What years did Ed Sprague play?

Ed Sprague played in Major League Baseball from 1968 to 1976.

Was Ed Sprague a pitcher?

Yes. Ed Sprague pitched in the major leagues, recording 17 wins and 188 strikeouts.

How many home runs did Ed Sprague hit?

Ed Sprague hit 0 career home runs with 1 hits.

What was Ed Sprague's career batting average?

Ed Sprague batted .045 over his career, with 1 hits in 22 at bats.

What was Ed Sprague's career ERA?

Ed Sprague finished with a 3.84 career ERA, going 17-23 with 188 strikeouts.

How many strikeouts did Ed Sprague have?

Ed Sprague recorded 188 career strikeouts.

Ed Sprague

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1968-1976)

Ed Sprague was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1968 to 1976 for 4 teams, including the Athletics, a span of 9 seasons. Across 198 career appearances, he went 17-23 with a 3.84 ERA and 188 strikeouts.

W (Wins):: Games credited to a pitcher whose team took a lead it never surrendered while he was the pitcher of record.
ERA (Earned Run Average):: Earned runs allowed per nine innings pitched: (ER × 9) ÷ IP. The primary measure of pitching effectiveness.
SO (Strikeouts):: For a batter, times retired on a third strike; for a pitcher, batters retired on a third strike.
WHIP (Walks and Hits per Inning Pitched):: Baserunners allowed per inning: (BB + H) ÷ IP. Under 1.00 is elite.

Data updated October 12, 2026

W–L 17–23

ERA 3.84

WHIP 1.50

SO 188

Pitcher PIV -4958.7

Position: Pitcher
Bats / Throws: R / R
Height / Weight: 6'4" / 195 lb
Born: 9/16/1945 in Boston, MA, USA
Died: 1/10/2020 in Lodi, CA, USA
MLB Debut: 1968-04-10
Last Game: 1976-06-05

Full name: Edward Nelson Sprague

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Career Pitching Statistics

Ed Sprague — Career Pitching Statistics
W	L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	SO	ERA	Pitcher PIV
17	23	198	23	3	0	9	408.0	406	174	27	206	188	3.84	-4958.7

Career ERA 3.84 vs. league average 3.50 across their career seasons — 9.6% worse than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Ed Sprague (b. 1945) Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year	Team	Lg	W	L	G	GS	CG	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA	Lg ERA	Pitcher PIV
1968	OAK	AL	3	4	47	1	0	4	68.2	51	25	34	34	3.28	2.98 (-10%)	-1600.3
1969	OAK	AL	1	1	27	0	0	2	46.1	47	23	31	20	4.47	3.61 (-24%)	-1495.9
1971	CIN	NL	1	0	7	0	0	0	11.0	8	0	1	7	0.00	3.47 (+100%)	556.1
1972	CIN	NL	3	3	33	1	0	0	56.2	55	26	26	25	4.13	3.26 (-26%)	-1649.6
1973	CIN	NL	1	3	28	0	0	1	38.2	35	22	22	19	5.12	3.75 (-37%)	-684.0
1973	SLN	NL	0	0	8	0	0	0	8.0	8	2	4	2	2.25	—	0.0
1973	ML4	AL	0	1	7	0	0	1	9.2	13	10	14	3	9.31	3.75 (-149%)	0.0
1974	ML4	AL	7	2	20	10	3	0	94.0	94	25	31	57	2.39	3.63 (+34%)	1748.6
1975	ML4	AL	1	7	18	11	0	1	67.1	81	35	40	21	4.68	3.71 (-26%)	-1833.6
1976	ML4	AL	0	2	3	0	0	0	7.2	14	6	3	0	7.04	—	0.0
Career · 10 seasons			17	23	198	23	3	9	408.0	406	174	206	188	3.84	—	-4,959

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

Ed Sprague — Career Batting Statistics
G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
198	22	1	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	13	.045	.045	.091	.136	0

Career AVG .045 vs. league average .251 across their career seasons — 81.9% below league average.

Career OBP .045 vs. league average .318 across their career seasons — 85.7% below league average.

Career SLG .091 vs. league average .365 across their career seasons — 75.1% below league average.

Career OPS .136 vs. league average .683 across their career seasons — 80.0% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Ed Sprague (b. 1945) Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year	Team	Lg	G	AB	R	H	2B	SO	AVG	Lg AVG	Lg OBP	Lg SLG	Lg OPS	PIV
1968	OAK	AL	47	7	0	0	0	5	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1969	OAK	AL	27	5	1	1	1	1	.200	—	—	—	—	0.0
1971	CIN	NL	7	1	0	0	0	1	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1972	CIN	NL	33	7	0	0	0	5	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1973	CIN	NL	28	2	0	0	0	1	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1973	SLN	NL	8	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1973	ML4	AL	7	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1974	ML4	AL	20	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1975	ML4	AL	18	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1976	ML4	AL	3	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
Career · 10 seasons			198	22	1	1	1	13	.045	—	—	—	—	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.

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (396 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Ed Sprague — Batting — Home / Away
Split	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	AVG
Home	88	9	1	1	0	0	.111
Away	110	13	0	0	0	0	.000

Pitching — Home / Away

Ed Sprague — Pitching — Home / Away
Split	G	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
Home	88	194.1	181	74	93	103	3.43
Away	110	213.2	225	99	113	85	4.17

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Ed Sprague — Last 10 Games — Pitching
Date	Tm	Opp	Dec	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR
1976-06-05	MIL	KCR	—	3.0	4	2	2	1	0	0
1976-05-31	MIL	DET	L	1.2	4	2	1	0	0	0
1976-05-23	MIL	CLE	L	3.0	6	3	3	2	0	0
1975-07-22	MIL	KCR	—	3.2	3	3	0	4	2	0
1975-07-20	MIL	CHW	L	0.1	2	4	2	1	0	0
1975-07-11	MIL	CHW	L	5.2	7	4	3	2	4	0
1975-07-06	MIL	DET	—	7.0	7	4	3	2	3	1
1975-07-04	MIL	DET	—	3.2	1	0	0	2	0	0
1975-06-27	MIL	CLE	L	4.0	7	5	3	5	1	1
1975-06-25	MIL	DET	SV	0.1	1	0	0	1	0	0

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Ed Sprague — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
P	198	23	36	70	12	6

Season-by-Season Fielding

Ed Sprague — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1968	OAK	P	47	1	8	15	2	0
1969	OAK	P	27	0	5	17	1	1
1971	CIN	P	7	0	0	0	1	0
1972	CIN	P	33	1	2	6	1	1
1973	CIN	P	28	0	3	9	2	0
1973	SLN	P	8	0	2	1	0	1
1973	ML4	P	7	0	1	1	0	0
1974	ML4	P	20	10	8	9	2	2
1975	ML4	P	18	11	7	8	3	0
1976	ML4	P	3	0	0	4	0	1

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Ed Sprague (b. 1945) Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position	Games
Pitcher	198

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Ed Sprague (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

Ed Sprague: the record in brief

According to the bio, Ed Sprague debuted on April 10, 1968 and played a final game on June 5, 1976. Sprague played for the Oakland Athletics (1968 through 1969), the Cincinnati Reds (1971 to 1973), the St. Louis Cardinals (1973), and the Milwaukee Brewers (1973 through 1976). Sprague played primarily as a pitcher and both batted and threw right-handed. The bio adds a birth date on September 16, 1945, in Boston, MA, USA and a listed size of 6'4" and 195 pounds. Sprague died on January 10, 2020, in Lodi, CA, USA. The given name on file is Edward Nelson Sprague.

Sprague's career pitching line is 17 wins, 23 losses and a 3.84 ERA over 198 appearances. The totals include 188 strikeouts. Against a 3.50 league ERA for the same seasons, the 3.84 mark was 9.6% worse. No season topped the 7 wins of 1974. 1974 was Sprague's sharpest full season, a 2.39 ERA against the league's 3.63.

Frequently Asked Questions about Ed Sprague

What years did Ed Sprague play?: Ed Sprague played in Major League Baseball from 1968 to 1976.
Was Ed Sprague a pitcher?: Yes. Ed Sprague pitched in the major leagues, recording 17 wins and 188 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Ed Sprague hit?: Ed Sprague hit 0 career home runs with 1 hits.
What was Ed Sprague's career batting average?: Ed Sprague batted .045 over his career, with 1 hits in 22 at bats.
What was Ed Sprague's career ERA?: Ed Sprague finished with a 3.84 career ERA, going 17-23 with 188 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Ed Sprague have?: Ed Sprague recorded 188 career strikeouts.