Willie McCovey, baseball player, 521 home runs, 1959-1980

Willie McCovey

⭐ Hall of Fame 1986

Born: 1/10/1938 in Mobile, AL, USA

Died: 10/31/2018 in Palo Alto, CA, USA

MLB Debut: 1959-07-30 | Final Game: 1980-07-06

Bats: L | Throws: L | Height: 6'4" | Weight: 198 lbs

Full name: Willie Lee McCovey

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Biography

Willie McCovey was a legendary position player in Major League Baseball, whose career spanned from 1959 to 1980. Born in 1938, McCovey made a significant impact on the game during his tenure, becoming known for his powerful hitting and formidable presence at the plate. He played in a total of 2,588 games and amassed 2,211 hits, demonstrating his consistent ability to reach base. With 521 home runs and 1,555 RBIs, he established himself as one of the premier power hitters of his era, characterized by a strong left-handed swing that terrorized pitchers. His career batting average of .270 further underscored his offensive prowess, complemented by 26 stolen bases that showcased his surprising speed for a player of his stature. Throughout his career, McCovey earned numerous accolades, including six selections to the All-Star Game and the prestigious All-Star Game MVP award. He was recognized early in his career as the Rookie of the Year and the TSN Rookie of the Year, marking him as a rising star in the league. His contributions to the game were immortalized when he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1986. McCovey's legacy endures not only through his impressive statistics but also as a symbol of excellence in baseball during the late 20th century, enriching the sport with his talent and passion.

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
2588 8197 1229 2211 353 46 521 1555 26 1345 1550 0.270 0.374 0.515 0.889 47241.0

Career AVG .270 vs. league average .254 across their career seasons — +6.3% above league average.

Career OBP .374 vs. league average .320 across their career seasons — +17.0% above league average.

Career SLG .515 vs. league average .377 across their career seasons — +36.6% above league average.

Career OPS 0.889 vs. league average 0.697 across their career seasons — +27.6% 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
1959 SFG NL 52 192 32 68 9 5 13 38 2 22 35 0.354 .256 (+38%) .323 (+33%) .392 (+67%) .715 (+52%) 1726.3
1960 SFG NL 101 260 37 62 15 3 13 51 1 45 53 0.238 .255 (-7%) .323 (+8%) .387 (+21%) .711 (+15%) 761.6
1961 SFG NL 106 328 59 89 12 3 18 50 1 37 60 0.271 .258 (+5%) .328 (+7%) .399 (+23%) .727 (+16%) 966.7
1962 SFG NL 91 229 41 67 6 1 20 54 3 29 35 0.293 .257 (+14%) .326 (+13%) .393 (+50%) .719 (+33%) 1367.8
1963 SFG NL 152 564 103 158 19 5 44 102 1 50 119 0.280 .246 (+14%) .308 (+13%) .371 (+52%) .680 (+34%) 3659.1
1964 SFG NL 130 364 55 80 14 1 18 54 2 61 73 0.220 .250 (-12%) .312 (+8%) .377 (+9%) .690 (+8%) 730.9
1965 SFG NL 160 540 93 149 17 4 39 92 0 88 118 0.276 .245 (+12%) .310 (+23%) .371 (+45%) .682 (+35%) 3915.5
1966 SFG NL 150 502 85 148 26 6 36 96 2 76 100 0.295 .248 (+19%) .309 (+26%) .376 (+56%) .685 (+42%) 4253.0
1967 SFG NL 135 456 73 126 17 4 31 91 3 71 110 0.276 .242 (+14%) .306 (+23%) .357 (+50%) .663 (+38%) 3305.7
1968 SFG NL 148 523 81 153 16 4 36 105 4 72 71 0.293 .236 (+24%) .298 (+27%) .340 (+60%) .638 (+44%) 4302.6
1969 SFG NL 149 491 101 157 26 2 45 126 0 121 66 0.320 .248 (+29%) .320 (+41%) .369 (+78%) .689 (+61%) 6344.7
1970 SFG NL 152 495 98 143 39 2 39 126 0 137 75 0.289 .253 (+14%) .325 (+36%) .385 (+59%) .711 (+48%) 5448.8
1971 SFG NL 105 329 45 91 13 0 18 70 0 64 57 0.277 .249 (+11%) .316 (+25%) .365 (+31%) .682 (+28%) 1929.7
1972 SFG NL 81 263 30 56 8 0 14 35 0 38 45 0.213 .243 (-13%) .310 (+2%) .353 (+14%) .664 (+8%) 415.3
1973 SFG NL 130 383 52 102 14 3 29 75 1 105 78 0.266 .256 (+4%) .325 (+29%) .378 (+44%) .703 (+37%) 3183.9
1974 SDP NL 128 344 53 87 19 1 22 63 1 96 76 0.253 .256 (-2%) .324 (+28%) .369 (+37%) .693 (+33%) 2607.2
1975 SDP NL 122 413 43 104 17 0 23 68 1 57 80 0.252 .257 (-2%) .327 (+5%) .374 (+23%) .701 (+15%) 1211.7
1976 SDP NL 71 202 20 41 9 0 7 36 0 21 39 0.203 .255 (-21%) .320 (-12%) .360 (-3%) .681 (-7%) -250.2
1976 OAK AL 11 24 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 3 4 0.208 — — — — -250.2
1977 SFG NL 141 478 54 134 21 0 28 86 3 67 106 0.280 .264 (+6%) .329 (+11%) .401 (+25%) .730 (+19%) 1910.1
1978 SFG NL 108 351 32 80 19 2 12 64 1 36 57 0.228 .257 (-12%) .323 (-8%) .378 (+5%) .702 (-1%) -133.2
1979 SFG NL 117 353 34 88 9 0 15 57 0 36 70 0.249 .265 (-6%) .329 (-4%) .397 (+1%) .727 (-1%) -52.6
1980 SFG NL 48 113 8 23 8 0 1 16 0 13 23 0.204 .264 (-23%) .326 (-13%) .387 (-22%) .714 (-18%) -363.7

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
8 29 4 9 0 1 3 7 5 5 0.310

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1971 NLCS SFN 4 14 2 6 0 0 2 6 4 2 0.429
1962 WS SFN 4 15 2 3 0 1 1 1 1 3 0.200

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 2045 1987 17170 1222 233 1405
OF 275 264 397 14 23 2

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1959 SFN 1B 51 49 424 29 5 29
1960 SFN 1B 71 65 557 39 9 42
1961 SFN 1B 84 79 669 55 11 55
1962 SFN 1B 17 11 105 7 1 12
1962 SFN OF 57 53 81 2 2 1
1963 SFN 1B 23 14 143 14 1 5
1963 SFN OF 135 131 220 7 14 0
1964 SFN 1B 26 21 177 14 7 19
1964 SFN OF 83 80 96 5 7 1
1965 SFN 1B 156 150 1310 87 13 93
1966 SFN 1B 145 139 1287 81 22 91
1967 SFN 1B 127 123 1221 81 15 102
1968 SFN 1B 146 146 1305 103 21 91
1969 SFN 1B 148 148 1392 79 12 116
1970 SFN 1B 146 146 1217 134 15 117
1971 SFN 1B 95 95 828 63 15 80
1972 SFN 1B 74 73 617 32 9 52
1973 SFN 1B 117 116 930 76 12 89
1974 SDN 1B 104 103 815 47 11 59
1975 SDN 1B 115 115 979 73 15 94
1976 SDN 1B 51 51 420 44 4 39
1977 SFN 1B 136 136 1072 60 13 93
1978 SFN 1B 97 95 721 44 10 49
1979 SFN 1B 89 86 740 48 10 60
1980 SFN 1B 27 26 241 12 2 18

Career Games by Position

Position Games
First Base 2045
Left Field 256
Right Field 20
Designated Hitter 9

Awards & Honors

Year Award Notes
1979 Player of the Week Week of 1979-06-15
1977 Hutch Award
1977 Player of the Week Week of 1977-09-09
1977 TSN Comeback Player of the Year
1970 TSN All-Star 1B
1969 All-Star Game MVP
1969 Most Valuable Player
1969 TSN All-Star 1B
1969 TSN Major League Player of the Year
1969 TSN Player of the Year
1968 TSN All-Star 1B
1965 TSN All-Star 1B
1959 Rookie of the Year
1959 TSN Rookie of the Year

Featured In Rankings

#9
Top 20 First Basemen in History of MLB Baseball
Ranked 9 of 20
→

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1977 Most Valuable Player NL 20th 5.0 336 0
1971 Most Valuable Player NL 15th 15.0 336 0
1970 Most Valuable Player NL 9th 47.0 336 0
1969 Most Valuable Player NL 1st 265.0 336 11
1968 Most Valuable Player NL 3rd 135.0 280 0
1967 Most Valuable Player NL 29th 2.0 280 0
1966 Most Valuable Player NL 17th 12.0 280 0
1965 Most Valuable Player NL 10th 25.0 280 0
1963 Most Valuable Player NL 17th 9.0 280 0
1959 Most Valuable Player NL 22th 1.0 336 0
1959 Rookie of the Year NL 1st 24.0 24 24