Bill Gullickson, baseball player, 1979-1994

Bill Gullickson

Born: 2/20/1959 in Marshall, MN, USA

MLB Debut: 1979-09-26 | Final Game: 1994-08-07

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 6'3" | Weight: 200 lbs

Full name: William Lee Gullickson

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Biography

Bill Gullickson, born in 1959, was a prominent pitcher in Major League Baseball who enjoyed a career spanning from 1979 to 1994. Known for his durability and competitive spirit, Gullickson compiled a career record of 162 wins and 136 losses, with an earned run average (ERA) of 3.93. Over the course of his tenure in the league, he struck out 1,279 batters, showcasing his ability to overpower hitters with a mix of finesse and power. Notably, he was recognized as The Sporting News Rookie Pitcher of the Year, marking the beginning of a successful professional journey. Gullickson made his mark during an era characterized by a blend of traditional pitching styles and the evolving approaches of modern baseball. His ability to consistently perform on the mound made him a valuable asset to the teams he played for, including the Detroit Tigers and the Montreal Expos. With no career saves to his name, Gullickson was primarily a starter, emphasizing his role as a workhorse in the rotation. His contributions to the game have left a lasting legacy, and he remains remembered as one of the more reliable pitchers of his generation.

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
162 136 398 390 54 11 0 2560.0 2659 1118 282 622 1279 3.93 0

Career ERA 3.93 vs. league average 3.95 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
1979 WSN NL 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1.0 2 0 0 0 0.00 — -
1980 WSN NL 10 5 24 19 5 2 0 141.0 127 47 50 120 3.00 3.84 (+22%) -
1981 WSN NL 7 9 22 22 3 2 0 157.3 142 49 34 115 2.80 3.58 (+22%) -
1982 WSN NL 12 14 34 34 6 0 0 236.7 231 94 61 155 3.57 3.86 (+7%) -
1983 WSN NL 17 12 34 34 10 1 0 242.3 230 101 59 120 3.75 3.87 (+3%) -
1984 WSN NL 12 9 32 32 3 0 0 226.7 230 91 37 100 3.61 3.81 (+5%) -
1985 WSN NL 14 12 29 29 4 1 0 181.3 187 71 47 68 3.52 3.89 (+9%) -
1986 CIN NL 15 12 37 37 6 2 0 244.7 245 92 60 121 3.38 3.97 (+15%) 996.8
1987 CIN NL 10 11 27 27 3 1 0 165.0 172 89 39 89 4.85 4.29 (-13%) -3600.5
1987 NYY AL 4 2 8 8 1 0 0 48.0 46 26 11 28 4.88 4.29 (-14%) -
1990 HOU NL 10 14 32 32 2 1 0 193.3 221 82 61 73 3.82 3.86 (+1%) -2922.4
1991 DET AL 20 9 35 35 4 0 0 226.3 256 98 44 91 3.90 3.91 (avg) -238.2
1992 DET AL 14 13 34 34 4 1 0 221.7 228 107 50 64 4.34 3.75 (-16%) -6892.9
1993 DET AL 13 9 28 28 2 0 0 159.3 186 95 44 70 5.37 4.19 (-28%) -4478.1
1994 DET AL 4 5 21 19 1 0 0 115.3 156 76 25 65 5.93 4.51 (-31%) -2809.3

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
398 576 30 81 16 0 3 27 0 20 152 0.141 0.169 0.184 0.353 -4317.9

Career AVG .141 vs. league average .261 across their career seasons — 46.1% below league average.

Career OBP .169 vs. league average .326 across their career seasons — 48.3% below league average.

Career SLG .184 vs. league average .392 across their career seasons — 53.1% below league average.

Career OPS 0.353 vs. league average 0.719 across their career seasons — 50.9% 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
1979 WSN NL 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1980 WSN NL 24 40 2 7 1 0 0 0 0 2 11 0.175 — — — — 0.0
1981 WSN NL 22 46 1 7 1 0 0 1 0 3 13 0.152 — — — — 0.0
1982 WSN NL 34 82 5 10 3 0 0 6 0 1 22 0.122 .261 (-53%) .324 (-59%) .388 (-59%) .712 (-59%) -816.4
1983 WSN NL 34 82 10 11 5 0 1 3 0 4 27 0.134 .260 (-49%) .324 (-46%) .389 (-40%) .714 (-43%) -610.3
1984 WSN NL 32 73 1 8 0 0 0 1 0 3 22 0.110 .259 (-58%) .322 (-56%) .384 (-72%) .707 (-64%) -783.3
1985 WSN NL 29 64 2 12 4 0 0 6 0 0 17 0.188 .257 (-27%) .323 (-42%) .390 (-36%) .714 (-39%) -423.5
1986 CIN NL 37 79 3 6 0 0 0 2 0 3 15 0.076 .257 (-71%) .325 (-66%) .395 (-81%) .720 (-74%) -992.0
1987 CIN NL 27 53 4 11 2 0 1 3 0 0 11 0.208 .262 (-21%) .331 (-37%) .415 (-27%) .746 (-32%) -297.8
1987 NYY AL 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — -297.8
1990 HOU NL 32 57 2 9 0 0 1 5 0 4 14 0.158 .257 (-39%) .324 (-35%) .385 (-45%) .710 (-41%) -394.6
1991 DET AL 35 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1992 DET AL 34 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1993 DET AL 28 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1994 DET AL 21 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
3 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 0.000

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1981 NEDIV MON 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000
1981 NLCS MON 2 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0.000

Playoff Career Pitching

W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1 2 3 3 0 22.0 18 5 7 15 2.05

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1981 NEDIV MON 1 0 1 1 0 7.7 6 1 1 3 1.17
1981 NLCS MON 0 2 2 2 0 14.3 12 4 6 12 2.51

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
P 398 390 185 277 16 18

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1979 MON P 1 0 0 0 0 0
1980 MON P 24 19 4 21 1 2
1981 MON P 22 22 12 16 1 2
1982 MON P 34 34 16 18 3 1
1983 MON P 34 34 27 25 1 3
1984 MON P 32 32 14 19 4 2
1985 MON P 29 29 10 26 1 0
1986 CIN P 37 37 14 32 3 3
1987 CIN P 27 27 14 16 0 0
1987 NYA P 8 8 2 5 0 0
1990 HOU P 32 32 11 13 0 1
1991 DET P 35 35 14 21 0 0
1992 DET P 34 34 21 26 1 3
1993 DET P 28 28 11 24 0 1
1994 DET P 21 19 15 15 1 0

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 398

Awards & Honors

Year Award Notes
1993 Pitcher of the Month August
1986 Pitcher of the Month August
1980 Player of the Week Week of 1980-09-12
1980 TSN Rookie Pitcher of the Year

Salary History

Year Team League Salary
1994 DET AL $2,400,000
1993 DET AL $2,300,000
1992 DET AL $1,925,000
1991 DET AL $1,825,000
1990 HOU NL $900,000
1987 CIN NL $900,000
1986 CIN NL $545,555
1985 MON NL $700,000
Total Career Earnings $11,495,555

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1991 Cy Young Award AL 8th 5.0 140 0
1980 Rookie of the Year NL 2nd 53.0 120 5