What years did Gaylord Perry play?

Gaylord Perry played in Major League Baseball from 1962 to 1983.

Was Gaylord Perry a pitcher?

Yes. Gaylord Perry pitched in the major leagues, recording 314 wins and 3534 strikeouts.

How many home runs did Gaylord Perry hit?

Gaylord Perry hit 6 career home runs with 141 hits.

What teams did Gaylord Perry play for?

Gaylord Perry played for 8 teams: the San Francisco Giants (1962–1971), the Cleveland Indians (1972–1975), the Texas Rangers (1975–1977, 1980), the San Diego Padres (1978–1979), the New York Yankees (1980), the Atlanta Braves (1981), the Seattle Mariners (1982–1983), and the Kansas City Royals (1983).

How many Cy Young Awards did Gaylord Perry win?

Gaylord Perry won 2 Cy Young Awards, in 1972 and 1978.

What awards did Gaylord Perry win?

Gaylord Perry won 2 Cy Young Awards (1972 and 1978). He was selected to 5 All-Star Games.

What were Gaylord Perry's career stats?

In 777 games, Gaylord Perry went 314-265 with a 3.11 ERA, 3,534 strikeouts, 5,350.1 innings pitched, and 11 saves. At the plate he had 141 hits and 6 home runs.

What position did Gaylord Perry play?

Gaylord Perry played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.

How tall was Gaylord Perry and how much did he weigh?

Gaylord Perry was listed at 6 feet 4 inches and 205 pounds.

What was Gaylord Perry's career ERA?

Gaylord Perry finished with a 3.11 career ERA, going 314-265 with 3,534 strikeouts.

How many strikeouts did Gaylord Perry have?

Gaylord Perry recorded 3,534 career strikeouts.

How many All-Star Games did Gaylord Perry make?

Gaylord Perry was selected to 5 All-Star Games.

Gaylord Perry

Pitcher · Career Stats, Hall of Fame Bio & Records (1962-1983)

Gaylord Perry was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1962 to 1983 for 8 teams, including the San Francisco Giants, a span of 22 seasons. Across 777 career appearances, he went 314-265 with a 3.11 ERA and 3,534 strikeouts. He also batted .131 with 6 home runs. Gaylord Perry was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991 and was a 5-time All-Star and a 2-time Cy Young. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 78311.9.

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 October 25, 2026

⭐ Hall of Fame 1991

W–L 314–265

ERA 3.11

WHIP 1.18

SO 3,534

Pitcher PIV 78311.9

Position: Pitcher
Bats / Throws: R / R
Height / Weight: 6'4" / 205 lb
Born: 9/15/1938 in Williamston, NC, USA
Died: 12/1/2022 in Gaffney, SC, USA
MLB Debut: 1962-04-14
Last Game: 1983-09-21
Hall of Fame: Inducted 1991 (BBWAA)
Awards: 5× All-Star · 2× Cy Young

Full name: Gaylord Jackson Perry

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Career Pitching Statistics

Gaylord Perry — Career Pitching Statistics
W	L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	SO	ERA	Pitcher PIV
314	265	777	690	303	53	11	5350.1	4,938	1,846	399	1,379	3,534	3.11	78311.9

Career ERA 3.11 vs. league average 3.65 across their career seasons — 15.0% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Gaylord Perry Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year	Team	Lg	W	L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA	Lg ERA	Pitcher PIV
1962	SFN	NL	3	1	13	7	1	0	0	43.0	54	25	14	20	5.23	3.96 (-32%)	417.1
1963	SFN	NL	1	6	31	4	0	0	2	76.0	84	34	29	52	4.03	3.46 (-16%)	-1113.2
1964	SFN	NL	12	11	44	19	5	2	5	206.1	179	63	43	155	2.75	3.58 (+23%)	4151.5
1965	SFN	NL	8	12	47	26	6	0	1	195.2	194	91	70	170	4.19	3.50 (-20%)	808.0
1966	SFN	NL	21	8	36	35	13	3	0	255.2	242	85	40	201	2.99	3.52 (+15%)	8393.7
1967	SFN	NL	15	17	39	37	18	3	1	293.0	231	85	84	230	2.61	3.30 (+21%)	4240.5
1968	SFN	NL	16	15	39	38	19	3	1	291.0	240	79	59	173	2.44	2.98 (+18%)	5318.1
1969	SFN	NL	19	14	40	39	26	3	0	325.1	290	90	91	233	2.49	3.61 (+31%)	5874.8
1970	SFN	NL	23	13	41	41	23	5	0	328.2	292	117	84	214	3.20	3.89 (+18%)	5631.7
1971	SFN	NL	16	12	37	37	14	2	0	280.0	255	86	67	158	2.76	3.47 (+20%)	3302.9
1972	CLE	AL	24	16	41	40	29	5	1	342.2	253	73	82	234	1.92	3.26 (+41%)	6995.8
1973	CLE	AL	19	19	41	41	29	7	0	344.0	315	129	115	238	3.38	3.75 (+10%)	2142.6
1974	CLE	AL	21	13	37	37	28	4	0	322.1	230	90	99	216	2.51	3.63 (+31%)	3469.8
1975	CLE	AL	6	9	15	15	10	1	0	121.2	120	48	34	85	3.55	3.71 (+4%)	-157.4
1975	TEX	AL	12	8	22	22	15	4	0	184.0	157	62	36	148	3.03	3.71 (+18%)	5961.0
1976	TEX	AL	15	14	32	32	21	2	0	250.1	232	90	52	143	3.24	3.51 (+8%)	4434.5
1977	TEX	AL	15	12	34	34	13	4	0	238.0	239	89	56	177	3.37	4.00 (+16%)	5192.2
1978	SDN	NL	21	6	37	37	5	2	0	260.2	241	79	66	154	2.73	3.69 (+26%)	7225.0
1979	SDN	NL	12	11	32	32	10	0	0	232.2	225	79	67	140	3.06	4.00 (+24%)	5408.4
1980	TEX	AL	6	9	24	24	6	2	0	155.0	159	59	46	107	3.43	3.84 (+11%)	1750.7
1980	NYA	AL	4	4	10	8	0	0	0	50.2	65	25	18	28	4.44	3.84 (-16%)	712.3
1981	ATL	NL	8	9	23	23	3	0	0	150.2	182	66	24	60	3.94	3.58 (-10%)	1730.7
1982	SEA	AL	10	12	32	32	6	0	0	216.2	245	106	54	116	4.40	3.86 (-14%)	-1115.6
1983	SEA	AL	3	10	16	16	2	0	0	102.0	116	56	23	42	4.94	3.87 (-28%)	-2850.8
1983	KCA	AL	4	4	14	14	1	1	0	84.1	98	40	26	40	4.27	3.87 (-10%)	387.3
Career · 25 seasons			314	265	777	690	303	53	11	5,350.1	4,938	1,846	1,379	3,534	3.11	—	78,312

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

Gaylord Perry — Career Batting Statistics
G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
787	1,076	48	141	17	0	6	47	0	22	369	.131	.153	.164	.316	-8,631

Career AVG .131 vs. league average .254 across their career seasons — 48.5% below league average.

Career OBP .153 vs. league average .320 across their career seasons — 52.3% below league average.

Career SLG .164 vs. league average .376 across their career seasons — 56.5% below league average.

Career OPS .316 vs. league average .696 across their career seasons — 54.6% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Gaylord Perry Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year	Team	Lg	G	AB	R	H	2B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG	Lg AVG	Lg OBP	Lg SLG	Lg OPS	PIV
1962	SFN	NL	13	13	0	3	0	0	1	0	4	.231	—	—	—	—	0.0
1963	SFN	NL	32	18	1	4	1	0	0	0	6	.222	—	—	—	—	0.0
1964	SFN	NL	46	56	0	3	1	0	3	1	23	.054	.250 (-79%)	.312 (-73%)	.377 (-81%)	.690 (-77%)	-674.2
1965	SFN	NL	49	64	4	10	0	0	2	2	19	.156	.245 (-36%)	.310 (-38%)	.371 (-58%)	.682 (-49%)	-461.5
1966	SFN	NL	36	86	4	16	1	0	2	1	25	.186	.248 (-25%)	.309 (-37%)	.376 (-47%)	.685 (-43%)	-553.5
1967	SFN	NL	42	91	2	13	1	0	2	0	28	.143	.242 (-41%)	.306 (-53%)	.357 (-57%)	.663 (-55%)	-743.1
1968	SFN	NL	39	97	3	11	0	0	3	2	35	.113	.236 (-52%)	.298 (-56%)	.340 (-67%)	.638 (-62%)	-847.8
1969	SFN	NL	40	117	5	14	1	1	2	4	47	.120	.248 (-52%)	.320 (-51%)	.369 (-58%)	.689 (-55%)	-990.4
1970	SFN	NL	41	120	7	14	3	1	7	0	47	.117	.253 (-54%)	.325 (-62%)	.385 (-57%)	.711 (-59%)	-1143.3
1971	SFN	NL	38	98	5	10	1	1	4	3	32	.102	.249 (-59%)	.316 (-59%)	.365 (-61%)	.682 (-60%)	-899.6
1972	CLE	AL	41	110	5	17	2	1	9	5	43	.155	.243 (-37%)	.310 (-37%)	.353 (-43%)	.664 (-40%)	-667.8
1973	CLE	AL	41	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1974	CLE	AL	37	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1975	CLE	AL	15	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1975	TEX	AL	22	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1976	TEX	AL	32	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1977	TEX	AL	34	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1978	SDN	NL	37	87	5	8	2	0	3	2	31	.092	.257 (-64%)	.323 (-65%)	.378 (-70%)	.702 (-68%)	-916.4
1979	SDN	NL	32	71	2	6	2	1	2	2	19	.085	.265 (-68%)	.329 (-67%)	.397 (-61%)	.727 (-64%)	-732.9
1980	TEX	AL	24	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1980	NYA	AL	10	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1981	ATL	NL	24	48	5	12	2	1	7	0	10	.250	—	—	—	—	0.0
1982	SEA	AL	32	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1983	SEA	AL	16	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1983	KCA	AL	14	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
Career · 25 seasons			787	1,076	48	141	17	6	47	22	369	.131	—	—	—	—	-8,631

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

Gaylord Perry — Playoff Career Batting
G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
2	4	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.250

Playoff Batting by Year

Gaylord Perry — Playoff Batting by Year
Year	Round	Team	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
1971	NLCS	SFN	2	4	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.250

Playoff Career Pitching

Gaylord Perry — Playoff Career Pitching
W	L	G	GS	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
1	1	2	2	0	14.2	19	10	3	11	6.14

Playoff Pitching by Year

Gaylord Perry — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year	Round	Team	W	L	G	GS	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
1971	NLCS	SFN	1	1	2	2	0	14.2	19	10	3	11	6.14

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (1562 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Gaylord Perry — Batting — Home / Away
Split	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	AVG
Home	395	518	25	76	4	27	.147
Away	391	558	23	65	2	20	.116

Pitching — Home / Away

Gaylord Perry — Pitching — Home / Away
Split	G	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
Home	387	2745.1	2472	912	662	1850	2.99
Away	389	2604.1	2466	934	716	1684	3.23

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Gaylord Perry — Last 10 Games — Pitching
Date	Tm	Opp	Dec	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR
1983-09-21	KCR	LAA	L	5.0	10	3	3	0	4	0
1983-09-16	KCR	OAK	—	6.0	8	5	2	4	5	0
1983-09-09	KCR	MIN	—	6.0	7	6	6	2	2	2
1983-09-03	KCR	TEX	W	9.0	6	0	0	1	4	0
1983-08-29	KCR	BAL	L	1.2	8	4	4	0	1	1
1983-08-24	KCR	CHW	—	8.0	8	3	3	1	3	1
1983-08-19	KCR	BAL	—	8.0	3	2	2	1	3	0
1983-08-13	KCR	BOS	W	7.0	10	4	2	2	6	0
1983-08-07	KCR	BOS	W	7.0	2	0	0	3	2	0
1983-08-02	KCR	MIL	L	7.0	8	5	4	1	3	1

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Gaylord Perry — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
P	777	690	349	877	38	58

Season-by-Season Fielding

Gaylord Perry — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1962	SFN	P	13	7	3	5	1	1
1963	SFN	P	31	4	4	12	0	0
1964	SFN	P	44	19	12	26	0	3
1965	SFN	P	47	26	18	40	1	4
1966	SFN	P	36	35	16	40	1	2
1967	SFN	P	39	37	20	64	3	2
1968	SFN	P	39	38	31	62	2	3
1969	SFN	P	40	39	18	67	0	2
1970	SFN	P	41	41	30	67	4	5
1971	SFN	P	37	37	21	41	5	5
1972	CLE	P	41	40	18	61	2	7
1973	CLE	P	41	41	19	55	0	1
1974	CLE	P	37	37	26	45	3	4
1975	CLE	P	15	15	10	21	1	2
1975	TEX	P	22	22	9	22	0	1
1976	TEX	P	32	32	11	24	2	1
1977	TEX	P	34	34	14	28	1	2
1978	SDN	P	37	37	13	40	2	6
1979	SDN	P	32	32	11	41	2	2
1980	TEX	P	24	24	11	25	1	2
1980	NYA	P	10	8	2	7	0	1
1981	ATL	P	23	23	11	19	3	0
1982	SEA	P	32	32	11	35	3	1
1983	SEA	P	16	16	6	16	1	0
1983	KCA	P	14	14	4	14	0	1

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Gaylord Perry Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position	Games
Pitcher	777

Awards & Honors

Gaylord Perry — Awards & Honors
Year	Award	Notes
1982	Player of the Week	Week of 1982-05-07
1979	Player of the Week	Week of 1979-07-27
1978	Cy Young Award
1978	Pitcher of the Month	September
1978	Player of the Week	Week of 1978-09-23
1978	TSN All-Star	RHP
1974	Player of the Month	June
1972	Cy Young Award
1972	TSN All-Star	RHP

Award Voting History

Gaylord Perry — Award Voting History
Year	Award	League	Finish	Points Won	Points Max	Votes First
1978	Cy Young Award	NL	1st	116.0	120	22
1978	Most Valuable Player	NL	8th	45.0	336	0
1974	Cy Young Award	AL	4th	8.0	120	1
1974	Most Valuable Player	AL	17th	18.0	336	0
1973	Cy Young Award	AL	7th	1.0	120	0
1973	Most Valuable Player	AL	26th	4.0	336	0
1972	Cy Young Award	AL	1st	64.0	120	9
1972	Most Valuable Player	AL	6th	88.0	336	0
1970	Cy Young Award	NL	2nd	51.0	120	1
1970	Most Valuable Player	NL	14th	24.0	336	0
1966	Most Valuable Player	NL	18th	8.0	280	0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Gaylord Perry (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

Compare Gaylord Perry

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See Gaylord Perry in Another Era

Translate Gaylord Perry's peak season across eras →

Gaylord Perry: the record in brief

Between the debut on April 14, 1962 and the final game on September 21, 1983, Gaylord Perry built the record summarized on this page. By club, Perry's seasons break down as the San Francisco Giants (1962 to 1971), the Cleveland Indians (1972 through 1975), the Texas Rangers (1975 to 1980), the San Diego Padres (1978 to 1979), the New York Yankees (1980), the Atlanta Braves (1981), the Seattle Mariners (1982 to 1983), and the Kansas City Royals (1983). Born on September 15, 1938, in Williamston, NC, USA, Perry is listed as a pitcher and batted and threw right-handed. The bio gives 6 feet, 4 inches and 205 pounds. Perry died on December 1, 2022, in Gaffney, SC, USA. The bio lists the given name Gaylord Jackson.

Perry went 314-265 with a 3.11 ERA in 777 games, 690 of them starts. The same table counts 3,534 strikeouts, 303 complete games, 53 shutouts, and 11 saves.

Frequently Asked Questions about Gaylord Perry

What years did Gaylord Perry play?: Gaylord Perry played in Major League Baseball from 1962 to 1983.
Was Gaylord Perry a pitcher?: Yes. Gaylord Perry pitched in the major leagues, recording 314 wins and 3534 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Gaylord Perry hit?: Gaylord Perry hit 6 career home runs with 141 hits.
Is Gaylord Perry in the Hall of Fame?: Yes. Gaylord Perry was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991.
What teams did Gaylord Perry play for?: Gaylord Perry played for 8 teams: the San Francisco Giants (1962–1971), the Cleveland Indians (1972–1975), the Texas Rangers (1975–1977, 1980), the San Diego Padres (1978–1979), the New York Yankees (1980), the Atlanta Braves (1981), the Seattle Mariners (1982–1983), and the Kansas City Royals (1983).
How many Cy Young Awards did Gaylord Perry win?: Gaylord Perry won 2 Cy Young Awards, in 1972 and 1978.
What awards did Gaylord Perry win?: Gaylord Perry won 2 Cy Young Awards (1972 and 1978). He was selected to 5 All-Star Games.
What were Gaylord Perry's career stats?: In 777 games, Gaylord Perry went 314-265 with a 3.11 ERA, 3,534 strikeouts, 5,350.1 innings pitched, and 11 saves. At the plate he had 141 hits and 6 home runs.
What position did Gaylord Perry play?: Gaylord Perry played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Gaylord Perry and how much did he weigh?: Gaylord Perry was listed at 6 feet 4 inches and 205 pounds.
What was Gaylord Perry's career ERA?: Gaylord Perry finished with a 3.11 career ERA, going 314-265 with 3,534 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Gaylord Perry have?: Gaylord Perry recorded 3,534 career strikeouts.
How many All-Star Games did Gaylord Perry make?: Gaylord Perry was selected to 5 All-Star Games.