Johnny Ray
Second Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1981-1990)
- Position
- Second Baseman
- Bats / Throws
- B / R
- Height / Weight
- 5'11" / 170 lb
- MLB Debut
- 1981-09-02
- Last Game
- 1990-09-30
- Awards
- All-Star · Silver Slugger
Full name: John Cornelius Ray
Negro Leagues (season totals). Additive Retrosheet-digitized totals for seasons not already in the logs above; they are not summed into the career line. No team/league breakdown is available, and coverage may be partial.
Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Batting
| Season | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1937 | 72.0 | 60.0 | 15.0 | 26.0 | 0 | 2.0 | 0 | 6.0 | 9.0 | 0 | 3.0 | .433 | .521 | .500 | 1.021 |
| 1938 | 14.0 | 12.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | .167 | .286 | .167 | .453 |
| 1939 | 118.0 | 102.0 | 22.0 | 23.0 | 4.0 | 1.0 | 0 | 4.0 | 14.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | .225 | .331 | .284 | .615 |
| 1940 | 110.0 | 87.0 | 20.0 | 23.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 | 21.0 | 0 | 1.0 | .264 | .423 | .264 | .687 |
| 1941 | 38.0 | 31.0 | 5.0 | 6.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 | 6.0 | 0 | 0 | .194 | .324 | .194 | .518 |
| 1942 | 25.0 | 23.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | .174 | .240 | .174 | .414 |
| 1943 | 137.0 | 120.0 | 19.0 | 26.0 | 0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 10.0 | 0 | 2.0 | .217 | .282 | .258 | .540 |
| 1944 | 139.0 | 123.0 | 17.0 | 28.0 | 4.0 | 0 | 0 | 7.0 | 13.0 | 1.0 | 0 | .228 | .312 | .260 | .572 |
| 1945 | 89.0 | 79.0 | 9.0 | 23.0 | 4.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 6.0 | 8.0 | 0 | 0 | .291 | .356 | .468 | .824 |
| Listed seasons · 9 | 742 | 637 | 111 | 161 | 12 | 6 | 3 | 30 | 85 | 5 | 9 | .253 | — | — | — |
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,353 | 5,188 | 604 | 1,502 | 294 | 36 | 53 | 594 | 80 | 353 | 329 | .290 | .333 | .391 | .724 | 1,408 |
Career AVG .290 vs. league average .258 across their career seasons — +12.1% above league average.
Career OBP .333 vs. league average .324 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career SLG .391 vs. league average .388 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OPS .724 vs. league average .711 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | PIT | NL | 31 | 102 | 10 | 25 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 9 | .245 | .255 (-4%) | .320 (-11%) | .368 (-4%) | .688 (-7%) | -148.1 |
| 1982 | PIT | NL | 162 | 647 | 79 | 182 | 30 | 7 | 7 | 63 | 16 | 36 | 34 | .281 | .261 (+8%) | .324 (-2%) | .388 (-2%) | .712 (-2%) | -278.6 |
| 1983 | PIT | NL | 151 | 576 | 68 | 163 | 38 | 7 | 5 | 53 | 18 | 35 | 26 | .283 | .260 (+8%) | .324 (-1%) | .389 (+3%) | .714 (+1%) | 8.4 |
| 1984 | PIT | NL | 155 | 555 | 75 | 173 | 38 | 6 | 6 | 67 | 11 | 37 | 31 | .312 | .259 (+20%) | .322 (+10%) | .384 (+13%) | .707 (+11%) | 1180.8 |
| 1985 | PIT | NL | 154 | 594 | 67 | 163 | 33 | 3 | 7 | 70 | 13 | 46 | 24 | .274 | .257 (+7%) | .323 (avg) | .390 (-4%) | .714 (-2%) | -217.9 |
| 1986 | PIT | NL | 155 | 579 | 67 | 174 | 33 | 0 | 7 | 78 | 6 | 58 | 47 | .301 | .257 (+17%) | .325 (+11%) | .395 (avg) | .720 (+5%) | 713.1 |
| 1987 | PIT | NL | 123 | 472 | 48 | 129 | 19 | 3 | 5 | 54 | 4 | 41 | 36 | .273 | .262 (+4%) | .331 (-1%) | .415 (-14%) | .746 (-8%) | -606.4 |
| 1987 | CAL | AL | 30 | 127 | 16 | 44 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 3 | 10 | .346 | .262 (+32%) | .331 (+8%) | .415 (+4%) | .746 (+6%) | -606.4 |
| 1988 | CAL | AL | 153 | 602 | 75 | 184 | 42 | 7 | 6 | 83 | 4 | 36 | 38 | .306 | .254 (+20%) | .317 (+8%) | .377 (+13%) | .695 (+11%) | 1160.9 |
| 1989 | CAL | AL | 134 | 530 | 52 | 153 | 16 | 3 | 5 | 62 | 6 | 36 | 30 | .289 | .254 (+14%) | .319 (+2%) | .375 (-4%) | .694 (-1%) | -168.8 |
| 1990 | CAL | AL | 105 | 404 | 47 | 112 | 23 | 0 | 5 | 43 | 2 | 19 | 44 | .277 | .257 (+8%) | .324 (-5%) | .385 (-4%) | .710 (-4%) | -343.7 |
| Career · 11 seasons | 1,353 | 5,188 | 604 | 1,502 | 294 | 36 | 53 | 594 | 80 | 353 | 329 | .290 | — | — | — | — | 693 | ||
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 (1353 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 679 | 2518 | 305 | 718 | 34 | 295 | .285 |
| Away | 674 | 2670 | 299 | 784 | 19 | 299 | .294 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990-09-30 | LAA | KCR | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1990-09-29 | LAA | KCR | L | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1990-09-28 | LAA | KCR | L | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1990-09-27 | LAA | KCR | W | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1990-09-26 | LAA | TEX | L | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1990-09-23 | LAA | KCR | L | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1990-09-22 | LAA | KCR | L | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1990-09-21 | LAA | KCR | W | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1990-09-19 | LAA | DET | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1990-09-18 | LAA | DET | L | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2B | 1277 | 1219 | 2682 | 3836 | 118 | 828 |
| OF | 40 | 41 | 75 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | PIT | 2B | 31 | 25 | 52 | 96 | 2 | 22 |
| 1982 | PIT | 2B | 162 | 162 | 381 | 512 | 21 | 89 |
| 1983 | PIT | 2B | 151 | 138 | 319 | 452 | 13 | 102 |
| 1984 | PIT | 2B | 149 | 134 | 331 | 400 | 12 | 90 |
| 1985 | PIT | 2B | 151 | 145 | 305 | 423 | 18 | 89 |
| 1986 | PIT | 2B | 151 | 144 | 280 | 479 | 5 | 89 |
| 1987 | PIT | 2B | 119 | 115 | 248 | 358 | 12 | 84 |
| 1987 | CAL | 2B | 29 | 29 | 52 | 90 | 2 | 19 |
| 1988 | CAL | 2B | 104 | 102 | 194 | 328 | 15 | 64 |
| 1988 | CAL | OF | 40 | 41 | 75 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 1989 | CAL | 2B | 130 | 130 | 279 | 403 | 11 | 98 |
| 1990 | CAL | 2B | 100 | 95 | 241 | 295 | 7 | 82 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Second Base | 1277 |
| Left Field | 40 |
| Designated Hitter | 8 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Player of the Week | Week of 1988-04-22 |
| 1988 | TSN All-Star | 2B |
| 1986 | Player of the Month | April |
| 1986 | Player of the Week | Week of 1986-04-11 |
| 1985 | Player of the Week | Week of 1985-10-04 |
| 1984 | Player of the Week | Week of 1984-08-10 |
| 1984 | Player of the Week | Week of 1984-09-21 |
| 1983 | Silver Slugger | 2B |
| 1982 | TSN Rookie Player of the Year |
Salary History
| Year | Team | League | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | CAL | AL | $1,125,000 |
| 1989 | CAL | AL | $850,000 |
| 1988 | CAL | AL | $732,000 |
| 1987 | PIT | NL | $807,000 |
| 1986 | PIT | NL | $757,000 |
| 1985 | PIT | NL | $632,000 |
| Total Career Earnings | $4,903,000 | ||
College History
| School Name | City | State | Years Attended |
|---|---|---|---|
| University of Arkansas | Fayetteville | AR | 1978, 1979 |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Rookie of the Year | NL | 2nd | 57.0 | 120 | 6 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Johnny Ray (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Frequently Asked Questions about Johnny Ray
- What years did Johnny Ray play?
- Johnny Ray played in Major League Baseball from 1981 to 1990.
- Was Johnny Ray a pitcher?
- No. Johnny Ray was a position player (Second Baseman).
- How many home runs did Johnny Ray hit?
- Johnny Ray hit 53 career home runs with 1502 hits.