What years did Eddie Waitkus play?

Eddie Waitkus played in Major League Baseball from 1941 to 1955.

Was Eddie Waitkus a pitcher?

No. Eddie Waitkus was a position player (First Baseman).

How many home runs did Eddie Waitkus hit?

Eddie Waitkus hit 24 career home runs with 1214 hits.

What was Eddie Waitkus's career batting average?

Eddie Waitkus batted .285 over his career, with 1,214 hits in 4,254 at bats.

How many RBI did Eddie Waitkus have?

Eddie Waitkus drove in 373 runs in his career.

Is Eddie Waitkus in the Hall of Fame?

No. Eddie Waitkus has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Eddie Waitkus

First Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1941-1955)

Eddie Waitkus was a first baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1941 to 1955 for the Chicago Cubs, the Philadelphia Phillies, and the Baltimore Orioles, a span of 15 seasons. In 1,140 career games, he hit .285 with 1,214 hits, 24 home runs, and 373 RBI. Eddie Waitkus was an All-Star. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 395.

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 October 12, 2026

AVG .285

HR 24

RBI 373

H 1,214

OPS .718

PIV 395

Position: First Baseman
Bats / Throws: L / L
Height / Weight: 6'0" / 170 lb
Born: 9/4/1919 in Cambridge, MA, USA
Died: 9/16/1972 in Jamaica Plain, MA, USA
MLB Debut: 1941-04-15
Last Game: 1955-09-20
Awards: All-Star

Full name: Edward Stephen Waitkus

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Career Batting Statistics

Eddie Waitkus — Career Batting Statistics
G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
1,140	4,254	528	1,214	215	44	24	373	28	372	204	.285	.344	.374	.718	395

Career AVG .285 vs. league average .261 across their career seasons — +9.3% above league average.

Career OBP .344 vs. league average .336 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .374 vs. league average .382 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OPS .718 vs. league average .718 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Eddie Waitkus 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
1941	CHN	NL	12	28	1	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	.179	—	—	—	—	0.0
1946	CHN	NL	113	441	50	134	24	5	4	55	3	23	14	.304	.256 (+18%)	.328 (+3%)	.358 (+14%)	.687 (+9%)	572.0
1947	CHN	NL	130	514	60	150	28	6	2	35	3	32	17	.292	.262 (+11%)	.336 (avg)	.376 (+1%)	.712 (+1%)	-43.2
1948	CHN	NL	139	562	87	166	27	10	7	44	11	43	19	.295	.263 (+12%)	.340 (+2%)	.379 (+10%)	.719 (+6%)	560.9
1949	PHI	NL	54	209	41	64	16	3	1	28	3	33	12	.306	.262 (+17%)	.343 (+17%)	.384 (+11%)	.727 (+14%)	578.7
1950	PHI	NL	154	641	102	182	32	5	2	44	3	55	29	.284	.265 (+7%)	.346 (-1%)	.401 (-11%)	.747 (-6%)	-685.0
1951	PHI	NL	145	610	65	157	27	4	1	46	0	53	22	.257	.260 (-1%)	.336 (-6%)	.385 (-17%)	.721 (-12%)	-1161.2
1952	PHI	NL	146	499	51	144	29	4	2	49	2	64	23	.289	.252 (+14%)	.326 (+13%)	.369 (+1%)	.696 (+7%)	840.4
1953	PHI	NL	81	247	24	72	9	2	1	16	1	13	23	.291	.264 (+10%)	.335 (-2%)	.397 (-10%)	.733 (-6%)	-270.0
1954	BAL	AL	95	311	35	88	17	4	2	33	0	28	25	.283	.261 (+8%)	.333 (+2%)	.390 (-2%)	.723 (avg)	-13.4
1955	BAL	AL	38	85	2	22	1	1	0	9	2	11	10	.259	.258 (avg)	.332 (+4%)	.393 (-25%)	.726 (-12%)	-131.8
1955	PHI	NL	33	107	10	30	5	0	2	14	0	17	7	.280	.258 (+8%)	.332 (+14%)	.393 (-3%)	.726 (+5%)	-131.8
Career · 12 seasons			1,140	4,254	528	1,214	215	44	24	373	28	372	204	.285	—	—	—	—	116

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

Eddie Waitkus — Playoff Career Batting
G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
4	15	0	4	1	0	0	0	2	0	.267

Playoff Batting by Year

Eddie Waitkus — Playoff Batting by Year
Year	Round	Team	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
1950	WS	PHI	4	15	0	4	1	0	0	0	2	0	.267

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (1140 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Eddie Waitkus — Batting — Home / Away
Split	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	AVG
Home	566	2098	272	611	6	190	.291
Away	574	2156	256	604	18	183	.280

Last 10 Games — Batting

Eddie Waitkus — Last 10 Games — Batting
Date	Tm	Opp	Res	AB	R	H	2B	HR	RBI	BB	SO
1955-09-20	PHI	BRO	L	3	0	1	0	0	0	2	1
1955-09-20	PHI	BRO	L	4	1	1	0	1	1	0	0
1955-09-18	PHI	PIT	W	3	0	1	0	0	0	1	0
1955-09-18	PHI	PIT	L	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
1955-09-16	PHI	PIT	W	4	1	1	1	0	1	0	0
1955-09-13	PHI	CHC	W	2	1	1	0	0	1	3	0
1955-09-11	PHI	ATL	L	3	0	1	0	0	0	1	1
1955-09-11	PHI	ATL	L	4	0	1	0	0	1	0	0
1955-09-10	PHI	STL	L	2	0	2	1	0	1	0	0
1955-09-09	PHI	STL	L	4	0	1	0	0	0	0	0

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Eddie Waitkus — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1B	1049	123	9150	716	72	886
OF	20	0	43	0	1	0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Eddie Waitkus — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1941	CHN	1B	9	0	71	3	4	8
1946	CHN	1B	106	0	992	81	4	76
1947	CHN	1B	126	0	1161	101	8	109
1948	CHN	1B	116	0	1064	92	9	77
1948	CHN	OF	20	0	43	0	1	0
1949	PHI	1B	54	0	452	36	3	51
1950	PHI	1B	154	0	1387	99	10	142
1951	PHI	1B	144	0	1214	94	10	121
1952	PHI	1B	146	0	1281	95	12	119
1953	PHI	1B	59	0	480	37	6	65
1954	BAL	1B	78	76	618	48	0	72
1955	BAL	1B	26	18	180	9	5	15
1955	PHI	1B	31	29	250	21	1	31

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Eddie Waitkus Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position	Games
First Base	1046
Left Field	20

Award Voting History

Eddie Waitkus — Award Voting History
Year	Award	League	Finish	Points Won	Points Max	Votes First
1950	Most Valuable Player	NL	24th	8.0	336	0
1946	Most Valuable Player	NL	13th	21.0	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

Eddie Waitkus (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

Eddie Waitkus: the record in brief

Eddie Waitkus played a first major league game on April 15, 1941 and a last one on September 20, 1955. Club by club, the record runs the Chicago Cubs (1941 through 1948), the Philadelphia Phillies (1949 through 1955), and the Baltimore Orioles (1954 to 1955). Born on September 4, 1919, in Cambridge, MA, USA, Waitkus is listed as a first baseman and threw and hit left-handed. Size on record: 6-foot-0 and 170 pounds. Waitkus died on September 16, 1972, in Jamaica Plain, MA, USA. Eddie Waitkus was the playing name; the full given name is Edward Stephen.

Waitkus's career batting table shows 1,140 games, 4,254 at bats and 1,214 hits, a .285 average; the totals also include 24 home runs, 373 runs batted in, and 28 stolen bases. Reaching base at a .344 clip and slugging .374, Waitkus finished with a .718 OPS. The league as a whole hit .261 across Waitkus's seasons, which puts the .285 career mark 9.3% above average.

Frequently Asked Questions about Eddie Waitkus

What years did Eddie Waitkus play?: Eddie Waitkus played in Major League Baseball from 1941 to 1955.
Was Eddie Waitkus a pitcher?: No. Eddie Waitkus was a position player (First Baseman).
How many home runs did Eddie Waitkus hit?: Eddie Waitkus hit 24 career home runs with 1214 hits.
What was Eddie Waitkus's career batting average?: Eddie Waitkus batted .285 over his career, with 1,214 hits in 4,254 at bats.
How many RBI did Eddie Waitkus have?: Eddie Waitkus drove in 373 runs in his career.
Is Eddie Waitkus in the Hall of Fame?: No. Eddie Waitkus has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.