Sam West
Outfielder · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1927-1942)
Sam West was an outfielder who played in Major League Baseball from 1927 to 1942 for the Washington Senators, the St. Louis Browns, and the Chicago White Sox, a span of 16 seasons. In 1,753 career games, he hit .299 with 1,838 hits, 75 home runs, and 838 RBI. Sam West was a 4-time All-Star. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 10,501.
- 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
- Outfielder
- Bats / Throws
- L / L
- Height / Weight
- 5'11" / 165 lb
- Died
- 11/23/1985 in Lubbock, TX, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1927-04-17
- Last Game
- 1942-09-24
- Awards
- 4× All-Star
Full name: Samuel Filmore West
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,753 | 6,148 | 934 | 1,838 | 347 | 101 | 75 | 838 | 53 | 696 | 540 | .299 | .371 | .425 | .796 | 10,501 |
Career AVG .299 vs. league average .276 across their career seasons — +8.2% above league average.
Career OBP .371 vs. league average .341 across their career seasons — +8.8% above league average.
Career SLG .425 vs. league average .393 across their career seasons — +8.1% above league average.
Career OPS .796 vs. league average .734 across their career seasons — +8.4% above 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1927 | WS1 | AL | 38 | 67 | 9 | 16 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 8 | 8 | .239 | .282 (-15%) | .344 (-7%) | .392 (-16%) | .736 (-12%) | -128.6 |
| 1928 | WS1 | AL | 125 | 378 | 59 | 114 | 30 | 7 | 3 | 40 | 5 | 20 | 23 | .302 | .280 (+7%) | .342 (-1%) | .395 (+12%) | .737 (+6%) | 296.4 |
| 1929 | WS1 | AL | 142 | 510 | 60 | 136 | 16 | 8 | 3 | 75 | 9 | 45 | 41 | .267 | .289 (-8%) | .353 (-8%) | .415 (-16%) | .769 (-12%) | -1065.6 |
| 1930 | WS1 | AL | 120 | 411 | 75 | 135 | 22 | 10 | 6 | 67 | 5 | 37 | 34 | .328 | .293 (+12%) | .354 (+9%) | .429 (+10%) | .784 (+10%) | 833.8 |
| 1931 | WS1 | AL | 132 | 526 | 77 | 175 | 43 | 13 | 3 | 91 | 6 | 30 | 37 | .333 | .276 (+20%) | .338 (+9%) | .388 (+24%) | .726 (+17%) | 1578.8 |
| 1932 | WS1 | AL | 146 | 554 | 88 | 159 | 27 | 12 | 6 | 83 | 4 | 48 | 57 | .287 | .275 (+4%) | .335 (+3%) | .391 (+5%) | .726 (+4%) | 420.5 |
| 1933 | SLA | AL | 133 | 517 | 93 | 155 | 25 | 12 | 11 | 48 | 10 | 59 | 49 | .300 | .270 (+11%) | .329 (+13%) | .377 (+21%) | .707 (+18%) | 1801.6 |
| 1934 | SLA | AL | 122 | 482 | 90 | 157 | 22 | 10 | 9 | 55 | 3 | 62 | 55 | .326 | .278 (+17%) | .340 (+18%) | .392 (+19%) | .733 (+19%) | 1927.7 |
| 1935 | SLA | AL | 138 | 527 | 93 | 158 | 37 | 4 | 10 | 70 | 1 | 75 | 46 | .300 | .279 (+7%) | .342 (+13%) | .399 (+11%) | .742 (+12%) | 1467.6 |
| 1936 | SLA | AL | 152 | 533 | 78 | 148 | 26 | 4 | 7 | 70 | 2 | 94 | 70 | .278 | .283 (-2%) | .349 (+10%) | .404 (-6%) | .753 (+2%) | 520.8 |
| 1937 | SLA | AL | 122 | 457 | 68 | 150 | 37 | 4 | 7 | 58 | 1 | 46 | 28 | .328 | .276 (+19%) | .342 (+14%) | .398 (+19%) | .740 (+16%) | 1520.6 |
| 1938 | SLA | AL | 44 | 165 | 17 | 51 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 27 | 1 | 14 | 9 | .309 | .272 (+13%) | .341 (+6%) | .392 (+2%) | .734 (+4%) | 114.8 |
| 1938 | WS1 | AL | 92 | 344 | 51 | 104 | 19 | 5 | 5 | 47 | 1 | 33 | 21 | .302 | .272 (+11%) | .341 (+6%) | .392 (+10%) | .734 (+8%) | 114.8 |
| 1939 | WS1 | AL | 115 | 390 | 52 | 110 | 20 | 8 | 3 | 52 | 1 | 67 | 29 | .282 | .274 (+3%) | .342 (+13%) | .393 (+1%) | .735 (+7%) | 698.9 |
| 1940 | WS1 | AL | 57 | 99 | 7 | 25 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 18 | 0 | 16 | 13 | .253 | .267 (-5%) | .335 (+6%) | .387 (-6%) | .722 (avg) | 26.1 |
| 1941 | WS1 | AL | 26 | 37 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 11 | 2 | .270 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1942 | CHA | AL | 49 | 151 | 14 | 35 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 2 | 31 | 18 | .232 | .253 (-9%) | .323 (+12%) | .349 (-24%) | .672 (-7%) | -23.2 |
| Career · 17 seasons | 1,753 | 6,148 | 934 | 1,838 | 347 | 101 | 75 | 838 | 53 | 696 | 540 | .299 | — | — | — | — | 10,105 | ||
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.
Game Log & Splits
View full game log (1753 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 873 | 3077 | 500 | 965 | 40 | 434 | .314 |
| Away | 880 | 3069 | 434 | 874 | 35 | 406 | .285 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1942-09-24 | CHW | CLE | W | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1942-09-24 | CHW | CLE | W | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1942-08-13 | CHW | SLA | L | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1942-08-12 | CHW | SLA | L | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 1942-08-09 | CHW | CLE | W | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1942-08-09 | CHW | CLE | W | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| 1942-08-06 | CHW | DET | W | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1942-08-04 | CHW | DET | W | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1942-07-29 | CHW | NYY | W | 6 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 1942-07-26 | CHW | PHA | W | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1B | 29 | 0 | 228 | 13 | 5 | 22 |
| OF | 1573 | 0 | 4300 | 151 | 76 | 42 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1927 | WS1 | OF | 18 | 0 | 28 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| 1928 | WS1 | OF | 116 | 0 | 210 | 13 | 1 | 0 |
| 1929 | WS1 | OF | 139 | 0 | 376 | 25 | 9 | 8 |
| 1930 | WS1 | OF | 118 | 0 | 310 | 8 | 9 | 1 |
| 1931 | WS1 | OF | 127 | 0 | 402 | 13 | 4 | 3 |
| 1932 | WS1 | OF | 143 | 0 | 450 | 15 | 10 | 7 |
| 1933 | SLA | OF | 127 | 0 | 329 | 14 | 4 | 3 |
| 1934 | SLA | OF | 120 | 0 | 303 | 14 | 9 | 3 |
| 1935 | SLA | OF | 135 | 0 | 449 | 7 | 5 | 2 |
| 1936 | SLA | OF | 148 | 0 | 442 | 10 | 8 | 2 |
| 1937 | SLA | OF | 105 | 0 | 298 | 17 | 4 | 6 |
| 1938 | SLA | OF | 41 | 0 | 101 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 1938 | WS1 | OF | 85 | 0 | 221 | 4 | 4 | 3 |
| 1939 | WS1 | 1B | 17 | 0 | 133 | 6 | 4 | 9 |
| 1939 | WS1 | OF | 89 | 0 | 232 | 7 | 2 | 3 |
| 1940 | WS1 | 1B | 12 | 0 | 95 | 7 | 1 | 13 |
| 1940 | WS1 | OF | 9 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1941 | WS1 | OF | 8 | 0 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1942 | CHA | OF | 45 | 0 | 112 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| First Base | 29 |
| Left Field | 101 |
| Center Field | 1446 |
| Right Field | 29 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1934 | Baseball Magazine All-Star | CF |
| 1933 | Baseball Magazine All-Star | OF |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1936 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 18th | 2.0 | 80 | 0 |
| 1934 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 15th | 5.0 | 80 | 0 |
| 1933 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 11th | 11.0 | 80 | 0 |
| 1931 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 9th | 16.0 | 80 | 0 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Sam West (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Sam West: the record in brief
According to the bio, Sam West debuted on April 17, 1927 and played a final game on September 24, 1942. West played for the Washington Senators (1927 to 1941), the St. Louis Browns (1933 through 1938), and the Chicago White Sox (1942). Born on October 5, 1904, in Longview, TX, USA, West is listed as an outfielder and both batted and threw left-handed. Size on record: 5 feet, 11 inches and 165 pounds. West died on November 23, 1985, in Lubbock, TX, USA. The bio lists the given name Samuel Filmore.
The batting record for West: 1,753 games, 1,838 hits in 6,148 at bats, and a .299 average, along with 75 homers, 838 runs batted in, and 53 stolen bases. On-base and slugging figures of .371 and .425 give West a career OPS of .796. The league as a whole hit .276 across West's seasons, which puts the .299 career mark 8.2% above average. By OPS the gap is 8.4% above league average (.796 against .734).
Frequently Asked Questions about Sam West
- What years did Sam West play?
- Sam West played in Major League Baseball from 1927 to 1942.
- Was Sam West a pitcher?
- No. Sam West was a position player (Outfielder).
- How many home runs did Sam West hit?
- Sam West hit 75 career home runs with 1,838 hits.
- What teams did Sam West play for?
- Sam West played for 3 teams: the Washington Senators (1927–1932, 1938–1941), the St. Louis Browns (1933–1938), and the Chicago White Sox (1942).
- Did Sam West win an MVP award?
- No. Sam West did not win the MVP award.
- What awards did Sam West win?
- Sam West was selected to 4 All-Star Games.
- What were Sam West's career stats?
- In 1,753 games, Sam West had 1,838 hits, 75 home runs, 838 RBI, 934 runs, and 53 stolen bases, with a .299 batting average.
- What position did Sam West play?
- Sam West played primarily as an outfielder, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Sam West and how much did he weigh?
- Sam West was listed at 5 feet 11 inches and 165 pounds.
- How many home runs did Sam West hit each season?
- Sam West's home runs by season: 0 in 1927, 3 in 1928, 3 in 1929, 6 in 1930, 3 in 1931, 6 in 1932, 11 in 1933, 9 in 1934, 10 in 1935, 7 in 1936, 7 in 1937, 6 in 1938, 3 in 1939, 1 in 1940, 0 in 1941, and 0 in 1942. His most in one season was 11, in 1933.
- What was Sam West's career batting average?
- Sam West batted .299 over his career, with 1,838 hits in 6,148 at bats.
- How many RBI did Sam West have?
- Sam West drove in 838 runs in his career.
- Is Sam West in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Sam West has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
- How many All-Star Games did Sam West make?
- Sam West was selected to 4 All-Star Games.