John Peters
Shortstop · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1874-1884)
John Peters was a shortstop who played in Major League Baseball from 1874 to 1884 for 6 teams, including the Chicago White Stockings, a span of 11 seasons. In 615 career games, he hit .278 with 748 hits, 3 home runs, and 249 RBI. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 1,101.
- 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
- Shortstop
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 5'7" / 180 lb
- Died
- 1/4/1924 in St. Louis, MO, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1874-05-23
- Last Game
- 1884-06-11
Full name: John Phillip Peters
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 615 | 2,693 | 373 | 748 | 92 | 12 | 3 | 249 | 14 | 25 | 77 | .278 | .284 | .324 | .609 | 1,101 |
Career AVG .278 vs. league average .253 across their career seasons — +9.8% above league average.
Career OBP .284 vs. league average .278 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career SLG .324 vs. league average .329 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OPS .609 vs. league average .608 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1874 | CH2 | 55 | 239 | 39 | 69 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 25 | 2 | 2 | 11 | .289 | .273 (+6%) | .282 (+4%) | .333 (+3%) | .615 (+4%) | 139.1 | |
| 1875 | CH2 | 69 | 297 | 40 | 85 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 34 | 12 | 0 | 3 | .286 | .253 (+13%) | .260 (+10%) | .309 (+14%) | .570 (+12%) | 483.3 | |
| 1876 | CHN | NL | 66 | 316 | 70 | 111 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 47 | 0 | 3 | 2 | .351 | .265 (+32%) | .277 (+29%) | .320 (+30%) | .598 (+30%) | 1384.7 |
| 1877 | CHN | NL | 60 | 265 | 45 | 84 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 41 | 0 | 1 | 7 | .317 | .271 (+17%) | .289 (+11%) | .337 (+12%) | .626 (+11%) | 435.1 |
| 1878 | ML2 | NL | 55 | 246 | 33 | 76 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 22 | 0 | 5 | 8 | .309 | .259 (+19%) | .278 (+16%) | .319 (+7%) | .597 (+11%) | 428.2 |
| 1879 | CHN | NL | 83 | 379 | 45 | 93 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 31 | 0 | 1 | 19 | .245 | .255 (-4%) | .270 (-9%) | .328 (-9%) | .599 (-9%) | -450.5 |
| 1880 | PRO | NL | 86 | 359 | 30 | 82 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 0 | 5 | 15 | .228 | .244 (-7%) | .267 (-10%) | .319 (-24%) | .586 (-18%) | -776.2 |
| 1881 | BFN | NL | 54 | 229 | 21 | 49 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 25 | 0 | 3 | 12 | .214 | .260 (-18%) | .290 (-23%) | .338 (-24%) | .628 (-23%) | -746.0 |
| 1882 | PT1 | AA | 78 | 331 | 47 | 96 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | .290 | .248 (+17%) | .275 (+9%) | .329 (-1%) | .605 (+3%) | 203.7 |
| 1883 | PT1 | AA | 8 | 28 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .107 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1884 | PT1 | AA | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 11 seasons | 615 | 2,693 | 373 | 748 | 92 | 12 | 3 | 249 | 14 | 25 | 77 | .278 | — | — | — | — | 1,101 | ||
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.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1876 | CHN | NL | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00 | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 1 season | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00 | — | 0 | ||
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.
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2B | 60 | 19 | 174 | 212 | 72 | 19 |
| OF | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 0 |
| P | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SS | 557 | 36 | 760 | 1869 | 379 | 147 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1874 | CH2 | 2B | 19 | 19 | 61 | 61 | 24 | 3 |
| 1874 | CH2 | SS | 36 | 36 | 33 | 122 | 39 | 5 |
| 1875 | CH2 | 2B | 6 | 0 | 14 | 13 | 6 | 2 |
| 1875 | CH2 | SS | 65 | 0 | 66 | 239 | 45 | 18 |
| 1876 | CHN | P | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1876 | CHN | SS | 66 | 0 | 95 | 193 | 21 | 16 |
| 1877 | CHN | SS | 60 | 0 | 124 | 215 | 45 | 23 |
| 1878 | ML2 | 2B | 34 | 0 | 97 | 136 | 40 | 14 |
| 1878 | ML2 | SS | 22 | 0 | 33 | 69 | 13 | 4 |
| 1879 | CHN | SS | 83 | 0 | 94 | 271 | 71 | 14 |
| 1880 | PRO | SS | 86 | 0 | 111 | 268 | 42 | 26 |
| 1881 | BFN | OF | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 0 |
| 1881 | BFN | SS | 53 | 0 | 102 | 183 | 43 | 17 |
| 1882 | PT1 | 2B | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 1882 | PT1 | SS | 77 | 0 | 92 | 281 | 51 | 21 |
| 1883 | PT1 | SS | 8 | 0 | 9 | 27 | 8 | 3 |
| 1884 | PT1 | SS | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 1 |
| Second Base | 60 |
| Shortstop | 557 |
| Right Field | 1 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
John Peters (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
John Peters: the record in brief
John Peters played a first major league game on May 23, 1874 and a last one on June 11, 1884. The team column moves through the Chicago White Stockings (1874 through 1879), the Milwaukee Grays (1878), the Providence Grays (1880), the Buffalo Bisons (1881), and the Pittsburg Alleghenys (1882 to 1884). Peters, born on April 8, 1850, in New Orleans, LA, USA, is listed as a shortstop and batted and threw right-handed. Size on record: 180 pounds on a 5-foot-7 frame. Peters's death is recorded on January 4, 1924, in St. Louis, MO, USA. Peters's full given name, per the bio, is John Phillip Peters.
Peters's career batting table shows 615 games, 2,693 at bats and 748 hits, a .278 average, along with 3 home runs and 249 RBI. The on-base percentage is .284 and the slugging percentage .324, for an OPS of .609. The league as a whole hit .253 across Peters's seasons, which puts the .278 career mark 9.8% above average.
Frequently Asked Questions about John Peters
- What years did John Peters play?
- John Peters played in Major League Baseball from 1874 to 1884.
- Was John Peters a pitcher?
- No. John Peters was a position player (Shortstop), though he did pitch in 1 career game.
- How many home runs did John Peters hit?
- John Peters hit 3 career home runs with 748 hits.
- What was John Peters's career batting average?
- John Peters batted .278 over his career, with 748 hits in 2,693 at bats.
- How many RBI did John Peters have?
- John Peters drove in 249 runs in his career.
- What was John Peters's career ERA?
- John Peters finished with a 0.00 career ERA, going 0-0 with 0 strikeouts.