Denny Walling
Third Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1975-1992)
Denny Walling was a third baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1975 to 1992 for 4 teams, including the Athletics, a span of 18 seasons. In 1,271 career games, he hit .271 with 799 hits, 49 home runs, and 380 RBI. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 2,133.
- 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
- Third Baseman
- Bats / Throws
- L / R
- Height / Weight
- 6'0" / 180 lb
- MLB Debut
- 1975-09-07
- Last Game
- 1992-04-10
Full name: Dennis Martin Walling
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,271 | 2,945 | 372 | 799 | 142 | 30 | 49 | 380 | 44 | 308 | 316 | .271 | .339 | .390 | .728 | 2,133 |
Career AVG .271 vs. league average .259 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OBP .339 vs. league average .324 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career SLG .390 vs. league average .386 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OPS .728 vs. league average .710 across their career seasons — near 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | OAK | AL | 6 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | .125 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1976 | OAK | AL | 3 | 11 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .273 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1977 | HOU | NL | 6 | 21 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 4 | .286 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1978 | HOU | NL | 120 | 247 | 30 | 62 | 11 | 3 | 3 | 36 | 9 | 30 | 24 | .251 | .257 (-3%) | .323 (+3%) | .378 (-6%) | .702 (-2%) | -41.9 |
| 1979 | HOU | NL | 82 | 147 | 21 | 48 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 31 | 3 | 17 | 21 | .327 | .265 (+23%) | .329 (+19%) | .397 (+25%) | .727 (+22%) | 613.1 |
| 1980 | HOU | NL | 100 | 284 | 30 | 85 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 29 | 4 | 35 | 26 | .299 | .264 (+13%) | .326 (+15%) | .387 (avg) | .714 (+7%) | 452.6 |
| 1981 | HOU | NL | 65 | 158 | 23 | 37 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 23 | 2 | 28 | 17 | .234 | .255 (-8%) | .320 (+8%) | .368 (avg) | .688 (+4%) | 168.9 |
| 1982 | HOU | NL | 85 | 146 | 22 | 30 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 4 | 23 | 19 | .205 | .261 (-21%) | .324 (-4%) | .388 (-31%) | .712 (-19%) | -376.0 |
| 1983 | HOU | NL | 100 | 135 | 24 | 40 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 19 | 2 | 15 | 16 | .296 | .260 (+14%) | .324 (+12%) | .389 (+14%) | .714 (+13%) | 338.9 |
| 1984 | HOU | NL | 87 | 249 | 37 | 70 | 11 | 5 | 3 | 31 | 7 | 16 | 28 | .281 | .259 (+8%) | .322 (+1%) | .384 (+4%) | .707 (+3%) | 66.0 |
| 1985 | HOU | NL | 119 | 345 | 44 | 93 | 20 | 1 | 7 | 45 | 5 | 25 | 26 | .270 | .257 (+5%) | .323 (-2%) | .390 (+1%) | .714 (-1%) | -86.5 |
| 1986 | HOU | NL | 130 | 382 | 54 | 119 | 23 | 1 | 13 | 58 | 1 | 36 | 31 | .312 | .257 (+21%) | .325 (+13%) | .395 (+21%) | .720 (+17%) | 1286.5 |
| 1987 | HOU | NL | 110 | 325 | 45 | 92 | 21 | 4 | 5 | 33 | 5 | 39 | 37 | .283 | .262 (+8%) | .331 (+8%) | .415 (+1%) | .746 (+4%) | 253.8 |
| 1988 | HOU | NL | 65 | 176 | 19 | 43 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 20 | 1 | 15 | 18 | .244 | .254 (-4%) | .317 (-4%) | .377 (-10%) | .695 (-7%) | -200.8 |
| 1988 | SLN | NL | 19 | 58 | 3 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 7 | .224 | .254 (-12%) | .317 (-21%) | .377 (-27%) | .695 (-24%) | -200.8 |
| 1989 | SLN | NL | 69 | 79 | 9 | 24 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 14 | 12 | .304 | .254 (+20%) | .319 (+28%) | .375 (+15%) | .694 (+21%) | 342.6 |
| 1990 | SLN | NL | 78 | 127 | 7 | 28 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 19 | 0 | 8 | 15 | .220 | .257 (-15%) | .324 (-18%) | .385 (-26%) | .710 (-23%) | -462.2 |
| 1991 | TEX | AL | 24 | 44 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 8 | .091 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1992 | HOU | NL | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .333 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 19 seasons | 1,271 | 2,945 | 372 | 799 | 142 | 30 | 49 | 380 | 44 | 308 | 316 | .271 | — | — | — | — | 2,154 | ||
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
Playoff Batting by Year
Game Log & Splits
View full game log (1271 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 644 | 1494 | 188 | 406 | 20 | 190 | .272 |
| Away | 627 | 1451 | 184 | 393 | 29 | 190 | .271 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992-04-10 | HOU | CIN | L | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1992-04-09 | HOU | CIN | W | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1992-04-08 | HOU | ATL | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1991-06-21 | TEX | CHW | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1991-06-19 | TEX | KCR | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1991-06-17 | TEX | KCR | W | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1991-06-14 | TEX | NYY | W | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1991-06-08 | TEX | NYY | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1991-06-06 | TEX | KCR | L | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1991-06-04 | TEX | KCR | L | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1B | 273 | 151 | 1598 | 102 | 15 | 131 |
| 3B | 387 | 320 | 245 | 637 | 49 | 60 |
| OF | 290 | 192 | 417 | 13 | 8 | 3 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | OAK | OF | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1976 | OAK | OF | 3 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1977 | HOU | OF | 5 | 5 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1978 | HOU | OF | 78 | 55 | 140 | 4 | 3 | 2 |
| 1979 | HOU | OF | 42 | 32 | 65 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 1980 | HOU | 1B | 63 | 56 | 505 | 31 | 6 | 46 |
| 1980 | HOU | OF | 19 | 14 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1981 | HOU | 1B | 27 | 18 | 188 | 8 | 2 | 17 |
| 1981 | HOU | OF | 27 | 21 | 38 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1982 | HOU | 1B | 20 | 10 | 129 | 8 | 1 | 8 |
| 1982 | HOU | OF | 32 | 18 | 38 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1983 | HOU | 1B | 42 | 5 | 115 | 8 | 1 | 12 |
| 1983 | HOU | 3B | 13 | 9 | 8 | 21 | 3 | 1 |
| 1983 | HOU | OF | 13 | 7 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 1984 | HOU | 1B | 16 | 6 | 83 | 2 | 1 | 7 |
| 1984 | HOU | 3B | 52 | 46 | 30 | 100 | 6 | 14 |
| 1984 | HOU | OF | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1985 | HOU | 1B | 46 | 30 | 283 | 20 | 2 | 22 |
| 1985 | HOU | 3B | 51 | 48 | 31 | 104 | 9 | 9 |
| 1985 | HOU | OF | 13 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1986 | HOU | 1B | 4 | 2 | 30 | 4 | 0 | 2 |
| 1986 | HOU | 3B | 102 | 81 | 59 | 156 | 9 | 6 |
| 1986 | HOU | OF | 11 | 5 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1987 | HOU | 1B | 16 | 12 | 95 | 9 | 0 | 8 |
| 1987 | HOU | 3B | 79 | 68 | 72 | 109 | 10 | 13 |
| 1987 | HOU | OF | 7 | 6 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1988 | HOU | 1B | 3 | 1 | 21 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1988 | HOU | 3B | 51 | 42 | 33 | 99 | 7 | 14 |
| 1988 | HOU | OF | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1988 | SLN | 1B | 1 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1988 | SLN | 3B | 5 | 4 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 2 |
| 1988 | SLN | OF | 11 | 10 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1989 | SLN | 1B | 20 | 2 | 58 | 4 | 2 | 4 |
| 1989 | SLN | 3B | 9 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 0 |
| 1989 | SLN | OF | 6 | 5 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1990 | SLN | 1B | 15 | 8 | 86 | 6 | 0 | 4 |
| 1990 | SLN | 3B | 11 | 11 | 6 | 19 | 0 | 1 |
| 1990 | SLN | OF | 8 | 4 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1991 | TEX | 3B | 14 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 1 | 0 |
| 1991 | TEX | OF | 5 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| First Base | 273 |
| Third Base | 387 |
| Left Field | 133 |
| Center Field | 24 |
| Right Field | 138 |
Salary History
Denny Walling's recorded salaries total $3,293,334 over 7 seasons, 1985 to 1992. This total is partial: the salary data covers 1985 to 2016, and Walling's career ran from 1975 to 1992. His seasons before 1985 are not included, and no salary is recorded for 1991.
| Year | Team | League | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | HOU | NL | $300,000 |
| 1990 | SLN | NL | $500,000 |
| 1989 | SLN | NL | $615,000 |
| 1988 | HOU | NL | $575,000 |
| 1987 | HOU | NL | $595,000 |
| 1986 | HOU | NL | $366,667 |
| 1985 | HOU | NL | $341,667 |
| Total recorded salary (partial) | $3,293,334 | ||
College History
| School Name | City | State | Years Attended |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clemson University | Clemson | SC | 1975 |
| Brookdale Community College | Lincroft | NJ | 1973, 1974 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Denny Walling (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Denny Walling: the record in brief
Denny Walling's major league career runs from a debut on September 7, 1975 to a final game on April 10, 1992. Club by club, the record runs the Oakland Athletics (1975 through 1976), the Houston Astros (1977 through 1992), the St. Louis Cardinals (1988 through 1990), and the Texas Rangers (1991). Walling is listed as a third baseman at 6 feet, 0 inches and 180 pounds. Walling batted left-handed and threw right-handed, per the bio block. The recorded birth is April 17, 1954, in Neptune, NJ, USA. The bio lists the given name Dennis Martin.
Walling's career batting table shows 1,271 games, 2,945 at bats and 799 hits, a .271 average, plus 49 homers, 380 RBI, and 44 stolen bases. Reaching base at a .339 clip and slugging .390, Walling finished with a .728 OPS. The .271 career average is close to the .259 the league hit across the same seasons. The single-season home run high is 13, set in 1986. No season topped the 119 hits of 1986.
Frequently Asked Questions about Denny Walling
- What years did Denny Walling play?
- Denny Walling played in Major League Baseball from 1975 to 1992.
- Was Denny Walling a pitcher?
- No. Denny Walling was a position player (Third Baseman).
- How many home runs did Denny Walling hit?
- Denny Walling hit 49 career home runs with 799 hits.
- What teams did Denny Walling play for?
- Denny Walling played for 4 teams: the Oakland Athletics (1975–1976), the Houston Astros (1977–1988, 1992), the St. Louis Cardinals (1988–1990), and the Texas Rangers (1991).
- What were Denny Walling's career stats?
- In 1,271 games, Denny Walling had 799 hits, 49 home runs, 380 RBI, 372 runs, and 44 stolen bases, with a .271 batting average.
- How much did Denny Walling earn in his career?
- Denny Walling's recorded salaries total $3,293,334 over 7 seasons, 1985 to 1992. This total is partial: the salary data covers 1985 to 2016, and Walling's career ran from 1975 to 1992. His seasons before 1985 are not included, and no salary is recorded for 1991.
- What was Denny Walling's salary?
- Denny Walling's last recorded salary was $300,000, in 1992. His highest recorded salary was $615,000, in 1989, and his lowest was $300,000, in 1992. The Salary History table lists each season from 1985 to 1992.
- What position did Denny Walling play?
- Denny Walling played primarily as a third baseman, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Denny Walling and how much did he weigh?
- Denny Walling was listed at 6 feet and 180 pounds.
- How many home runs did Denny Walling hit each season?
- Denny Walling's home runs by season: 0 in 1975, 0 in 1976, 0 in 1977, 3 in 1978, 3 in 1979, 3 in 1980, 5 in 1981, 1 in 1982, 3 in 1983, 3 in 1984, 7 in 1985, 13 in 1986, 5 in 1987, 1 in 1988, 1 in 1989, 1 in 1990, 0 in 1991, and 0 in 1992. His most in one season was 13, in 1986.
- What was Denny Walling's career batting average?
- Denny Walling batted .271 over his career, with 799 hits in 2,945 at bats.
- How many RBI did Denny Walling have?
- Denny Walling drove in 380 runs in his career.
- Is Denny Walling in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Denny Walling has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.