Willie Simms

Center Fielder · Career Stats, Bio & Records

Willie Simms was a center fielder who played in Major League Baseball for the Cincinnati Tigers, the Kansas City Monarchs, and the Chicago American Giants. In 229 career games, he hit .235 with 207 hits, 5 home runs, and 78 RBI. Willie Simms was an All-Star. His totals include Negro Leagues seasons, which MLB recognized as major league in 2020.

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 .235
HR 5
RBI 78
H 207
OPS .616
PIV -1,621
Position
Center Fielder
Bats / Throws
L / R
Height / Weight
5'9" / 160 lb
Born
12/23/1908 in Shreveport, LA, USA
Died
5/10/2002 in Perris, CA, USA
Awards
All-Star
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Negro Leagues Career Statistics

Batting

Willie Simms — Batting
PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB BA OBP SLG OPS
1139.0 1016.0 171.0 256.0 36.0 18.0 6.0 75.0 100.0 16.0 40.0 .252 .322 .341 .663

Negro Leagues (season totals). Additive Retrosheet-digitized totals for seasons not already in the logs above; they are not summed into the career line. No team/league breakdown is available, and coverage may be partial.

Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Batting

Willie Simms — Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Batting
Season PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB BA OBP SLG OPS
1936 31.0 29.0 3.0 8.0 0 0 0 1.0 1.0 0 1.0 .276 .323 .276 .599
1944 9.0 6.0 3.0 2.0 0 0 0 0 3.0 0 0 .333 .556 .333 .889
Listed seasons · 2 40 35 6 10 0 0 0 1 4 0 1 .286 — — —

Career Batting Statistics

Willie Simms — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
229 881 137 207 28 13 5 78 33 82 7 .235 .303 .313 .616 -1,621

Career AVG .235 vs. league average .266 across their career seasons — 11.7% below league average.

Career OBP .303 vs. league average .335 across their career seasons — 9.4% below league average.

Career SLG .313 vs. league average .377 across their career seasons — 16.9% below league average.

Career OPS .616 vs. league average .712 across their career seasons — 13.4% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Willie Simms (b. 1908) 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
1937 CT NAL 3 7 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .143 — — — — 0.0
1937 KCM NAL 30 108 16 30 5 1 1 15 10 4 0 .278 .276 (avg) .342 (-10%) .398 (-7%) .740 (-8%) 0.0
1937 CAG NAL 2 8 0 2 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 .250 — — — — 0.0
1938 KCM NAL 3 12 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .250 — — — — 0.0
1938 CAG NAL 18 79 13 19 3 1 0 7 3 7 0 .241 .272 (-12%) .341 (-12%) .392 (-23%) .734 (-17%) 0.0
1939 CAG NAL 34 134 20 42 5 2 3 14 6 15 0 .313 .274 (+14%) .342 (+13%) .393 (+14%) .735 (+14%) 333.8
1940 CAG NAL 19 76 14 17 4 0 1 5 1 9 2 .224 .267 (-16%) .335 (-9%) .387 (-19%) .722 (-14%) -162.5
1941 KCM NAL 41 154 27 32 2 3 0 15 8 21 0 .208 .262 (-21%) .332 (-8%) .373 (-30%) .705 (-20%) -439.0
1942 KCM NAL 48 206 35 45 6 5 0 12 3 13 4 .218 .253 (-14%) .323 (-18%) .349 (-15%) .672 (-17%) -569.8
1943 KCM NAL 31 97 12 16 2 1 0 8 2 13 0 .165 .255 (-36%) .324 (-17%) .346 (-40%) .671 (-29%) -399.2
Career · 10 seasons 229 881 137 207 28 13 5 78 33 82 7 .235 — — — — -1,237

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 Pitching Statistics

Willie Simms — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1.1 4 2 0 0 0 13.50 0.0

Career ERA 13.50 vs. league average 4.28 across their career seasons — 215.1% worse than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Willie Simms — Season-by-Season Pitching
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1939 CAG NAL 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1.1 4 2 0 0 13.50 — 0.0
Career · 1 season 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1.1 4 2 0 0 13.50 — 0

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

Willie Simms — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
7 33 5 8 0 3 0 6 1 0 .242

Playoff Batting by Year

Willie Simms — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1942 NWS KCM 4 21 4 5 0 1 0 2 1 0 .238
1937 ALC KCM 3 12 1 3 0 2 0 4 0 0 .250

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Willie Simms — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 1 0 0 0 0 0
OF 229 222 295 16 23 2
P 1 1 0 0 0 0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Willie Simms — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1937 CT 1B 1 0 0 0 0 0
1937 CT OF 2 2 2 0 0 0
1937 KCM OF 32 28 32 1 1 0
1937 CAG OF 2 2 3 0 0 0
1938 KCM OF 3 3 3 1 0 0
1938 CAG OF 18 18 32 1 2 0
1939 CAG OF 33 33 63 4 5 0
1939 CAG P 1 1 0 0 0 0
1940 CAG OF 19 19 25 0 1 0
1941 KCM OF 40 40 47 5 4 1
1942 KCM OF 49 48 68 3 6 1
1943 KCM OF 31 29 20 1 4 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Willie Simms (b. 1908) Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 1
First Base 1
Left Field 105
Center Field 115
Right Field 9

Willie Simms: the record in brief

Willie Simms's record on this page is drawn from the season tables, which run from 1937 to 1943. Club by club, the record runs the Cincinnati Tigers (1937), the Kansas City Monarchs (1937 to 1943), and the Chicago American Giants (1937 through 1940). Born on December 23, 1908, in Shreveport, LA, USA, Simms is listed as a center fielder and batted left-handed and threw right-handed. The bio gives 5'9" and 160 pounds. Simms died on May 10, 2002, in Perris, CA, USA.

The batting record for Simms: 229 games, 207 hits in 881 at bats, and a .235 average, adding 5 home runs, 78 RBI, and 33 stolen bases. Reaching base at a .303 clip and slugging .313, Simms finished with a .616 OPS. Over the seasons Simms played, league hitters batted .266; the .235 career figure is 11.7% below that. 1942 produced Simms's most hits, 45 of them for the Kansas City Monarchs.

Frequently Asked Questions about Willie Simms

Was Willie Simms a pitcher?
No. Willie Simms was a position player (Center Fielder), though he did pitch in 1 career game.
How many home runs did Willie Simms hit?
Willie Simms hit 5 career home runs with 207 hits.
What was Willie Simms's career batting average?
Willie Simms batted .235 over his career, with 207 hits in 881 at bats.
How many RBI did Willie Simms have?
Willie Simms drove in 78 runs in his career.
What was Willie Simms's career ERA?
Willie Simms finished with a 13.50 career ERA, going 0-0 with 0 strikeouts.
Is Willie Simms in the Hall of Fame?
No. Willie Simms has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.