Ben Wade

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1948-1955)

Ben Wade was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1948 to 1955 for 4 teams, including the Chicago Cubs, a span of 8 seasons. Across 118 career appearances, he went 19-17 with a 4.34 ERA and 235 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

W–L 19–17
ERA 4.34
WHIP 1.47
SO 235
Pitcher PIV -5089.1
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
6'3" / 195 lb
Born
11/25/1922 in Morehead City, NC, USA
Died
12/2/2002 in Los Angeles, CA, USA
MLB Debut
1948-04-30
Last Game
1955-06-12

Full name: Benjamin Styron Wade

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Career Pitching Statistics

Ben Wade — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
19 17 118 25 5 1 10 371.1 364 179 49 181 235 4.34 -5089.1

Career ERA 4.34 vs. league average 3.97 across their career seasons — 9.2% worse than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Ben Wade — Season-by-Season Pitching
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1948 CHN NL 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 5.0 4 4 4 1 7.20 — 0.0
1952 BRO NL 11 9 37 24 5 1 3 180.0 166 72 94 118 3.60 3.70 (+3%) -1570.8
1953 BRO NL 7 5 32 0 0 0 3 90.1 79 38 33 65 3.79 4.14 (+8%) -908.3
1954 BRO NL 1 1 23 0 0 0 3 45.0 62 41 21 25 8.20 3.90 (-110%) -1563.4
1954 SLN NL 0 0 13 0 0 0 0 23.0 27 14 15 19 5.48 3.90 (-41%) -437.9
1955 PIT NL 0 1 11 1 0 0 1 28.0 26 10 14 7 3.21 4.00 (+20%) -608.7
Career · 6 seasons 19 17 118 25 5 1 10 371.1 364 179 181 235 4.34 — -5,089

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

Ben Wade — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
118 98 8 11 3 0 4 9 0 2 37 .112 .129 .265 .394 -365

Career AVG .112 vs. league average .260 across their career seasons — 56.8% below league average.

Career OBP .129 vs. league average .334 across their career seasons — 61.4% below league average.

Career SLG .265 vs. league average .386 across their career seasons — 31.2% below league average.

Career OPS .394 vs. league average .720 across their career seasons — 45.2% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Ben Wade — 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
1948 CHN NL 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 — — — — 0.0
1952 BRO NL 37 60 7 7 3 0 3 6 0 1 22 .117 .252 (-54%) .326 (-60%) .369 (-14%) .696 (-36%) -364.9
1953 BRO NL 32 24 1 4 0 0 1 2 0 0 8 .167 — — — — 0.0
1954 BRO NL 23 5 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 .000 — — — — 0.0
1954 SLN NL 13 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000 — — — — 0.0
1955 PIT NL 11 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 .000 — — — — 0.0
Career · 6 seasons 118 98 8 11 3 0 4 9 0 2 37 .112 — — — — -365

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.

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

Ben Wade — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Batting by Year

Ben Wade — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1953 WS BRO 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

Ben Wade — Playoff Career Pitching
W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
0 0 2 0 0 2.1 4 4 1 2 15.43

Playoff Pitching by Year

Ben Wade — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1953 WS BRO 0 0 2 0 0 2.1 4 4 1 2 15.43

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (236 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Ben Wade — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home61463412.087
Away57525737.135

Pitching — Home / Away

Ben Wade — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home61197.218496971204.37
Away57173.218083831154.30

Last 10 Games — Batting

Ben Wade — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1955-06-12 PITATLL 000000000
1955-06-09 PITCHCL 000000000
1955-06-03 PITCINW 100000000
1955-05-30 PITBROL 100000001
1955-05-28 PITPHIL 200000012
1955-05-22 PITNY1L 000000000
1955-05-11 PITATLL 000000000
1955-05-06 PITNY1W 000000000
1955-04-28 PITCINL 000000000
1955-04-17 PITBROL 000000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Ben Wade — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1955-06-12 PITATL — 1.2200000
1955-06-09 PITCHC — 2.0200100
1955-06-03 PITCIN — 3.2653212
1955-05-30 PITBRO — 3.2444321
1955-05-28 PITPHI — 8.0400210
1955-05-22 PITNY1 L 2.0233200
1955-05-11 PITATL — 2.0300100
1955-05-06 PITNY1 SV 1.0000110
1955-04-28 PITCIN — 1.0000100
1955-04-17 PITBRO — 1.0100010

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Ben Wade — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 118 1 27 36 4 4

Season-by-Season Fielding

Ben Wade — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1948 CHN P 2 0 1 1 0 0
1952 BRO P 37 0 12 20 1 1
1953 BRO P 32 0 4 4 1 2
1954 BRO P 23 0 3 5 2 0
1954 SLN P 13 0 3 3 0 1
1955 PIT P 11 1 4 3 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Ben Wade — Career Games by Position
Position Games
Pitcher 118

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Ben Wade (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Zach Miner
    25-22, 4.25 ERA
  2. 93
    Mike Kilkenny
    23-18, 4.43 ERA
  3. 93
    Frank Reberger
    14-15, 4.52 ERA
  4. 90
    Jim Crawford
    15-28, 4.40 ERA
  5. 87
    Shawn Hillegas
    24-38, 4.61 ERA
  6. 87
    Renie Martin
    24-35, 4.27 ERA

Ben Wade: the record in brief

Ben Wade played a first major league game on April 30, 1948 and a last one on June 12, 1955. Club by club, the record runs the Chicago Cubs (1948), the Brooklyn Dodgers (1952 to 1954), the St. Louis Cardinals (1954), and the Pittsburgh Pirates (1955). Wade played primarily as a pitcher and batted and threw right-handed. Born on November 25, 1922, in Morehead City, NC, USA, Wade was listed at 6 feet, 3 inches and 195 pounds. Wade died on December 2, 2002, in Los Angeles, CA, USA. Ben Wade was the playing name; the full given name is Benjamin Styron.

Wade pitched in 118 games, starting 25, and finished with a 19-17 record and 4.34 ERA. The totals include 235 strikeouts and 10 saves. Against a 3.97 league ERA for the same seasons, the 4.34 mark was 9.2% worse. No season topped the 11 wins of 1952. Among the heaviest workloads, the lowest ERA was 3.60 in 1952, when the league's was 3.70.

Frequently Asked Questions about Ben Wade

What years did Ben Wade play?
Ben Wade played in Major League Baseball from 1948 to 1955.
Was Ben Wade a pitcher?
Yes. Ben Wade pitched in the major leagues, recording 19 wins and 235 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Ben Wade hit?
Ben Wade hit 4 career home runs with 11 hits.
What was Ben Wade's career batting average?
Ben Wade batted .112 over his career, with 11 hits in 98 at bats.
How many RBI did Ben Wade have?
Ben Wade drove in 9 runs in his career.
What was Ben Wade's career ERA?
Ben Wade finished with a 4.34 career ERA, going 19-17 with 235 strikeouts.