Spec Shea

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1947-1955)

W–L 56–46
ERA 3.80
WHIP 1.43
SO 361
Pitcher PIV -8514.7
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
6'0" / 195 lb
Born
10/2/1920 in Naugatuck, CT, USA
Died
7/19/2002 in New Haven, CT, USA
MLB Debut
1947-04-19
Last Game
1955-08-27
Awards
All-Star

Full name: Francis Joseph Shea

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Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
56 46 195 118 48 12 5 943.7 849 398 66 497 361 3.80 -8514.7

Career ERA 3.80 vs. league average 4.00 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1947 NYA AL 14 5 27 23 13 3 1 178.7 127 61 89 89 3.07 3.97 (+23%) -77.3
1948 NYA AL 9 10 28 22 8 3 1 155.7 117 59 87 71 3.41 4.10 (+17%) -1200.3
1949 NYA AL 1 1 20 3 0 0 1 52.3 48 31 43 22 5.33 4.12 (-29%) -1647.6
1951 NYA AL 5 5 25 11 2 2 0 95.7 112 46 50 38 4.33 4.04 (-7%) -1992.6
1952 WS1 AL 11 7 22 21 12 2 0 169.0 144 55 92 65 2.93 3.70 (+21%) -206.7
1953 WS1 AL 12 7 23 23 11 1 0 164.7 151 72 75 38 3.94 4.14 (+5%) -1235.0
1954 WS1 AL 2 9 23 11 1 0 0 71.3 97 49 34 22 6.18 3.90 (-59%) -1851.4
1955 WS1 AL 2 2 27 4 1 1 2 56.3 53 25 27 16 3.99 4.00 (avg) -303.8
Career · 8 seasons 56 46 195 118 48 12 5 943.2 849 398 497 361 3.80 — -8,515

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.

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
195 298 29 58 8 4 1 33 0 19 63 .195 .245 .258 .504 -1,143

Career AVG .195 vs. league average .261 across their career seasons — 25.4% below league average.

Career OBP .245 vs. league average .336 across their career seasons — 26.9% below league average.

Career SLG .258 vs. league average .384 across their career seasons — 32.7% below league average.

Career OPS .504 vs. league average .720 across their career seasons — 30.0% 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
1947 NYA AL 27 56 8 11 2 1 0 1 0 5 9 .196 .262 (-25%) .336 (-22%) .376 (-29%) .712 (-26%) -236.1
1948 NYA AL 28 47 4 7 0 2 0 4 0 6 11 .149 — — — — -240.7
1949 NYA AL 20 12 1 3 0 0 0 4 0 2 2 .250 — — — — 0.0
1951 NYA AL 25 28 5 6 0 0 1 5 0 2 7 .214 — — — — 0.0
1952 WS1 AL 22 63 6 15 2 0 0 10 0 2 16 .238 .252 (-6%) .326 (-20%) .369 (-27%) .696 (-24%) -238.1
1953 WS1 AL 23 62 2 11 1 1 0 6 0 2 9 .177 .264 (-33%) .335 (-40%) .397 (-43%) .733 (-41%) -427.9
1954 WS1 AL 23 20 2 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 6 .050 — — — — 0.0
1955 WS1 AL 27 10 1 4 2 0 0 2 0 0 3 .400 — — — — 0.0
Career · 8 seasons 195 298 29 58 8 4 1 33 0 19 63 .195 — — — — -1,143

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
3 5 0 2 1 0 0 1 0 2 .400

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1947 WS NYA 3 5 0 2 1 0 0 1 0 2 .400

Playoff Career Pitching

W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
2 0 3 3 0 15.3 10 4 8 10 2.35

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1947 WS NYA 2 0 3 3 0 15.3 10 4 8 10 2.35

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (390 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home981481635123.236
Away971491323010.154

Pitching — Home / Away

SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home98494.24281792492123.26
Away97449.04212182481484.37

Last 10 Games — Batting

DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1955-08-27 MINCHWL 000000000
1955-08-23 MINKC1L 000000000
1955-08-14 MINBOSL 212100000
1955-08-06 MINCLEW 101100000
1955-07-31 MINCHWL 101000200
1955-07-26 MINKC1L 100000000
1955-07-17 MINKC1W 400000003
1955-07-10 MINNYYL 000000000
1955-07-07 MINBOSL 000000000
1955-07-04 MINBALL 000000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1955-08-27 MINCHW — 2.2233310
1955-08-23 MINKC1 — 1.0000000
1955-08-14 MINBOS — 5.0544511
1955-08-06 MINCLE W 3.2200210
1955-07-31 MINCHW L 5.01155010
1955-07-26 MINKC1 L 5.0632200
1955-07-17 MINKC1 W 9.0300230
1955-07-10 MINNYY — 1.0100010
1955-07-07 MINBOS — 1.2100100
1955-07-04 MINBAL — 0.2100000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
P 195 15 49 125 6 8

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1947 NYA P 27 0 9 14 0 0
1948 NYA P 28 0 4 17 1 0
1949 NYA P 20 0 2 9 1 1
1951 NYA P 25 0 7 14 1 3
1952 WS1 P 22 0 14 23 0 1
1953 WS1 P 23 0 5 24 0 2
1954 WS1 P 23 11 5 17 1 1
1955 WS1 P 27 4 3 7 2 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Position Games
Pitcher 195

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1947 Most Valuable Player AL 14th 23.0 336 0
1947 Rookie of the Year ML 3rd 67.0 165 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Spec Shea (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Monty Kennedy
    42-55, 3.84 ERA
  2. 96
    Oscar Judd
    40-51, 3.90 ERA
  3. 86
    Paul Erickson
    37-48, 3.86 ERA
  4. 85
    Eric Erickson
    34-57, 3.85 ERA
  5. 83
    Rube Melton
    30-50, 3.62 ERA
  6. 82
    Phil Marchildon
    68-75, 3.93 ERA

Frequently Asked Questions about Spec Shea

What years did Spec Shea play?
Spec Shea played in Major League Baseball from 1947 to 1955.
Was Spec Shea a pitcher?
Yes. Spec Shea pitched in the major leagues, recording 56 wins and 361 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Spec Shea hit?
Spec Shea hit 1 career home runs with 58 hits.