Billy Rogell
Shortstop · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1925-1940)
Billy Rogell was a shortstop who played in Major League Baseball from 1925 to 1940 for the Boston Red Sox, the Detroit Tigers, and the Chicago Cubs, a span of 16 seasons. In 1,482 career games, he hit .267 with 1,375 hits, 42 home runs, and 609 RBI. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 120.
- 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
- 5'10" / 163 lb
- Died
- 8/9/2003 in Sterling Heights, MI, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1925-04-14
- Last Game
- 1940-08-25
Full name: William George Rogell
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,482 | 5,149 | 755 | 1,375 | 256 | 75 | 42 | 609 | 82 | 649 | 416 | .267 | .351 | .370 | .722 | 120 |
Career AVG .267 vs. league average .279 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OBP .351 vs. league average .342 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career SLG .370 vs. league average .397 across their career seasons — 6.7% below league average.
Career OPS .722 vs. league average .739 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1925 | BOS | AL | 58 | 169 | 12 | 33 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 17 | 0 | 11 | 17 | .195 | .288 (-32%) | .349 (-30%) | .407 (-42%) | .756 (-36%) | -1028.7 |
| 1927 | BOS | AL | 82 | 207 | 35 | 55 | 14 | 6 | 2 | 28 | 3 | 24 | 28 | .266 | .282 (-6%) | .344 (-1%) | .392 (+7%) | .736 (+3%) | 96.4 |
| 1928 | BOS | AL | 102 | 296 | 33 | 69 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 29 | 2 | 22 | 47 | .233 | .280 (-17%) | .342 (-14%) | .395 (-26%) | .737 (-20%) | -959.6 |
| 1930 | DET | AL | 54 | 144 | 20 | 24 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 15 | 23 | .167 | .293 (-43%) | .354 (-29%) | .429 (-48%) | .784 (-40%) | -984.6 |
| 1931 | DET | AL | 48 | 185 | 21 | 56 | 12 | 3 | 2 | 24 | 8 | 24 | 17 | .303 | .276 (+10%) | .338 (+13%) | .388 (+11%) | .726 (+12%) | 430.7 |
| 1932 | DET | AL | 144 | 554 | 88 | 150 | 29 | 6 | 9 | 61 | 14 | 50 | 38 | .271 | .275 (-2%) | .335 (-1%) | .391 (+1%) | .726 (avg) | -19.5 |
| 1933 | DET | AL | 155 | 587 | 67 | 173 | 42 | 11 | 0 | 57 | 6 | 79 | 33 | .295 | .270 (+9%) | .329 (+16%) | .377 (+7%) | .707 (+11%) | 1514.9 |
| 1934 | DET | AL | 154 | 592 | 114 | 175 | 32 | 8 | 3 | 100 | 13 | 74 | 36 | .296 | .278 (+6%) | .340 (+10%) | .392 (avg) | .733 (+4%) | 714.7 |
| 1935 | DET | AL | 150 | 560 | 88 | 154 | 23 | 11 | 6 | 71 | 3 | 80 | 29 | .275 | .279 (-2%) | .342 (+7%) | .399 (-3%) | .742 (+2%) | 362.2 |
| 1936 | DET | AL | 146 | 585 | 85 | 160 | 27 | 5 | 6 | 68 | 14 | 73 | 41 | .274 | .283 (-4%) | .349 (+2%) | .404 (-9%) | .753 (-4%) | -257.4 |
| 1937 | DET | AL | 146 | 536 | 85 | 148 | 30 | 7 | 8 | 64 | 5 | 83 | 48 | .276 | .276 (avg) | .342 (+10%) | .398 (+1%) | .740 (+5%) | 803.8 |
| 1938 | DET | AL | 136 | 501 | 76 | 130 | 22 | 8 | 3 | 55 | 9 | 86 | 37 | .259 | .272 (-5%) | .341 (+9%) | .392 (-10%) | .734 (-1%) | 185.1 |
| 1939 | DET | AL | 74 | 174 | 24 | 40 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 23 | 3 | 26 | 14 | .230 | .274 (-16%) | .342 (-4%) | .393 (-15%) | .735 (-10%) | -248.2 |
| 1940 | CHN | NL | 33 | 59 | 7 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 8 | .136 | .267 (-49%) | .335 (-51%) | .387 (-52%) | .722 (-52%) | -489.9 |
| Career · 14 seasons | 1,482 | 5,149 | 755 | 1,375 | 256 | 75 | 42 | 609 | 82 | 649 | 416 | .267 | — | — | — | — | 120 | ||
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
Playoff Batting by Year
Game Log & Splits
View full game log (1484 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 773 | 2585 | 404 | 698 | 15 | 305 | .270 |
| Away | 711 | 2564 | 354 | 677 | 27 | 309 | .264 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1940-08-25 | CHC | NY1 | W | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1940-08-17 | CHC | PIT | W | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1940-08-16 | CHC | CIN | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1940-08-11 | CHC | PIT | L | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1940-07-27 | CHC | NY1 | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1940-07-25 | CHC | BSN | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1940-07-20 | CHC | PHI | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1940-07-19 | CHC | BRO | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1940-07-18 | CHC | BRO | L | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1940-07-17 | CHC | BRO | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2B | 78 | 0 | 159 | 230 | 23 | 41 |
| 3B | 104 | 0 | 86 | 199 | 14 | 16 |
| OF | 9 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SS | 1235 | 0 | 2362 | 3886 | 287 | 805 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1925 | BOS | 2B | 49 | 0 | 98 | 145 | 17 | 29 |
| 1925 | BOS | SS | 6 | 0 | 9 | 16 | 2 | 5 |
| 1927 | BOS | 2B | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2 |
| 1927 | BOS | 3B | 53 | 0 | 49 | 123 | 6 | 8 |
| 1927 | BOS | OF | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1928 | BOS | 2B | 22 | 0 | 47 | 73 | 5 | 8 |
| 1928 | BOS | 3B | 3 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1928 | BOS | OF | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1928 | BOS | SS | 67 | 0 | 101 | 159 | 18 | 26 |
| 1930 | DET | 3B | 13 | 0 | 7 | 19 | 0 | 4 |
| 1930 | DET | OF | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1930 | DET | SS | 33 | 0 | 55 | 95 | 10 | 16 |
| 1931 | DET | SS | 48 | 0 | 91 | 182 | 12 | 26 |
| 1932 | DET | 3B | 4 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 1932 | DET | SS | 139 | 0 | 275 | 433 | 42 | 88 |
| 1933 | DET | SS | 155 | 0 | 326 | 526 | 51 | 116 |
| 1934 | DET | SS | 154 | 0 | 259 | 518 | 31 | 99 |
| 1935 | DET | SS | 150 | 0 | 280 | 512 | 24 | 104 |
| 1936 | DET | 3B | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| 1936 | DET | SS | 146 | 0 | 286 | 462 | 27 | 98 |
| 1937 | DET | SS | 146 | 0 | 323 | 451 | 26 | 103 |
| 1938 | DET | SS | 134 | 0 | 291 | 431 | 31 | 101 |
| 1939 | DET | 2B | 2 | 0 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 2 |
| 1939 | DET | 3B | 21 | 0 | 17 | 40 | 4 | 3 |
| 1939 | DET | SS | 43 | 0 | 59 | 90 | 11 | 21 |
| 1940 | CHN | 2B | 3 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1940 | CHN | 3B | 9 | 0 | 8 | 10 | 4 | 0 |
| 1940 | CHN | SS | 14 | 0 | 7 | 11 | 2 | 2 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Second Base | 77 |
| Third Base | 104 |
| Shortstop | 1237 |
| Left Field | 2 |
| Center Field | 2 |
| Right Field | 4 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Billy Rogell (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Billy Rogell: the record in brief
Between the debut on April 14, 1925 and the final game on August 25, 1940, Billy Rogell built the record summarized on this page. By club, Rogell's seasons break down as the Boston Red Sox (1925 through 1928), the Detroit Tigers (1930 through 1939), and the Chicago Cubs (1940). Rogell played primarily as a shortstop and switch-hit and threw right-handed. Born on November 24, 1904, in Springfield, IL, USA, Rogell was listed at 5-foot-10 and 163 pounds. The bio records the death on August 9, 2003, in Sterling Heights, MI, USA. The bio lists the given name William George.
The batting record for Rogell: 1,482 games, 1,375 hits in 5,149 at bats, and a .267 average, plus 42 home runs, 609 runs batted in, and 82 stolen bases. Rogell got on base at a .351 rate and slugged .370 (.722 OPS). The .267 career average is close to the .279 the league hit across the same seasons. No season topped the 175 hits of 1934. Rogell drove in a season-high 100 runs in 1934.
Frequently Asked Questions about Billy Rogell
- What years did Billy Rogell play?
- Billy Rogell played in Major League Baseball from 1925 to 1940.
- Was Billy Rogell a pitcher?
- No. Billy Rogell was a position player (Shortstop).
- How many home runs did Billy Rogell hit?
- Billy Rogell hit 42 career home runs with 1,375 hits.
- What teams did Billy Rogell play for?
- Billy Rogell played for 3 teams: the Boston Red Sox (1925, 1927–1928), the Detroit Tigers (1930–1939), and the Chicago Cubs (1940).
- What were Billy Rogell's career stats?
- In 1,482 games, Billy Rogell had 1,375 hits, 42 home runs, 609 RBI, 755 runs, and 82 stolen bases, with a .267 batting average.
- What position did Billy Rogell play?
- Billy Rogell played primarily as a shortstop, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Billy Rogell and how much did he weigh?
- Billy Rogell was listed at 5 feet 10 inches and 163 pounds.
- How many home runs did Billy Rogell hit each season?
- Billy Rogell's home runs by season: 0 in 1925, 2 in 1927, 0 in 1928, 0 in 1930, 2 in 1931, 9 in 1932, 0 in 1933, 3 in 1934, 6 in 1935, 6 in 1936, 8 in 1937, 3 in 1938, 2 in 1939, and 1 in 1940. His most in one season was 9, in 1932.
- What was Billy Rogell's career batting average?
- Billy Rogell batted .267 over his career, with 1,375 hits in 5,149 at bats.
- How many RBI did Billy Rogell have?
- Billy Rogell drove in 609 runs in his career.
- Is Billy Rogell in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Billy Rogell has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.