Charlie Gehringer, baseball player, 184 home runs, 1924-1942

Charlie Gehringer

⭐ Hall of Fame 1949

Born: 5/11/1903 in Fowlerville, MI, USA

Died: 1/21/1993 in Bloomfield Hills, MI, USA

MLB Debut: 1924-09-22 | Final Game: 1942-09-27

Bats: L | Throws: R | Height: 5'11" | Weight: 180 lbs

Full name: Charles Leonard Gehringer

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Biography

Charlie Gehringer, born in 1903, was a distinguished American baseball player whose career spanned from 1924 to 1942. A prominent figure in the Detroit Tigers' lineup, Gehringer established himself as one of the premier second basemen of his era. Known for his exceptional batting ability and keen baseball intellect, he finished his career with an impressive .32 batting average, accumulating 2,839 hits and 1,427 RBIs over 2,323 games. He also showcased versatility on the base paths with 181 stolen bases and demonstrated power with 184 home runs, making him a well-rounded offensive threat. Gehringer was recognized for his contributions to the game with six All-Star selections and was honored as the TSN Guide MVP during his tenure. His induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1949 solidified his legacy as one of the all-time greats. Playing during a transformative era in baseball, Gehringer's skill set and leadership helped the Tigers secure success in the 1930s and early 1940s, and he remains celebrated for his role in popularizing the second base position as a crucial part of the team's offensive strategy.

Negro Leagues Career Statistics

Batting

PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB BA OBP SLG OPS
36.0 30.0 4.0 11.0 0 0 2.0 3.0 5.0 0 0 0.367 0.457 0.567 1.024

Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Batting

Season PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB BA OBP SLG OPS
1929 23.0 21.0 3.0 4.0 0 0 2.0 0 2.0 0 0 0.190 0.261 0.476 0.737
1930 9.0 5.0 1.0 5.0 0 0 0 3.0 3.0 0 0 1.000 1.000 1.000 2.000
1935 4.0 4.0 0 2.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.500 0.500 0.500 1.000

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
2323 8860 1774 2839 574 146 184 1427 181 1186 372 0.320 0.404 0.480 0.884 39201.4

Career AVG .320 vs. league average .278 across their career seasons — +15.4% above league average.

Career OBP .404 vs. league average .342 across their career seasons — +18.1% above league average.

Career SLG .480 vs. league average .394 across their career seasons — +22.1% above league average.

Career OPS 0.884 vs. league average 0.735 across their career seasons — +20.2% above 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
1924 DET AL 5 13 2 6 0 0 0 1 1 0 2 0.462 — — — — 0.0
1925 DET AL 8 18 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0.167 — — — — 0.0
1926 DET AL 123 459 62 127 19 17 1 48 9 30 42 0.277 .279 (-1%) .345 (-7%) .390 (+2%) .735 (-2%) -366.6
1927 DET AL 133 508 110 161 29 11 4 61 17 52 31 0.317 .282 (+12%) .344 (+11%) .392 (+12%) .736 (+12%) 1240.0
1928 DET AL 154 603 108 193 29 16 6 74 15 69 22 0.320 .280 (+14%) .342 (+15%) .395 (+14%) .737 (+15%) 1995.0
1929 DET AL 155 634 131 215 45 19 13 106 27 64 19 0.339 .289 (+17%) .353 (+15%) .415 (+28%) .769 (+22%) 2950.8
1930 DET AL 154 610 144 201 47 15 16 98 19 69 17 0.330 .293 (+12%) .354 (+14%) .429 (+24%) .784 (+20%) 2690.8
1931 DET AL 101 383 67 119 24 5 4 53 13 29 15 0.311 .276 (+12%) .338 (+6%) .388 (+11%) .726 (+9%) 600.7
1932 DET AL 152 618 112 184 44 11 19 107 9 68 34 0.298 .275 (+8%) .335 (+10%) .391 (+27%) .726 (+19%) 2423.9
1933 DET AL 155 628 103 204 42 6 12 105 5 68 27 0.325 .270 (+20%) .329 (+19%) .377 (+24%) .707 (+22%) 2902.8
1934 DET AL 154 601 134 214 50 7 11 127 11 99 25 0.356 .278 (+28%) .340 (+32%) .392 (+32%) .733 (+32%) 4433.1
1935 DET AL 150 610 123 201 32 8 19 108 11 79 16 0.330 .279 (+18%) .342 (+19%) .399 (+26%) .742 (+23%) 3095.0
1936 DET AL 154 641 144 227 60 12 15 116 4 83 13 0.354 .283 (+25%) .349 (+23%) .404 (+37%) .753 (+31%) 4335.2
1937 DET AL 144 564 133 209 40 1 14 96 11 90 25 0.371 .276 (+34%) .342 (+34%) .398 (+30%) .740 (+32%) 4198.3
1938 DET AL 152 568 133 174 32 5 20 107 14 113 21 0.306 .272 (+12%) .341 (+24%) .392 (+24%) .734 (+24%) 3334.3
1939 DET AL 118 406 86 132 29 6 16 86 4 68 16 0.325 .274 (+19%) .342 (+24%) .393 (+38%) .735 (+32%) 2696.2
1940 DET AL 139 515 108 161 33 3 10 81 10 101 17 0.313 .267 (+17%) .335 (+28%) .387 (+15%) .722 (+21%) 2693.7
1941 DET AL 127 436 65 96 19 4 3 46 1 95 26 0.220 .262 (-16%) .332 (+9%) .373 (-19%) .705 (-6%) -78.1
1942 DET AL 45 45 6 12 0 0 1 7 0 7 4 0.267 — — — — 56.1

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
20 81 12 26 4 0 1 7 7 1 0.321

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1940 WS DET 7 28 3 6 0 0 0 1 2 0 0.214
1935 WS DET 6 24 4 9 3 0 0 4 2 1 0.375
1934 WS DET 7 29 5 11 1 0 1 2 3 0 0.379

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 9 0 68 6 1 3
2B 2206 0 5369 7068 309 1444
3B 6 0 9 17 0 0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1924 DET 2B 5 0 12 17 1 2
1925 DET 2B 6 0 8 20 0 5
1926 DET 2B 112 0 255 323 16 56
1926 DET 3B 6 0 9 17 0 0
1927 DET 2B 121 0 304 438 27 84
1928 DET 2B 154 0 377 507 35 101
1929 DET 2B 154 0 404 501 23 93
1930 DET 2B 154 0 399 501 19 97
1931 DET 1B 9 0 68 6 1 3
1931 DET 2B 78 0 224 236 10 54
1932 DET 2B 152 0 396 495 30 110
1933 DET 2B 155 0 358 542 17 111
1934 DET 2B 154 0 355 516 17 100
1935 DET 2B 149 0 349 489 13 99
1936 DET 2B 154 0 397 524 25 116
1937 DET 2B 142 0 331 485 12 102
1938 DET 2B 152 0 393 455 21 115
1939 DET 2B 107 0 245 312 13 67
1940 DET 2B 138 0 276 374 19 72
1941 DET 2B 116 0 279 324 11 59
1942 DET 2B 3 0 7 9 0 1

Career Games by Position

Position Games
First Base 9
Second Base 2205
Third Base 6

Awards & Honors

Year Award Notes
1938 Baseball Magazine All-Star 2B
1938 Baseball Magazine All-Star 2B
1938 TSN All-Star 2B
1937 Baseball Magazine All-Star 2B
1937 Baseball Magazine All-Star 2B
1937 Most Valuable Player
1937 TSN All-Star 2B
1937 TSN Guide MVP
1936 Baseball Magazine All-Star 2B
1936 Baseball Magazine All-Star 2B
1936 TSN All-Star 2B
1935 Baseball Magazine All-Star 2B
1935 Baseball Magazine All-Star 2B
1935 TSN All-Star 2B
1934 Baseball Magazine All-Star 2B
1934 Baseball Magazine All-Star 2B
1934 TSN All-Star 2B
1933 Baseball Magazine All-Star 2B
1933 Baseball Magazine All-Star 2B
1933 TSN All-Star 2B
1932 Baseball Magazine All-Star 2B
1932 Baseball Magazine All-Star 2B
1930 Baseball Magazine All-Star 2B
1929 Baseball Magazine All-Star 2B

Featured In Rankings

#5
Top 20 Second Basemen in history of MLB Baseball
Ranked 5 of 20
→

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1940 Most Valuable Player AL 23th 3.0 336 0
1939 Most Valuable Player AL 14th 21.0 336 0
1938 Most Valuable Player AL 10th 27.0 336 0
1937 Most Valuable Player AL 1st 78.0 80 6
1936 Most Valuable Player AL 4th 39.0 80 0
1935 Most Valuable Player AL 6th 26.0 80 0
1934 Most Valuable Player AL 2nd 65.0 80 0
1933 Most Valuable Player AL 6th 32.0 80 0
1932 Most Valuable Player AL 9th 13.0 80 0
1931 Most Valuable Player AL 17th 4.0 80 0
1928 Most Valuable Player AL 8th 12.0 64 0