Billy Ripken
Second Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1987-1998)
Billy Ripken was a second baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1987 to 1998 for 4 teams, including the Baltimore Orioles, a span of 12 seasons. In 912 career games, he hit .247 with 674 hits, 20 home runs, and 229 RBI.
- 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
- Second Baseman
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 6'1" / 180 lb
- MLB Debut
- 1987-07-11
- Last Game
- 1998-07-13
Full name: William Oliver Ripken
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 912 | 2,729 | 287 | 674 | 121 | 6 | 20 | 229 | 25 | 174 | 332 | .247 | .294 | .318 | .612 | -6,528 |
Career AVG .247 vs. league average .262 across their career seasons — 5.8% below league average.
Career OBP .294 vs. league average .330 across their career seasons — 10.9% below league average.
Career SLG .318 vs. league average .402 across their career seasons — 21.0% below league average.
Career OPS .612 vs. league average .732 across their career seasons — 16.4% 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | BAL | AL | 58 | 234 | 27 | 72 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 20 | 4 | 21 | 23 | .308 | .262 (+17%) | .331 (+10%) | .415 (-10%) | .746 (-2%) | 3.2 |
| 1988 | BAL | AL | 150 | 512 | 52 | 106 | 18 | 1 | 2 | 34 | 8 | 33 | 63 | .207 | .254 (-19%) | .317 (-18%) | .377 (-32%) | .695 (-26%) | -1988.8 |
| 1989 | BAL | AL | 115 | 318 | 31 | 76 | 11 | 2 | 2 | 26 | 1 | 22 | 53 | .239 | .254 (-6%) | .319 (-11%) | .375 (-19%) | .694 (-15%) | -783.2 |
| 1990 | BAL | AL | 129 | 406 | 48 | 118 | 28 | 1 | 3 | 38 | 5 | 28 | 43 | .291 | .257 (+13%) | .324 (+5%) | .385 (avg) | .710 (+3%) | 218.2 |
| 1991 | BAL | AL | 104 | 287 | 24 | 62 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 15 | 31 | .216 | .255 (-16%) | .323 (-22%) | .384 (-32%) | .708 (-27%) | -1249.4 |
| 1992 | BAL | AL | 111 | 330 | 35 | 76 | 15 | 0 | 4 | 36 | 2 | 18 | 26 | .230 | .255 (-10%) | .322 (-15%) | .377 (-17%) | .699 (-16%) | -848.9 |
| 1993 | TEX | AL | 50 | 132 | 12 | 25 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 19 | .189 | .265 (-29%) | .332 (-19%) | .403 (-46%) | .735 (-33%) | -686.6 |
| 1994 | TEX | AL | 32 | 81 | 9 | 25 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 11 | .309 | .269 (+14%) | .338 (-2%) | .424 (-13%) | .763 (-8%) | -103.1 |
| 1995 | CLE | AL | 8 | 17 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .412 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1996 | BAL | AL | 57 | 135 | 19 | 31 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 9 | 18 | .230 | .269 (-15%) | .340 (-18%) | .426 (-22%) | .767 (-20%) | -467.2 |
| 1997 | TEX | AL | 71 | 203 | 18 | 56 | 9 | 1 | 3 | 24 | 0 | 9 | 32 | .276 | .266 (+3%) | .336 (-11%) | .419 (-11%) | .756 (-11%) | -429.9 |
| 1998 | DET | AL | 27 | 74 | 8 | 20 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 10 | .270 | .266 (+2%) | .335 (-4%) | .420 (-26%) | .755 (-16%) | -192.1 |
| Career · 12 seasons | 912 | 2,729 | 287 | 674 | 121 | 6 | 20 | 229 | 25 | 174 | 332 | .247 | — | — | — | — | -6,528 | ||
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 (912 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 454 | 1327 | 142 | 344 | 8 | 117 | .259 |
| Away | 458 | 1402 | 145 | 330 | 12 | 112 | .235 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998-07-13 | DET | KCR | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1998-06-20 | DET | KCR | W | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1998-06-17 | DET | MIN | W | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1998-06-14 | DET | KCR | L | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1998-06-12 | DET | KCR | L | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1998-06-09 | DET | HOU | L | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1998-06-06 | DET | MIL | W | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1998-06-04 | DET | TOR | L | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1998-05-30 | DET | CHW | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1998-04-25 | DET | NYY | L | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1B | 13 | 3 | 47 | 4 | 0 | 5 |
| 2B | 769 | 713 | 1516 | 2146 | 50 | 526 |
| 3B | 62 | 35 | 19 | 80 | 2 | 8 |
| SS | 72 | 57 | 88 | 165 | 9 | 38 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | BAL | 2B | 58 | 58 | 133 | 162 | 3 | 53 |
| 1988 | BAL | 2B | 149 | 146 | 309 | 440 | 12 | 110 |
| 1988 | BAL | 3B | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1989 | BAL | 2B | 114 | 100 | 255 | 335 | 9 | 81 |
| 1990 | BAL | 2B | 127 | 122 | 250 | 366 | 8 | 84 |
| 1991 | BAL | 2B | 103 | 98 | 201 | 284 | 7 | 75 |
| 1992 | BAL | 2B | 108 | 108 | 217 | 317 | 4 | 66 |
| 1993 | TEX | 2B | 34 | 32 | 52 | 73 | 1 | 16 |
| 1993 | TEX | 3B | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1993 | TEX | SS | 18 | 14 | 27 | 49 | 0 | 12 |
| 1994 | TEX | 1B | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1994 | TEX | 2B | 12 | 8 | 16 | 26 | 1 | 6 |
| 1994 | TEX | 3B | 18 | 11 | 8 | 24 | 1 | 4 |
| 1994 | TEX | SS | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1995 | CLE | 2B | 7 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 1 |
| 1995 | CLE | 3B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1996 | BAL | 1B | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1996 | BAL | 2B | 30 | 14 | 34 | 57 | 3 | 15 |
| 1996 | BAL | 3B | 25 | 15 | 3 | 38 | 0 | 1 |
| 1997 | TEX | 1B | 9 | 3 | 34 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| 1997 | TEX | 2B | 25 | 23 | 40 | 78 | 2 | 18 |
| 1997 | TEX | 3B | 13 | 7 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 2 |
| 1997 | TEX | SS | 31 | 24 | 38 | 64 | 3 | 15 |
| 1998 | DET | 1B | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1998 | DET | 2B | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| 1998 | DET | 3B | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 1 |
| 1998 | DET | SS | 21 | 19 | 23 | 52 | 6 | 11 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| First Base | 13 |
| Second Base | 769 |
| Third Base | 62 |
| Shortstop | 72 |
| Designated Hitter | 5 |
Salary History
| Year | Team | League | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | DET | AL | $400,000 |
| 1997 | TEX | AL | $275,000 |
| 1996 | BAL | AL | $250,000 |
| 1994 | TEX | AL | $200,000 |
| 1993 | TEX | AL | $200,000 |
| 1992 | BAL | AL | $730,000 |
| 1991 | BAL | AL | $700,000 |
| 1990 | BAL | AL | $215,000 |
| 1989 | BAL | AL | $100,000 |
| 1988 | BAL | AL | $80,000 |
| 1987 | BAL | AL | $62,500 |
| Total Career Earnings | $3,212,500 | ||
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Billy Ripken (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Billy Ripken: the record in brief
Billy Ripken's major league career runs from a debut on July 11, 1987 to a final game on July 13, 1998. Club by club, the record runs the Baltimore Orioles (1987 to 1996), the Texas Rangers (1993 through 1997), the Cleveland Indians (1995), and the Detroit Tigers (1998). Ripken is listed as a second baseman at 180 pounds on a 6-foot-1 frame. Ripken threw and hit right-handed, per the bio block. The recorded birth is December 16, 1964, in Havre de Grace, MD, USA. Ripken's full given name, per the bio, is William Oliver Ripken.
Ripken collected 674 hits in 2,729 at bats across 912 games, good for a .247 batting average, adding 20 homers, 229 RBI, and 25 stolen bases. Ripken got on base at a .294 rate and slugged .318 (.612 OPS). The league as a whole hit .262 across Ripken's seasons, which puts the .247 career mark 5.8% below average. The OPS comparison is .612 to a league .732, 16.4% below average. The hits column peaks at 118, in 1990. The RBI column peaks at 38 in 1990.
Frequently Asked Questions about Billy Ripken
- What years did Billy Ripken play?
- Billy Ripken played in Major League Baseball from 1987 to 1998.
- Was Billy Ripken a pitcher?
- No. Billy Ripken was a position player (Second Baseman).
- How many home runs did Billy Ripken hit?
- Billy Ripken hit 20 career home runs with 674 hits.
- What was Billy Ripken's career batting average?
- Billy Ripken batted .247 over his career, with 674 hits in 2,729 at bats.
- How many RBI did Billy Ripken have?
- Billy Ripken drove in 229 runs in his career.
- Is Billy Ripken in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Billy Ripken has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.