Cotton Tierney

Second Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1920-1925)

Cotton Tierney was a second baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1920 to 1925 for 4 teams, including the Pittsburgh Pirates, a span of 6 seasons. In 630 career games, he hit .296 with 681 hits, 31 home runs, and 331 RBI. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 455.

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 .296
HR 31
RBI 331
H 681
OPS .746
PIV 455
Position
Second Baseman
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
5'8" / 175 lb
Born
2/10/1894 in Kansas City, KS, USA
Died
4/18/1953 in Kansas City, MO, USA
MLB Debut
1920-09-22
Last Game
1925-10-03

Full name: James Arthur Tierney

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Career Batting Statistics

Cotton Tierney — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
630 2,299 266 681 119 30 31 331 28 109 187 .296 .332 .415 .746 455

Career AVG .296 vs. league average .283 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .332 vs. league average .344 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .415 vs. league average .391 across their career seasons — +6.0% above league average.

Career OPS .746 vs. league average .735 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Cotton Tierney — 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
1920 PIT NL 12 46 4 11 5 0 0 8 1 3 4 .239 — — — — 0.0
1921 PIT NL 117 442 49 132 22 8 3 52 4 24 31 .299 .286 (+4%) .344 (-2%) .395 (+2%) .739 (avg) -36.1
1922 PIT NL 122 441 58 152 26 14 7 86 7 22 40 .345 .285 (+21%) .345 (+9%) .397 (+30%) .743 (+20%) 1606.7
1923 PIT NL 29 120 22 35 5 2 2 23 2 2 10 .292 .282 (+3%) .344 (-10%) .390 (+7%) .734 (-1%) -64.3
1923 PHI NL 121 480 68 152 31 1 11 65 3 24 42 .317 .282 (+12%) .344 (+2%) .390 (+16%) .734 (+10%) -64.3
1924 BSN NL 136 505 38 131 16 1 6 58 11 22 37 .259 .283 (-9%) .345 (-14%) .389 (-15%) .734 (-15%) -1233.0
1925 BRO NL 93 265 27 68 14 4 2 39 0 12 23 .257 .288 (-11%) .349 (-16%) .407 (-11%) .756 (-13%) -639.5
Career · 7 seasons 630 2,299 266 681 119 30 31 331 28 109 187 .296 — — — — -430

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 (630 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Cotton Tierney — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home29610761213219148.298
Away334122414436022178.294

Last 10 Games — Batting

Cotton Tierney — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1925-10-03 BROBSNL 100000000
1925-10-01 BROPHIL 100000001
1925-09-29 BROPHIL 211100000
1925-09-28 BRONY1L 100000000
1925-09-23 BROCHCL 100000000
1925-09-20 BROSTLL 301000011
1925-09-19 BROSTLL 401000001
1925-09-18 BROSTLL 111000000
1925-09-16 BROPITL 100000000
1925-09-16 BROPITL 101000000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Cotton Tierney — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 1 0 2 0 0 0
2B 447 0 903 1430 83 278
3B 118 0 127 195 15 15
OF 13 0 19 5 1 1
SS 6 0 2 12 0 0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Cotton Tierney — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1920 PIT 2B 10 0 19 34 2 4
1920 PIT SS 2 0 1 6 0 0
1921 PIT 2B 72 0 152 182 12 33
1921 PIT 3B 32 0 39 55 6 4
1921 PIT OF 4 0 8 1 0 0
1921 PIT SS 3 0 1 5 0 0
1922 PIT 2B 105 0 179 302 18 52
1922 PIT 3B 1 0 1 1 1 0
1922 PIT OF 2 0 4 1 1 0
1922 PIT SS 1 0 0 1 0 0
1923 PIT 2B 29 0 65 94 10 22
1923 PHI 2B 115 0 249 416 17 82
1923 PHI 3B 2 0 2 2 0 0
1923 PHI OF 7 0 7 3 0 1
1924 BSN 2B 115 0 235 399 24 83
1924 BSN 3B 22 0 31 35 2 5
1925 BRO 1B 1 0 2 0 0 0
1925 BRO 2B 1 0 4 3 0 2
1925 BRO 3B 61 0 54 102 6 6

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Cotton Tierney — Career Games by Position
Position Games
First Base 1
Second Base 447
Third Base 123
Shortstop 6
Left Field 3
Right Field 10

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Cotton Tierney (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Alex Radcliff
    .296 avg, 20 HR
  2. 92
    Buck Jordan
    .299 avg, 17 HR
  3. 91
    Lamar Johnson
    .287 avg, 64 HR
  4. 91
    Sammy Hale
    .302 avg, 30 HR
  5. 88
    Jimmy Walsh
    .285 avg, 25 HR
  6. 86
    Alex McKinnon
    .296 avg, 13 HR

Cotton Tierney: the record in brief

September 22, 1920 and October 3, 1925 bracket Cotton Tierney's time in the majors: the debut and the last game on record. The season rows list, in order, the Pittsburgh Pirates (1920 through 1923), the Philadelphia Phillies (1923), the Boston Braves (1924), and the Brooklyn Robins (1925). Tierney, a second baseman by primary position, threw and hit right-handed. Tierney is listed at 5 feet, 8 inches and 175 pounds. The birth record reads February 10, 1894, in Kansas City, KS, USA. Tierney's death is recorded on April 18, 1953, in Kansas City, MO, USA. Tierney's full given name, per the bio, is James Arthur Tierney.

The batting record for Tierney: 630 games, 681 hits in 2,299 at bats, and a .296 average, plus 31 home runs, 331 RBI, and 28 stolen bases. Tierney's career OPS of .746 combines a .332 on-base mark with .415 slugging. Tierney hit .296 while the league hit .283 over the same span, a figure close to average. No season beat the 11 home runs Tierney hit in 1923.

Frequently Asked Questions about Cotton Tierney

What years did Cotton Tierney play?
Cotton Tierney played in Major League Baseball from 1920 to 1925.
Was Cotton Tierney a pitcher?
No. Cotton Tierney was a position player (Second Baseman).
How many home runs did Cotton Tierney hit?
Cotton Tierney hit 31 career home runs with 681 hits.
What teams did Cotton Tierney play for?
Cotton Tierney played for 4 teams: the Pittsburgh Pirates (1920–1923), the Philadelphia Phillies (1923), the Boston Braves (1924), and the Brooklyn Robins (1925).
What were Cotton Tierney's career stats?
In 630 games, Cotton Tierney had 681 hits, 31 home runs, 331 RBI, 266 runs, and 28 stolen bases, with a .296 batting average.
What position did Cotton Tierney play?
Cotton Tierney played primarily as a second baseman, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Cotton Tierney and how much did he weigh?
Cotton Tierney was listed at 5 feet 8 inches and 175 pounds.
How many home runs did Cotton Tierney hit each season?
Cotton Tierney's home runs by season: 0 in 1920, 3 in 1921, 7 in 1922, 13 in 1923, 6 in 1924, and 2 in 1925. His most in one season was 13, in 1923.
What was Cotton Tierney's career batting average?
Cotton Tierney batted .296 over his career, with 681 hits in 2,299 at bats.
How many RBI did Cotton Tierney have?
Cotton Tierney drove in 331 runs in his career.
Is Cotton Tierney in the Hall of Fame?
No. Cotton Tierney has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.