What years did Ken Phelps play?

Ken Phelps played in Major League Baseball from 1980 to 1990.

Was Ken Phelps a pitcher?

No. Ken Phelps was a position player (Designated Hitter).

How many home runs did Ken Phelps hit?

Ken Phelps hit 123 career home runs with 443 hits.

What was Ken Phelps's career batting average?

Ken Phelps batted .239 over his career, with 443 hits in 1,854 at bats.

How many RBI did Ken Phelps have?

Ken Phelps drove in 313 runs in his career.

Is Ken Phelps in the Hall of Fame?

No. Ken Phelps has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Ken Phelps

Designated Hitter · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1980-1990)

Ken Phelps was a designated hitter who played in Major League Baseball from 1980 to 1990 for 6 teams, including the Kansas City Royals, a span of 11 seasons. In 761 career games, he hit .239 with 443 hits, 123 home runs, and 313 RBI. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 8,256.

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 October 12, 2026

AVG .239

HR 123

RBI 313

H 443

OPS .854

PIV 8,256

Position: Designated Hitter
Bats / Throws: L / L
Height / Weight: 6'1" / 209 lb
Born: 8/6/1954 in Seattle, WA, USA
MLB Debut: 1980-09-20
Last Game: 1990-09-08

Full name: Kenneth Allen Phelps

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Career Batting Statistics

Ken Phelps — Career Batting Statistics
G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
761	1,854	308	443	64	7	123	313	10	390	449	.239	.374	.480	.854	8,256

Career AVG .239 vs. league average .259 across their career seasons — 7.7% below league average.

Career OBP .374 vs. league average .324 across their career seasons — +15.4% above league average.

Career SLG .480 vs. league average .388 across their career seasons — +23.8% above league average.

Career OPS .854 vs. league average .712 across their career seasons — +20.0% above league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Ken Phelps Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year	Team	Lg	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	Lg AVG	Lg OBP	Lg SLG	Lg OPS	PIV
1980	KCA	AL	3	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1981	KCA	AL	21	22	1	3	0	1	0	1	0	1	13	.136	—	—	—	—	0.0
1982	MON	NL	10	8	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	.250	—	—	—	—	0.0
1983	SEA	AL	50	127	10	30	4	1	7	16	0	13	25	.236	.260 (-9%)	.324 (-7%)	.389 (+15%)	.714 (+5%)	61.4
1984	SEA	AL	101	290	52	70	9	0	24	51	3	61	73	.241	.259 (-7%)	.322 (+17%)	.384 (+35%)	.707 (+27%)	1637.6
1985	SEA	AL	61	116	18	24	3	0	9	24	2	24	33	.207	.257 (-20%)	.323 (+6%)	.390 (+19%)	.714 (+13%)	318.6
1986	SEA	AL	125	344	69	85	16	4	24	64	2	88	96	.247	.257 (-4%)	.325 (+25%)	.395 (+33%)	.720 (+29%)	2323.3
1987	SEA	AL	120	332	68	86	13	1	27	68	1	80	75	.259	.262 (-2%)	.331 (+24%)	.415 (+32%)	.746 (+28%)	2213.3
1988	SEA	AL	72	190	37	54	8	0	14	32	1	51	35	.284	.254 (+12%)	.317 (+37%)	.377 (+45%)	.695 (+41%)	1617.7
1988	NYA	AL	45	107	17	24	5	0	10	22	0	19	26	.224	.254 (-12%)	.317 (+7%)	.377 (+46%)	.695 (+28%)	1617.7
1989	NYA	AL	86	185	26	46	3	0	7	29	0	27	47	.249	.254 (-2%)	.319 (+6%)	.375 (+1%)	.694 (+3%)	166.9
1989	OAK	AL	11	9	0	1	1	0	0	0	0	4	0	.111	—	—	—	—	166.9
1990	OAK	AL	32	59	6	11	2	0	1	6	0	12	10	.186	.257 (-28%)	.324 (-2%)	.385 (-30%)	.710 (-17%)	-128.5
1990	CLE	AL	24	61	4	7	0	0	0	0	1	10	11	.115	.257 (-56%)	.324 (-26%)	.385 (-70%)	.710 (-50%)	-128.5
Career · 14 seasons			761	1,854	308	443	64	7	123	313	10	390	449	.239	—	—	—	—	9,867

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

Ken Phelps — Playoff Career Batting
G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
2	2	0	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	.500

Playoff Batting by Year

Ken Phelps — Playoff Batting by Year
Year	Round	Team	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
1989	ALCS	OAK	1	1	0	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	1.000
1989	WS	OAK	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (761 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Ken Phelps — Batting — Home / Away
Split	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	AVG
Home	390	946	159	237	71	175	.251
Away	371	908	149	206	52	138	.227

Last 10 Games — Batting

Ken Phelps — Last 10 Games — Batting
Date	Tm	Opp	Res	AB	H	BB	SO
1990-09-08	CLE	MIN	L	4	0	0	0
1990-09-02	CLE	TOR	L	2	0	1	0
1990-08-24	CLE	BAL	L	0	0	0	0
1990-08-09	CLE	TEX	L	1	0	0	0
1990-07-29	CLE	NYY	L	3	0	1	0
1990-07-29	CLE	NYY	L	1	0	0	0
1990-07-27	CLE	NYY	L	3	0	0	0
1990-07-27	CLE	NYY	L	1	1	0	0
1990-07-24	CLE	CHW	L	1	0	0	0
1990-07-18	CLE	OAK	L	4	0	0	2

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Ken Phelps — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1B	131	110	956	70	13	96

Season-by-Season Fielding

Ken Phelps — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1980	KCA	1B	2	1	14	0	0	2
1981	KCA	1B	2	0	4	1	0	0
1983	SEA	1B	22	20	164	16	0	11
1984	SEA	1B	9	9	72	4	1	7
1985	SEA	1B	8	4	31	2	0	5
1986	SEA	1B	55	53	487	34	9	58
1987	SEA	1B	1	1	8	0	0	0
1988	SEA	1B	3	3	18	2	1	2
1988	NYA	1B	1	0	0	0	0	0
1989	NYA	1B	8	4	47	1	1	4
1989	OAK	1B	1	1	0	0	0	0
1990	OAK	1B	5	3	24	3	1	3
1990	CLE	1B	14	11	87	7	0	4

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Ken Phelps Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position	Games
First Base	130
Right Field	1
Designated Hitter	466

Salary History

Ken Phelps — Salary History
Year	Team	League	Salary
1990	OAK	AL	$825,000
1989	NYA	AL	$655,000
1988	SEA	AL	$670,000
1987	SEA	AL	$300,000
1986	SEA	AL	$235,000
1985	SEA	AL	$180,000
Total Career Earnings			$2,865,000

College History

Ken Phelps — College History
School Name	City	State	Years Attended
Arizona State University	Tempe	AZ	1975, 1976
Mesa Community College	Mesa	AZ	1974

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Ken Phelps (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

Ken Phelps: the record in brief

Ken Phelps played a first major league game on September 20, 1980 and a last one on September 8, 1990. Club by club, the record runs the Kansas City Royals (1980 through 1981), the Montreal Expos (1982), the Seattle Mariners (1983 to 1988), the New York Yankees (1988 through 1989), the Oakland Athletics (1989 to 1990), and the Cleveland Indians (1990). Born on August 6, 1954, in Seattle, WA, USA, Phelps is listed as a designated hitter and threw and hit left-handed. Phelps's listed size is 6-foot-1 and 209 pounds. The given name on file is Kenneth Allen Phelps.

Phelps finished with 443 hits from 1,854 at bats in 761 games, which works out to .239, adding 123 home runs and 313 runs batted in. Phelps's career OPS of .854 combines a .374 on-base mark with .480 slugging. Over the seasons Phelps played, league hitters batted .259; the .239 career figure is 7.7% below that. For power, 1987 stands out: 27 home runs with the Seattle Mariners. The hits column peaks at 86, in 1987.

Frequently Asked Questions about Ken Phelps

What years did Ken Phelps play?: Ken Phelps played in Major League Baseball from 1980 to 1990.
Was Ken Phelps a pitcher?: No. Ken Phelps was a position player (Designated Hitter).
How many home runs did Ken Phelps hit?: Ken Phelps hit 123 career home runs with 443 hits.
What was Ken Phelps's career batting average?: Ken Phelps batted .239 over his career, with 443 hits in 1,854 at bats.
How many RBI did Ken Phelps have?: Ken Phelps drove in 313 runs in his career.
Is Ken Phelps in the Hall of Fame?: No. Ken Phelps has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.