Vern Olsen
Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1939-1946)
Vern Olsen was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1939 to 1946 for the Chicago Cubs, a span of 8 seasons. Across 112 career appearances, he went 30-26 with a 3.40 ERA and 201 strikeouts. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 4276.3.
- 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
- Position
- Pitcher
- Bats / Throws
- R / L
- Height / Weight
- 6'0" / 175 lb
- Died
- 7/13/1989 in Maywood, IL, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1939-09-08
- Last Game
- 1946-09-13
Full name: Vern Jarl Olsen
Season-by-Season Pitching
Click a stat to plot it across every season.
| Year | Team | Lg | W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA | Lg ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1939 | CHN | NL | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7.2 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0.00 | — | 0.0 |
| 1940 | CHN | NL | 13 | 9 | 34 | 20 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 172.2 | 172 | 57 | 62 | 71 | 2.97 | 4.21 (+29%) | 2435.5 |
| 1941 | CHN | NL | 10 | 8 | 37 | 23 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 185.2 | 202 | 65 | 59 | 73 | 3.15 | 3.94 (+20%) | 2212.3 |
| 1942 | CHN | NL | 6 | 9 | 32 | 17 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 140.1 | 161 | 70 | 55 | 46 | 4.49 | 3.57 (-26%) | -371.5 |
| 1946 | CHN | NL | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9.2 | 10 | 3 | 9 | 8 | 2.79 | 3.59 (+22%) | 0.0 |
| Career · 5 seasons | 30 | 26 | 112 | 60 | 23 | 7 | 2 | 516.0 | 547 | 195 | 192 | 201 | 3.40 | — | 4,276 | ||
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
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 113 | 169 | 16 | 39 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 2 | 11 | 22 | .231 | .278 | .284 | .562 | -551 |
Career AVG .231 vs. league average .263 across their career seasons — 12.2% below league average.
Career OBP .278 vs. league average .332 across their career seasons — 16.4% below league average.
Career SLG .284 vs. league average .372 across their career seasons — 23.7% below league average.
Career OPS .562 vs. league average .705 across their career seasons — 20.3% below 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1939 | CHN | NL | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1940 | CHN | NL | 35 | 57 | 4 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 9 | .263 | .267 (-2%) | .335 (-14%) | .387 (-19%) | .722 (-16%) | -156.1 |
| 1941 | CHN | NL | 37 | 63 | 7 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | .238 | .262 (-9%) | .332 (-21%) | .373 (-15%) | .705 (-18%) | -189.0 |
| 1942 | CHN | NL | 32 | 48 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 2 | .188 | — | — | — | — | -206.4 |
| 1946 | CHN | NL | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 5 seasons | 113 | 169 | 16 | 39 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 2 | 11 | 22 | .231 | — | — | — | — | -551 | ||
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 (225 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 59 | 92 | 9 | 21 | 0 | 7 | .228 |
| Away | 54 | 77 | 7 | 18 | 1 | 8 | .234 |
Pitching — Home / Away
| Split | G | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 59 | 305.1 | 304 | 110 | 129 | 137 | 3.24 |
| Away | 53 | 210.2 | 242 | 86 | 64 | 65 | 3.67 |
Last 10 Games — Pitching
| Date | Tm | Opp | Dec | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1946-09-13 | CHC | PHI | — | 3.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 1946-09-10 | CHC | BSN | — | 1.2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1946-08-15 | CHC | CIN | — | 1.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 1946-07-18 | CHC | BSN | — | 3.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| 1946-06-23 | CHC | NY1 | — | 1.0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 1942-09-27 | CHC | STL | — | 0.2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1942-09-14 | CHC | BSN | — | 0.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1942-09-13 | CHC | BSN | SV | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1942-09-06 | CHC | PIT | — | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1942-08-31 | CHC | NY1 | L | 1.1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
Season-by-Season Fielding
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 112 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Vern Olsen (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Vern Olsen: the record in brief
The profile opens with Vern Olsen's first major league game on September 8, 1939; the last one listed came on September 13, 1946. Olsen spent the whole of the career shown here with one club, the Chicago Cubs. The bio lists Olsen as a pitcher who batted right-handed and threw left-handed. Height and weight on file: 175 pounds on a 6-foot-0 frame. The birth record reads March 16, 1918, in Hillsboro, OR, USA. Olsen died on July 13, 1989, in Maywood, IL, USA. Vern Olsen was the playing name; the full given name is Vern Jarl.
Across 112 games (60 starts), Olsen recorded 30 wins against 26 losses with a 3.40 ERA. The totals include 201 strikeouts, 23 complete games, and 7 shutouts. Against a 3.92 league ERA for the same years, Olsen was 13.1% better. No season topped the 13 wins of 1940. 1941 produced Olsen's most strikeouts, 73. Among the heaviest workloads, the lowest ERA was 2.97 in 1940, when the league's was 4.21.
Frequently Asked Questions about Vern Olsen
- What years did Vern Olsen play?
- Vern Olsen played in Major League Baseball from 1939 to 1946.
- Was Vern Olsen a pitcher?
- Yes. Vern Olsen pitched in the major leagues, recording 30 wins and 201 strikeouts.
- How many home runs did Vern Olsen hit?
- Vern Olsen hit 1 career home run with 39 hits.
- What teams did Vern Olsen play for?
- Vern Olsen played for one team, the Chicago Cubs (1939–1942, 1946).
- What were Vern Olsen's career stats?
- In 112 games, Vern Olsen went 30-26 with a 3.40 ERA, 201 strikeouts, 516.0 innings pitched, and 2 saves.
- What position did Vern Olsen play?
- Vern Olsen played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Vern Olsen and how much did he weigh?
- Vern Olsen was listed at 6 feet and 175 pounds.
- What was Vern Olsen's career ERA?
- Vern Olsen finished with a 3.40 career ERA, going 30-26 with 201 strikeouts.
- How many strikeouts did Vern Olsen have?
- Vern Olsen recorded 201 career strikeouts.
- Is Vern Olsen in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Vern Olsen has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.