Jim Whitney

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1881-1890)

Jim Whitney was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1881 to 1890 for 5 teams, including the Boston Braves, a span of 10 seasons. Across 413 career appearances, he went 191-204 with a 2.97 ERA and 1,571 strikeouts. He also batted .261 with 18 home runs. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 3,143.

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 191–204
ERA 2.97
WHIP 1.15
SO 1,571
Pitcher PIV 42671.1
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
L / R
Height / Weight
6'2" / 172 lb
Born
11/10/1857 in Conklin, NY, USA
Died
5/21/1891 in Binghamton, NY, USA
MLB Debut
1881-05-02
Last Game
1890-07-16

Full name: James Evans Whitney

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Career Pitching Statistics

Jim Whitney — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
191 204 413 396 377 26 2 3496.1 3,598 1,154 79 411 1,571 2.97 42671.1

Career ERA 2.97 vs. league average 3.41 across their career seasons — 13.0% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Jim Whitney Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1881 BSN NL 31 33 66 63 57 6 0 552.1 548 152 90 162 2.48 2.77 (+11%) 698.7
1882 BSN NL 24 21 49 48 46 3 0 420.0 404 123 41 180 2.64 2.80 (+6%) 5899.1
1883 BSN NL 37 21 62 56 54 1 2 514.0 492 128 35 345 2.24 3.22 (+30%) 13334.4
1884 BSN NL 23 14 38 37 35 6 0 336.0 272 78 27 270 2.09 3.11 (+33%) 6679.4
1885 BSN NL 18 32 51 50 50 2 0 441.1 503 146 37 200 2.98 3.03 (+2%) 4799.7
1886 KCN NL 12 32 46 44 42 3 0 393.0 465 196 55 167 4.49 3.37 (-33%) 4310.8
1887 WS8 NL 24 21 47 47 46 2 0 404.2 430 145 42 146 3.22 4.17 (+23%) 7467.8
1888 WS8 NL 18 21 39 39 37 3 0 325.0 317 110 54 79 3.05 2.95 (-3%) -108.6
1889 IN3 NL 2 7 9 8 7 0 0 70.0 106 53 19 16 6.81 3.93 (-73%) -452.8
1890 PH4 AA 2 2 6 4 3 0 0 40.0 61 23 11 6 5.17 3.88 (-33%) 42.7
Career · 10 seasons 191 204 413 396 377 26 2 3,496.1 3,598 1,154 411 1,571 2.97 — 42,671

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

Jim Whitney — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
550 2,144 316 559 113 39 18 280 20 161 211 .261 .313 .375 .688 3,143

Career AVG .261 vs. league average .253 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .313 vs. league average .306 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .375 vs. league average .341 across their career seasons — +10.1% above league average.

Career OPS .688 vs. league average .646 across their career seasons — +6.4% above league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Jim Whitney 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
1881 BSN NL 75 282 37 72 17 3 0 32 0 19 18 .255 .260 (-2%) .290 (+4%) .338 (avg) .628 (+2%) 117.5
1882 BSN NL 61 251 49 81 18 7 5 48 0 24 13 .323 .248 (+30%) .275 (+38%) .329 (+55%) .605 (+47%) 1835.5
1883 BSN NL 96 409 78 115 27 10 5 57 0 25 29 .281 .257 (+9%) .285 (+13%) .345 (+25%) .631 (+20%) 1312.6
1884 BSN NL 66 270 41 70 17 5 3 40 0 16 38 .259 .243 (+7%) .278 (+8%) .327 (+20%) .606 (+14%) 559.2
1885 BSN NL 72 290 35 68 8 4 0 36 0 17 24 .234 .244 (-4%) .287 (-4%) .325 (-11%) .613 (-8%) -285.6
1886 KCN NL 67 247 25 59 13 3 2 23 5 29 39 .239 .246 (-3%) .302 (+5%) .331 (+2%) .634 (+4%) 204.3
1887 WS8 NL 54 201 29 53 9 6 2 22 10 18 24 .264 .270 (-3%) .331 (-2%) .373 (+6%) .705 (+2%) 44.6
1888 WS8 NL 42 141 13 24 0 0 1 17 3 7 20 .170 .238 (-29%) .290 (-28%) .319 (-40%) .610 (-34%) -645.2
1889 IN3 NL 10 32 6 12 4 1 0 4 2 5 6 .375 — — — — 0.0
1890 PH4 AA 7 21 3 5 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 .238 — — — — 0.0
Career · 10 seasons 550 2,144 316 559 113 39 18 280 20 161 211 .261 — — — — 3,143

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.

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Jim Whitney — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 31 0 229 4 21 6
3B 2 0 2 4 3 0
OF 130 0 138 20 35 1
P 413 0 123 769 99 23

Season-by-Season Fielding

Jim Whitney — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1881 BSN 1B 2 0 15 0 1 0
1881 BSN OF 15 0 6 1 3 0
1881 BSN P 66 0 19 99 28 3
1882 BSN 1B 6 0 39 0 3 0
1882 BSN OF 9 0 5 0 3 0
1882 BSN P 49 0 13 88 13 3
1883 BSN 1B 2 0 22 0 2 2
1883 BSN OF 40 0 55 7 16 0
1883 BSN P 62 0 12 93 9 2
1884 BSN 1B 15 0 108 1 9 1
1884 BSN 3B 1 0 1 1 0 0
1884 BSN OF 15 0 18 0 1 0
1884 BSN P 38 0 8 78 0 2
1885 BSN 1B 5 0 37 3 6 3
1885 BSN OF 17 0 31 2 4 0
1885 BSN P 51 0 18 128 16 1
1886 KCN 3B 1 0 1 3 3 0
1886 KCN OF 22 0 18 9 5 1
1886 KCN P 46 0 20 107 10 5
1887 WS8 OF 7 0 3 1 2 0
1887 WS8 P 47 0 13 92 11 5
1888 WS8 1B 1 0 8 0 0 0
1888 WS8 OF 3 0 1 0 1 0
1888 WS8 P 39 0 15 67 11 2
1889 IN3 OF 1 0 1 0 0 0
1889 IN3 P 9 0 4 9 0 0
1890 PH4 OF 1 0 0 0 0 0
1890 PH4 P 6 0 1 8 1 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Jim Whitney Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 413
First Base 31
Third Base 2
Left Field 5
Center Field 74
Right Field 52

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Jim Whitney (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Will White
    229-166, 2.28 ERA
  2. 94
    Charlie Buffinton
    233-152, 2.96 ERA
  3. 94
    Ed Morris
    171-122, 2.82 ERA
  4. 93
    Bill Dinneen
    170-177, 3.01 ERA
  5. 92
    Jim McCormick
    265-214, 2.43 ERA
  6. 90
    Tommy Bond
    234-163, 2.14 ERA

Compare Jim Whitney

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

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Jim Whitney: the record in brief

Between the debut on May 2, 1881 and the final game on July 16, 1890, Jim Whitney built the record summarized on this page. Whitney played for the Boston Red Caps (1881 through 1882), the Boston Beaneaters (1883 through 1885), the Kansas City Cowboys (1886), the Washington Nationals (1887 through 1888), the Indianapolis Hoosiers (1889), and the Philadelphia Athletics (1890). Whitney played primarily as a pitcher and batted left-handed and threw right-handed. Born on November 10, 1857, in Conklin, NY, USA, Whitney was listed at 6 feet, 2 inches and 172 pounds. Whitney died on May 21, 1891, in Binghamton, NY, USA. On the record, Jim Whitney was born James Evans Whitney.

Whitney's career pitching line is 191 wins, 204 losses and a 2.97 ERA over 413 appearances. The same table counts 1,571 strikeouts, 377 complete games, and 26 shutouts. The leagues Whitney pitched in allowed 3.41 earned runs per nine over those seasons, so the career ERA was 13.0% better than average.

Frequently Asked Questions about Jim Whitney

What years did Jim Whitney play?
Jim Whitney played in Major League Baseball from 1881 to 1890.
Was Jim Whitney a pitcher?
Yes. Jim Whitney pitched in the major leagues, recording 191 wins and 1571 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Jim Whitney hit?
Jim Whitney hit 18 career home runs with 559 hits.
What teams did Jim Whitney play for?
Jim Whitney played for 5 teams: the Boston Beaneaters (1881–1885), the Kansas City Cowboys (1886), the Washington Nationals (1887–1888), the Indianapolis Hoosiers (1889), and the Philadelphia Athletics (1890).
What were Jim Whitney's career stats?
In 413 games, Jim Whitney went 191-204 with a 2.97 ERA, 1,571 strikeouts, 3,496.1 innings pitched, and 2 saves. At the plate he had 559 hits and 18 home runs.
What position did Jim Whitney play?
Jim Whitney played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Jim Whitney and how much did he weigh?
Jim Whitney was listed at 6 feet 2 inches and 172 pounds.
What was Jim Whitney's career ERA?
Jim Whitney finished with a 2.97 career ERA, going 191-204 with 1,571 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Jim Whitney have?
Jim Whitney recorded 1,571 career strikeouts.
Is Jim Whitney in the Hall of Fame?
No. Jim Whitney has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.