Jim Palmer
⭐ Hall of Fame 1990
Born: 10/15/1945 in New York, NY, USA
MLB Debut: 1965-04-17 | Final Game: 1984-05-12
Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 6'3" | Weight: 190 lbs
Full name: James Alvin Palmer
Biography
Jim Palmer, born in 1945, was a dominant pitcher in Major League Baseball, whose career spanned from 1965 to 1984. He played his entire career with the Baltimore Orioles, establishing himself as one of the premier pitchers of his era. Palmer finished with an impressive record of 268 wins and 152 losses, boasting a career earned run average (ERA) of 2.86. Over his 19 seasons, he struck out 2,212 batters and recorded 4 saves, showcasing not only his ability to control games as a starter but also his versatility in critical situations.
Palmer's excellence on the mound earned him notable recognition, including three Cy Young Awards and six selections to the All-Star Game. He was known for his powerful pitching style and durability, which were hallmarks of the game during the late 1960s through the early 1980s, a period characterized by strong pitching and strategic play. His contributions to the Orioles and the sport of baseball were solidified when he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1990, cementing his legacy as one of the greatest pitchers in the history of the game.
Career Pitching Statistics
| W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | HR | BB | SO | ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 268 | 152 | 558 | 521 | 211 | 53 | 4 | 3948.0 | 3349 | 1253 | 303 | 1311 | 2212 | 2.86 | 0 |
Season-by-Season Pitching
| Year | Team | Lg | W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1965 | BAL | AL | 5 | 4 | 27 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 92.0 | 75 | 38 | 56 | 75 | 3.72 | -297.8 |
| 1966 | BAL | AL | 15 | 10 | 30 | 30 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 208.3 | 176 | 80 | 91 | 147 | 3.46 | -1323.2 |
| 1967 | BAL | AL | 3 | 1 | 9 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 49.0 | 34 | 16 | 20 | 23 | 2.94 | -1377.3 |
| 1969 | BAL | AL | 16 | 4 | 26 | 23 | 11 | 6 | 0 | 181.0 | 131 | 47 | 64 | 123 | 2.34 | 2797.2 |
| 1970 | BAL | AL | 20 | 10 | 39 | 39 | 17 | 5 | 0 | 305.0 | 263 | 92 | 100 | 199 | 2.71 | 5379.6 |
| 1971 | BAL | AL | 20 | 9 | 37 | 37 | 20 | 3 | 0 | 282.0 | 231 | 84 | 106 | 184 | 2.68 | 2062.0 |
| 1972 | BAL | AL | 21 | 10 | 36 | 36 | 18 | 3 | 0 | 274.3 | 219 | 63 | 70 | 184 | 2.07 | 3150.7 |
| 1973 | BAL | AL | 22 | 9 | 38 | 37 | 19 | 6 | 1 | 296.3 | 225 | 79 | 113 | 158 | 2.40 | 2911.8 |
| 1974 | BAL | AL | 7 | 12 | 26 | 26 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 178.7 | 176 | 65 | 69 | 84 | 3.27 | -429.2 |
| 1975 | BAL | AL | 23 | 11 | 39 | 38 | 25 | 10 | 1 | 323.0 | 253 | 75 | 80 | 193 | 2.09 | 6476.7 |
| 1976 | BAL | AL | 22 | 13 | 40 | 40 | 23 | 6 | 0 | 315.0 | 255 | 88 | 84 | 159 | 2.51 | 1589.2 |
| 1977 | BAL | AL | 20 | 11 | 39 | 39 | 22 | 3 | 0 | 319.0 | 263 | 103 | 99 | 193 | 2.91 | 4531.4 |
| 1978 | BAL | AL | 21 | 12 | 38 | 38 | 19 | 6 | 0 | 296.0 | 246 | 81 | 97 | 138 | 2.46 | 1624.0 |
| 1979 | BAL | AL | 10 | 6 | 23 | 22 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 155.7 | 144 | 57 | 43 | 67 | 3.30 | 1204.2 |
| 1980 | BAL | AL | 16 | 10 | 34 | 33 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 224.0 | 238 | 99 | 74 | 109 | 3.98 | -2797.3 |
| 1981 | BAL | AL | 7 | 8 | 22 | 22 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 127.3 | 117 | 53 | 46 | 35 | 3.75 | -3355.6 |
| 1982 | BAL | AL | 15 | 5 | 36 | 32 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 227.0 | 195 | 79 | 63 | 103 | 3.13 | -543.7 |
| 1983 | BAL | AL | 5 | 4 | 14 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 76.7 | 86 | 36 | 19 | 34 | 4.23 | -1176.7 |
| 1984 | BAL | AL | 0 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17.7 | 22 | 18 | 17 | 4 | 9.17 | -1269.0 |
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 576 | 489 | 52 | 85 | 9 | 1 | 3 | 41 | 1 | 16 | 207 | 0.174 | 0.200 | 0.215 | 0.414 | -3007.1 |
Season-by-Season Batting
| Year | Team | Lg | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1965 | BAL | AL | 29 | 26 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 0.192 | 0.0 |
| 1966 | BAL | AL | 36 | 73 | 11 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 33 | 0.096 | -698.5 |
| 1967 | BAL | AL | 9 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 0.077 | 0.0 |
| 1969 | BAL | AL | 27 | 64 | 5 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 30 | 0.203 | -321.6 |
| 1970 | BAL | AL | 44 | 113 | 13 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 48 | 0.150 | -997.9 |
| 1971 | BAL | AL | 38 | 102 | 7 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 3 | 41 | 0.196 | -620.7 |
| 1972 | BAL | AL | 36 | 98 | 12 | 22 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 36 | 0.224 | -368.4 |
| 1973 | BAL | AL | 38 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1974 | BAL | AL | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1975 | BAL | AL | 39 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1976 | BAL | AL | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1977 | BAL | AL | 39 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1978 | BAL | AL | 38 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1979 | BAL | AL | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1980 | BAL | AL | 37 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1981 | BAL | AL | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1982 | BAL | AL | 36 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1983 | BAL | AL | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1984 | BAL | AL | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
Postseason Statistics
Playoff Career Batting
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | 35 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 14 | 0.086 |
Playoff Batting by Year
| Year | Round | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | ALCS | BAL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| 1983 | WS | BAL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| 1979 | ALCS | BAL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| 1979 | WS | BAL | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0.000 |
| 1974 | ALCS | BAL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| 1973 | ALCS | BAL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| 1971 | ALCS | BAL | 2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.200 |
| 1971 | WS | BAL | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0.000 |
| 1970 | ALCS | BAL | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.250 |
| 1970 | WS | BAL | 2 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0.143 |
| 1969 | ALCS | BAL | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0.000 |
| 1969 | WS | BAL | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.000 |
| 1966 | WS | BAL | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.000 |
Playoff Career Pitching
| W | L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | 3 | 17 | 15 | 0 | 124.3 | 101 | 36 | 50 | 90 | 2.61 |
Playoff Pitching by Year
| Year | Round | Team | W | L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | WS | BAL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0.00 |
| 1979 | ALCS | BAL | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9.0 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3.00 |
| 1979 | WS | BAL | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 15.0 | 18 | 6 | 5 | 8 | 3.60 |
| 1974 | ALCS | BAL | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1.00 |
| 1973 | ALCS | BAL | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 14.7 | 11 | 3 | 8 | 15 | 1.84 |
| 1971 | ALCS | BAL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9.0 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 8 | 3.00 |
| 1971 | WS | BAL | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 17.0 | 15 | 5 | 9 | 15 | 2.65 |
| 1970 | ALCS | BAL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9.0 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 12 | 1.00 |
| 1970 | WS | BAL | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 15.7 | 11 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 4.60 |
| 1969 | ALCS | BAL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9.0 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2.00 |
| 1969 | WS | BAL | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6.0 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 6.00 |
| 1966 | WS | BAL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9.0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 0.00 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | 558 | 521 | 292 | 577 | 34 | 53 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1965 | BAL | P | 27 | 6 | 6 | 17 | 3 | 1 |
| 1966 | BAL | P | 30 | 30 | 14 | 26 | 1 | 2 |
| 1967 | BAL | P | 9 | 9 | 2 | 9 | 0 | 1 |
| 1969 | BAL | P | 26 | 23 | 7 | 11 | 1 | 1 |
| 1970 | BAL | P | 39 | 39 | 21 | 42 | 2 | 4 |
| 1971 | BAL | P | 37 | 37 | 27 | 41 | 5 | 3 |
| 1972 | BAL | P | 36 | 36 | 14 | 37 | 3 | 4 |
| 1973 | BAL | P | 38 | 37 | 24 | 35 | 2 | 3 |
| 1974 | BAL | P | 26 | 26 | 15 | 33 | 1 | 2 |
| 1975 | BAL | P | 39 | 38 | 30 | 52 | 6 | 7 |
| 1976 | BAL | P | 40 | 40 | 27 | 49 | 1 | 2 |
| 1977 | BAL | P | 39 | 39 | 20 | 48 | 2 | 5 |
| 1978 | BAL | P | 38 | 38 | 27 | 43 | 2 | 5 |
| 1979 | BAL | P | 23 | 22 | 10 | 23 | 0 | 1 |
| 1980 | BAL | P | 34 | 33 | 14 | 37 | 2 | 6 |
| 1981 | BAL | P | 22 | 22 | 12 | 26 | 0 | 2 |
| 1982 | BAL | P | 36 | 32 | 16 | 37 | 2 | 3 |
| 1983 | BAL | P | 14 | 11 | 5 | 8 | 1 | 0 |
| 1984 | BAL | P | 5 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
Career Games by Position
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 558 |
| Designated Hitter | 3 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Pitcher of the Month | August |
| 1982 | Player of the Week | Week of 1982-09-03 |
| 1979 | Gold Glove | P |
| 1978 | Gold Glove | P |
| 1978 | Player of the Week | Week of 1978-05-27 |
| 1978 | TSN All-Star | RHP |
| 1977 | Gold Glove | P |
| 1977 | Player of the Week | Week of 1977-04-16 |
| 1976 | Cy Young Award | |
| 1976 | Gold Glove | P |
| 1976 | Player of the Week | Week of 1976-09-10 |
| 1976 | TSN All-Star | RHP |
| 1976 | TSN Pitcher of the Year | |
| 1975 | Cy Young Award | |
| 1975 | Player of the Month | August |
| 1975 | Player of the Week | Week of 1975-08-15 |
| 1975 | TSN All-Star | RHP |
| 1975 | TSN Pitcher of the Year | |
| 1973 | Cy Young Award | |
| 1973 | TSN All-Star | RHP |
| 1973 | TSN Pitcher of the Year | |
| 1971 | TSN All-Star | RHP |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Cy Young Award | AL | 2nd | 59.0 | 140 | 4 |
| 1982 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 26th | 5.0 | 392 | 0 |
| 1978 | Cy Young Award | AL | 3rd | 14.0 | 140 | 0 |
| 1977 | Cy Young Award | AL | 2nd | 48.0 | 140 | 6 |
| 1977 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 19th | 9.0 | 392 | 0 |
| 1976 | Cy Young Award | AL | 1st | 108.0 | 120 | 19 |
| 1976 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 10th | 47.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1975 | Cy Young Award | AL | 1st | 98.0 | 120 | 15 |
| 1975 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 6th | 82.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1973 | Cy Young Award | AL | 1st | 88.0 | 120 | 14 |
| 1973 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 2nd | 172.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1972 | Cy Young Award | AL | 5th | 20.0 | 120 | 2 |
| 1972 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 13th | 21.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1971 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 21th | 5.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1970 | Cy Young Award | AL | 5th | 11.0 | 120 | 1 |
| 1970 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 25th | 4.0 | 336 | 0 |