Joe Rudi
Outfielder · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1967-1982)
Joe Rudi was an outfielder who played in Major League Baseball from 1967 to 1982 for 4 teams, including the Kansas City Athletics, a span of 16 seasons. In 1,547 career games, he hit .264 with 1,468 hits, 179 home runs, and 810 RBI. Joe Rudi was a 3-time All-Star and a 3-time Gold Glove. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 5,574.
- 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
- Outfielder
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 6'2" / 200 lb
- MLB Debut
- 1967-04-11
- Last Game
- 1982-10-03
- Awards
- 3× All-Star · 3× Gold Glove
Full name: Joseph Oden Rudi
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,547 | 5,556 | 684 | 1,468 | 287 | 39 | 179 | 810 | 25 | 369 | 870 | .264 | .311 | .427 | .738 | 5,574 |
Career AVG .264 vs. league average .255 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OBP .311 vs. league average .321 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career SLG .427 vs. league average .375 across their career seasons — +13.8% above league average.
Career OPS .738 vs. league average .696 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | KC1 | AL | 19 | 43 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 7 | .186 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1968 | OAK | AL | 68 | 181 | 10 | 32 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 1 | 12 | 32 | .177 | .236 (-25%) | .298 (-21%) | .340 (-32%) | .638 (-27%) | -681.2 |
| 1969 | OAK | AL | 35 | 122 | 10 | 23 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 16 | .189 | .248 (-24%) | .320 (-31%) | .369 (-25%) | .689 (-28%) | -542.0 |
| 1970 | OAK | AL | 106 | 350 | 40 | 108 | 23 | 2 | 11 | 42 | 3 | 16 | 61 | .309 | .253 (+22%) | .325 (+5%) | .385 (+25%) | .711 (+15%) | 870.4 |
| 1971 | OAK | AL | 127 | 513 | 62 | 137 | 23 | 4 | 10 | 52 | 3 | 28 | 62 | .267 | .249 (+7%) | .316 (-4%) | .365 (+6%) | .682 (+1%) | -43.2 |
| 1972 | OAK | AL | 147 | 593 | 94 | 181 | 32 | 9 | 19 | 75 | 3 | 37 | 62 | .305 | .243 (+25%) | .310 (+11%) | .353 (+37%) | .664 (+25%) | 2485.6 |
| 1973 | OAK | AL | 120 | 437 | 53 | 118 | 25 | 1 | 12 | 66 | 0 | 30 | 72 | .270 | .256 (+5%) | .325 (-3%) | .378 (+9%) | .703 (+4%) | 150.6 |
| 1974 | OAK | AL | 158 | 593 | 73 | 174 | 39 | 4 | 22 | 99 | 2 | 34 | 92 | .293 | .256 (+14%) | .324 (+3%) | .369 (+31%) | .693 (+18%) | 1833.4 |
| 1975 | OAK | AL | 126 | 468 | 66 | 130 | 26 | 6 | 21 | 75 | 2 | 40 | 56 | .278 | .257 (+8%) | .327 (+3%) | .374 (+32%) | .701 (+19%) | 1504.1 |
| 1976 | OAK | AL | 130 | 500 | 54 | 135 | 32 | 3 | 13 | 94 | 6 | 41 | 71 | .270 | .255 (+6%) | .320 (+1%) | .360 (+17%) | .681 (+10%) | 734.2 |
| 1977 | CAL | AL | 64 | 242 | 48 | 64 | 13 | 2 | 13 | 53 | 1 | 22 | 48 | .264 | .264 (avg) | .329 (+1%) | .401 (+24%) | .730 (+14%) | 547.4 |
| 1978 | CAL | AL | 133 | 497 | 58 | 127 | 27 | 1 | 17 | 79 | 2 | 28 | 82 | .256 | .257 (-1%) | .323 (-9%) | .378 (+10%) | .702 (+1%) | -59.2 |
| 1979 | CAL | AL | 90 | 330 | 35 | 80 | 11 | 3 | 11 | 61 | 0 | 24 | 61 | .242 | .265 (-9%) | .329 (-11%) | .397 (-1%) | .727 (-5%) | -338.2 |
| 1980 | CAL | AL | 104 | 372 | 42 | 88 | 17 | 1 | 16 | 53 | 1 | 17 | 84 | .237 | .264 (-11%) | .326 (-15%) | .387 (+7%) | .714 (-3%) | -274.5 |
| 1981 | BOS | AL | 49 | 122 | 14 | 22 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 24 | 0 | 8 | 29 | .180 | .255 (-29%) | .320 (-25%) | .368 (-4%) | .688 (-14%) | -302.3 |
| 1982 | OAK | AL | 71 | 193 | 21 | 41 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 18 | 0 | 24 | 35 | .212 | .261 (-19%) | .324 (-7%) | .388 (-15%) | .712 (-11%) | -310.9 |
| Career · 16 seasons | 1,547 | 5,556 | 684 | 1,468 | 287 | 39 | 179 | 810 | 25 | 369 | 870 | .264 | — | — | — | — | 5,574 | ||
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
| Year | Round | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | ALCS | OAK | 3 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .250 |
| 1974 | ALCS | OAK | 4 | 13 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | .154 |
| 1974 | WS | OAK | 5 | 18 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 3 | .333 |
| 1973 | ALCS | OAK | 5 | 18 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 1 | .222 |
| 1973 | WS | OAK | 7 | 27 | 3 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 4 | .333 |
| 1972 | ALCS | OAK | 5 | 20 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | .250 |
| 1972 | WS | OAK | 7 | 25 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | .240 |
| 1971 | ALCS | OAK | 2 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .143 |
Game Log & Splits
View full game log (1547 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 763 | 2663 | 324 | 691 | 88 | 381 | .259 |
| Away | 784 | 2893 | 360 | 777 | 91 | 429 | .269 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982-10-03 | OAK | KCR | W | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1982-09-24 | OAK | KCR | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1982-09-19 | OAK | CHW | L | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 1982-09-11 | OAK | CHW | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1982-09-04 | OAK | DET | W | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 1982-08-29 | OAK | MIL | L | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1982-08-26 | OAK | MIL | L | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1982-08-22 | OAK | BOS | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1982-08-20 | OAK | BOS | W | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1982-08-19 | OAK | MIL | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1B | 249 | 220 | 1873 | 99 | 19 | 168 |
| 3B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| OF | 1195 | 1150 | 2294 | 60 | 22 | 12 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | KC1 | 1B | 9 | 8 | 63 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 1967 | KC1 | OF | 6 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1968 | OAK | OF | 56 | 50 | 77 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1969 | OAK | 1B | 11 | 10 | 94 | 7 | 3 | 10 |
| 1969 | OAK | OF | 18 | 18 | 40 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1970 | OAK | 1B | 28 | 23 | 196 | 13 | 2 | 16 |
| 1970 | OAK | OF | 63 | 62 | 106 | 5 | 2 | 1 |
| 1971 | OAK | 1B | 5 | 4 | 31 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 1971 | OAK | OF | 121 | 117 | 249 | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| 1972 | OAK | 3B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1972 | OAK | OF | 147 | 147 | 247 | 9 | 2 | 1 |
| 1973 | OAK | 1B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1973 | OAK | OF | 117 | 115 | 231 | 6 | 2 | 2 |
| 1974 | OAK | 1B | 27 | 23 | 182 | 11 | 1 | 21 |
| 1974 | OAK | OF | 140 | 132 | 234 | 7 | 4 | 0 |
| 1975 | OAK | 1B | 91 | 86 | 732 | 36 | 7 | 64 |
| 1975 | OAK | OF | 44 | 36 | 72 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1976 | OAK | 1B | 2 | 0 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 1976 | OAK | OF | 126 | 126 | 258 | 6 | 3 | 2 |
| 1977 | CAL | OF | 61 | 61 | 131 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1978 | CAL | 1B | 10 | 8 | 61 | 6 | 0 | 8 |
| 1978 | CAL | OF | 111 | 109 | 231 | 4 | 2 | 1 |
| 1979 | CAL | 1B | 5 | 4 | 33 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| 1979 | CAL | OF | 80 | 78 | 174 | 5 | 2 | 2 |
| 1980 | CAL | 1B | 6 | 4 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 1980 | CAL | OF | 90 | 87 | 220 | 5 | 2 | 1 |
| 1981 | BOS | 1B | 5 | 5 | 47 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 1981 | BOS | OF | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1982 | OAK | 1B | 49 | 45 | 398 | 20 | 4 | 37 |
| 1982 | OAK | OF | 14 | 7 | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| First Base | 249 |
| Third Base | 1 |
| Left Field | 1158 |
| Center Field | 4 |
| Right Field | 46 |
| Designated Hitter | 51 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1977 | Player of the Week | Week of 1977-04-09 |
| 1976 | Gold Glove | OF |
| 1976 | TSN All-Star | OF |
| 1975 | Gold Glove | OF |
| 1974 | Gold Glove | OF |
| 1974 | TSN All-Star | OF |
| 1972 | TSN All-Star | OF |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 12th | 35.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1975 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 27th | 3.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1974 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 2nd | 161.0 | 336 | 5 |
| 1972 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 2nd | 164.0 | 336 | 1 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Joe Rudi (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Joe Rudi: the record in brief
Between the debut on April 11, 1967 and the final game on October 3, 1982, Joe Rudi built the record summarized on this page. Rudi played for the Kansas City Athletics (1967), the Oakland Athletics (1968 to 1982), the California Angels (1977 to 1980), and the Boston Red Sox (1981). Rudi, born on September 7, 1946, in Modesto, CA, USA, is listed as an outfielder and both batted and threw right-handed. The bio gives 6 feet, 2 inches and 200 pounds. The bio lists the given name Joseph Oden.
Across 1,547 games at the plate, Rudi's career line reads 1,468 hits in 5,556 at bats for a .264 average, along with 179 homers, 810 RBI, and 25 stolen bases. The on-base percentage is .311 and the slugging percentage .427, for an OPS of .738. The .264 career average is close to the .255 the league hit across the same seasons. By OPS the gap is 6.1% above league average (.738 against .696).
Frequently Asked Questions about Joe Rudi
- What years did Joe Rudi play?
- Joe Rudi played in Major League Baseball from 1967 to 1982.
- Was Joe Rudi a pitcher?
- No. Joe Rudi was a position player (Outfielder).
- How many home runs did Joe Rudi hit?
- Joe Rudi hit 179 career home runs with 1,468 hits.
- What teams did Joe Rudi play for?
- Joe Rudi played for 3 teams: the Oakland Athletics (1967–1976, 1982), the California Angels (1977–1980), and the Boston Red Sox (1981).
- Did Joe Rudi win an MVP award?
- No. Joe Rudi did not win the MVP award.
- What awards did Joe Rudi win?
- Joe Rudi won 3 Gold Gloves (1974, 1975, and 1976). He was selected to 3 All-Star Games.
- What were Joe Rudi's career stats?
- In 1,547 games, Joe Rudi had 1,468 hits, 179 home runs, 810 RBI, 684 runs, and 25 stolen bases, with a .264 batting average.
- What position did Joe Rudi play?
- Joe Rudi played primarily as an outfielder, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Joe Rudi and how much did he weigh?
- Joe Rudi was listed at 6 feet 2 inches and 200 pounds.
- How many home runs did Joe Rudi hit each season?
- Joe Rudi's home runs by season: 0 in 1967, 1 in 1968, 2 in 1969, 11 in 1970, 10 in 1971, 19 in 1972, 12 in 1973, 22 in 1974, 21 in 1975, 13 in 1976, 13 in 1977, 17 in 1978, 11 in 1979, 16 in 1980, 6 in 1981, and 5 in 1982. His most in one season was 22, in 1974.
- What was Joe Rudi's career batting average?
- Joe Rudi batted .264 over his career, with 1,468 hits in 5,556 at bats.
- How many RBI did Joe Rudi have?
- Joe Rudi drove in 810 runs in his career.
- Is Joe Rudi in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Joe Rudi has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
- How many All-Star Games did Joe Rudi make?
- Joe Rudi was selected to 3 All-Star Games.