John Romano

Catcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1958-1967)

John Romano was a catcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1958 to 1967 for the Chicago White Sox, the Cleveland Guardians, and the St. Louis Cardinals, a span of 10 seasons. In 905 career games, he hit .255 with 706 hits, 129 home runs, and 417 RBI. John Romano was a 2-time All-Star. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 7,970.

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

AVG .255
HR 129
RBI 417
H 706
OPS .797
PIV 7,970
Position
Catcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
5'11" / 205 lb
Born
8/23/1934 in Hoboken, NJ, USA
Died
2/24/2019 in Naples, FL, USA
MLB Debut
1958-09-12
Last Game
1967-09-04
Awards
2× All-Star

Full name: John Anthony Romano

📊 Compare This Player 📈 View Career Timeline

Career Batting Statistics

John Romano — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
905 2,767 355 706 112 10 129 417 7 414 485 .255 .354 .443 .797 7,970

Career AVG .255 vs. league average .251 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .354 vs. league average .317 across their career seasons — +11.8% above league average.

Career SLG .443 vs. league average .381 across their career seasons — +16.1% above league average.

Career OPS .797 vs. league average .698 across their career seasons — +14.1% above league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

John Romano Stats, Bio & Career Records
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 CHA AL 4 7 1 2 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 .286 — — — — 0.0
1959 CHA AL 53 126 20 37 5 1 5 25 0 23 18 .294 .256 (+14%) .323 (+26%) .392 (+19%) .715 (+22%) 579.9
1960 CLE AL 108 316 40 86 12 2 16 52 0 37 50 .272 .255 (+7%) .323 (+8%) .387 (+22%) .711 (+16%) 935.4
1961 CLE AL 142 509 76 152 29 1 21 80 0 61 60 .299 .258 (+16%) .328 (+15%) .399 (+21%) .727 (+18%) 1967.6
1962 CLE AL 135 459 71 120 19 3 25 81 0 73 64 .261 .257 (+1%) .326 (+11%) .393 (+22%) .719 (+17%) 1629.6
1963 CLE AL 89 255 28 55 5 2 10 34 4 38 49 .216 .246 (-12%) .308 (+2%) .371 (-1%) .680 (+1%) 82.4
1964 CLE AL 106 352 46 85 18 1 19 47 2 51 83 .241 .250 (-4%) .312 (+11%) .377 (+22%) .690 (+17%) 1180.2
1965 CHA AL 122 356 39 86 11 0 18 48 0 59 74 .242 .245 (-2%) .310 (+14%) .371 (+14%) .682 (+14%) 1131.4
1966 CHA AL 122 329 33 76 12 0 15 47 0 58 72 .231 .248 (-7%) .309 (+11%) .376 (+7%) .685 (+9%) 728.9
1967 SLN NL 24 58 1 7 1 0 0 2 1 13 15 .121 .242 (-50%) .306 (-8%) .357 (-61%) .663 (-37%) -265.6
Career · 10 seasons 905 2,767 355 706 112 10 129 417 7 414 485 .255 — — — — 7,970

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

John Romano — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Batting by Year

John Romano — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1959 WS CHA 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (906 games) →

Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).

Batting — Home / Away

John Romano — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home453133417434760194.260
Away453143318135969223.251

Last 10 Games — Batting

John Romano — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1967-09-04 STLPITL 100000001
1967-08-21 STLHOUL 300000010
1967-07-23 STLATLW 301000100
1967-07-16 STLNYNL 301100000
1967-07-02 STLNYNL 201000021
1967-06-27 STLSFGL 100000001
1967-06-25 STLPHIL 300000010
1967-06-06 STLHOUL 301000001
1967-06-04 STLCHCW 100000010
1967-06-02 STLCHCW 300000000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

John Romano — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 3 1 9 0 0 0
C 810 771 4415 343 47 51
OF 8 7 11 1 1 0

Season-by-Season Fielding

John Romano — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1958 CHA C 2 2 13 0 0 0
1959 CHA C 38 34 169 16 4 5
1960 CLE C 99 88 470 30 6 6
1961 CLE C 141 140 752 58 9 8
1962 CLE C 130 128 657 63 7 6
1963 CLE C 71 64 408 28 3 5
1963 CLE OF 4 4 5 0 1 0
1964 CLE 1B 1 1 9 0 0 0
1964 CLE C 96 93 714 38 7 3
1965 CHA 1B 2 0 0 0 0 0
1965 CHA C 111 107 569 61 5 10
1965 CHA OF 4 3 6 1 0 0
1966 CHA C 102 96 552 46 4 7
1967 SLN C 20 19 111 3 2 1

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

John Romano Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Catcher 809
First Base 3
Left Field 9

Award Voting History

John Romano — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1961 Most Valuable Player AL 24th 1.0 280 0

Most Similar Players

Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.

Career Spans

John Romano (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Stan Lopata
    .254 avg, 116 HR
  2. 75
    Chris Hoiles
    .262 avg, 151 HR
  3. 73
    Will Smith
    .263 avg, 138 HR
  4. 72
    Jim Leyritz
    .264 avg, 90 HR
  5. 68
    Ed Bailey
    .256 avg, 155 HR
  6. 63
    John Wockenfuss
    .262 avg, 86 HR

John Romano: the record in brief

Between the debut on September 12, 1958 and the final game on September 4, 1967, John Romano built the record summarized on this page. The season rows list, in order, the Chicago White Sox (1958 through 1966), the Cleveland Indians (1960 to 1964), and the St. Louis Cardinals (1967). Romano played primarily as a catcher and both batted and threw right-handed. The bio adds a birth date on August 23, 1934, in Hoboken, NJ, USA and a listed size of 5-foot-11 and 205 pounds. The bio records the death on February 24, 2019, in Naples, FL, USA. The bio lists the given name John Anthony.

Romano finished with 706 hits from 2,767 at bats in 905 games, which works out to .255, adding 129 home runs and 417 runs batted in. Romano got on base at a .354 rate and slugged .443 (.797 OPS). The .255 career average is close to the .251 the league hit across the same seasons.

Frequently Asked Questions about John Romano

What years did John Romano play?
John Romano played in Major League Baseball from 1958 to 1967.
Was John Romano a pitcher?
No. John Romano was a position player (Catcher).
How many home runs did John Romano hit?
John Romano hit 129 career home runs with 706 hits.
What teams did John Romano play for?
John Romano played for 3 teams: the Chicago White Sox (1958–1959, 1965–1966), the Cleveland Indians (1960–1964), and the St. Louis Cardinals (1967).
Did John Romano win an MVP award?
No. John Romano did not win the MVP award.
What awards did John Romano win?
John Romano was selected to 2 All-Star Games.
What were John Romano's career stats?
In 905 games, John Romano had 706 hits, 129 home runs, 417 RBI, 355 runs, and 7 stolen bases, with a .255 batting average.
What position did John Romano play?
John Romano played primarily as a catcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was John Romano and how much did he weigh?
John Romano was listed at 5 feet 11 inches and 205 pounds.
How many home runs did John Romano hit each season?
John Romano's home runs by season: 0 in 1958, 5 in 1959, 16 in 1960, 21 in 1961, 25 in 1962, 10 in 1963, 19 in 1964, 18 in 1965, 15 in 1966, and 0 in 1967. His most in one season was 25, in 1962.
What was John Romano's career batting average?
John Romano batted .255 over his career, with 706 hits in 2,767 at bats.
How many RBI did John Romano have?
John Romano drove in 417 runs in his career.
Is John Romano in the Hall of Fame?
No. John Romano has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
How many All-Star Games did John Romano make?
John Romano was selected to 2 All-Star Games.