Ralph Works

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1909-1913)

Ralph Works was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1909 to 1913 for the Detroit Tigers and the Cincinnati Reds, a span of 5 seasons. Across 99 career appearances, he went 24-24 with a 3.79 ERA and 208 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

W–L 24–24
ERA 3.79
WHIP 1.43
SO 208
Pitcher PIV -1878.0
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
L / R
Height / Weight
6'2" / 185 lb
Born
3/16/1888 in Payson, IL, USA
Died
8/8/1941 in Pasadena, CA, USA
MLB Debut
1909-05-01
Last Game
1913-04-28

Full name: Ralph Talmadge Works

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Career Pitching Statistics

Ralph Works — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
24 24 99 48 28 4 4 498.2 512 210 5 202 208 3.79 -1878.0

Career ERA 3.79 vs. league average 3.03 across their career seasons — 25.2% worse than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Ralph Works — Season-by-Season Pitching
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1909 DET AL 4 1 16 4 4 0 2 64.0 62 14 17 31 1.97 2.55 (+23%) 698.8
1910 DET AL 3 6 18 10 5 0 1 85.2 73 34 39 36 3.57 2.79 (-28%) -815.0
1911 DET AL 11 5 30 15 9 3 0 167.1 173 72 67 68 3.87 3.37 (-15%) -655.5
1912 DET AL 5 10 27 16 9 1 1 157.0 185 74 66 64 4.24 3.36 (-26%) -659.6
1912 CIN NL 1 1 3 1 1 0 0 9.2 4 3 5 5 2.79 3.36 (+17%) 0.0
1913 CIN NL 0 1 5 2 0 0 0 15.0 15 13 8 4 7.80 3.07 (-154%) -446.7
Career · 6 seasons 24 24 99 48 28 4 4 498.2 512 210 202 208 3.79 — -1,878

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

Ralph Works — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
99 175 10 28 4 0 0 9 0 3 48 .160 .174 .183 .357 -958

Career AVG .160 vs. league average .258 across their career seasons — 38.0% below league average.

Career OBP .174 vs. league average .324 across their career seasons — 46.3% below league average.

Career SLG .183 vs. league average .340 across their career seasons — 46.3% below league average.

Career OPS .357 vs. league average .665 across their career seasons — 46.3% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Ralph Works — Season-by-Season Batting
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1909 DET AL 16 17 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 11 .059 — — — — 0.0
1910 DET AL 18 30 3 8 2 0 0 1 0 0 4 .267 — — — — 0.0
1911 DET AL 30 61 2 9 1 0 0 3 0 2 11 .148 .266 (-45%) .336 (-48%) .356 (-54%) .693 (-51%) -485.9
1912 DET AL 27 56 3 8 1 0 0 4 0 1 20 .143 .268 (-47%) .335 (-53%) .358 (-55%) .694 (-54%) -472.4
1912 CIN NL 3 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .200 — — — — -472.4
1913 CIN NL 5 6 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 .167 — — — — 0.0
Career · 6 seasons 99 175 10 28 4 0 0 9 0 3 48 .160 — — — — -1,431

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

Ralph Works — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Batting by Year

Ralph Works — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1909 WS DET 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

Ralph Works — Playoff Career Pitching
W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
0 0 1 0 0 2.0 4 2 0 2 9.00

Playoff Pitching by Year

Ralph Works — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1909 WS DET 0 0 1 0 0 2.0 4 2 0 2 9.00

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (198 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Ralph Works — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home498481506.179
Away509021302.144

Pitching — Home / Away

Ralph Works — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home49263.0263941001053.22
Away50235.02511041061073.98

Last 10 Games — Batting

Ralph Works — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1913-04-28 CINSTLL 000000000
1913-04-23 CINCHCL 100000001
1913-04-19 CINPITL 301000100
1913-04-17 CINPITL 000000000
1913-04-15 CINSTLL 200000000
1912-09-28 CINCHCW 401000000
1912-09-26 CINCHCL 000000000
1912-09-23 CINBSNL 000000000
1912-08-23 DETMINL 200000001
1912-08-21 DETMINL 000000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Ralph Works — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1913-04-28 CINSTL — 0.0122100
1913-04-23 CINCHC — 4.1633200
1913-04-19 CINPIT L 5.1765030
1913-04-17 CINPIT — 2.0000000
1913-04-15 CINSTL — 5.1133510
1912-09-28 CINCHC W 7.0111520
1912-09-26 CINCHC L 0.0022100
1912-09-23 CINBSN — 1.2322030
1912-08-23 DETMIN — 5.0542220
1912-08-21 DETMIN — 1.0100000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Ralph Works — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 99 14 11 128 17 3

Season-by-Season Fielding

Ralph Works — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1909 DET P 16 4 2 16 2 1
1910 DET P 18 10 4 26 5 1
1911 DET P 30 0 3 28 4 1
1912 DET P 27 0 2 51 6 0
1912 CIN P 3 0 0 1 0 0
1913 CIN P 5 0 0 6 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Ralph Works — Career Games by Position
Position Games
Pitcher 99

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Ralph Works (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Roy Walker
    17-27, 3.99 ERA
  2. 92
    John Stuper
    32-28, 3.96 ERA
  3. 88
    Ross Baumgarten
    22-36, 4.00 ERA
  4. 87
    Silvio Martinez
    31-32, 3.88 ERA
  5. 87
    Yank Terry
    20-28, 4.09 ERA
  6. 84
    Willie Ramsdell
    24-39, 3.83 ERA

Ralph Works: the record in brief

According to the bio, Ralph Works debuted on May 1, 1909 and played a final game on April 28, 1913. Club by club, the record runs the Detroit Tigers (1909 through 1912) and the Cincinnati Reds (1912 through 1913). Works, a pitcher by primary position, threw right-handed and batted left-handed. The recorded size is 185 pounds on a 6-foot-2 frame. Works was born on March 16, 1888, in Payson, IL, USA. The bio records the death on August 8, 1941, in Pasadena, CA, USA. The given name on file is Ralph Talmadge Works.

Works's career pitching line is 24 wins, 24 losses and a 3.79 ERA over 99 appearances. Works had 208 strikeouts and 28 complete games. The league ERA over Works's seasons was 3.03, so the 3.79 figure ran 25.2% worse than average. The best win total was 11, in 1911. Among the heaviest workloads, the lowest ERA was 3.87 in 1911, when the league's was 3.37.

The playoff pitching line reads 0-0, 9.00 ERA, across 1 appearances. Those appearances came in 1909.

Frequently Asked Questions about Ralph Works

What years did Ralph Works play?
Ralph Works played in Major League Baseball from 1909 to 1913.
Was Ralph Works a pitcher?
Yes. Ralph Works pitched in the major leagues, recording 24 wins and 208 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Ralph Works hit?
Ralph Works hit 0 career home runs with 28 hits.
What was Ralph Works's career batting average?
Ralph Works batted .160 over his career, with 28 hits in 175 at bats.
How many RBI did Ralph Works have?
Ralph Works drove in 9 runs in his career.
What was Ralph Works's career ERA?
Ralph Works finished with a 3.79 career ERA, going 24-24 with 208 strikeouts.