Bill Skowron
First Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1954-1967)
Bill Skowron was a first baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1954 to 1967 for 5 teams, including the New York Yankees, a span of 14 seasons. In 1,658 career games, he hit .282 with 1,566 hits, 211 home runs, and 888 RBI. Bill Skowron was a 6-time All-Star. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 11,604.
- 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
- First Baseman
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 5'11" / 195 lb
- Died
- 4/27/2012 in Arlington Heights, IL, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1954-04-13
- Last Game
- 1967-10-01
- Awards
- 6× All-Star
Full name: William Joseph Skowron
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,658 | 5,547 | 681 | 1,566 | 243 | 53 | 211 | 888 | 16 | 383 | 870 | .282 | .332 | .459 | .792 | 11,604 |
Career AVG .282 vs. league average .253 across their career seasons — +11.5% above league average.
Career OBP .332 vs. league average .320 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career SLG .459 vs. league average .384 across their career seasons — +19.5% above league average.
Career OPS .792 vs. league average .705 across their career seasons — +12.4% 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1954 | NYA | AL | 87 | 215 | 37 | 73 | 12 | 9 | 7 | 41 | 2 | 19 | 18 | .340 | .261 (+30%) | .333 (+18%) | .390 (+48%) | .723 (+34%) | 1263.2 |
| 1955 | NYA | AL | 108 | 288 | 46 | 92 | 17 | 3 | 12 | 61 | 1 | 21 | 32 | .319 | .258 (+24%) | .332 (+11%) | .393 (+33%) | .726 (+23%) | 1210.2 |
| 1956 | NYA | AL | 134 | 464 | 78 | 143 | 21 | 6 | 23 | 90 | 4 | 50 | 60 | .308 | .258 (+19%) | .331 (+15%) | .397 (+33%) | .728 (+25%) | 2349.9 |
| 1957 | NYA | AL | 122 | 457 | 54 | 139 | 15 | 5 | 17 | 88 | 3 | 31 | 60 | .304 | .257 (+18%) | .323 (+7%) | .391 (+20%) | .715 (+14%) | 1168.5 |
| 1958 | NYA | AL | 126 | 465 | 61 | 127 | 22 | 3 | 14 | 73 | 1 | 28 | 69 | .273 | .257 (+6%) | .324 (-3%) | .394 (+7%) | .719 (+3%) | 153.8 |
| 1959 | NYA | AL | 74 | 282 | 39 | 84 | 13 | 5 | 15 | 59 | 1 | 20 | 47 | .298 | .256 (+16%) | .323 (+8%) | .392 (+37%) | .715 (+24%) | 1117.1 |
| 1960 | NYA | AL | 146 | 538 | 63 | 166 | 34 | 3 | 26 | 91 | 2 | 38 | 95 | .309 | .255 (+21%) | .323 (+9%) | .387 (+36%) | .711 (+24%) | 2360.1 |
| 1961 | NYA | AL | 150 | 561 | 76 | 150 | 23 | 4 | 28 | 89 | 0 | 35 | 108 | .267 | .258 (+4%) | .328 (-3%) | .399 (+18%) | .727 (+9%) | 828.6 |
| 1962 | NYA | AL | 140 | 478 | 63 | 129 | 16 | 6 | 23 | 80 | 0 | 36 | 99 | .270 | .257 (+5%) | .326 (avg) | .393 (+20%) | .719 (+11%) | 899.4 |
| 1963 | LAN | NL | 89 | 237 | 19 | 48 | 8 | 0 | 4 | 19 | 0 | 13 | 49 | .203 | .246 (-18%) | .308 (-18%) | .371 (-23%) | .680 (-21%) | -749.2 |
| 1964 | WS2 | AL | 73 | 262 | 28 | 71 | 10 | 0 | 13 | 41 | 0 | 11 | 56 | .271 | .250 (+8%) | .312 (-2%) | .377 (+21%) | .690 (+11%) | 403.9 |
| 1964 | CHA | AL | 73 | 273 | 19 | 80 | 11 | 3 | 4 | 38 | 0 | 19 | 36 | .293 | .250 (+17%) | .312 (+8%) | .377 (+6%) | .690 (+7%) | 403.9 |
| 1965 | CHA | AL | 146 | 559 | 63 | 153 | 24 | 3 | 18 | 78 | 1 | 32 | 77 | .274 | .245 (+11%) | .310 (+2%) | .371 (+14%) | .682 (+8%) | 763.9 |
| 1966 | CHA | AL | 120 | 337 | 27 | 84 | 15 | 2 | 6 | 29 | 1 | 26 | 45 | .249 | .248 (avg) | .309 (-1%) | .376 (-5%) | .685 (-3%) | -127.0 |
| 1967 | CHA | AL | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1967 | CAL | AL | 62 | 123 | 8 | 27 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 4 | 18 | .220 | .242 (-9%) | .306 (-13%) | .357 (-23%) | .663 (-18%) | 0.0 |
| Career · 16 seasons | 1,658 | 5,547 | 681 | 1,566 | 243 | 53 | 211 | 888 | 16 | 383 | 870 | .282 | — | — | — | — | 12,046 | ||
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 39 | 133 | 19 | 39 | 4 | 1 | 8 | 29 | 6 | 26 | .293 |
Playoff Batting by Year
| Year | Round | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | WS | LAN | 4 | 13 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 | .385 |
| 1962 | WS | NYA | 6 | 18 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 5 | .222 |
| 1961 | WS | NYA | 5 | 17 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 4 | .353 |
| 1960 | WS | NYA | 7 | 32 | 7 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 6 | .375 |
| 1958 | WS | NYA | 7 | 27 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 4 | .259 |
| 1957 | WS | NYA | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| 1956 | WS | NYA | 3 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 3 | .100 |
| 1955 | WS | NYA | 5 | 12 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | .333 |
Game Log & Splits
View full game log (1658 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 835 | 2731 | 318 | 766 | 86 | 382 | .280 |
| Away | 823 | 2816 | 364 | 800 | 125 | 506 | .284 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1967-10-01 | LAA | DET | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1967-09-30 | LAA | DET | W | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1967-09-26 | LAA | MIN | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1967-09-25 | LAA | MIN | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1967-09-24 | LAA | KC1 | W | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1967-09-23 | LAA | KC1 | W | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1967-09-16 | LAA | KC1 | W | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1967-09-12 | LAA | NYY | L | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1967-09-12 | LAA | NYY | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1967-09-09 | LAA | TEX | 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 | 1463 | 1403 | 12043 | 903 | 102 | 1266 |
| 2B | 2 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 0 |
| 3B | 13 | 6 | 6 | 21 | 7 | 0 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1954 | NYA | 1B | 61 | 56 | 395 | 28 | 6 | 48 |
| 1954 | NYA | 2B | 2 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 0 |
| 1954 | NYA | 3B | 5 | 2 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 0 |
| 1955 | NYA | 1B | 74 | 69 | 517 | 37 | 6 | 63 |
| 1955 | NYA | 3B | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| 1956 | NYA | 1B | 120 | 117 | 968 | 80 | 7 | 138 |
| 1956 | NYA | 3B | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 0 |
| 1957 | NYA | 1B | 115 | 111 | 1026 | 86 | 9 | 116 |
| 1958 | NYA | 1B | 118 | 114 | 1040 | 71 | 8 | 112 |
| 1958 | NYA | 3B | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 0 |
| 1959 | NYA | 1B | 72 | 71 | 626 | 43 | 6 | 68 |
| 1960 | NYA | 1B | 142 | 140 | 1202 | 115 | 12 | 130 |
| 1961 | NYA | 1B | 149 | 147 | 1228 | 102 | 10 | 146 |
| 1962 | NYA | 1B | 135 | 123 | 1054 | 77 | 10 | 101 |
| 1963 | LAN | 1B | 66 | 60 | 518 | 34 | 5 | 44 |
| 1963 | LAN | 3B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1964 | WS2 | 1B | 66 | 63 | 591 | 40 | 4 | 41 |
| 1964 | CHA | 1B | 70 | 70 | 621 | 40 | 1 | 53 |
| 1965 | CHA | 1B | 145 | 143 | 1297 | 74 | 8 | 116 |
| 1966 | CHA | 1B | 98 | 92 | 722 | 60 | 7 | 75 |
| 1967 | CAL | 1B | 32 | 27 | 238 | 16 | 3 | 15 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| First Base | 1463 |
| Second Base | 2 |
| Third Base | 13 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | TSN All-Star | 1B |
College History
| School Name | City | State | Years Attended |
|---|---|---|---|
| Purdue University | West Lafayette | IN | 1950 |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 9th | 56.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1957 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 22th | 2.0 | 336 | 0 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Bill Skowron (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Compare Bill Skowron
Bill Skowron: the record in brief
The profile opens with Bill Skowron's first major league game on April 13, 1954; the last one listed came on October 1, 1967. By club, Skowron's seasons break down as the New York Yankees (1954 to 1962), the Los Angeles Dodgers (1963), the Washington Senators (1964), the Chicago White Sox (1964 through 1967), and the California Angels (1967). At 195 pounds on a 5-foot-11 frame, Skowron is listed as a first baseman. The bio says Skowron both batted and threw right-handed. The recorded birth is December 18, 1930, in Chicago, IL, USA. Skowron died on April 27, 2012, in Arlington Heights, IL, USA. The given name on file is William Joseph Skowron.
Skowron's career batting table shows 1,658 games, 5,547 at bats and 1,566 hits, a .282 average, adding 211 homers and 888 runs batted in. Skowron got on base at a .332 rate and slugged .459 (.792 OPS). Skowron's .282 average ran 11.5% above the .253 that the league posted over the same seasons.
Frequently Asked Questions about Bill Skowron
- What years did Bill Skowron play?
- Bill Skowron played in Major League Baseball from 1954 to 1967.
- Was Bill Skowron a pitcher?
- No. Bill Skowron was a position player (First Baseman).
- How many home runs did Bill Skowron hit?
- Bill Skowron hit 211 career home runs with 1,566 hits.
- What teams did Bill Skowron play for?
- Bill Skowron played for 5 teams: the New York Yankees (1954–1962), the Los Angeles Dodgers (1963), the Washington Senators (1964), the Chicago White Sox (1964–1967), and the California Angels (1967).
- Did Bill Skowron win an MVP award?
- No. Bill Skowron did not win the MVP award.
- What awards did Bill Skowron win?
- Bill Skowron was selected to 6 All-Star Games.
- What were Bill Skowron's career stats?
- In 1,658 games, Bill Skowron had 1,566 hits, 211 home runs, 888 RBI, 681 runs, and 16 stolen bases, with a .282 batting average.
- What position did Bill Skowron play?
- Bill Skowron played primarily as a first baseman, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Bill Skowron and how much did he weigh?
- Bill Skowron was listed at 5 feet 11 inches and 195 pounds.
- How many home runs did Bill Skowron hit each season?
- Bill Skowron's home runs by season: 7 in 1954, 12 in 1955, 23 in 1956, 17 in 1957, 14 in 1958, 15 in 1959, 26 in 1960, 28 in 1961, 23 in 1962, 4 in 1963, 17 in 1964, 18 in 1965, 6 in 1966, and 1 in 1967. His most in one season was 28, in 1961.
- What was Bill Skowron's career batting average?
- Bill Skowron batted .282 over his career, with 1,566 hits in 5,547 at bats.
- How many RBI did Bill Skowron have?
- Bill Skowron drove in 888 runs in his career.
- Is Bill Skowron in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Bill Skowron has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
- How many All-Star Games did Bill Skowron make?
- Bill Skowron was selected to 6 All-Star Games.