Hal Smith

Catcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1956-1965)

Hal Smith was a catcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1956 to 1965 for the St. Louis Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Pirates, a span of 10 seasons. In 570 career games, he hit .258 with 437 hits, 23 home runs, and 172 RBI. Hal Smith was a 2-time All-Star.

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 .258
HR 23
RBI 172
H 437
OPS .644
PIV -2,800
Position
Catcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
5'10" / 186 lb
Born
6/1/1931 in Barling, AR, USA
Died
4/12/2014 in Fort Smith, AR, USA
MLB Debut
1956-05-02
Last Game
1965-07-08
Awards
2× All-Star

Full name: Harold Raymond Smith

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Career Batting Statistics

Hal Smith — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
570 1,697 126 437 63 8 23 172 6 102 128 .258 .300 .345 .644 -2,800

Career AVG .258 vs. league average .255 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .300 vs. league average .323 across their career seasons — 7.4% below league average.

Career SLG .345 vs. league average .390 across their career seasons — 11.6% below league average.

Career OPS .644 vs. league average .713 across their career seasons — 9.7% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Hal Smith — Season-by-Season Batting
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1956 SLN NL 75 227 27 64 12 0 5 23 1 15 22 .282 .258 (+9%) .331 (-1%) .397 (+1%) .728 (avg) -20.4
1957 SLN NL 100 333 25 93 12 3 2 37 2 18 18 .279 .257 (+8%) .323 (-3%) .391 (-10%) .715 (-7%) -400.3
1958 SLN NL 77 220 13 50 4 1 1 24 0 14 14 .227 .257 (-12%) .324 (-16%) .394 (-32%) .719 (-25%) -855.1
1959 SLN NL 142 452 35 122 15 3 13 50 2 15 28 .270 .256 (+5%) .323 (-9%) .392 (+3%) .715 (-3%) -276.7
1960 SLN NL 127 337 20 77 16 0 2 28 1 29 33 .228 .255 (-10%) .323 (-10%) .387 (-24%) .711 (-18%) -916.6
1961 SLN NL 45 125 6 31 4 1 0 10 0 11 12 .248 .258 (-4%) .328 (-6%) .399 (-26%) .727 (-17%) -330.5
1965 PIT NL 4 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 — — — — 0.0
Career · 7 seasons 570 1,697 126 437 63 8 23 172 6 102 128 .258 — — — — -2,800

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.

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (570 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Hal Smith — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home280798671991088.249
Away290899592381384.265

Last 10 Games — Batting

Hal Smith — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1965-07-08 PITLADL 000000000
1965-07-05 PITPHIL 000000000
1965-07-04 PITATLL 000000000
1965-07-01 PITSTLL 300000001
1961-06-07 STLCHCW 311000010
1961-06-06 STLCHCL 000000000
1961-06-06 STLCHCW 301000010
1961-06-05 STLCHCW 512000201
1961-06-04 STLATLL 301000000
1961-06-03 STLATLL 401000000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Hal Smith — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
C 548 484 2810 247 33 43

Season-by-Season Fielding

Hal Smith — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1956 SLN C 66 58 300 34 6 3
1957 SLN C 97 86 468 42 5 8
1958 SLN C 71 61 346 22 4 4
1959 SLN C 141 128 758 60 9 13
1960 SLN C 124 108 664 61 7 9
1961 SLN C 45 42 261 28 2 6
1965 PIT C 4 1 13 0 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Hal Smith — Career Games by Position
Position Games
Catcher 548

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Hal Smith (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Scott Bradley
    .257 avg, 18 HR
  2. 58
    Brayan Peña
    .259 avg, 23 HR
  3. 49
    Duane Josephson
    .258 avg, 23 HR
  4. 32
    Carlos Hernandez
    .253 avg, 24 HR
  5. 30
    Einar Diaz
    .254 avg, 21 HR
  6. 30
    Ray Lamanno
    .252 avg, 18 HR

Hal Smith: the record in brief

May 2, 1956 and July 8, 1965 bracket Hal Smith's time in the majors: the debut and the last game on record. By club, Smith's seasons break down as the St. Louis Cardinals (1956 through 1961) and the Pittsburgh Pirates (1965). At 5-foot-10 and 186 pounds, Smith is listed as a catcher. Smith threw and hit right-handed, per the bio block. Smith was born on June 1, 1931, in Barling, AR, USA. Smith died on April 12, 2014, in Fort Smith, AR, USA. Hal Smith was the playing name; the full given name is Harold Raymond.

Smith finished with 437 hits from 1,697 at bats in 570 games, which works out to .258, adding 23 home runs and 172 runs batted in. The on-base percentage is .300 and the slugging percentage .345, for an OPS of .644. Against a .255 league average for those years, Smith's .258 average was near the norm. 1959 was Smith's biggest home run year, with 13. 1959 produced Smith's most hits, 122 of them for the St. Louis Cardinals.

Frequently Asked Questions about Hal Smith

What years did Hal Smith play?
Hal Smith played in Major League Baseball from 1956 to 1965.
Was Hal Smith a pitcher?
No. Hal Smith was a position player (Catcher).
How many home runs did Hal Smith hit?
Hal Smith hit 23 career home runs with 437 hits.
What was Hal Smith's career batting average?
Hal Smith batted .258 over his career, with 437 hits in 1,697 at bats.
How many RBI did Hal Smith have?
Hal Smith drove in 172 runs in his career.
Is Hal Smith in the Hall of Fame?
No. Hal Smith has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.