Ernie Whitt

Catcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1976-1991)

Ernie Whitt was a catcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1976 to 1991 for 4 teams, including the Boston Red Sox, a span of 16 seasons. In 1,328 career games, he hit .249 with 938 hits, 134 home runs, and 534 RBI. Ernie Whitt was an All-Star. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 2,960.

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

AVG .249
HR 134
RBI 534
H 938
OPS .734
PIV 2,960
Position
Catcher
Bats / Throws
L / R
Height / Weight
6'2" / 200 lb
Born
6/13/1952 in Detroit, MI, USA
MLB Debut
1976-09-12
Last Game
1991-07-03
Awards
All-Star

Full name: Leo Ernest Whitt

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Career Batting Statistics

Ernie Whitt — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
1,328 3,774 447 938 176 15 134 534 22 436 491 .249 .324 .410 .734 2,960

Career AVG .249 vs. league average .259 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .324 vs. league average .324 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .410 vs. league average .386 across their career seasons — +6.1% above league average.

Career OPS .734 vs. league average .710 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Ernie Whitt 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
1976 BOS AL 8 18 4 4 2 0 1 3 0 2 2 .222 — — — — 0.0
1977 TOR AL 23 41 4 7 3 0 0 6 0 2 12 .171 — — — — 0.0
1978 TOR AL 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 .000 — — — — 0.0
1980 TOR AL 106 295 23 70 12 2 6 34 1 22 30 .237 .264 (-10%) .326 (-12%) .387 (-9%) .714 (-10%) -524.9
1981 TOR AL 74 195 16 46 9 0 1 16 5 20 30 .236 .255 (-8%) .320 (-4%) .368 (-19%) .688 (-12%) -324.8
1982 TOR AL 105 284 28 74 14 2 11 42 3 26 34 .261 .261 (avg) .324 (-2%) .388 (+13%) .712 (+6%) 253.8
1983 TOR AL 123 344 53 88 15 2 17 56 1 50 55 .256 .260 (-2%) .324 (+6%) .389 (+18%) .714 (+13%) 871.3
1984 TOR AL 124 315 35 75 12 1 15 46 0 43 49 .238 .259 (-8%) .322 (+1%) .384 (+11%) .707 (+6%) 394.1
1985 TOR AL 139 412 55 101 21 2 19 64 3 47 59 .245 .257 (-5%) .323 (avg) .390 (+14%) .714 (+7%) 571.9
1986 TOR AL 131 395 48 106 19 2 16 56 0 35 39 .268 .257 (+4%) .325 (avg) .395 (+13%) .720 (+7%) 495.2
1987 TOR AL 135 446 57 120 24 1 19 75 0 44 50 .269 .262 (+2%) .331 (+1%) .415 (+10%) .746 (+6%) 487.7
1988 TOR AL 127 398 63 100 11 2 16 70 4 61 38 .251 .254 (-1%) .317 (+9%) .377 (+8%) .695 (+9%) 798.5
1989 TOR AL 129 385 42 101 24 1 11 53 5 52 53 .262 .254 (+3%) .319 (+9%) .375 (+11%) .694 (+10%) 811.9
1990 ATL NL 67 180 14 31 8 0 2 10 0 23 27 .172 .257 (-33%) .324 (-18%) .385 (-35%) .710 (-28%) -758.8
1991 BAL AL 35 62 5 15 2 0 0 3 0 8 12 .242 .255 (-5%) .323 (+2%) .384 (-29%) .708 (-15%) -116.4
Career · 15 seasons 1,328 3,774 447 938 176 15 134 534 22 436 491 .249 — — — — 2,960

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

Ernie Whitt — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
12 37 2 6 1 0 1 5 4 7 .162

Playoff Batting by Year

Ernie Whitt — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1989 ALCS TOR 5 16 1 2 0 0 1 3 2 3 .125
1985 ALCS TOR 7 21 1 4 1 0 0 2 2 4 .190

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (1328 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Ernie Whitt — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home670181323444171272.243
Away658196121349763262.253

Last 10 Games — Batting

Ernie Whitt — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1991-07-03 BALDETL 100000000
1991-07-02 BALDETL 100000001
1991-06-30 BALBOSW 100000000
1991-06-28 BALBOSL 100000000
1991-06-26 BALCLEL 101000000
1991-06-25 BALCLEW 100000001
1991-06-23 BALKCRW 200000000
1991-06-19 BALMINL 301000100
1991-06-17 BALMINW 101000000
1991-06-16 BALTORW 101000000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Ernie Whitt — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
C 1246 1050 6091 497 59 67

Season-by-Season Fielding

Ernie Whitt — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1976 BOS C 8 6 24 0 0 0
1977 TOR C 14 10 62 4 0 0
1978 TOR C 1 1 7 1 0 0
1980 TOR C 105 92 436 56 7 11
1981 TOR C 72 61 297 46 3 5
1982 TOR C 98 75 406 30 8 0
1983 TOR C 119 93 554 50 5 4
1984 TOR C 118 97 583 40 4 8
1985 TOR C 134 113 649 38 8 6
1986 TOR C 129 109 709 41 7 7
1987 TOR C 131 113 803 55 5 10
1988 TOR C 123 110 643 43 4 10
1989 TOR C 115 104 550 43 5 5
1990 ATL C 59 54 296 42 3 1
1991 BAL C 20 12 72 8 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Ernie Whitt Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Catcher 1247
Designated Hitter 10

Awards & Honors

Ernie Whitt — Awards & Honors
Year Award Notes
1988 TSN All-Star C

Salary History

Ernie Whitt — Salary History
Year Team League Salary
1990 ATL NL $1,200,000
1989 TOR AL $800,000
1988 TOR AL $750,000
1987 TOR AL $750,000
1986 TOR AL $325,000
1985 TOR AL $370,000
Total Career Earnings $4,195,000

College History

Ernie Whitt — College History
School Name City State Years Attended
Macomb Community College Warren MI 1971, 1972

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Ernie Whitt (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Gus Triandos
    .244 avg, 167 HR
  2. 95
    Tom Haller
    .257 avg, 134 HR
  3. 95
    Mike Macfarlane
    .252 avg, 129 HR
  4. 92
    Matt Wieters
    .249 avg, 146 HR
  5. 90
    Jody Davis
    .245 avg, 127 HR
  6. 87
    Miguel Montero
    .256 avg, 126 HR

Ernie Whitt: the record in brief

September 12, 1976 and July 3, 1991 bracket Ernie Whitt's time in the majors: the debut and the last game on record. Whitt played for the Boston Red Sox (1976), the Toronto Blue Jays (1977 through 1989), the Atlanta Braves (1990), and the Baltimore Orioles (1991). Born on June 13, 1952, in Detroit, MI, USA, Whitt is listed as a catcher and batted left-handed and threw right-handed. Whitt's listed size is 6 feet, 2 inches and 200 pounds. Ernie Whitt was the playing name; the full given name is Leo Ernest.

The batting record for Whitt: 1,328 games, 938 hits in 3,774 at bats, and a .249 average, plus 134 home runs, 534 RBI, and 22 stolen bases. Whitt's career OPS of .734 combines a .324 on-base mark with .410 slugging. Against a .259 league average for those years, Whitt's .249 average was near the norm. The home run peak was 19 in 1985 with the Toronto Blue Jays. No season topped the 120 hits of 1987.

Frequently Asked Questions about Ernie Whitt

What years did Ernie Whitt play?
Ernie Whitt played in Major League Baseball from 1976 to 1991.
Was Ernie Whitt a pitcher?
No. Ernie Whitt was a position player (Catcher).
How many home runs did Ernie Whitt hit?
Ernie Whitt hit 134 career home runs with 938 hits.
What was Ernie Whitt's career batting average?
Ernie Whitt batted .249 over his career, with 938 hits in 3,774 at bats.
How many RBI did Ernie Whitt have?
Ernie Whitt drove in 534 runs in his career.
Is Ernie Whitt in the Hall of Fame?
No. Ernie Whitt has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.