 | — | — | — | — | 3,559 | ||
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
Playoff Batting by Year
Game Log & Splits
View full game log (1493 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 740 | 2032 | 245 | 533 | 29 | 273 | .262 |
| Away | 753 | 2070 | 273 | 589 | 22 | 286 | .285 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1935-09-23 | STL | PIT | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1935-09-14 | STL | NY1 | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1935-09-08 | STL | PHI | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1935-09-08 | STL | PHI | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1935-09-05 | STL | BSN | W | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1935-09-02 | STL | PIT | W | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1935-08-07 | STL | CIN | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1935-07-25 | STL | NY1 | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1935-07-23 | STL | NY1 | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1935-07-15 | STL | BSN | W | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | 1338 | 0 | 4295 | 980 | 130 | 101 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1915 | CHN | C | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1916 | CHN | C | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1917 | CHN | C | 3 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1918 | CHN | C | 45 | 0 | 115 | 36 | 4 | 3 |
| 1919 | CHN | C | 38 | 0 | 119 | 48 | 6 | 5 |
| 1920 | CHN | C | 86 | 0 | 317 | 100 | 19 | 6 |
| 1921 | CHN | C | 90 | 0 | 269 | 87 | 12 | 8 |
| 1922 | CHN | C | 125 | 0 | 446 | 143 | 14 | 22 |
| 1923 | CHN | C | 124 | 0 | 418 | 118 | 13 | 11 |
| 1924 | CHN | C | 57 | 0 | 204 | 40 | 4 | 5 |
| 1925 | CHN | C | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1925 | SLN | C | 92 | 0 | 324 | 67 | 10 | 5 |
| 1926 | SLN | C | 146 | 0 | 466 | 117 | 10 | 12 |
| 1927 | SLN | C | 53 | 0 | 141 | 45 | 4 | 5 |
| 1928 | SLN | C | 14 | 0 | 61 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| 1928 | NY1 | C | 63 | 0 | 138 | 27 | 2 | 1 |
| 1929 | NY1 | C | 84 | 0 | 254 | 22 | 6 | 2 |
| 1930 | NY1 | C | 69 | 0 | 259 | 34 | 8 | 6 |
| 1931 | NY1 | C | 80 | 0 | 223 | 27 | 5 | 1 |
| 1932 | NY1 | C | 41 | 0 | 85 | 9 | 3 | 2 |
| 1933 | SLN | C | 50 | 0 | 211 | 19 | 7 | 1 |
| 1934 | CIN | C | 42 | 0 | 124 | 25 | 1 | 2 |
| 1934 | CHN | C | 22 | 0 | 93 | 10 | 0 | 2 |
| 1935 | SLN | C | 8 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Catcher | 1335 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1926 | Most Valuable Player | |
| 1926 | TSN All-Star | C |
| 1923 | Baseball Magazine All-Star | C |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1926 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 1st | 79.0 | 80 | 0 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Bob O'Farrell (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Compare Bob O'Farrell
Bob O'Farrell: the record in brief
Bob O'Farrell's major league career runs from a debut on September 5, 1915 to a final game on September 23, 1935. O'Farrell played for the Chicago Cubs (1915 to 1934), the St. Louis Cardinals (1925 to 1935), the New York Giants (1928 to 1932), and the Cincinnati Reds (1934). O'Farrell is listed as a catcher at 5 feet, 9 inches and 180 pounds. O'Farrell both batted and threw right-handed, per the bio block. The recorded birth is October 19, 1896, in Waukegan, IL, USA. O'Farrell died on February 20, 1988, in Waukegan, IL, USA. The bio lists the given name Robert Arthur.
Across 1,492 games at the plate, O'Farrell's career line reads 1,120 hits in 4,101 at bats for a .273 average; the totals also include 51 home runs, 549 RBI, and 35 stolen bases. O'Farrell's career OPS of .748 combines a .360 on-base mark with .388 slugging. Against a .276 league average for those years, O'Farrell's .273 average was near the norm. 1923 was O'Farrell's biggest home run year, with 12.
Frequently Asked Questions about Bob O'Farrell
- What years did Bob O'Farrell play?
- Bob O'Farrell played in Major League Baseball from 1915 to 1935.
- Was Bob O'Farrell a pitcher?
- No. Bob O'Farrell was a position player (Catcher).
- How many home runs did Bob O'Farrell hit?
- Bob O'Farrell hit 51 career home runs with 1,120 hits.
- What teams did Bob O'Farrell play for?
- Bob O'Farrell played for 4 teams: the Chicago Cubs (1915–1925, 1934), the St. Louis Cardinals (1925–1928, 1933, 1935), the New York Giants (1928–1932), and the Cincinnati Reds (1934).
- How many MVP awards did Bob O'Farrell win?
- Bob O'Farrell won 1 MVP award, in 1926.
- What awards did Bob O'Farrell win?
- Bob O'Farrell won the MVP award (1926).
- What were Bob O'Farrell's career stats?
- In 1,492 games, Bob O'Farrell had 1,120 hits, 51 home runs, 549 RBI, 517 runs, and 35 stolen bases, with a .273 batting average.
- What position did Bob O'Farrell play?
- Bob O'Farrell played primarily as a catcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Bob O'Farrell and how much did he weigh?
- Bob O'Farrell was listed at 5 feet 9 inches and 180 pounds.
- How many home runs did Bob O'Farrell hit each season?
- Bob O'Farrell's home runs by season: 0 in 1915, 0 in 1917, 1 in 1918, 0 in 1919, 3 in 1920, 4 in 1921, 4 in 1922, 12 in 1923, 3 in 1924, 3 in 1925, 7 in 1926, 0 in 1927, 2 in 1928, 4 in 1929, 4 in 1930, 1 in 1931, 0 in 1932, 2 in 1933, 1 in 1934, and 0 in 1935. His most in one season was 12, in 1923.
- What was Bob O'Farrell's career batting average?
- Bob O'Farrell batted .273 over his career, with 1,120 hits in 4,101 at bats.
- How many RBI did Bob O'Farrell have?
- Bob O'Farrell drove in 549 runs in his career.
- Is Bob O'Farrell in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Bob O'Farrell has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.