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

⭐ 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

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 5350.3 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.

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.

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 14.7 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 14.7 19 10 3 11 6.14

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

Batting — Home / Away

Gaylord Perry — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home3955182576427.147
Away3915582365220.116

Pitching — Home / Away

Gaylord Perry — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home3872745.1247291266218502.99
Away3892604.1246693471616843.23

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Gaylord Perry — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1983-09-21 KCRLAA L 5.01033040
1983-09-16 KCROAK 6.0852450
1983-09-09 KCRMIN 6.0766222
1983-09-03 KCRTEX W 9.0600140
1983-08-29 KCRBAL L 1.2844011
1983-08-24 KCRCHW 8.0833131
1983-08-19 KCRBAL 8.0322130
1983-08-13 KCRBOS W 7.01042260
1983-08-07 KCRBOS W 7.0200320
1983-08-02 KCRMIL L 7.0854131

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

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.

  1. 98
    Don Sutton HOF
    324-256, 3.26 ERA
  2. 77
    Bert Blyleven HOF
    287-250, 3.31 ERA
  3. 58
    Tom Seaver HOF
    311-205, 2.86 ERA
  4. 58
    Greg Maddux HOF
    355-227, 3.16 ERA
  5. 54
    Fergie Jenkins HOF
    284-226, 3.34 ERA
  6. 47
    Steve Carlton HOF
    329-244, 3.22 ERA

Compare Gaylord Perry

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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 was Gaylord Perry's career batting average?
Gaylord Perry batted .131 over his career, with 141 hits in 1,076 at bats.
How many RBI did Gaylord Perry have?
Gaylord Perry drove in 47 runs in his career.