Ron Willis
Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1966-1970)
Ron Willis was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1966 to 1970 for the St. Louis Cardinals, the Houston Astros, and the San Diego Padres, a span of 5 seasons. Across 188 career appearances, he went 11-12 with a 3.32 ERA and 128 strikeouts.
- 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
- Position
- Pitcher
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 6'2" / 185 lb
- Died
- 11/21/1977 in Memphis, TN, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1966-09-20
- Last Game
- 1970-09-29
Full name: Ronald Earl Willis
Season-by-Season Pitching
Click a stat to plot it across every season.
| Year | Team | Lg | W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA | Lg ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1966 | SLN | NL | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3.0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0.00 | — | 0.0 |
| 1967 | SLN | NL | 6 | 5 | 65 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 81.0 | 76 | 24 | 43 | 42 | 2.67 | 3.30 (+19%) | -777.1 |
| 1968 | SLN | NL | 2 | 3 | 48 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 63.2 | 50 | 24 | 28 | 39 | 3.39 | 2.98 (-14%) | -574.9 |
| 1969 | SLN | NL | 1 | 2 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 32.1 | 26 | 15 | 19 | 23 | 4.18 | 3.61 (-16%) | -757.4 |
| 1969 | HOU | NL | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.00 | — | 0.0 |
| 1970 | SDN | NL | 2 | 2 | 42 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 56.0 | 53 | 25 | 28 | 20 | 4.02 | 3.89 (-3%) | -953.5 |
| Career · 6 seasons | 11 | 12 | 188 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 238.1 | 209 | 88 | 119 | 128 | 3.32 | — | -3,063 | ||
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
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 188 | 25 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 8 | .160 | .192 | .200 | .392 | 0 |
Career AVG .160 vs. league average .246 across their career seasons — 35.0% below league average.
Career OBP .192 vs. league average .313 across their career seasons — 38.6% below league average.
Career SLG .200 vs. league average .367 across their career seasons — 45.5% below league average.
Career OPS .392 vs. league average .680 across their career seasons — 42.3% below 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1966 | SLN | NL | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1967 | SLN | NL | 65 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .375 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1968 | SLN | NL | 48 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1969 | SLN | NL | 26 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1969 | HOU | NL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1970 | SDN | NL | 42 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 6 seasons | 188 | 25 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 8 | .160 | — | — | — | — | 0 | ||
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 (376 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 97 | 9 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | .333 |
| Away | 91 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | .062 |
Pitching — Home / Away
| Split | G | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 97 | 107.2 | 106 | 39 | 53 | 52 | 3.26 |
| Away | 91 | 130.2 | 103 | 49 | 66 | 76 | 3.38 |
Last 10 Games — Pitching
| Date | Tm | Opp | Dec | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970-09-29 | SDP | LAD | — | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1970-09-26 | SDP | SFG | — | 0.1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1970-09-14 | SDP | LAD | — | 2.0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1970-09-09 | SDP | ATL | — | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1970-09-08 | SDP | HOU | — | 2.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1970-09-07 | SDP | HOU | — | 1.0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 1970-09-05 | SDP | CIN | — | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1970-08-28 | SDP | CHC | — | 0.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1970-08-23 | SDP | STL | — | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1970-08-22 | SDP | STL | — | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
Season-by-Season Fielding
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 188 |
Ron Willis: the record in brief
Between the debut on September 20, 1966 and the final game on September 29, 1970, Ron Willis built the record summarized on this page. Club by club, the record runs the St. Louis Cardinals (1966 through 1969), the Houston Astros (1969), and the San Diego Padres (1970). Born on July 12, 1943, in Willisville, TN, USA, Willis is listed as a pitcher and threw and hit right-handed. The bio gives 6'2" and 185 pounds. The bio records the death on November 21, 1977, in Memphis, TN, USA. The bio lists the given name Ronald Earl.
The pitching table credits Willis with a 11-12 record and a 3.32 ERA in 188 games. The same table counts 128 strikeouts and 19 saves. Willis's 3.32 ERA was close to the 3.48 league figure for those seasons. The best win total was 6, in 1967. Willis saved 10 games in 1967, the season high. Among the heaviest workloads, the lowest ERA was 2.67 in 1967, when the league's was 3.30.
Frequently Asked Questions about Ron Willis
- What years did Ron Willis play?
- Ron Willis played in Major League Baseball from 1966 to 1970.
- Was Ron Willis a pitcher?
- Yes. Ron Willis pitched in the major leagues, recording 11 wins and 128 strikeouts.
- How many home runs did Ron Willis hit?
- Ron Willis hit 0 career home runs with 4 hits.
- What teams did Ron Willis play for?
- Ron Willis played for 3 teams: the St. Louis Cardinals (1966–1969), the Houston Astros (1969), and the San Diego Padres (1970).
- What were Ron Willis's career stats?
- In 188 games, Ron Willis went 11-12 with a 3.32 ERA, 128 strikeouts, 238.1 innings pitched, and 19 saves.
- What position did Ron Willis play?
- Ron Willis played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Ron Willis and how much did he weigh?
- Ron Willis was listed at 6 feet 2 inches and 185 pounds.
- What was Ron Willis's career ERA?
- Ron Willis finished with a 3.32 career ERA, going 11-12 with 128 strikeouts.
- How many strikeouts did Ron Willis have?
- Ron Willis recorded 128 career strikeouts.
- Is Ron Willis in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Ron Willis has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.