Gary Pettis
Outfielder · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1982-1992)
Gary Pettis was an outfielder who played in Major League Baseball from 1982 to 1992 for 4 teams, including the California Angels, a span of 11 seasons. In 1,183 career games, he hit .236 with 855 hits, 21 home runs, and 259 RBI. Gary Pettis was a 5-time Gold Glove.
- 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
- Outfielder
- Bats / Throws
- B / R
- Height / Weight
- 6'1" / 165 lb
- MLB Debut
- 1982-09-13
- Last Game
- 1992-09-10
- Awards
- 5× Gold Glove
Full name: Gary George Pettis
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,183 | 3,629 | 568 | 855 | 109 | 49 | 21 | 259 | 354 | 521 | 958 | .236 | .332 | .310 | .642 | -4,135 |
Career AVG .236 vs. league average .258 across their career seasons — 8.7% below league average.
Career OBP .332 vs. league average .324 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career SLG .310 vs. league average .388 across their career seasons — 20.0% below league average.
Career OPS .642 vs. league average .711 across their career seasons — 9.8% 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | CAL | AL | 10 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .200 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1983 | CAL | AL | 22 | 85 | 19 | 25 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 15 | .294 | .260 (+13%) | .324 (+7%) | .389 (+27%) | .714 (+18%) | 228.4 |
| 1984 | CAL | AL | 140 | 397 | 63 | 90 | 11 | 6 | 2 | 29 | 48 | 60 | 115 | .227 | .259 (-13%) | .322 (+3%) | .384 (-22%) | .707 (-11%) | -494.4 |
| 1985 | CAL | AL | 125 | 443 | 67 | 114 | 10 | 8 | 1 | 32 | 56 | 62 | 125 | .257 | .257 (avg) | .323 (+7%) | .390 (-17%) | .714 (-6%) | -270.2 |
| 1986 | CAL | AL | 154 | 539 | 93 | 139 | 23 | 4 | 5 | 58 | 50 | 69 | 132 | .258 | .257 (avg) | .325 (+4%) | .395 (-13%) | .720 (-5%) | -341.1 |
| 1987 | CAL | AL | 133 | 394 | 49 | 82 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 17 | 24 | 52 | 124 | .208 | .262 (-21%) | .331 (-9%) | .415 (-38%) | .746 (-25%) | -1483.9 |
| 1988 | DET | AL | 129 | 458 | 65 | 96 | 14 | 4 | 3 | 36 | 44 | 47 | 85 | .210 | .254 (-18%) | .317 (-10%) | .377 (-27%) | .695 (-19%) | -1281.7 |
| 1989 | DET | AL | 119 | 444 | 77 | 114 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 18 | 43 | 84 | 106 | .257 | .254 (+1%) | .319 (+17%) | .375 (-18%) | .694 (-2%) | 309.1 |
| 1990 | TEX | AL | 136 | 423 | 66 | 101 | 16 | 8 | 3 | 31 | 38 | 57 | 118 | .239 | .257 (-7%) | .324 (+2%) | .385 (-13%) | .710 (-6%) | -297.7 |
| 1991 | TEX | AL | 137 | 282 | 37 | 61 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 19 | 29 | 54 | 91 | .216 | .255 (-15%) | .323 (+6%) | .384 (-28%) | .708 (-13%) | -397.0 |
| 1992 | SDN | NL | 30 | 30 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 11 | .200 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1992 | DET | AL | 48 | 129 | 27 | 26 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 12 | 13 | 27 | 34 | .202 | .255 (-21%) | .322 (+5%) | .377 (-20%) | .699 (-9%) | 0.0 |
| Career · 12 seasons | 1,183 | 3,629 | 568 | 855 | 109 | 49 | 21 | 259 | 354 | 521 | 958 | .236 | — | — | — | — | -4,028 | ||
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 (1183 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 582 | 1727 | 266 | 408 | 12 | 131 | .236 |
| Away | 601 | 1902 | 302 | 447 | 9 | 128 | .235 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992-09-10 | DET | CHW | W | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1992-09-09 | DET | CHW | L | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 1992-09-08 | DET | CHW | L | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 1992-09-08 | DET | CHW | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1992-09-06 | DET | MIL | W | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 1992-09-05 | DET | MIL | L | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1992-09-04 | DET | MIL | L | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 1992-09-02 | DET | MIN | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1992-09-01 | DET | MIN | L | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1992-08-31 | DET | MIN | L | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | CAL | OF | 8 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1983 | CAL | OF | 21 | 20 | 49 | 5 | 1 | 2 |
| 1984 | CAL | OF | 134 | 98 | 337 | 11 | 6 | 4 |
| 1985 | CAL | OF | 122 | 118 | 368 | 13 | 4 | 5 |
| 1986 | CAL | OF | 153 | 150 | 462 | 9 | 7 | 3 |
| 1987 | CAL | OF | 131 | 108 | 344 | 2 | 7 | 2 |
| 1988 | DET | OF | 126 | 115 | 361 | 5 | 5 | 0 |
| 1989 | DET | OF | 119 | 116 | 325 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| 1990 | TEX | OF | 128 | 119 | 285 | 10 | 2 | 4 |
| 1991 | TEX | OF | 126 | 73 | 248 | 4 | 6 | 1 |
| 1992 | SDN | OF | 14 | 4 | 20 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1992 | DET | OF | 46 | 45 | 144 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Left Field | 1 |
| Center Field | 1125 |
| Right Field | 2 |
| Designated Hitter | 9 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Gold Glove | OF |
| 1989 | Gold Glove | OF |
| 1988 | Gold Glove | OF |
| 1986 | Gold Glove | OF |
| 1985 | Gold Glove | OF |
Salary History
Gary Pettis's recorded salaries total $4,625,000 over 9 seasons, 1985 to 1993. This total is partial: the salary data covers 1985 to 2016, and Pettis's career ran from 1982 to 1992. His seasons before 1985 are not included.
| Year | Team | League | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | OAK | AL | $300,000 |
| 1992 | TEX | AL | $1,053,334 |
| 1991 | TEX | AL | $903,333 |
| 1990 | TEX | AL | $703,333 |
| 1989 | DET | AL | $440,000 |
| 1988 | DET | AL | $400,000 |
| 1987 | CAL | AL | $400,000 |
| 1986 | CAL | AL | $300,000 |
| 1985 | CAL | AL | $125,000 |
| Total recorded salary (partial) | $4,625,000 | ||
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Gary Pettis (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Gary Pettis: the record in brief
Between the debut on September 13, 1982 and the final game on September 10, 1992, Gary Pettis built the record summarized on this page. Club by club, the record runs the California Angels (1982 to 1987), the Detroit Tigers (1988 through 1992), the Texas Rangers (1990 through 1991), and the San Diego Padres (1992). Pettis, an outfielder by primary position, batted from both sides and threw right-handed. Height and weight on file: 6-foot-1 and 165 pounds. The birth record reads April 3, 1958, in Oakland, CA, USA. The given name on file is Gary George Pettis.
Across 1,183 games at the plate, Pettis's career line reads 855 hits in 3,629 at bats for a .236 average; the totals also include 21 home runs, 259 RBI, and 354 stolen bases. The on-base percentage is .332 and the slugging percentage .310, for an OPS of .642. Measured against the leagues Pettis played in, the .236 career average compares with a .258 league average over the same seasons, 8.7% below the league. The OPS comparison is .642 to a league .711, 9.8% below average.
Frequently Asked Questions about Gary Pettis
- What years did Gary Pettis play?
- Gary Pettis played in Major League Baseball from 1982 to 1992.
- Was Gary Pettis a pitcher?
- No. Gary Pettis was a position player (Outfielder).
- How many home runs did Gary Pettis hit?
- Gary Pettis hit 21 career home runs with 855 hits.
- What teams did Gary Pettis play for?
- Gary Pettis played for 4 teams: the California Angels (1982–1987), the Detroit Tigers (1988–1989, 1992), the Texas Rangers (1990–1991), and the San Diego Padres (1992).
- What awards did Gary Pettis win?
- Gary Pettis won 5 Gold Gloves (1985–1986, 1988–1990).
- What were Gary Pettis's career stats?
- In 1,183 games, Gary Pettis had 855 hits, 21 home runs, 259 RBI, 568 runs, and 354 stolen bases, with a .236 batting average.
- How much did Gary Pettis earn in his career?
- Gary Pettis's recorded salaries total $4,625,000 over 9 seasons, 1985 to 1993. This total is partial: the salary data covers 1985 to 2016, and Pettis's career ran from 1982 to 1992. His seasons before 1985 are not included.
- What was Gary Pettis's salary?
- Gary Pettis's last recorded salary was $300,000, in 1993. His highest recorded salary was $1,053,334, in 1992, and his lowest was $125,000, in 1985. The Salary History table lists each season from 1985 to 1993.
- What position did Gary Pettis play?
- Gary Pettis played primarily as an outfielder, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Gary Pettis and how much did he weigh?
- Gary Pettis was listed at 6 feet 1 inch and 165 pounds.
- How many home runs did Gary Pettis hit each season?
- Gary Pettis's home runs by season: 1 in 1982, 3 in 1983, 2 in 1984, 1 in 1985, 5 in 1986, 1 in 1987, 3 in 1988, 1 in 1989, 3 in 1990, 0 in 1991, and 1 in 1992. His most in one season was 5, in 1986.
- What was Gary Pettis's career batting average?
- Gary Pettis batted .236 over his career, with 855 hits in 3,629 at bats.
- How many RBI did Gary Pettis have?
- Gary Pettis drove in 259 runs in his career.
- Is Gary Pettis in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Gary Pettis has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.