Bill Killefer

Born: 10/10/1887 in Bloomingdale, MI, USA

Died: 7/3/1960 in Elsmere, DE, USA

MLB Debut: 1909-09-13 | Final Game: 1921-10-01

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 5'10" | Weight: 170 lbs

Full name: William Killefer

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Biography

Bill Killefer, born in 1887, was a prominent position player in Major League Baseball who played from 1909 until his retirement in 1921. Known for his defensive skills and versatility on the field, Killefer appeared in 1,035 games throughout his career, primarily as a catcher and an outfielder. He was an integral part of the game during the early 20th century, an era characterized by a focus on pitching and defense, which suited Killefer's playing style. Killefer finished his career with 751 hits, totaling 240 RBIs and a batting average of .238. He showed a knack for speed on the bases, accumulating 39 stolen bases, which was a notable achievement for players of his era. While he may not have been a prolific home run hitter—finishing with just 4 home runs—his contributions to his teams, including the Chicago Cubs and the Philadelphia Phillies, were significant in terms of leadership and defensive reliability. Killefer's legacy is remembered as part of the transitional period in baseball, bridging the gap from the deadball era to the more offensive-minded play that would define the game in the years to come.

Career Batting Statistics

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
1035	3150	237	751	86	21	4	240	39	113	159	0.238	0.273	0.283	0.555	-8993.5

Career AVG .238 vs. league average .259 across their career seasons — 8.1% below league average.

Career OBP .273 vs. league average .324 across their career seasons — 15.8% below league average.

Career SLG .283 vs. league average .344 across their career seasons — 17.7% below league average.

Career OPS 0.555 vs. league average 0.667 across their career seasons — 16.8% 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
1909	SLA	AL	11	29	0	4	0	0	0	1	2	0	2	0.138	—	—	—	—	0.0
1910	SLA	AL	74	193	14	24	2	2	0	7	0	12	31	0.124	.249 (-50%)	.317 (-42%)	.326 (-52%)	.644 (-47%)	-1544.5
1911	PHI	NL	6	16	3	3	0	0	0	2	0	0	2	0.188	—	—	—	—	0.0
1912	PHI	NL	85	268	18	60	6	3	1	21	6	4	14	0.224	.268 (-17%)	.335 (-28%)	.358 (-22%)	.694 (-25%)	-1294.7
1913	PHI	NL	120	360	25	88	14	3	0	24	2	4	17	0.244	.259 (-6%)	.325 (-22%)	.345 (-13%)	.670 (-17%)	-1303.2
1914	PHI	NL	98	299	27	70	10	1	0	27	3	8	17	0.234	.255 (-8%)	.322 (-19%)	.339 (-19%)	.661 (-19%)	-1070.3
1915	PHI	NL	105	320	26	76	9	2	0	24	5	18	14	0.237	.250 (-5%)	.318 (-10%)	.332 (-16%)	.651 (-13%)	-763.9
1916	PHI	NL	97	286	22	62	5	4	3	27	2	8	14	0.217	.248 (-13%)	.314 (-22%)	.326 (-10%)	.640 (-16%)	-875.1
1917	PHI	NL	125	409	28	112	12	0	0	31	4	15	21	0.274	.248 (+10%)	.312 (-2%)	.323 (-6%)	.635 (-4%)	-333.3
1918	CHC	NL	104	331	30	77	10	3	0	22	5	17	10	0.233	.255 (-9%)	.318 (-13%)	.326 (-14%)	.645 (-14%)	-841.1
1919	CHC	NL	103	315	17	90	10	2	0	22	5	15	8	0.286	.262 (+9%)	.322 (avg)	.347 (-5%)	.670 (-3%)	-164.5
1920	CHC	NL	62	191	16	42	7	1	0	16	2	8	5	0.220	.271 (-19%)	.331 (-16%)	.363 (-26%)	.694 (-21%)	-677.5
1921	CHC	NL	45	133	11	43	1	0	0	16	3	4	4	0.323	.286 (+13%)	.344 (+4%)	.395 (-16%)	.739 (-7%)	-125.2

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
7	18	2	2	1	0	0	2	2	0	0.111

Playoff Batting by Year

Year	Round	Team	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
1918	WS	CHN	6	17	2	2	1	0	0	2	2	0	0.118
1915	WS	PHI	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
1B	1	0	1	0	0	0
C	1005	72	4830	1319	148	129
OF	1	0	2	0	0	0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1909	SLA	C	11	10	36	21	6	2
1910	SLA	C	73	62	311	124	29	16
1911	PHI	C	6	0	29	10	1	1
1912	PHI	C	85	0	407	134	15	17
1913	PHI	1B	1	0	1	0	0	0
1913	PHI	C	118	0	570	166	9	16
1914	PHI	C	90	0	464	154	14	11
1915	PHI	C	104	0	539	126	19	6
1916	PHI	C	91	0	443	89	8	15
1917	PHI	C	120	0	615	138	12	14
1917	PHI	OF	1	0	2	0	0	0
1918	CHN	C	104	0	487	110	11	12
1919	CHN	C	100	0	478	124	8	7
1920	CHN	C	61	0	304	80	9	6
1921	CHN	C	42	0	147	43	7	6