Elam Vangilder
Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1919-1929)
Elam Vangilder was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1919 to 1929 for the St. Louis Browns and the Detroit Tigers, a span of 11 seasons. Across 367 career appearances, he went 99-102 with a 4.28 ERA and 474 strikeouts. He also batted .243 with 8 home runs.
- 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
- Position
- Pitcher
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 6'1" / 192 lb
- Died
- 4/30/1977 in Cape Girardeau, MO, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1919-09-18
- Last Game
- 1929-05-27
Full name: Elam Russell Vangilder
Season-by-Season Pitching
Click a stat to plot it across every season.
| Year | Team | Lg | W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA | Lg ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1919 | SLA | AL | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 13.0 | 15 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 2.08 | 3.09 (+33%) | 264.1 |
| 1920 | SLA | AL | 3 | 8 | 24 | 13 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 104.2 | 131 | 64 | 40 | 25 | 5.50 | 3.45 (-60%) | -2544.4 |
| 1921 | SLA | AL | 11 | 12 | 31 | 21 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 180.1 | 196 | 79 | 67 | 48 | 3.94 | 4.02 (+2%) | -2173.3 |
| 1922 | SLA | AL | 19 | 13 | 43 | 30 | 19 | 3 | 4 | 245.0 | 248 | 93 | 48 | 63 | 3.42 | 4.18 (+18%) | 952.3 |
| 1923 | SLA | AL | 16 | 17 | 41 | 35 | 20 | 4 | 1 | 282.1 | 276 | 96 | 120 | 74 | 3.06 | 4.03 (+24%) | -2274.5 |
| 1924 | SLA | AL | 5 | 10 | 43 | 18 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 145.1 | 183 | 91 | 55 | 49 | 5.64 | 4.13 (-37%) | -2253.7 |
| 1925 | SLA | AL | 14 | 8 | 52 | 16 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 193.1 | 225 | 101 | 92 | 61 | 4.70 | 4.55 (-3%) | -3284.6 |
| 1926 | SLA | AL | 9 | 11 | 42 | 19 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 181.0 | 196 | 104 | 98 | 40 | 5.17 | 4.11 (-26%) | -4704.6 |
| 1927 | SLA | AL | 10 | 12 | 44 | 23 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 203.0 | 245 | 108 | 102 | 62 | 4.79 | 4.08 (-17%) | -4113.8 |
| 1928 | DET | AL | 11 | 10 | 38 | 11 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 156.1 | 163 | 68 | 67 | 43 | 3.91 | 4.13 (+5%) | -336.3 |
| 1929 | DET | AL | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11.1 | 16 | 8 | 7 | 3 | 6.35 | 4.60 (-38%) | -344.1 |
| Career · 11 seasons | 99 | 102 | 367 | 187 | 90 | 13 | 19 | 1,715.2 | 1,894 | 815 | 699 | 474 | 4.28 | — | -20,813 | ||
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
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 373 | 601 | 61 | 146 | 30 | 4 | 8 | 53 | 0 | 21 | 98 | .243 | .274 | .346 | .620 | -1,486 |
Career AVG .243 vs. league average .282 across their career seasons — 13.8% below league average.
Career OBP .274 vs. league average .344 across their career seasons — 20.1% below league average.
Career SLG .346 vs. league average .391 across their career seasons — 11.5% below league average.
Career OPS .620 vs. league average .734 across their career seasons — 15.5% below 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1919 | SLA | AL | 3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .667 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1920 | SLA | AL | 24 | 30 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | .133 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1921 | SLA | AL | 31 | 65 | 5 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 9 | .200 | .286 (-30%) | .344 (-38%) | .395 (-30%) | .739 (-34%) | -370.2 |
| 1922 | SLA | AL | 45 | 93 | 16 | 32 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 11 | 0 | 5 | 11 | .344 | .285 (+21%) | .345 (+14%) | .397 (+41%) | .743 (+29%) | 444.9 |
| 1923 | SLA | AL | 45 | 110 | 9 | 24 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 21 | .218 | .282 (-23%) | .344 (-31%) | .390 (-25%) | .734 (-28%) | -516.2 |
| 1924 | SLA | AL | 43 | 44 | 7 | 13 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 7 | .295 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1925 | SLA | AL | 52 | 71 | 6 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 16 | .183 | .288 (-36%) | .349 (-38%) | .407 (-45%) | .756 (-42%) | -495.8 |
| 1926 | SLA | AL | 42 | 58 | 5 | 11 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 9 | .190 | .279 (-32%) | .345 (-27%) | .390 (-29%) | .735 (-28%) | -275.7 |
| 1927 | SLA | AL | 44 | 68 | 5 | 19 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 11 | .279 | .282 (-1%) | .344 (-16%) | .392 (-3%) | .736 (-9%) | -113.4 |
| 1928 | DET | AL | 38 | 58 | 4 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 11 | .259 | .280 (-8%) | .342 (-24%) | .395 (-8%) | .737 (-16%) | -159.3 |
| 1929 | DET | AL | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 11 seasons | 373 | 601 | 61 | 146 | 30 | 4 | 8 | 53 | 0 | 21 | 98 | .243 | — | — | — | — | -1,486 | ||
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 (740 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 198 | 284 | 34 | 73 | 6 | 32 | .257 |
| Away | 175 | 317 | 27 | 73 | 2 | 21 | .230 |
Pitching — Home / Away
| Split | G | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 192 | 856.2 | 940 | 416 | 331 | 237 | 4.37 |
| Away | 175 | 859.2 | 947 | 411 | 375 | 241 | 4.30 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1929-05-27 | DET | CHW | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1929-05-14 | DET | PHA | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1929-05-10 | DET | NYY | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1929-04-26 | DET | CLE | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1929-04-23 | DET | SLA | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1929-04-20 | DET | SLA | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1928-09-29 | DET | NYY | W | 6 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| 1928-09-21 | DET | PHA | W | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1928-09-17 | DET | MIN | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1928-09-11 | DET | CHW | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Last 10 Games — Pitching
| Date | Tm | Opp | Dec | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1929-05-27 | DET | CHW | — | 3.2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| 1929-05-14 | DET | PHA | — | 1.2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1929-05-10 | DET | NYY | — | 1.2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1929-04-26 | DET | CLE | — | 1.0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1929-04-23 | DET | SLA | — | 2.1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1929-04-20 | DET | SLA | L | 1.0 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1928-09-29 | DET | NYY | W | 9.0 | 18 | 10 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| 1928-09-21 | DET | PHA | W | 9.0 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1928-09-17 | DET | MIN | — | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1928-09-11 | DET | CHW | SV | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1919 | SLA | P | 3 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| 1920 | SLA | P | 24 | 0 | 1 | 28 | 2 | 2 |
| 1921 | SLA | P | 31 | 0 | 3 | 47 | 0 | 2 |
| 1922 | SLA | P | 43 | 0 | 14 | 47 | 1 | 3 |
| 1923 | SLA | P | 41 | 0 | 4 | 61 | 1 | 4 |
| 1924 | SLA | P | 43 | 0 | 8 | 38 | 3 | 6 |
| 1925 | SLA | P | 52 | 0 | 11 | 44 | 2 | 3 |
| 1926 | SLA | P | 42 | 0 | 5 | 38 | 3 | 1 |
| 1927 | SLA | P | 44 | 0 | 9 | 32 | 2 | 0 |
| 1928 | DET | P | 38 | 0 | 8 | 37 | 4 | 3 |
| 1929 | DET | P | 6 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 367 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Elam Vangilder (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Elam Vangilder: the record in brief
According to the bio, Elam Vangilder debuted on September 18, 1919 and played a final game on May 27, 1929. By club, Vangilder's seasons break down as the St. Louis Browns (1919 to 1927) and the Detroit Tigers (1928 to 1929). Vangilder played primarily as a pitcher and both batted and threw right-handed. Born on April 23, 1896, in Cape Girardeau, MO, USA, Vangilder was listed at 6 feet, 1 inch and 192 pounds. The bio records the death on April 30, 1977, in Cape Girardeau, MO, USA. Vangilder's full given name, per the bio, is Elam Russell Vangilder.
The pitching table credits Vangilder with a 99-102 record and a 4.28 ERA in 367 games. The same table counts 474 strikeouts, 90 complete games, 13 shutouts, and 19 saves. Against a 4.06 league ERA for the same seasons, the 4.28 mark was 5.2% worse. No season topped the 19 wins of 1922. The strikeout high was 74 in 1923.
Frequently Asked Questions about Elam Vangilder
- What years did Elam Vangilder play?
- Elam Vangilder played in Major League Baseball from 1919 to 1929.
- Was Elam Vangilder a pitcher?
- Yes. Elam Vangilder pitched in the major leagues, recording 99 wins and 474 strikeouts.
- How many home runs did Elam Vangilder hit?
- Elam Vangilder hit 8 career home runs with 146 hits.
- What teams did Elam Vangilder play for?
- Elam Vangilder played for 2 teams: the St. Louis Browns (1919–1927) and the Detroit Tigers (1928–1929).
- What were Elam Vangilder's career stats?
- In 367 games, Elam Vangilder went 99-102 with a 4.28 ERA, 474 strikeouts, 1,715.2 innings pitched, and 19 saves. At the plate he had 146 hits and 8 home runs.
- What position did Elam Vangilder play?
- Elam Vangilder played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Elam Vangilder and how much did he weigh?
- Elam Vangilder was listed at 6 feet 1 inch and 192 pounds.
- What was Elam Vangilder's career ERA?
- Elam Vangilder finished with a 4.28 career ERA, going 99-102 with 474 strikeouts.
- How many strikeouts did Elam Vangilder have?
- Elam Vangilder recorded 474 career strikeouts.
- Is Elam Vangilder in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Elam Vangilder has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.