Billy Goodman

Born: 3/22/1926 in Concord, NC, USA

Died: 10/1/1984 in Sarasota, FL, USA

MLB Debut: 1947-04-19 | Final Game: 1962-09-30

Bats: L | Throws: R | Height: 5'11" | Weight: 165 lbs

Full name: William Dale Goodman

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Biography

Billy Goodman, born in 1926, was a versatile position player whose career spanned from 1947 to 1962. Known for his exceptional batting skills and adaptability on the field, Goodman played in a total of 1,623 games, accumulating 1,691 hits with a commendable batting average of .300. Throughout his career, he demonstrated a balanced offensive game, hitting 19 home runs and driving in 591 runs. Additionally, he showcased his speed on the bases, finishing his career with 37 stolen bases. Goodman was selected as an All-Star on two occasions, a testament to his talent and impact during the competitive era of Major League Baseball in the late 1940s through the early 1960s. Goodman’s playing style was characterized by his contact hitting and ability to play multiple positions, which made him a valuable asset to the teams he represented. He spent significant time with the Boston Red Sox and the Chicago White Sox, contributing to their lineups with consistent performance and leadership. His career coincided with a transformative period in baseball, marked by the integration of the sport and the emergence of new playing strategies. Billy Goodman’s legacy is remembered not only for his on-field achievements but also for his contributions to the game during a pivotal time in baseball history.

Career Batting Statistics

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
1623	5644	807	1691	299	44	19	591	37	669	329	0.300	0.376	0.378	0.754	6964.1

Career AVG .300 vs. league average .260 across their career seasons — +15.4% above league average.

Career OBP .376 vs. league average .332 across their career seasons — +13.2% above league average.

Career SLG .378 vs. league average .389 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OPS 0.754 vs. league average 0.722 across their career seasons — near 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
1947	BOS	AL	12	11	1	2	0	0	0	1	0	1	2	0.182	—	—	—	—	0.0
1948	BOS	AL	127	445	65	138	27	2	1	66	5	74	44	0.310	.263 (+18%)	.340 (+22%)	.379 (+2%)	.719 (+11%)	1342.6
1949	BOS	AL	122	443	54	132	23	3	0	56	2	58	21	0.298	.262 (+13%)	.343 (+11%)	.384 (-5%)	.727 (+2%)	358.0
1950	BOS	AL	110	424	91	150	25	3	4	68	2	52	25	0.354	.265 (+33%)	.346 (+23%)	.401 (+13%)	.747 (+18%)	1671.5
1951	BOS	AL	141	546	92	162	34	4	0	50	7	79	37	0.297	.260 (+14%)	.336 (+15%)	.385 (-3%)	.721 (+5%)	851.8
1952	BOS	AL	138	513	79	157	27	3	4	56	8	48	23	0.306	.252 (+21%)	.326 (+13%)	.369 (+7%)	.696 (+10%)	1036.5
1953	BOS	AL	128	514	73	161	33	5	2	41	1	57	11	0.313	.264 (+19%)	.335 (+14%)	.397 (+3%)	.733 (+8%)	947.5
1954	BOS	AL	127	489	71	148	25	4	1	36	3	51	15	0.303	.261 (+16%)	.333 (+11%)	.390 (-4%)	.723 (+3%)	452.3
1955	BOS	AL	149	599	100	176	31	2	0	52	5	99	44	0.294	.258 (+14%)	.332 (+19%)	.393 (-11%)	.726 (+3%)	835.9
1956	BOS	AL	105	399	61	117	22	8	2	38	0	40	22	0.293	.258 (+14%)	.331 (+7%)	.397 (+2%)	.728 (+4%)	317.8
1957	BOS	AL	18	16	1	1	1	0	0	0	0	2	1	0.062	—	—	—	—	0.0
1957	BAL	AL	73	263	36	81	10	3	3	33	0	21	18	0.308	.257 (+20%)	.323 (+12%)	.391 (+3%)	.715 (+7%)	0.0
1958	CHW	AL	116	425	41	127	15	5	0	40	1	37	21	0.299	.257 (+16%)	.324 (+9%)	.394 (-9%)	.719 (-1%)	-0.1
1959	CHW	AL	104	268	21	67	14	1	1	28	3	19	20	0.250	.256 (-3%)	.323 (-6%)	.392 (-18%)	.715 (-13%)	-622.2
1960	CHW	AL	30	77	5	18	4	0	0	6	0	12	8	0.234	.255 (-8%)	.323 (+4%)	.387 (-26%)	.711 (-12%)	-119.0
1961	CHW	AL	41	51	4	13	4	0	1	10	0	7	6	0.255	.258 (-1%)	.328 (+3%)	.399 (-2%)	.727 (+1%)	5.3
1962	HOU	NL	82	161	12	41	4	1	0	10	0	12	11	0.255	.257 (-1%)	.326 (-6%)	.393 (-26%)	.719 (-17%)	-468.7

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
5	13	1	3	0	0	0	1	0	5	0.231

Playoff Batting by Year

Year	Round	Team	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
1959	WS	CHA	5	13	1	3	0	0	0	1	0	5	0.231

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1B	406	37	3575	245	36	415
2B	624	330	1475	1714	93	459
3B	330	267	254	603	48	52
OF	111	18	203	12	5	3
SS	7	0	4	8	0	1

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1947	BOS	OF	1	0	2	0	0	0
1948	BOS	1B	117	0	1101	69	8	118
1948	BOS	2B	2	0	0	0	0	0
1948	BOS	3B	2	0	0	4	1	2
1949	BOS	1B	117	0	1069	79	9	148
1950	BOS	1B	21	0	193	12	1	15
1950	BOS	2B	5	0	16	13	1	7
1950	BOS	3B	27	0	29	58	6	4
1950	BOS	OF	45	0	104	2	1	1
1950	BOS	SS	1	0	2	4	0	1
1951	BOS	1B	62	0	554	29	3	61
1951	BOS	2B	44	0	117	129	9	32
1951	BOS	3B	1	0	1	3	0	1
1951	BOS	OF	38	0	70	9	2	2
1952	BOS	1B	23	0	184	17	3	17
1952	BOS	2B	103	0	284	340	16	95
1952	BOS	3B	5	0	3	10	1	0
1952	BOS	OF	4	0	4	0	0	0
1953	BOS	1B	20	0	151	13	6	18
1953	BOS	2B	112	0	267	306	15	88
1954	BOS	1B	27	22	195	16	3	26
1954	BOS	2B	72	68	173	208	8	59
1954	BOS	3B	12	12	11	23	2	5
1954	BOS	OF	13	12	14	1	1	0
1955	BOS	1B	5	5	47	5	1	3
1955	BOS	2B	143	143	348	373	23	93
1955	BOS	OF	1	0	0	0	0	0
1956	BOS	2B	95	95	215	266	17	69
1957	BAL	1B	8	7	56	3	2	7
1957	BAL	2B	5	4	14	12	2	4
1957	BAL	3B	54	49	54	93	6	9
1957	BAL	OF	9	6	9	0	1	0
1957	BAL	SS	5	0	1	2	0	0
1958	CHA	1B	3	3	19	2	0	2
1958	CHA	2B	1	0	2	2	0	0
1958	CHA	3B	111	108	67	204	13	16
1958	CHA	SS	1	0	1	2	0	0
1959	CHA	2B	3	0	4	5	0	1
1959	CHA	3B	74	67	57	135	10	10
1960	CHA	2B	7	5	9	14	0	5
1960	CHA	3B	20	16	17	38	1	2
1961	CHA	1B	2	0	6	0	0	0
1961	CHA	2B	1	0	1	1	0	0
1961	CHA	3B	7	5	4	13	1	1
1962	HOU	1B	1	0	0	0	0	0
1962	HOU	2B	31	15	25	45	2	6
1962	HOU	3B	17	10	11	22	7	2

Career Games by Position

Position	Games
First Base	406
Second Base	622
Third Base	330
Shortstop	7
Left Field	69
Right Field	42

Award Voting History

Year	Award	League	Finish	Points Won	Points Max	Votes First
1954	Most Valuable Player	AL	19th	6.0	336	0
1953	Most Valuable Player	AL	21th	5.0	336	0
1952	Most Valuable Player	AL	16th	18.0	336	0
1951	Most Valuable Player	AL	18th	21.0	336	0
1950	Most Valuable Player	AL	2nd	180.0	336	4
1948	Most Valuable Player	AL	27th	4.0	336	0
1948	Rookie of the Year	ML	4th	3.0	48	3