Billy Gardner

Born: 7/19/1927 in New London, CT, USA

Died: 1/3/2024 in Waterford, CT, USA

MLB Debut: 1954-04-22 | Final Game: 1963-09-11

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 6'0" | Weight: 170 lbs

Full name: William Frederick Gardner

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Biography

Billy Gardner was a professional baseball player born in 1927, who played as a position player in Major League Baseball from 1954 until 1963. Over the course of his career, Gardner participated in 1,034 games, amassing a total of 841 hits. He demonstrated versatility and endurance on the field, finishing his career with a batting average of .237, 41 home runs, and 271 RBIs. Known for his speed, he contributed 19 stolen bases during his time in the league. Gardner's career unfolded during a dynamic period in baseball history, characterized by the transition from the post-war era into a more modern approach to the game. Although his batting average may not reflect the prolific offensive production seen in some of his contemporaries, he was recognized for his solid defensive capabilities and his ability to contribute to his teams in various ways. His longevity in the game and contributions on the field made him a valued player in the organizations he represented, leaving an indelible mark on the teams he played for until his retirement in 1963.

Career Batting Statistics

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
1034	3544	356	841	159	18	41	271	19	246	439	0.237	0.292	0.327	0.619	-9550.1

Career AVG .237 vs. league average .256 across their career seasons — 7.5% below league average.

Career OBP .292 vs. league average .325 across their career seasons — 10.2% below league average.

Career SLG .327 vs. league average .391 across their career seasons — 16.3% below league average.

Career OPS 0.619 vs. league average 0.716 across their career seasons — 13.5% 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
1954	NY1	NL	62	108	10	23	5	0	1	7	0	6	19	0.213	.261 (-18%)	.333 (-22%)	.390 (-26%)	.723 (-24%)	-473.0
1955	NY1	NL	59	187	26	38	10	1	3	17	0	13	19	0.203	.258 (-21%)	.332 (-21%)	.393 (-20%)	.726 (-21%)	-726.5
1956	BAL	AL	144	515	53	119	16	2	11	50	5	29	53	0.231	.258 (-11%)	.331 (-15%)	.397 (-16%)	.728 (-16%)	-1693.8
1957	BAL	AL	154	644	79	169	36	3	6	55	10	53	67	0.262	.257 (+2%)	.323 (avg)	.391 (-9%)	.715 (-5%)	-551.6
1958	BAL	AL	151	560	32	126	28	2	3	33	2	34	53	0.225	.257 (-13%)	.324 (-17%)	.394 (-24%)	.719 (-21%)	-2453.7
1959	BAL	AL	140	401	34	87	13	2	6	27	2	38	61	0.217	.256 (-15%)	.323 (-12%)	.392 (-22%)	.715 (-18%)	-1426.2
1960	WSN	AL	145	592	71	152	26	5	9	56	0	43	76	0.257	.255 (+1%)	.323 (-3%)	.387 (-6%)	.711 (-5%)	-595.2
1961	MIN	AL	45	154	13	36	9	0	1	11	0	10	14	0.234	.258 (-10%)	.328 (-15%)	.399 (-22%)	.727 (-19%)	-502.2
1961	NYY	AL	41	99	11	21	5	0	1	2	0	6	18	0.212	.258 (-18%)	.328 (-15%)	.399 (-27%)	.727 (-22%)	-502.2
1962	NYY	AL	4	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1962	BOS	AL	53	199	22	54	9	2	0	12	0	10	39	0.271	.257 (+5%)	.326 (-5%)	.393 (-14%)	.719 (-10%)	0.0
1963	BOS	AL	36	84	4	16	2	1	0	1	0	4	19	0.190	.246 (-23%)	.308 (-24%)	.371 (-36%)	.680 (-30%)	-409.7

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.000

Playoff Batting by Year

Year	Round	Team	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
1961	WS	NYA	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
2B	839	805	1923	2173	91	559
3B	92	57	63	159	10	10
SS	108	54	125	236	16	40

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1954	NY1	2B	13	5	17	17	1	1
1954	NY1	3B	30	21	18	56	1	2
1954	NY1	SS	5	0	7	9	0	1
1955	NY1	2B	4	2	4	4	1	0
1955	NY1	3B	10	5	7	13	0	1
1955	NY1	SS	38	36	65	122	12	28
1956	BAL	2B	132	126	274	331	16	76
1956	BAL	3B	6	3	3	9	0	0
1956	BAL	SS	25	8	24	46	2	1
1957	BAL	2B	148	148	393	424	11	96
1957	BAL	SS	9	6	13	26	1	7
1958	BAL	2B	151	150	349	350	11	113
1958	BAL	SS	13	0	5	6	0	0
1959	BAL	2B	139	129	333	392	18	104
1959	BAL	3B	1	0	1	0	0	0
1959	BAL	SS	1	0	0	1	0	0
1960	WS1	2B	145	145	355	407	21	101
1960	WS1	SS	13	0	5	11	0	2
1961	MIN	2B	41	41	86	96	5	32
1961	MIN	3B	2	2	0	3	2	0
1961	NYA	2B	6	3	9	7	0	2
1961	NYA	3B	33	22	26	54	4	6
1962	NYA	2B	1	0	1	0	0	0
1962	NYA	3B	1	0	0	2	0	0
1962	BOS	2B	38	38	66	91	6	21
1962	BOS	3B	7	4	7	17	3	1
1962	BOS	SS	4	4	6	15	1	1
1963	BOS	2B	21	18	36	54	1	13
1963	BOS	3B	2	0	1	5	0	0