Rafael Santana

Shortstop · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1983-1990)

AVG .246
HR 13
RBI 156
H 497
OPS .601
PIV -5,021
Position
Shortstop
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
6'1" / 165 lb
Born
1/31/1958 in La Romana, La Romana, D.R.
MLB Debut
1983-04-05
Last Game
1990-04-23

Full name: Rafael Francisco Santana

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Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
668 2,021 188 497 74 5 13 156 3 138 234 .246 .295 .307 .601 -5,021

Career AVG .246 vs. league average .259 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .295 vs. league average .324 across their career seasons — 9.2% below league average.

Career SLG .307 vs. league average .391 across their career seasons — 21.6% below league average.

Career OPS .601 vs. league average .716 across their career seasons — 16.0% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

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
1983 SLN NL 30 14 1 3 0 0 0 2 0 2 2 .214 — — — — 0.0
1984 NYN NL 51 152 14 42 11 1 1 12 0 9 17 .276 .259 (+6%) .322 (-2%) .384 (-1%) .707 (-1%) -48.1
1985 NYN NL 154 529 41 136 19 1 1 29 1 29 54 .257 .257 (avg) .323 (-9%) .390 (-23%) .714 (-16%) -1346.4
1986 NYN NL 139 394 38 86 11 0 1 28 0 36 43 .218 .257 (-15%) .325 (-13%) .395 (-36%) .720 (-25%) -1518.6
1987 NYN NL 139 439 41 112 21 2 5 44 1 29 57 .255 .262 (-3%) .331 (-9%) .415 (-17%) .746 (-13%) -948.2
1988 NYA AL 148 480 50 115 12 1 4 38 1 33 61 .240 .254 (-6%) .317 (-9%) .377 (-22%) .695 (-16%) -1159.5
1990 CLE AL 7 13 3 3 0 0 1 3 0 0 0 .231 — — — — 0.0
Career · 7 seasons 668 2,021 188 497 74 5 13 156 3 138 234 .246 — — — — -5,021

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

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
13 37 3 8 0 0 0 2 2 8 .216

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1986 NLCS NYN 6 17 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 .176
1986 WS NYN 7 20 3 5 0 0 0 2 2 5 .250

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (668 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home33097989225573.230
Away338104299272883.261

Last 10 Games — Batting

DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1990-04-23 CLETORL 000000000
1990-04-18 CLEKCRL 000000000
1990-04-16 CLEKCRW 411000100
1990-04-15 CLECHWL 000000000
1990-04-14 CLECHWL 411001200
1990-04-13 CLECHWW 311000000
1990-04-12 CLENYYL 200000000
1988-09-30 NYYDETL 301000001
1988-09-29 NYYBALW 401000100
1988-09-28 NYYBALL 301000001

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
2B 10 1 2 4 1 1
3B 4 0 0 2 2 1
SS 639 578 1014 1697 87 364

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1983 SLN 2B 9 1 2 4 1 1
1983 SLN 3B 4 0 0 2 2 1
1983 SLN SS 6 0 1 2 1 1
1984 NYN SS 50 42 92 104 6 34
1985 NYN SS 153 145 301 396 25 81
1986 NYN 2B 1 0 0 0 0 0
1986 NYN SS 137 111 203 369 16 68
1987 NYN SS 138 129 213 396 17 82
1988 NYA SS 148 147 202 421 22 96
1990 CLE SS 7 4 2 9 0 2

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Position Games
Second Base 9
Third Base 5
Shortstop 639

Salary History

Year Team League Salary
1990 CLE AL $250,000
1989 NYA AL $500,000
1988 NYA AL $425,000
1987 NYN NL $250,000
1986 NYN NL $235,000
1985 NYN NL $125,000
Total Career Earnings $1,785,000

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Rafael Santana (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Ed Romero
    .247 avg, 8 HR
  2. 95
    Roberto Peña
    .245 avg, 13 HR
  3. 82
    Doug Griffin
    .245 avg, 7 HR
  4. 80
    Danny Thompson
    .248 avg, 15 HR
  5. 80
    Chuck Hiller
    .243 avg, 20 HR
  6. 65
    Lennie Merullo
    .240 avg, 6 HR

Frequently Asked Questions about Rafael Santana

What years did Rafael Santana play?
Rafael Santana played in Major League Baseball from 1983 to 1990.
Was Rafael Santana a pitcher?
No. Rafael Santana was a position player (Shortstop).
How many home runs did Rafael Santana hit?
Rafael Santana hit 13 career home runs with 497 hits.