Vada Pinson
Outfielder · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1958-1975)
- Position
- Outfielder
- Bats / Throws
- L / L
- Height / Weight
- 5'11" / 170 lb
- Died
- 10/21/1995 in Oakland, CA, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1958-04-15
- Last Game
- 1975-09-28
- Awards
- 2× All-Star · Gold Glove
Full name: Vada Edward Pinson
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2,469 | 9,645 | 1,365 | 2,757 | 485 | 127 | 256 | 1,169 | 305 | 574 | 1,196 | .286 | .327 | .442 | .769 | 18,262 |
Career AVG .286 vs. league average .251 across their career seasons — +13.8% above league average.
Career OBP .327 vs. league average .318 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career SLG .442 vs. league average .374 across their career seasons — +18.1% above league average.
Career OPS .769 vs. league average .692 across their career seasons — +11.1% above 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1958 | CIN | NL | 27 | 96 | 20 | 26 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 2 | 11 | 18 | .271 | .257 (+5%) | .324 (+8%) | .394 (-5%) | .719 (+1%) | 45.5 |
| 1959 | CIN | NL | 154 | 648 | 131 | 205 | 47 | 9 | 20 | 84 | 21 | 55 | 98 | .316 | .256 (+23%) | .323 (+14%) | .392 (+30%) | .715 (+23%) | 2923.4 |
| 1960 | CIN | NL | 154 | 652 | 107 | 187 | 37 | 12 | 20 | 61 | 32 | 47 | 96 | .287 | .255 (+12%) | .323 (+5%) | .387 (+22%) | .711 (+14%) | 1676.5 |
| 1961 | CIN | NL | 154 | 607 | 101 | 208 | 34 | 8 | 16 | 87 | 23 | 39 | 63 | .343 | .258 (+33%) | .328 (+15%) | .399 (+26%) | .727 (+21%) | 2487.2 |
| 1962 | CIN | NL | 155 | 619 | 107 | 181 | 31 | 7 | 23 | 100 | 26 | 45 | 68 | .292 | .257 (+13%) | .326 (+4%) | .393 (+21%) | .719 (+14%) | 1520.4 |
| 1963 | CIN | NL | 162 | 652 | 96 | 204 | 37 | 14 | 22 | 106 | 27 | 36 | 80 | .313 | .246 (+27%) | .308 (+12%) | .371 (+38%) | .680 (+26%) | 3007.7 |
| 1964 | CIN | NL | 156 | 625 | 99 | 166 | 23 | 11 | 23 | 84 | 8 | 42 | 99 | .266 | .250 (+6%) | .312 (+1%) | .377 (+19%) | .690 (+11%) | 1114.8 |
| 1965 | CIN | NL | 159 | 669 | 97 | 204 | 34 | 10 | 22 | 94 | 21 | 43 | 81 | .305 | .245 (+24%) | .310 (+13%) | .371 (+30%) | .682 (+22%) | 2766.3 |
| 1966 | CIN | NL | 156 | 618 | 70 | 178 | 35 | 6 | 16 | 76 | 18 | 33 | 83 | .288 | .248 (+16%) | .309 (+5%) | .376 (+17%) | .685 (+12%) | 1258.8 |
| 1967 | CIN | NL | 158 | 650 | 90 | 187 | 28 | 13 | 18 | 66 | 26 | 26 | 86 | .288 | .242 (+19%) | .306 (+4%) | .357 (+27%) | .663 (+16%) | 1676.6 |
| 1968 | CIN | NL | 130 | 499 | 60 | 135 | 29 | 6 | 5 | 48 | 17 | 32 | 59 | .271 | .236 (+14%) | .298 (+4%) | .340 (+12%) | .638 (+9%) | 585.2 |
| 1969 | SLN | NL | 132 | 495 | 58 | 126 | 22 | 6 | 10 | 70 | 4 | 35 | 63 | .255 | .248 (+3%) | .320 (-5%) | .369 (+4%) | .689 (avg) | -196.5 |
| 1970 | CLE | AL | 148 | 574 | 74 | 164 | 28 | 6 | 24 | 82 | 7 | 28 | 69 | .286 | .253 (+13%) | .325 (-2%) | .385 (+25%) | .711 (+12%) | 1116.1 |
| 1971 | CLE | AL | 146 | 566 | 60 | 149 | 23 | 4 | 11 | 35 | 25 | 21 | 58 | .263 | .249 (+6%) | .316 (-7%) | .365 (+3%) | .682 (-2%) | -269.7 |
| 1972 | CAL | AL | 136 | 484 | 56 | 133 | 24 | 2 | 7 | 49 | 17 | 30 | 54 | .275 | .243 (+13%) | .310 (+3%) | .353 (+6%) | .664 (+5%) | 371.9 |
| 1973 | CAL | AL | 124 | 466 | 56 | 121 | 14 | 6 | 8 | 57 | 5 | 20 | 55 | .260 | .256 (+1%) | .325 (-12%) | .378 (-3%) | .703 (-7%) | -693.4 |
| 1974 | KCA | AL | 115 | 406 | 46 | 112 | 18 | 2 | 6 | 41 | 21 | 21 | 45 | .276 | .256 (+7%) | .324 (-4%) | .369 (+1%) | .693 (-1%) | -150.1 |
| 1975 | KCA | AL | 103 | 319 | 37 | 71 | 14 | 5 | 4 | 21 | 5 | 10 | 21 | .223 | .257 (-14%) | .327 (-24%) | .374 (-10%) | .701 (-17%) | -979.3 |
| Career · 18 seasons | 2,469 | 9,645 | 1,365 | 2,757 | 485 | 127 | 256 | 1,169 | 305 | 574 | 1,196 | .286 | — | — | — | — | 18,262 | ||
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 (2470 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 1230 | 4737 | 721 | 1365 | 151 | 641 | .288 |
| Away | 1240 | 4908 | 644 | 1392 | 105 | 528 | .284 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1975-09-28 | KCR | TEX | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1975-09-27 | KCR | TEX | L | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1975-09-26 | KCR | TEX | W | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1975-09-25 | KCR | MIN | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1975-09-24 | KCR | MIN | W | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1975-09-22 | KCR | TEX | W | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1975-09-21 | KCR | OAK | W | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1975-09-20 | KCR | OAK | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1975-09-19 | KCR | OAK | W | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1975-09-18 | KCR | MIN | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1B | 16 | 1 | 48 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| OF | 2403 | 2335 | 5097 | 172 | 101 | 29 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1958 | CIN | OF | 27 | 25 | 50 | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| 1959 | CIN | OF | 154 | 154 | 423 | 11 | 7 | 4 |
| 1960 | CIN | OF | 154 | 154 | 401 | 11 | 8 | 1 |
| 1961 | CIN | OF | 153 | 151 | 391 | 19 | 10 | 4 |
| 1962 | CIN | OF | 152 | 151 | 344 | 13 | 4 | 1 |
| 1963 | CIN | OF | 162 | 162 | 357 | 9 | 8 | 0 |
| 1964 | CIN | OF | 156 | 154 | 299 | 14 | 9 | 1 |
| 1965 | CIN | OF | 159 | 159 | 354 | 9 | 3 | 1 |
| 1966 | CIN | OF | 154 | 153 | 344 | 9 | 13 | 1 |
| 1967 | CIN | OF | 157 | 156 | 341 | 4 | 5 | 1 |
| 1968 | CIN | OF | 123 | 119 | 258 | 7 | 6 | 0 |
| 1969 | SLN | OF | 124 | 123 | 218 | 6 | 1 | 2 |
| 1970 | CLE | 1B | 7 | 0 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 1970 | CLE | OF | 141 | 132 | 265 | 8 | 5 | 3 |
| 1971 | CLE | 1B | 3 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1971 | CLE | OF | 141 | 133 | 305 | 11 | 7 | 2 |
| 1972 | CAL | 1B | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1972 | CAL | OF | 134 | 122 | 205 | 11 | 2 | 3 |
| 1973 | CAL | OF | 120 | 113 | 210 | 11 | 8 | 2 |
| 1974 | KCA | 1B | 1 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1974 | KCA | OF | 110 | 100 | 188 | 9 | 4 | 2 |
| 1975 | KCA | 1B | 4 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1975 | KCA | OF | 82 | 74 | 144 | 6 | 1 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| First Base | 16 |
| Left Field | 253 |
| Center Field | 1680 |
| Right Field | 549 |
| Designated Hitter | 7 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | Gold Glove | OF |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 18th | 6.0 | 280 | 0 |
| 1963 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 10th | 32.0 | 280 | 0 |
| 1961 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 3rd | 104.0 | 224 | 0 |
| 1960 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 18th | 6.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1959 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 15th | 11.0 | 336 | 0 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Vada Pinson (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Frequently Asked Questions about Vada Pinson
- What years did Vada Pinson play?
- Vada Pinson played in Major League Baseball from 1958 to 1975.
- Was Vada Pinson a pitcher?
- No. Vada Pinson was a position player (Outfielder).
- How many home runs did Vada Pinson hit?
- Vada Pinson hit 256 career home runs with 2757 hits.