Bill Riggins
Shortstop · Career Stats, Bio & Records
Bill Riggins was a shortstop who played in Major League Baseball for 6 teams, including the Chicago American Giants. In 709 career games, he hit .296 with 790 hits, 45 home runs, and 428 RBI. His totals include Negro Leagues seasons, which MLB recognized as major league in 2020. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 3,103.
- 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
- B / R
- Height / Weight
- 5'11" / 169 lb
- Died
- 3/8/1943 in New York, NY, USA
Full name: Arvell Riggins
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.
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 709 | 2,669 | 503 | 790 | 123 | 41 | 45 | 428 | 105 | 255 | 5 | .296 | .363 | .423 | .786 | 3,103 |
Career AVG .296 vs. league average .283 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OBP .363 vs. league average .344 across their career seasons — +5.3% above league average.
Career SLG .423 vs. league average .396 across their career seasons — +6.8% above league average.
Career OPS .786 vs. league average .741 across their career seasons — +6.1% 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920 | CAG | NNL | 3 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .111 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1920 | DS | NNL | 49 | 172 | 16 | 48 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 21 | 1 | 12 | 0 | .279 | .271 (+3%) | .331 (-1%) | .363 (+9%) | .694 (+4%) | 0.0 |
| 1921 | DS | NNL | 63 | 257 | 33 | 76 | 18 | 2 | 1 | 33 | 6 | 14 | 2 | .296 | .286 (+3%) | .344 (-2%) | .395 (-1%) | .739 (-1%) | -77.8 |
| 1922 | DS | NNL | 67 | 245 | 40 | 62 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 26 | 8 | 16 | 1 | .253 | .285 (-11%) | .345 (-9%) | .397 (-19%) | .743 (-14%) | -545.2 |
| 1923 | DS | NNL | 71 | 265 | 59 | 80 | 9 | 3 | 6 | 43 | 2 | 32 | 0 | .302 | .282 (+7%) | .344 (+10%) | .390 (+9%) | .734 (+10%) | 534.2 |
| 1924 | DS | NNL | 63 | 264 | 49 | 81 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 25 | 5 | 18 | 0 | .307 | .283 (+8%) | .345 (+2%) | .389 (+3%) | .734 (+3%) | 100.1 |
| 1925 | DS | NNL | 93 | 360 | 63 | 97 | 16 | 9 | 8 | 68 | 25 | 31 | 0 | .269 | .288 (-6%) | .349 (-6%) | .407 (+6%) | .756 (avg) | -70.8 |
| 1926 | DS | NNL | 91 | 330 | 80 | 99 | 18 | 6 | 7 | 52 | 25 | 36 | 0 | .300 | .279 (+7%) | .345 (+9%) | .390 (+17%) | .735 (+13%) | 822.2 |
| 1927 | CHT | NNL | 36 | 134 | 30 | 47 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 28 | 6 | 14 | 0 | .351 | .282 (+24%) | .344 (+20%) | .392 (+46%) | .736 (+34%) | 747.2 |
| 1928 | NLG | ECL | 33 | 126 | 26 | 34 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 24 | 7 | 9 | 1 | .270 | .280 (-4%) | .342 (-6%) | .395 (+18%) | .737 (+7%) | 134.2 |
| 1929 | NLG | ANL | 66 | 243 | 60 | 84 | 15 | 3 | 5 | 61 | 12 | 40 | 0 | .346 | .289 (+19%) | .353 (+26%) | .415 (+19%) | .769 (+22%) | 1197.5 |
| 1930 | NLG | IND | 44 | 166 | 32 | 57 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 36 | 4 | 15 | 1 | .343 | .293 (+17%) | .354 (+15%) | .429 (+1%) | .784 (+7%) | 301.0 |
| 1931 | HAR | IND | 18 | 67 | 9 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 7 | 0 | .239 | .276 (-14%) | .338 (-8%) | .388 (-19%) | .726 (-14%) | -139.7 |
| 1932 | NBY | IND | 7 | 18 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | .278 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1935 | NBY | IND | 5 | 13 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 0 | .231 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 15 seasons | 709 | 2,669 | 503 | 790 | 123 | 41 | 45 | 428 | 105 | 255 | 5 | .296 | — | — | — | — | 3,003 | ||
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1926 | DS | NNL | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 13.50 | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 1 season | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 13.50 | — | 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.
Game Log & Splits
Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 7 | 25 | 4 | 9 | 2 | 0 | .360 |
| Away | 2 | 9 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | .444 |
Last 9 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1929-09-01 | NYL | HIL | W | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1929-09-01 | NYL | HIL | W | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1929-06-06 | NYL | BLS | W | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1929-06-06 | NYL | BLS | W | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1924-08-18 | DT1 | CAG | L | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1922-06-27 | DT1 | SSN | W | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1921-07-25 | DT1 | KCM | L | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1921-07-09 | DT1 | CB1 | L | 5 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1921-06-06 | DT1 | CNN | W | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1B | 8 | 5 | 53 | 4 | 1 | 4 |
| 2B | 32 | 30 | 59 | 95 | 10 | 19 |
| 3B | 169 | 164 | 179 | 273 | 41 | 31 |
| OF | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| P | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SS | 509 | 410 | 823 | 1380 | 220 | 173 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920 | CAG | SS | 3 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 0 |
| 1920 | DS | 3B | 17 | 17 | 23 | 27 | 6 | 0 |
| 1920 | DS | SS | 33 | 32 | 68 | 96 | 14 | 8 |
| 1921 | DS | 1B | 5 | 5 | 48 | 4 | 0 | 3 |
| 1921 | DS | SS | 58 | 58 | 123 | 151 | 39 | 19 |
| 1922 | DS | SS | 67 | 67 | 131 | 200 | 28 | 18 |
| 1923 | DS | SS | 71 | 70 | 109 | 324 | 36 | 44 |
| 1924 | DS | SS | 63 | 63 | 146 | 200 | 34 | 30 |
| 1925 | DS | 1B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1925 | DS | 3B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1925 | DS | SS | 92 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1926 | DS | 2B | 3 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 |
| 1926 | DS | 3B | 5 | 4 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| 1926 | DS | OF | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1926 | DS | P | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1926 | DS | SS | 87 | 86 | 178 | 300 | 34 | 46 |
| 1927 | CHT | 1B | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1927 | CHT | 2B | 2 | 2 | 7 | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| 1927 | CHT | 3B | 6 | 5 | 4 | 12 | 2 | 0 |
| 1927 | CHT | SS | 31 | 27 | 59 | 96 | 29 | 5 |
| 1928 | NLG | 2B | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1928 | NLG | 3B | 32 | 32 | 35 | 58 | 5 | 7 |
| 1929 | NLG | 2B | 9 | 9 | 13 | 32 | 0 | 8 |
| 1929 | NLG | 3B | 57 | 57 | 66 | 100 | 15 | 11 |
| 1930 | NLG | 1B | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1930 | NLG | 3B | 43 | 42 | 41 | 63 | 11 | 12 |
| 1931 | HAR | 2B | 14 | 14 | 26 | 48 | 7 | 8 |
| 1931 | HAR | SS | 4 | 4 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 3 |
| 1932 | NBY | 3B | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| 1935 | NBY | 2B | 3 | 3 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| 1935 | NBY | 3B | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 1 |
| First Base | 8 |
| Second Base | 32 |
| Third Base | 169 |
| Shortstop | 509 |
| Left Field | 1 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Bill Riggins: the record in brief
Bill Riggins's record on this page is drawn from the season tables, which run from 1920 to 1935. The team column moves through the Chicago American Giants (1920), the Detroit Stars (1920 to 1926), the Cleveland Hornets (1927), the New York Lincoln Giants (1928 through 1930), the Harlem Stars (1931), and the New York Black Yankees (1932 to 1935). At 5'11" and 169 pounds, Riggins is listed as a shortstop. Riggins switch-hit and threw right-handed, per the bio block. The recorded birth is February 7, 1900, in Colp, IL, USA. Riggins died on March 8, 1943, in New York, NY, USA. Riggins's full given name, per the bio, is Arvell Riggins.
The batting record for Riggins: 709 games, 790 hits in 2,669 at bats, and a .296 average, adding 45 home runs, 428 RBI, and 105 stolen bases. The on-base percentage is .363 and the slugging percentage .423, for an OPS of .786. Against a .283 league average for those years, Riggins's .296 average was near the norm.
Frequently Asked Questions about Bill Riggins
- Was Bill Riggins a pitcher?
- No. Bill Riggins was a position player (Shortstop), though he did pitch in 1 career game.
- How many home runs did Bill Riggins hit?
- Bill Riggins hit 45 career home runs with 790 hits.
- What was Bill Riggins's career batting average?
- Bill Riggins batted .296 over his career, with 790 hits in 2,669 at bats.
- How many RBI did Bill Riggins have?
- Bill Riggins drove in 428 runs in his career.
- What was Bill Riggins's career ERA?
- Bill Riggins finished with a 13.50 career ERA, going 0-0 with 1 strikeouts.
- Is Bill Riggins in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Bill Riggins has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.