Coot Veal
Shortstop · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1958-1963)
Coot Veal was a shortstop who played in Major League Baseball from 1958 to 1963 for the Detroit Tigers, the Washington Senators, and the Pittsburgh Pirates, a span of 6 seasons. In 247 career games, he hit .231 with 141 hits, 1 home runs, and 51 RBI.
- 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
- Shortstop
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 6'1" / 165 lb
- Died
- 3/14/2021 in Gray, GA, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1958-07-30
- Last Game
- 1963-06-20
Full name: Orville Inman Veal
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 247 | 611 | 75 | 141 | 26 | 3 | 1 | 51 | 2 | 56 | 69 | .231 | .298 | .288 | .586 | -1,606 |
Career AVG .231 vs. league average .255 across their career seasons — 9.5% below league average.
Career OBP .298 vs. league average .322 across their career seasons — 7.6% below league average.
Career SLG .288 vs. league average .389 across their career seasons — 26.0% below league average.
Career OPS .586 vs. league average .712 across their career seasons — 17.7% 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1958 | DET | AL | 58 | 207 | 29 | 53 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 16 | 1 | 14 | 21 | .256 | .257 (-1%) | .324 (-7%) | .394 (-18%) | .719 (-13%) | -431.7 |
| 1959 | DET | AL | 77 | 89 | 12 | 18 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 15 | 0 | 8 | 7 | .202 | .256 (-21%) | .323 (-16%) | .392 (-37%) | .715 (-27%) | -372.9 |
| 1960 | DET | AL | 27 | 64 | 8 | 19 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 11 | 7 | .297 | .255 (+16%) | .323 (+24%) | .387 (+5%) | .711 (+13%) | 176.6 |
| 1961 | WS2 | AL | 69 | 218 | 21 | 44 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 19 | 29 | .202 | .258 (-22%) | .328 (-17%) | .399 (-38%) | .727 (-28%) | -978.5 |
| 1962 | PIT | NL | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1963 | DET | AL | 15 | 32 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 4 | .219 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 6 seasons | 247 | 611 | 75 | 141 | 26 | 3 | 1 | 51 | 2 | 56 | 69 | .231 | — | — | — | — | -1,606 | ||
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 (247 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 129 | 346 | 45 | 84 | 1 | 34 | .243 |
| Away | 118 | 265 | 30 | 57 | 0 | 17 | .215 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1963-06-20 | DET | BOS | L | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1963-06-16 | DET | NYY | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1963-05-12 | DET | CLE | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1963-05-11 | DET | CLE | L | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1963-05-04 | DET | BAL | L | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1963-05-02 | DET | TEX | L | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1963-05-01 | DET | TEX | L | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1963-04-28 | DET | MIN | W | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1963-04-27 | DET | MIN | L | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1963-04-26 | DET | MIN | L | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Second Base | 1 |
| Third Base | 3 |
| Shortstop | 227 |
College History
| School Name | City | State | Years Attended |
|---|---|---|---|
| Auburn University | Auburn | AL | 1952 |
Coot Veal: the record in brief
July 30, 1958 and June 20, 1963 bracket Coot Veal's time in the majors: the debut and the last game on record. The season rows list, in order, the Detroit Tigers (1958 through 1963), the Washington Senators (1961), and the Pittsburgh Pirates (1962). Born on July 9, 1932, in Deepstep, GA, USA, Veal is listed as a shortstop and batted and threw right-handed. Size on record: 6-foot-1 and 165 pounds. The bio records the death on March 14, 2021, in Gray, GA, USA. The given name on file is Orville Inman Veal.
Veal finished with 141 hits from 611 at bats in 247 games, which works out to .231; the totals also include 1 home run and 51 RBI. Reaching base at a .298 clip and slugging .288, Veal finished with a .586 OPS. Over the seasons Veal played, league hitters batted .255; the .231 career figure is 9.5% below that. By OPS the gap is 17.7% below league average (.586 against .712). Veal collected a career-high 53 hits in 1958. Even the best average among the busiest seasons, .256 in 1958, did not top the league's .257.
Frequently Asked Questions about Coot Veal
- What years did Coot Veal play?
- Coot Veal played in Major League Baseball from 1958 to 1963.
- Was Coot Veal a pitcher?
- No. Coot Veal was a position player (Shortstop).
- How many home runs did Coot Veal hit?
- Coot Veal hit 1 career home run with 141 hits.
- What teams did Coot Veal play for?
- Coot Veal played for 3 teams: the Detroit Tigers (1958–1960, 1963), the Washington Senators (1961), and the Pittsburgh Pirates (1962).
- What were Coot Veal's career stats?
- In 247 games, Coot Veal had 141 hits, 1 home runs, 51 RBI, 75 runs, and 2 stolen bases, with a .231 batting average.
- What position did Coot Veal play?
- Coot Veal played primarily as a shortstop, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Coot Veal and how much did he weigh?
- Coot Veal was listed at 6 feet 1 inch and 165 pounds.
- How many home runs did Coot Veal hit each season?
- Coot Veal's home runs by season: 0 in 1958, 1 in 1959, 0 in 1960, 0 in 1961, 0 in 1962, and 0 in 1963. His most in one season was 1, in 1959.
- What was Coot Veal's career batting average?
- Coot Veal batted .231 over his career, with 141 hits in 611 at bats.
- How many RBI did Coot Veal have?
- Coot Veal drove in 51 runs in his career.
- Is Coot Veal in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Coot Veal has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.