David Wells

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1987-2007)

David Wells was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1987 to 2007 for 9 teams, including the Toronto Blue Jays, a span of 21 seasons. Across 660 career appearances, he went 239-157 with a 4.13 ERA and 2,201 strikeouts. David Wells was a 3-time All-Star and an ALCS MVP. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 31300.7.

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 239–157
ERA 4.13
WHIP 1.27
SO 2,201
Pitcher PIV 31300.7
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
L / L
Height / Weight
6'3" / 187 lb
Born
5/20/1963 in Torrance, CA, USA
MLB Debut
1987-06-30
Last Game
2007-09-28
Awards
3× All-Star · ALCS MVP

Full name: David Lee Wells

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Career Pitching Statistics

David Wells — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
239 157 660 489 54 12 13 3439.0 3,635 1,578 407 719 2,201 4.13 31300.7

Career ERA 4.13 vs. league average 4.30 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

David Wells Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1987 TOR AL 4 3 18 2 0 0 1 29.1 37 13 12 32 3.99 4.29 (+7%) 1753.7
1988 TOR AL 3 5 41 0 0 0 4 64.1 65 33 31 56 4.62 3.73 (-24%) -2023.5
1989 TOR AL 7 4 54 0 0 0 2 86.1 66 23 28 78 2.40 3.71 (+35%) 2259.4
1990 TOR AL 11 6 43 25 0 0 3 189.0 165 66 45 115 3.14 3.86 (+19%) 2753.4
1991 TOR AL 15 10 40 28 2 0 1 198.1 188 82 49 106 3.72 3.91 (+5%) -1091.5
1992 TOR AL 7 9 41 14 0 0 2 120.0 138 72 36 62 5.40 3.75 (-44%) -2513.1
1993 DET AL 11 9 32 30 0 0 0 187.0 183 87 42 139 4.19 4.19 (avg) 462.7
1994 DET AL 5 7 16 16 5 1 0 111.1 113 49 24 71 3.96 4.51 (+12%) 1245.6
1995 DET AL 10 3 18 18 3 0 0 130.1 120 44 37 83 3.04 4.45 (+32%) 94.0
1995 CIN NL 6 5 11 11 3 0 0 72.2 74 29 16 50 3.59 4.45 (+19%) 1825.4
1996 BAL AL 11 14 34 34 3 0 0 224.1 247 128 51 130 5.14 4.61 (-11%) -177.6
1997 NYA AL 16 10 32 32 5 2 0 218.0 239 102 45 156 4.21 4.39 (+4%) 3293.7
1998 NYA AL 18 4 30 30 8 5 0 214.1 195 83 29 163 3.49 4.43 (+21%) 3550.6
1999 TOR AL 17 10 34 34 7 1 0 231.2 246 124 62 169 4.82 4.71 (-2%) 2167.6
2000 TOR AL 20 8 35 35 9 1 0 229.2 266 105 31 166 4.11 4.77 (+14%) 7634.3
2001 CHA AL 5 7 16 16 1 0 0 100.2 120 50 21 59 4.47 4.42 (-1%) 708.1
2002 NYA AL 19 7 31 31 2 1 0 206.1 210 86 45 137 3.75 4.28 (+12%) 3193.4
2003 NYA AL 15 7 31 30 4 1 0 213.0 242 98 20 101 4.14 4.40 (+6%) 2542.4
2004 SDN NL 12 8 31 31 0 0 0 195.2 203 81 20 101 3.73 4.46 (+17%) 2963.4
2005 BOS AL 15 7 30 30 2 0 0 184.0 220 91 21 107 4.45 4.29 (-4%) 2201.6
2006 BOS AL 2 3 8 8 0 0 0 47.0 64 26 8 24 4.98 4.53 (-10%) -1028.4
2006 SDN NL 1 2 5 5 0 0 0 28.1 33 11 4 14 3.49 4.53 (+23%) 1058.7
2007 SDN NL 5 8 22 22 0 0 0 118.2 156 73 33 63 5.54 4.47 (-24%) -1415.7
2007 LAN NL 4 1 7 7 0 0 0 38.2 45 22 9 19 5.12 4.47 (-14%) -157.6
Career · 24 seasons 239 157 660 489 54 12 13 3,439.0 3,635 1,578 719 2,201 4.13 — 31,301

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

David Wells — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
660 178 8 23 2 0 0 5 0 3 59 .129 .148 .140 .289 -610

Career AVG .129 vs. league average .264 across their career seasons — 51.1% below league average.

Career OBP .148 vs. league average .333 across their career seasons — 55.4% below league average.

Career SLG .140 vs. league average .413 across their career seasons — 66.0% below league average.

Career OPS .289 vs. league average .746 across their career seasons — 61.3% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

David Wells 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
1987 TOR AL 18 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1988 TOR AL 41 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1989 TOR AL 54 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1990 TOR AL 43 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1991 TOR AL 40 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1992 TOR AL 41 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1993 DET AL 32 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1994 DET AL 16 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1995 DET AL 18 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1995 CIN NL 11 28 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 .143 — — — — 0.0
1996 BAL AL 34 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1997 NYA AL 32 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1998 NYA AL 30 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .250 — — — — 0.0
1999 TOR AL 34 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
2000 TOR AL 35 6 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .167 — — — — 0.0
2001 CHA AL 16 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 — — — — 0.0
2002 NYA AL 31 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 .000 — — — — 0.0
2003 NYA AL 31 6 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .167 — — — — 0.0
2004 SDN NL 31 57 2 6 0 0 0 3 0 3 24 .105 .266 (-60%) .335 (-51%) .427 (-75%) .762 (-65%) -610.0
2005 BOS AL 30 7 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 .143 — — — — 0.0
2006 BOS AL 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
2006 SDN NL 5 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .200 — — — — 0.0
2007 SDN NL 22 38 1 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 12 .105 — — — — 0.0
2007 LAN NL 7 15 2 4 1 0 0 1 0 0 6 .267 — — — — 0.0
Career · 24 seasons 660 178 8 23 2 0 0 5 0 3 59 .129 — — — — -610

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

David Wells — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
27 6 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 .333

Playoff Batting by Year

David Wells — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
2006 NLDS2 SDN 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2005 ALDS1 BOS 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2003 ALCS NYA 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2003 ALDS1 NYA 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2003 WS NYA 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2002 ALDS1 NYA 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1998 ALCS NYA 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1998 ALDS2 NYA 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1998 WS NYA 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1997 ALDS1 NYA 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1996 ALCS BAL 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1996 ALDS1 BAL 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1995 NLCS CIN 1 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500
1995 NLDS2 CIN 1 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .333
1992 WS TOR 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1991 ALCS TOR 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1989 ALCS TOR 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

David Wells — Playoff Career Pitching
W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
10 5 27 17 0 125.0 116 44 25 83 3.17

Playoff Pitching by Year

David Wells — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
2006 NLDS2 SDN 0 1 1 1 0 5.0 7 2 0 2 3.60
2005 ALDS1 BOS 0 1 1 1 0 6.2 7 2 0 2 2.70
2003 ALCS NYA 1 0 2 1 0 7.2 5 2 2 5 2.35
2003 ALDS1 NYA 1 0 1 1 0 7.2 8 1 0 5 1.17
2003 WS NYA 0 1 2 2 0 8.0 6 3 2 1 3.38
2002 ALDS1 NYA 0 1 1 1 0 4.2 10 8 0 0 15.43
1998 ALCS NYA 2 0 2 2 0 15.2 12 5 2 18 2.87
1998 ALDS2 NYA 1 0 1 1 0 8.0 5 0 1 9 0.00
1998 WS NYA 1 0 1 1 0 7.0 7 5 2 4 6.43
1997 ALDS1 NYA 1 0 1 1 0 9.0 5 1 0 1 1.00
1996 ALCS BAL 1 0 1 1 0 6.2 8 3 3 6 4.05
1996 ALDS1 BAL 1 0 2 2 0 13.2 15 7 4 6 4.61
1995 NLCS CIN 0 1 1 1 0 6.0 8 3 2 3 4.50
1995 NLDS2 CIN 1 0 1 1 0 6.1 6 0 1 8 0.00
1992 WS TOR 0 0 4 0 0 4.1 1 0 2 3 0.00
1991 ALCS TOR 0 0 4 0 0 7.2 6 2 2 9 2.35
1989 ALCS TOR 0 0 1 0 0 1.0 0 0 2 1 0.00

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (1320 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

David Wells — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home3307141103.155
Away33010741202.112

Pitching — Home / Away

David Wells — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home3301775.0179773933811923.75
Away3301664.0183883938110094.54

Last 10 Games — Batting

David Wells — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
2007-09-28 LADSFGW 211000101
2007-09-22 LADAZL 200000001
2007-09-18 LADCOLL 200000001
2007-09-13 LADSDPW 202100000
2007-09-08 LADSFGW 300000001
2007-08-31 LADSDPL 200000001
2007-08-26 LADNYNW 211000001
2007-08-06 SDPSTLL 200000001
2007-08-01 SDPAZL 100000000
2007-07-26 SDPHOUL 100000001

Last 10 Games — Pitching

David Wells — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
2007-09-28 LADSFG W 6.0732130
2007-09-22 LADAZ L 4.2955232
2007-09-18 LADCOL — 5.0855111
2007-09-13 LADSDP W 6.0433132
2007-09-08 LADSFG W 7.0422040
2007-08-31 LADSDP — 5.0633130
2007-08-26 LADNYN W 5.0722320
2007-08-06 SDPSTL L 4.01177011
2007-08-01 SDPAZ — 5.1955120
2007-07-26 SDPHOU L 3.0777423

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

David Wells — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 660 489 149 451 30 25

Season-by-Season Fielding

David Wells — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1987 TOR P 18 2 2 4 0 1
1988 TOR P 41 0 5 5 0 1
1989 TOR P 54 0 9 11 1 0
1990 TOR P 43 25 7 32 0 1
1991 TOR P 40 28 5 35 2 1
1992 TOR P 41 14 9 14 1 1
1993 DET P 32 30 10 22 1 0
1994 DET P 16 16 5 12 0 0
1995 DET P 18 18 11 16 2 1
1995 CIN P 11 11 4 6 0 1
1996 BAL P 34 34 15 39 1 4
1997 NYA P 32 32 8 29 4 2
1998 NYA P 30 30 8 27 3 1
1999 TOR P 34 34 7 30 0 2
2000 TOR P 35 35 8 18 3 1
2001 CHA P 16 16 4 10 4 1
2002 NYA P 31 31 6 24 1 2
2003 NYA P 31 30 7 32 0 2
2004 SDN P 31 31 7 38 1 1
2005 BOS P 30 30 3 19 3 2
2006 BOS P 8 8 1 4 0 0
2006 SDN P 5 5 1 2 0 0
2007 SDN P 22 22 5 19 1 0
2007 LAN P 7 7 2 3 2 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

David Wells Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 660

Awards & Honors

David Wells — Awards & Honors
Year Award Notes
2000 TSN All-Star LHP
1998 ALCS MVP
1998 Player of the Week Week of 1998-05-16
1998 TSN All-Star LHP

Salary History

David Wells — Salary History
Year Team League Salary
2007 SDN NL $3,000,000
2006 BOS AL $4,075,000
2005 BOS AL $4,075,000
2004 SDN NL $1,250,000
2003 NYA AL $3,250,000
2002 NYA AL $2,250,000
2001 CHA AL $9,250,000
2000 TOR AL $5,500,000
1999 TOR AL $4,816,667
1998 NYA AL $4,666,666
1997 NYA AL $3,766,667
1996 BAL AL $3,200,000
1995 DET AL $2,191,667
1994 DET AL $2,500,000
1993 DET AL $1,450,000
1992 TOR AL $2,063,000
1991 TOR AL $800,000
1990 TOR AL $275,000
1989 TOR AL $107,000
1988 TOR AL $82,000
Total Career Earnings $58,568,667

Award Voting History

David Wells — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
2000 Cy Young Award AL 3rd 46.0 140 0
2000 Most Valuable Player AL 17th 2.0 392 0
1998 Cy Young Award AL 3rd 31.0 140 0
1998 Most Valuable Player AL 16th 3.0 392 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

David Wells (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Mark Buehrle
    214-160, 3.81 ERA
  2. 93
    Bartolo Colon
    247-188, 4.12 ERA
  3. 90
    Dennis Martinez
    245-193, 3.70 ERA
  4. 90
    Rick Reuschel
    214-191, 3.37 ERA
  5. 88
    Jerry Reuss
    220-191, 3.64 ERA
  6. 87
    Larry Jackson
    194-183, 3.40 ERA

Compare David Wells

Side-by-side career stat comparisons against Wells's closest peers by position and era.

vs Roger Clemens
vs Greg Maddux
vs Randy Johnson
vs Pedro Martinez
vs Nolan Ryan
vs Curt Schilling

Browse all MLB player comparisons →

David Wells: the record in brief

Between the debut on June 30, 1987 and the final game on September 28, 2007, David Wells built the record summarized on this page. Club by club, the record runs the Toronto Blue Jays (1987 to 2000), the Detroit Tigers (1993 to 1995), the Cincinnati Reds (1995), the Baltimore Orioles (1996), the New York Yankees (1997 to 2003), the Chicago White Sox (2001), the San Diego Padres (2004 to 2007), and the Boston Red Sox (2005 to 2006), among other clubs in the table. Born on May 20, 1963, in Torrance, CA, USA, Wells is listed as a pitcher and both batted and threw left-handed. Wells's listed size is 6'3" and 187 pounds. Wells's full given name, per the bio, is David Lee Wells.

The pitching table credits Wells with a 239-157 record and a 4.13 ERA in 660 games. Also on Wells's record: 2,201 strikeouts, 54 complete games, 12 shutouts, and 13 saves. Wells's 4.13 ERA was close to the 4.30 league figure for those seasons.

Frequently Asked Questions about David Wells

What years did David Wells play?
David Wells played in Major League Baseball from 1987 to 2007.
Was David Wells a pitcher?
Yes. David Wells pitched in the major leagues, recording 239 wins and 2201 strikeouts.
How many home runs did David Wells hit?
David Wells hit 0 career home runs with 23 hits.
What was David Wells's career batting average?
David Wells batted .129 over his career, with 23 hits in 178 at bats.
How many RBI did David Wells have?
David Wells drove in 5 runs in his career.
What was David Wells's career ERA?
David Wells finished with a 4.13 career ERA, going 239-157 with 2,201 strikeouts.