Hal Wagner

Catcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1937-1949)

Hal Wagner was a catcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1937 to 1949 for 4 teams, including the Philadelphia Athletics, a span of 13 seasons. In 672 career games, he hit .248 with 458 hits, 15 home runs, and 228 RBI. Hal Wagner was a 2-time All-Star. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 262.

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 .248
HR 15
RBI 228
H 458
OPS .677
PIV 262
Position
Catcher
Bats / Throws
L / R
Height / Weight
6'0" / 165 lb
Born
7/2/1915 in East Riverton, NJ, USA
Died
8/4/1979 in Riverside, NJ, USA
MLB Debut
1937-10-03
Last Game
1949-04-19
Awards
2× All-Star

Full name: Harold Edward Wagner

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Career Batting Statistics

Hal Wagner — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
672 1,849 179 458 90 12 15 228 10 253 152 .248 .343 .334 .677 262

Career AVG .248 vs. league average .264 across their career seasons — 6.2% below league average.

Career OBP .343 vs. league average .335 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .334 vs. league average .375 across their career seasons — 10.9% below league average.

Career OPS .677 vs. league average .709 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Hal Wagner Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1937 PHA AL 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1938 PHA AL 33 88 10 20 2 1 0 8 0 8 9 .227 .272 (-17%) .341 (-13%) .392 (-31%) .734 (-22%) -305.9
1939 PHA AL 5 8 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 .125 — — — — 0.0
1940 PHA AL 34 75 9 19 5 1 0 10 0 11 6 .253 .267 (-5%) .335 (+6%) .387 (-11%) .722 (-3%) -9.3
1941 PHA AL 46 131 18 29 8 2 1 15 1 19 9 .221 .262 (-16%) .332 (-4%) .373 (-10%) .705 (-7%) -136.4
1942 PHA AL 104 288 26 68 17 1 1 30 1 24 29 .236 .253 (-7%) .323 (-6%) .349 (-11%) .672 (-8%) -363.4
1943 PHA AL 111 289 22 69 17 1 1 26 3 36 17 .239 .255 (-7%) .324 (+1%) .346 (-9%) .671 (-4%) -133.6
1944 PHA AL 5 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .250 — — — — 0.0
1944 BOS AL 66 223 21 74 13 4 1 38 1 29 14 .332 .261 (+27%) .325 (+28%) .357 (+23%) .683 (+25%) 0.0
1946 BOS AL 117 370 39 85 12 2 6 52 3 69 32 .230 .256 (-11%) .328 (+8%) .358 (-10%) .687 (-2%) 127.9
1947 BOS AL 21 65 5 15 3 0 0 6 0 9 5 .231 .262 (-12%) .336 (-4%) .376 (-26%) .712 (-16%) -143.2
1947 DET AL 71 191 19 55 10 0 5 33 0 28 16 .288 .262 (+10%) .336 (+13%) .376 (+11%) .712 (+12%) -143.2
1948 DET AL 54 109 10 22 3 0 0 10 1 20 11 .202 .263 (-23%) .340 (-4%) .379 (-40%) .719 (-23%) -341.8
1948 PHI NL 3 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — -341.8
1949 PHI NL 1 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 — — — — 0.0
Career · 15 seasons 672 1,849 179 458 90 12 15 228 10 253 152 .248 — — — — -1,791

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

Hal Wagner — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
5 13 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000

Playoff Batting by Year

Hal Wagner — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1946 WS BOS 5 13 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (672 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Hal Wagner — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home3469399023310118.248
Away326909892255109.248

Last 10 Games — Batting

Hal Wagner — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1949-04-19 PHIBSNL 300000001
1948-10-02 PHIBROL 000000000
1948-09-21 PHICINL 300000000
1948-09-15 PHISTLL 100000000
1948-09-09 DETCLEL 200000001
1948-09-08 DETCLEL 200000000
1948-09-04 DETCHWW 311000010
1948-08-29 DETNYYL 100000000
1948-08-29 DETNYYW 311000101
1948-08-28 DETMINW 100000010

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Hal Wagner — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
C 626 0 2423 271 53 36

Season-by-Season Fielding

Hal Wagner — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1937 PHA C 1 0 1 0 0 1
1938 PHA C 30 0 87 16 3 2
1939 PHA C 5 0 11 3 0 0
1940 PHA C 28 0 91 16 4 4
1941 PHA C 42 0 144 19 4 4
1942 PHA C 94 0 371 47 6 7
1943 PHA C 99 0 340 56 8 3
1944 PHA C 1 0 1 1 0 0
1944 BOS C 64 0 299 29 10 4
1946 BOS C 116 0 553 39 10 3
1947 BOS C 21 0 82 9 2 1
1947 DET C 71 0 275 22 3 3
1948 DET C 52 0 162 12 2 4
1948 PHI C 1 0 3 2 0 0
1949 PHI C 1 0 3 0 1 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Hal Wagner Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Catcher 625
First Base 1

College History

Hal Wagner — College History
School Name City State Years Attended
Duke University Durham NC 1936, 1937

Award Voting History

Hal Wagner — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1946 Most Valuable Player AL 26th 1.0 336 0
1943 Most Valuable Player AL 33th 1.0 336 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Hal Wagner (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Ryan Hanigan
    .251 avg, 30 HR
  2. 92
    Al Evans
    .250 avg, 13 HR
  3. 88
    Joe Ginsberg
    .241 avg, 20 HR
  4. 87
    Jim Essian
    .244 avg, 33 HR
  5. 87
    Bob Stinson
    .250 avg, 33 HR
  6. 86
    Ron Hodges
    .240 avg, 19 HR

Hal Wagner: the record in brief

October 3, 1937 and April 19, 1949 bracket Hal Wagner's time in the majors: the debut and the last game on record. Wagner played for the Philadelphia Athletics (1937 through 1944), the Boston Red Sox (1944 through 1947), the Detroit Tigers (1947 to 1948), and the Philadelphia Phillies (1948 to 1949). Wagner played primarily as a catcher and threw right-handed and batted left-handed. The bio adds a birth date on July 2, 1915, in East Riverton, NJ, USA and a listed size of 6-foot-0 and 165 pounds. Wagner died on August 4, 1979, in Riverside, NJ, USA. The given name on file is Harold Edward Wagner.

Across 672 games at the plate, Wagner's career line reads 458 hits in 1,849 at bats for a .248 average, adding 15 homers and 228 runs batted in. Reaching base at a .343 clip and slugging .334, Wagner finished with a .677 OPS. Set against a .264 league average for the same years, Wagner's .248 average sits 6.2% below it.

Frequently Asked Questions about Hal Wagner

What years did Hal Wagner play?
Hal Wagner played in Major League Baseball from 1937 to 1949.
Was Hal Wagner a pitcher?
No. Hal Wagner was a position player (Catcher).
How many home runs did Hal Wagner hit?
Hal Wagner hit 15 career home runs with 458 hits.
What was Hal Wagner's career batting average?
Hal Wagner batted .248 over his career, with 458 hits in 1,849 at bats.
How many RBI did Hal Wagner have?
Hal Wagner drove in 228 runs in his career.
Is Hal Wagner in the Hall of Fame?
No. Hal Wagner has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.