Jack Billingham, baseball player, 1968-1980

Jack Billingham

Born: 2/21/1943 in Orlando, FL, USA

MLB Debut: 1968-04-11 | Final Game: 1980-06-20

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 6'4" | Weight: 195 lbs

Full name: John Eugene Billingham

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Biography

Jack Billingham was a professional baseball pitcher born in 1943, who made a significant impact in Major League Baseball from 1968 until his retirement in 1980. Known for his durability and competitive spirit, Billingham finished his career with a record of 145 wins and 113 losses, alongside an earned run average (ERA) of 3.83. He recorded a total of 1,141 strikeouts and notched 15 saves throughout his tenure on the mound. His ability to perform in clutch situations earned him a selection to the All-Star team, highlighting his recognition among peers during his playing days. Billingham played in an era characterized by a transition in pitching styles, as the late 1960s and 1970s saw the emergence of more specialized roles within pitching staffs. He was known for his resilience and ability to pitch deep into games, contributing significantly to the teams he represented, including the Cincinnati Reds and the Detroit Tigers. His contributions were vital during the Reds' successful seasons, further solidifying his legacy as a reliable starter. Billingham's career exemplified the hard-nosed approach of the era, and his performances left a lasting impression on baseball history.

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
145 113 476 305 74 27 15 2230.7 2272 949 176 750 1141 3.83 0

Career ERA 3.83 vs. league average 3.66 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1968 LAD NL 3 0 50 1 0 0 8 70.7 54 17 30 46 2.17 2.98 (+27%) -
1969 HOU NL 6 7 52 4 1 0 2 82.7 92 39 29 71 4.25 3.61 (-18%) -628.4
1970 HOU NL 13 9 46 24 8 2 0 187.7 190 83 63 134 3.98 3.89 (-2%) 3975.5
1971 HOU NL 10 16 33 33 8 3 0 228.3 205 86 68 139 3.39 3.47 (+2%) 3699.7
1972 CIN NL 12 12 36 31 8 4 1 217.7 197 77 64 137 3.18 3.26 (+2%) 399.1
1973 CIN NL 19 10 40 40 16 7 0 293.3 257 99 95 155 3.04 3.75 (+19%) 2153.5
1974 CIN NL 19 11 36 35 8 3 0 212.3 233 93 64 103 3.94 3.63 (-9%) 280.7
1975 CIN NL 15 10 33 32 5 0 0 208.0 222 95 76 79 4.11 3.71 (-11%) -3892.0
1976 CIN NL 12 10 34 29 5 2 1 177.0 190 85 62 76 4.32 3.51 (-23%) -2875.0
1977 CIN NL 10 10 36 23 3 2 0 161.7 195 94 56 76 5.23 4.00 (-31%) -1297.3
1978 DET AL 15 8 30 30 10 4 0 201.7 218 87 65 59 3.88 3.69 (-5%) -2258.4
1979 DET AL 10 7 35 19 2 0 3 158.0 163 58 60 59 3.30 4.00 (+17%) -1325.8
1980 DET AL 0 0 8 0 0 0 0 7.3 11 6 6 3 7.36 — 0.0
1980 BOS AL 1 3 7 4 0 0 0 24.3 45 30 12 4 11.10 3.84 (-189%) -2298.7

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
476 559 21 62 8 0 0 23 0 27 206 0.111 0.152 0.125 0.277 -5400.1

Career AVG .111 vs. league average .255 across their career seasons — 56.5% below league average.

Career OBP .152 vs. league average .322 across their career seasons — 52.9% below league average.

Career SLG .125 vs. league average .375 across their career seasons — 66.6% below league average.

Career OPS 0.277 vs. league average 0.697 across their career seasons — 60.3% below league average.

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
1968 LAD NL 50 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0.000 — — — — 0.0
1969 HOU NL 52 14 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 5 0.071 — — — — 0.0
1970 HOU NL 46 58 2 6 0 0 0 1 0 4 27 0.103 .253 (-59%) .325 (-50%) .385 (-73%) .711 (-63%) -616.7
1971 HOU NL 33 73 1 9 0 0 0 4 0 1 30 0.123 .249 (-51%) .316 (-58%) .365 (-66%) .682 (-62%) -741.8
1972 CIN NL 36 71 2 5 1 0 0 2 0 2 29 0.070 .243 (-71%) .310 (-69%) .353 (-76%) .664 (-73%) -817.4
1973 CIN NL 40 93 2 6 3 0 0 4 0 3 32 0.065 .256 (-75%) .325 (-71%) .378 (-74%) .703 (-73%) -1145.9
1974 CIN NL 36 67 0 5 0 0 0 1 0 1 31 0.075 .256 (-71%) .324 (-73%) .369 (-80%) .693 (-77%) -838.6
1975 CIN NL 33 65 5 7 0 0 0 4 0 8 22 0.108 .257 (-58%) .327 (-37%) .374 (-71%) .701 (-55%) -578.6
1976 CIN NL 34 59 4 14 3 0 0 4 0 3 12 0.237 .255 (-7%) .320 (-14%) .360 (-20%) .681 (-17%) -168.6
1977 CIN NL 36 56 3 9 1 0 0 3 0 1 17 0.161 .264 (-39%) .329 (-47%) .401 (-55%) .730 (-52%) -492.5
1978 DET AL 30 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1979 DET AL 35 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1980 DET AL 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1980 BOS AL 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
10 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 0.000

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1976 WS CIN 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1975 WS CIN 3 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.000
1973 NLCS CIN 2 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000
1972 NLCS CIN 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000
1972 WS CIN 3 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0.000

Playoff Career Pitching

W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
2 1 10 6 1 42.0 28 9 15 32 1.93

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1976 WS CIN 1 0 1 0 0 2.7 0 0 0 1 0.00
1975 WS CIN 0 0 3 1 0 9.0 8 1 5 7 1.00
1973 NLCS CIN 0 1 2 2 0 12.0 9 6 4 9 4.50
1972 NLCS CIN 0 0 1 1 0 4.7 5 2 2 4 3.86
1972 WS CIN 1 0 3 2 1 13.7 6 0 4 11 0.00

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
P 476 305 133 344 17 21

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1968 LAN P 50 1 5 15 1 1
1969 HOU P 52 4 3 12 1 1
1970 HOU P 46 24 13 30 2 1
1971 HOU P 33 33 20 32 4 3
1972 CIN P 36 31 14 28 1 0
1973 CIN P 40 40 18 53 2 3
1974 CIN P 36 35 14 35 1 1
1975 CIN P 33 32 8 24 0 5
1976 CIN P 34 29 10 25 1 1
1977 CIN P 36 23 12 34 1 2
1978 DET P 30 30 9 30 1 0
1979 DET P 35 19 6 21 2 3
1980 DET P 8 0 0 2 0 0
1980 BOS P 7 4 1 3 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 476

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1974 Cy Young Award NL 6th 8.0 120 0
1974 Most Valuable Player NL 16th 4.0 336 0
1973 Cy Young Award NL 4th 30.0 120 2
1973 Most Valuable Player NL 23th 6.0 336 0