Ray Schalk

Catcher · Career Stats, Hall of Fame Bio & Records (1912-1929)

Ray Schalk was a catcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1912 to 1929 for the Chicago White Sox and the New York Giants, a span of 18 seasons. In 1,762 career games, he hit .253 with 1,345 hits, 11 home runs, and 594 RBI. Ray Schalk was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1955.

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

⭐ Hall of Fame 1955
AVG .253
HR 11
RBI 594
H 1,345
OPS .656
PIV -1,943
Position
Catcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
5'9" / 165 lb
Born
8/12/1892 in Harvel, IL, USA
Died
5/19/1970 in Chicago, IL, USA
MLB Debut
1912-08-11
Last Game
1929-09-15
Hall of Fame
Inducted 1955 (BBWAA)

Full name: Ray William Schalk

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Career Batting Statistics

Ray Schalk — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
1,762 5,306 579 1,345 199 49 11 594 177 638 358 .253 .340 .316 .656 -1,943

Career AVG .253 vs. league average .272 across their career seasons — 6.8% below league average.

Career OBP .340 vs. league average .335 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .316 vs. league average .371 across their career seasons — 14.9% below league average.

Career OPS .656 vs. league average .707 across their career seasons — 7.2% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Ray Schalk 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
1912 CHA AL 23 63 7 18 2 0 0 8 2 3 3 .286 .268 (+6%) .335 (+6%) .358 (-11%) .694 (-3%) -1.4
1913 CHA AL 129 401 38 98 15 5 1 38 14 27 36 .244 .259 (-6%) .325 (-9%) .345 (-9%) .670 (-9%) -568.2
1914 CHA AL 136 392 30 106 13 2 0 36 24 38 24 .270 .255 (+6%) .322 (+8%) .339 (-7%) .661 (avg) 153.1
1915 CHA AL 135 413 46 110 14 4 1 54 15 62 21 .266 .250 (+6%) .318 (+15%) .332 (-2%) .651 (+6%) 772.3
1916 CHA AL 129 410 36 95 12 9 0 41 30 41 31 .232 .248 (-7%) .314 (-1%) .326 (-7%) .640 (-4%) -195.6
1917 CHA AL 140 424 48 96 12 5 2 51 19 59 27 .226 .248 (-9%) .312 (+6%) .323 (-10%) .635 (-2%) 91.0
1918 CHA AL 108 333 35 73 6 3 0 22 12 36 22 .219 .255 (-14%) .318 (-6%) .326 (-22%) .645 (-14%) -582.6
1919 CHA AL 131 394 57 111 9 3 0 34 11 51 25 .282 .262 (+7%) .322 (+14%) .347 (-8%) .670 (+2%) 433.9
1920 CHA AL 151 485 64 131 25 5 1 61 10 68 19 .270 .271 (-1%) .331 (+9%) .363 (-4%) .694 (+2%) 446.8
1921 CHA AL 128 416 32 105 24 4 0 47 3 40 36 .252 .286 (-12%) .344 (-5%) .395 (-17%) .739 (-11%) -691.0
1922 CHA AL 142 442 57 124 22 3 4 60 12 67 36 .281 .285 (-2%) .345 (+10%) .397 (-7%) .743 (+1%) 334.5
1923 CHA AL 123 382 42 87 12 2 1 44 7 39 28 .228 .282 (-20%) .344 (-11%) .390 (-29%) .734 (-21%) -1205.1
1924 CHA AL 57 153 15 30 4 2 1 11 1 21 10 .196 .283 (-31%) .345 (-13%) .389 (-31%) .734 (-23%) -528.0
1925 CHA AL 125 343 44 94 18 1 0 52 11 57 27 .274 .288 (-5%) .349 (+9%) .407 (-18%) .756 (-6%) -112.7
1926 CHA AL 82 226 26 60 9 1 0 32 5 27 11 .265 .279 (-5%) .345 (+1%) .390 (-19%) .735 (-10%) -289.8
1927 CHA AL 16 26 2 6 2 0 0 2 0 2 1 .231 — — — — 0.0
1928 CHA AL 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1.000 — — — — 0.0
1929 NY1 NL 5 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 — — — — 0.0
Career · 18 seasons 1,762 5,306 579 1,345 199 49 11 594 177 638 358 .253 — — — — -1,943

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

Ray Schalk — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
14 42 2 12 0 0 0 2 6 3 .286

Playoff Batting by Year

Ray Schalk — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1919 WS CHA 8 23 1 7 0 0 0 2 4 2 .304
1917 WS CHA 6 19 1 5 0 0 0 0 2 1 .263

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (1763 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Ray Schalk — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home88025833026704298.259
Away88327292766757298.247

Last 10 Games — Batting

Ray Schalk — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1929-09-15 NY1STLL 000000000
1929-08-24 NY1PITW 000000000
1929-06-30 NY1PHIL 100000001
1929-06-30 NY1PHIW 000000000
1929-06-03 NY1CHCW 100000000
1928-07-04 CHWSLAL 101000100
1928-05-23 CHWCLEW 000000010
1927-09-24 CHWBOSL 201000000
1927-09-23 CHWBOSW 400000000
1927-09-10 CHWMINL 000000000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Ray Schalk — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
C 1727 0 7168 1811 175 226

Season-by-Season Fielding

Ray Schalk — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1912 CHA C 23 0 115 40 14 4
1913 CHA C 125 0 599 154 15 18
1914 CHA C 125 0 613 183 21 20
1915 CHA C 134 0 655 159 13 8
1916 CHA C 124 0 653 166 10 25
1917 CHA C 139 0 624 148 15 18
1918 CHA C 106 0 422 114 12 15
1919 CHA C 129 0 551 130 13 14
1920 CHA C 151 0 581 138 10 19
1921 CHA C 126 0 453 129 9 19
1922 CHA C 142 0 591 150 8 16
1923 CHA C 121 0 481 93 10 20
1924 CHA C 56 0 176 55 10 8
1925 CHA C 125 0 368 99 8 15
1926 CHA C 80 0 251 45 7 6
1927 CHA C 15 0 24 8 0 1
1928 CHA C 1 0 4 0 0 0
1929 NY1 C 5 0 7 0 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Ray Schalk Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Catcher 1727

Awards & Honors

Ray Schalk — Awards & Honors
Year Award Notes
1917 Baseball Magazine All-Star C
1916 Baseball Magazine All-Star C
1915 Baseball Magazine All-Star C
1914 Baseball Magazine All-Star C2

Award Voting History

Ray Schalk — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1925 Most Valuable Player AL 12th 7.0 64 0
1922 Most Valuable Player AL 3rd 26.0 64 0
1914 Most Valuable Player AL 6th 13.0 64 0
1913 Most Valuable Player AL 20th 3.0 64 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Ray Schalk (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Wilbert Robinson HOF
    .273 avg, 18 HR
  2. 97
    George Miller
    .267 avg, 33 HR
  3. 96
    Jack O'Connor
    .263 avg, 19 HR
  4. 95
    Charles Zimmer
    .269 avg, 26 HR
  5. 92
    Luke Sewell
    .259 avg, 20 HR
  6. 92
    Johnny Kling
    .272 avg, 20 HR

Ray Schalk: the record in brief

Ray Schalk played a first major league game on August 11, 1912 and a last one on September 15, 1929. The team column moves through the Chicago White Sox (1912 to 1928) and the New York Giants (1929). Schalk, born on August 12, 1892, in Harvel, IL, USA, is listed as a catcher and threw and hit right-handed. The bio gives 165 pounds on a 5-foot-9 frame. Schalk died on May 19, 1970, in Chicago, IL, USA. The bio lists the given name Ray William.

Schalk finished with 1,345 hits from 5,306 at bats in 1,762 games, which works out to .253, adding 11 homers, 594 RBI, and 177 stolen bases. Schalk got on base at a .340 rate and slugged .316 (.656 OPS). Set against a .272 league average for the same years, Schalk's .253 average sits 6.8% below it. In OPS terms, Schalk's .656 stands 7.2% below the league's .707. The hits column peaks at 131, in 1920. Schalk drove in a season-high 61 runs in 1920.

Frequently Asked Questions about Ray Schalk

What years did Ray Schalk play?
Ray Schalk played in Major League Baseball from 1912 to 1929.
Was Ray Schalk a pitcher?
No. Ray Schalk was a position player (Catcher).
How many home runs did Ray Schalk hit?
Ray Schalk hit 11 career home runs with 1,345 hits.
Is Ray Schalk in the Hall of Fame?
Yes. Ray Schalk was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1955.
What teams did Ray Schalk play for?
Ray Schalk played for 2 teams: the Chicago White Sox (1912–1928) and the New York Giants (1929).
What were Ray Schalk's career stats?
In 1,762 games, Ray Schalk had 1,345 hits, 11 home runs, 594 RBI, 579 runs, and 177 stolen bases, with a .253 batting average.
What position did Ray Schalk play?
Ray Schalk played primarily as a catcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Ray Schalk and how much did he weigh?
Ray Schalk was listed at 5 feet 9 inches and 165 pounds.
How many home runs did Ray Schalk hit each season?
Ray Schalk's home runs by season: 0 in 1912, 1 in 1913, 0 in 1914, 1 in 1915, 0 in 1916, 2 in 1917, 0 in 1918, 0 in 1919, 1 in 1920, 0 in 1921, 4 in 1922, 1 in 1923, 1 in 1924, 0 in 1925, 0 in 1926, 0 in 1927, 0 in 1928, and 0 in 1929. His most in one season was 4, in 1922.
What was Ray Schalk's career batting average?
Ray Schalk batted .253 over his career, with 1,345 hits in 5,306 at bats.
How many RBI did Ray Schalk have?
Ray Schalk drove in 594 runs in his career.