Sam Leever

Born: 12/23/1871 in Goshen, OH, USA

Died: 5/19/1953 in Goshen, OH, USA

MLB Debut: 1898-05-26 | Final Game: 1910-09-26

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 5'10" | Weight: 175 lbs

Full name: Samuel Leever

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Biography

Sam Leever was a prominent pitcher in Major League Baseball during the early 20th century, known for his exceptional control and durability on the mound. Born in 1871, Leever’s professional career spanned from 1898 to 1910, during which he established himself as a key player in the National League. With a career record of 194-100 and an impressive earned run average (ERA) of 2.47, he became renowned for his ability to limit runs and provide consistent performances for his teams. Leever accumulated a total of 847 strikeouts and recorded 13 saves, showcasing his versatility as both a starter and a reliever. His pitching style emphasized precision and strategy, making him a valuable asset to his teams. Competing in an era that was transitioning from the deadball era into a more modern phase of baseball, Leever’s achievements placed him among the notable pitchers of his time, contributing significantly to the development of the game and influencing future generations of players.

Career Pitching Statistics

W	L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	SO	ERA	Pitcher PIV
194	100	388	299	241	39	13	2660.7	2449	731	29	587	847	2.47	0

Career ERA 2.47 vs. league average 2.94 across their career seasons — 16.0% better than 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
1898	PIT	NL	1	0	5	3	2	0	0	33.0	26	9	5	15	2.45	3.59 (+32%)	995.8
1899	PIT	NL	21	23	51	39	35	4	3	379.0	353	134	122	121	3.18	3.85 (+17%)	2648.4
1900	PIT	NL	15	13	30	29	25	3	0	232.7	236	70	48	84	2.71	3.68 (+26%)	4619.9
1901	PIT	NL	14	5	21	20	18	2	0	176.0	182	56	39	82	2.86	3.49 (+18%)	2570.0
1902	PIT	NL	15	7	28	26	23	4	2	222.0	203	59	31	86	2.39	3.17 (+25%)	3705.5
1903	PIT	NL	25	7	36	34	30	7	1	284.3	255	65	60	90	2.06	3.10 (+34%)	1591.6
1904	PIT	NL	18	11	34	32	26	1	0	253.3	224	61	54	63	2.17	2.66 (+18%)	-423.8
1905	PIT	NL	20	5	33	29	20	3	1	229.7	199	69	54	81	2.70	2.82 (+4%)	-194.7
1906	PIT	NL	22	7	36	31	25	6	0	260.3	232	67	48	76	2.32	2.68 (+13%)	691.7
1907	PIT	NL	14	9	31	24	17	5	0	216.7	182	40	46	65	1.66	2.50 (+34%)	-43.4
1908	PIT	NL	15	7	38	20	14	4	2	192.7	179	45	41	28	2.10	2.40 (+12%)	-1205.6
1909	PIT	NL	8	1	19	4	2	0	2	70.0	74	22	14	23	2.83	2.55 (-11%)	339.6
1910	PIT	NL	6	5	26	8	4	0	2	111.0	104	34	25	33	2.76	2.79 (+1%)	-116.6

Career Batting Statistics

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
389	993	90	183	17	14	2	78	4	49	138	0.184	0.228	0.236	0.463	-4238.1

Career AVG .184 vs. league average .256 across their career seasons — 28.1% below league average.

Career OBP .228 vs. league average .315 across their career seasons — 27.7% below league average.

Career SLG .236 vs. league average .331 across their career seasons — 28.9% below league average.

Career OPS 0.463 vs. league average 0.647 across their career seasons — 28.3% 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
1898	PIT	NL	5	12	2	3	0	0	0	1	0	1	1	0.250	—	—	—	—	0.0
1899	PIT	NL	51	146	15	33	6	4	0	18	0	8	19	0.226	.282 (-20%)	.343 (-21%)	.366 (-12%)	.710 (-17%)	-474.4
1900	PIT	NL	30	88	9	18	2	2	1	5	1	2	9	0.205	.279 (-27%)	.338 (-34%)	.366 (-16%)	.705 (-25%)	-401.9
1901	PIT	NL	21	71	10	13	1	0	0	4	1	5	15	0.183	.271 (-33%)	.326 (-24%)	.359 (-45%)	.686 (-35%)	-383.9
1902	PIT	NL	29	90	6	16	3	2	0	8	1	3	10	0.178	.266 (-33%)	.321 (-36%)	.343 (-26%)	.665 (-31%)	-468.4
1903	PIT	NL	36	115	11	19	0	1	0	12	0	4	18	0.165	.261 (-37%)	.316 (-39%)	.345 (-47%)	.662 (-43%)	-790.8
1904	PIT	NL	34	99	12	26	2	2	1	14	0	4	10	0.263	.246 (+6%)	.300 (+1%)	.321 (+10%)	.622 (+6%)	72.8
1905	PIT	NL	33	88	4	9	2	1	0	5	0	4	10	0.102	.248 (-59%)	.307 (-54%)	.322 (-54%)	.629 (-54%)	-734.2
1906	PIT	NL	36	95	9	20	1	1	0	5	0	5	12	0.211	.247 (-15%)	.307 (-16%)	.315 (-23%)	.622 (-20%)	-283.4
1907	PIT	NL	31	73	3	11	0	0	0	2	0	4	11	0.151	.245 (-39%)	.304 (-36%)	.308 (-51%)	.613 (-44%)	-462.7
1908	PIT	NL	38	61	5	9	0	1	0	3	1	4	8	0.148	.240 (-39%)	.298 (-29%)	.306 (-41%)	.605 (-35%)	-311.2
1909	PIT	NL	19	24	2	4	0	0	0	1	0	3	7	0.167	—	—	—	—	0.0
1910	PIT	NL	26	31	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	8	0.065	—	—	—	—	0.0

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
2	4	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
1903	WS	PIT	2	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.000

Playoff Career Pitching

W	L	G	GS	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
0	2	2	2	0	10.0	13	6	3	2	5.40

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year	Round	Team	W	L	G	GS	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
1903	WS	PIT	0	2	2	2	0	10.0	13	6	3	2	5.40

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
OF	1	0	1	0	0	0
P	388	148	83	659	34	11

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1898	PIT	P	5	0	3	5	0	0
1899	PIT	P	51	0	10	100	6	2
1900	PIT	P	30	0	8	52	4	0
1901	PIT	P	21	0	3	54	2	0
1902	PIT	OF	1	0	1	0	0	0
1902	PIT	P	28	0	3	42	2	0
1903	PIT	P	36	0	12	76	4	1
1904	PIT	P	34	32	11	67	1	2
1905	PIT	P	33	29	7	70	8	1
1906	PIT	P	36	31	11	52	3	1
1907	PIT	P	31	24	4	39	2	1
1908	PIT	P	38	20	8	44	2	0
1909	PIT	P	19	4	0	23	0	0
1910	PIT	P	26	8	3	35	0	3