Willie Foster, baseball player, Final season: 1938

Willie Foster

⭐ Hall of Fame 1996

Born: 6/12/1904 in Calvert, TX, USA

Died: 9/16/1978 in Lorman, MS, USA

Bats: B | Throws: L | Height: 6'0" | Weight: 190 lbs

Full name: William Hendrick Foster

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Biography

Bill Foster, born in 1904, was a notable figure in baseball history, primarily recognized for his contributions off the field and his role as a pioneering player during a transformative era in the sport. His career, which spanned until April 10, 1938, did not yield traditional statistics such as games played, hits, home runs, or RBIs, as he did not have recorded appearances in Major League Baseball games. Despite this, Foster's legacy is deeply intertwined with the development of African American baseball, particularly within the Negro Leagues, where he showcased his talents and helped pave the way for future generations. Foster was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1996, a testament to his impact on the game and the barriers he helped break during a time when racial segregation was prevalent in professional sports. His contributions extended beyond the diamond; Foster was an influential figure in advocating for equality and representation within baseball, embodying the spirit of resilience that characterized many players of his era. His recognition in the Hall of Fame serves as a reminder of the rich history of baseball and the importance of acknowledging those who fought for a more inclusive game.

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
125 60 262 185 142 34 14 1665.0 1397 492 41 522 1062 2.66 0

Career ERA 2.66 vs. league average 4.27 across their career seasons — 37.7% better than 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
1923 MRS IND 6 2 9 8 6 1 0 62.0 43 12 12 46 1.74 4.03 (+57%) 2987.8
1923 CAG NNL 0 0 3 2 0 0 0 8.0 6 5 4 4 5.62 — 0.0
1924 MRS NNL 1 0 1 1 1 1 0 9.0 1 0 3 14 0.00 4.13 (+100%) 0.0
1924 CAG NNL 6 1 12 9 4 2 0 57.7 46 16 21 39 2.50 4.13 (+40%) 1648.1
1925 BBB NNL 1 0 1 1 1 1 0 9.0 1 0 3 4 0.00 4.55 (+100%) 0.0
1925 CAG NNL 5 0 11 8 4 1 0 69.0 56 14 18 45 1.83 4.55 (+60%) 2500.1
1926 CAG NNL 13 4 27 17 12 5 1 174.7 115 35 56 111 1.80 4.11 (+56%) 4209.4
1927 CAG NNL 20 5 31 24 20 6 2 207.7 178 52 61 121 2.25 4.08 (+45%) 4756.6
1928 CAG NNL 13 8 27 20 19 3 3 195.0 184 64 61 119 2.95 4.13 (+29%) 3458.9
1929 CAG NNL 9 7 25 17 13 2 3 145.7 130 57 50 87 3.52 4.60 (+23%) 4177.0
1930 CAG NNL 11 8 26 15 12 1 2 159.0 146 51 55 132 2.89 4.80 (+40%) 4645.4
1931 HG IND 9 2 12 11 10 2 0 96.0 76 25 29 76 2.34 4.10 (+43%) 3604.4
1931 KCM IND 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 7.0 3 1 5 12 1.29 — 0.0
1932 CAG NSL 8 5 17 13 13 2 2 116.3 102 31 24 76 2.40 4.13 (+42%) 5030.8
1933 CAG NN2 6 4 13 9 7 1 1 83.7 63 23 18 61 2.47 3.86 (+36%) 2699.5
1934 CAG NN2 3 2 11 6 5 1 0 56.3 52 22 22 17 3.51 4.29 (+18%) 564.9
1935 CAG NN2 5 4 11 8 6 2 0 82.3 73 26 32 31 2.84 4.35 (+35%) 744.1
1936 PC NN2 4 3 8 7 5 1 0 46.0 45 23 18 21 4.50 4.59 (+2%) -264.1
1937 CAG NAL 4 5 16 8 3 2 0 80.7 77 35 30 46 3.90 4.34 (+10%) 906.3

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
290 639 71 129 11 6 4 53 3 34 12 0.202 0.242 0.257 0.499 -1760.2

Career AVG .202 vs. league average .282 across their career seasons — 28.3% below league average.

Career OBP .242 vs. league average .344 across their career seasons — 29.6% below league average.

Career SLG .257 vs. league average .398 across their career seasons — 35.5% below league average.

Career OPS 0.499 vs. league average 0.742 across their career seasons — 32.8% 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
1923 MRS IND 9 21 2 4 0 0 0 2 1 2 0 0.190 — — — — 0.0
1923 CAG NNL 3 3 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0.333 — — — — 0.0
1924 MRS NNL 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.000 — — — — 0.0
1924 CAG NNL 12 19 1 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0.158 — — — — 0.0
1925 BBB NNL 1 2 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0.500 — — — — 0.0
1925 CAG NNL 11 23 2 5 0 1 0 2 0 1 0 0.217 — — — — 0.0
1926 CAG NNL 27 60 6 15 2 0 1 5 0 4 2 0.250 .279 (-11%) .345 (-14%) .390 (-15%) .735 (-14%) -149.9
1927 CAG NNL 39 82 11 19 1 1 0 8 0 3 0 0.232 .282 (-18%) .344 (-25%) .392 (-32%) .736 (-28%) -414.3
1928 CAG NNL 29 77 9 17 3 0 0 8 0 3 4 0.221 .280 (-21%) .342 (-27%) .395 (-34%) .737 (-31%) -412.1
1929 CAG NNL 30 55 9 10 1 0 0 2 1 4 1 0.182 .289 (-37%) .353 (-33%) .415 (-52%) .769 (-43%) -420.3
1930 CAG NNL 33 71 6 17 3 0 0 6 0 4 0 0.239 .293 (-19%) .354 (-21%) .429 (-34%) .784 (-28%) -363.6
1931 HG IND 13 38 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0.000 — — — — 0.0
1931 KCM IND 1 3 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0.333 — — — — 0.0
1932 CAG NSL 17 42 3 7 0 1 1 4 0 0 0 0.167 — — — — 0.0
1933 CAG NN2 14 32 6 9 0 2 1 5 0 2 0 0.281 — — — — 0.0
1934 CAG NN2 13 32 4 7 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0.219 — — — — 0.0
1935 CAG NN2 12 31 2 6 0 0 0 2 0 3 0 0.194 — — — — 0.0
1936 PC NN2 8 20 2 2 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0.100 — — — — 0.0
1937 CAG NAL 17 25 5 5 1 0 0 3 0 6 3 0.200 — — — — 0.0

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
26 57 6 10 3 1 0 2 4 2 0.175

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1937 ALC CAG 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.000
1934 NLC CAG 3 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.000
1932 NSC CAG 2 7 4 4 0 1 0 1 1 0 0.571
1928 NNC CAG 4 13 0 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 0.231
1927 NNC CAG 3 6 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0.167
1927 NWS CAG 5 8 1 2 2 0 0 0 1 0 0.250
1926 NNC CAG 4 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0.000
1926 NWS CAG 4 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000

Playoff Career Pitching

W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
12 7 25 19 1 170.3 156 48 59 116 2.54

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1937 ALC CAG 0 0 1 1 0 6.3 5 1 1 2 1.42
1934 NLC CAG 1 1 3 2 0 18.0 14 3 9 20 1.50
1932 NSC CAG 2 0 2 2 0 18.0 17 3 3 20 1.50
1928 NNC CAG 2 2 4 4 0 35.0 34 19 12 20 4.89
1927 NNC CAG 2 0 3 2 0 18.0 13 4 3 12 2.00
1927 NWS CAG 2 2 4 2 0 24.0 27 8 10 13 3.00
1926 NNC CAG 1 2 4 3 1 22.7 20 6 8 10 2.38
1926 NWS CAG 2 0 4 3 0 28.3 26 4 13 19 1.27

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 4 1 19 0 1 1
OF 9 4 7 0 0 0
P 262 185 51 469 28 9

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1923 MRS P 9 8 3 11 0 0
1923 CAG P 3 2 0 3 1 0
1924 MRS P 1 1 1 5 0 0
1924 CAG P 12 9 2 19 0 0
1925 BBB P 1 1 0 0 0 0
1925 CAG P 11 8 0 0 0 0
1926 CAG P 27 17 4 52 1 1
1927 CAG OF 2 0 0 0 0 0
1927 CAG P 31 24 4 73 6 2
1928 CAG P 27 20 5 61 3 1
1929 CAG 1B 2 0 9 0 1 0
1929 CAG OF 3 2 4 0 0 0
1929 CAG P 25 17 5 37 1 1
1930 CAG 1B 2 1 10 0 0 1
1930 CAG OF 1 0 1 0 0 0
1930 CAG P 26 15 6 54 1 2
1931 HG P 12 11 4 22 2 0
1931 KCM P 1 1 0 2 0 0
1932 CAG P 17 13 4 38 2 0
1933 CAG OF 1 0 0 0 0 0
1933 CAG P 13 9 4 18 2 0
1934 CAG OF 2 2 2 0 0 0
1934 CAG P 11 6 6 19 2 1
1935 CAG P 11 8 2 19 3 1
1936 PC P 8 7 0 7 2 0
1937 CAG P 16 8 1 29 2 0

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 262
First Base 4
Left Field 2
Center Field 3
Right Field 4