Mark McGwire, baseball player, 583 home runs, 1986-2001

Mark McGwire

Born: 10/1/1963 in Pomona, CA, USA

MLB Debut: 1986-08-22 | Final Game: 2001-10-07

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 6'5" | Weight: 215 lbs

Full name: Mark David McGwire

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Biography

Mark McGwire, born in 1963, was a prominent figure in Major League Baseball whose career spanned from 1986 to 2001. Best known for his powerful hitting, McGwire played a total of 1,874 games, during which he amassed 1,626 hits and an impressive 583 home runs. His ability to drive in runs was evident, as he recorded 1,414 RBIs throughout his career. McGwire finished with a batting average of .263 and added 12 stolen bases to his offensive repertoire. His remarkable achievements earned him 12 All-Star selections, highlighting his status as one of the game's elite players. McGwire's impact on baseball was particularly pronounced during the late 1990s, a period marked by a resurgence in offensive output often referred to as the "steroid era." His historic pursuit of the single-season home run record in 1998, alongside Sammy Sosa, captivated fans and reignited interest in the sport following a labor dispute. McGwire's extraordinary power and charismatic presence on the field solidified his legacy as one of the most iconic sluggers in baseball history, earning him accolades such as Rookie of the Year and TSN Rookie Player of the Year. His contributions to the game continue to be a topic of discussion and analysis among baseball historians and enthusiasts alike.

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
1874 6187 1167 1626 252 6 583 1414 12 1317 1596 0.263 0.394 0.588 0.982 44528.0

Career AVG .263 vs. league average .263 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .394 vs. league average .332 across their career seasons — +18.7% above league average.

Career SLG .588 vs. league average .408 across their career seasons — +44.1% above league average.

Career OPS 0.982 vs. league average 0.740 across their career seasons — +32.7% 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
1986 OAK AL 18 53 10 10 1 0 3 9 0 4 18 0.189 .257 (-27%) .325 (-21%) .395 (-4%) .720 (-12%) -108.1
1987 OAK AL 151 557 97 161 28 4 49 118 1 71 131 0.289 .262 (+10%) .331 (+12%) .415 (+49%) .746 (+32%) 3644.8
1988 OAK AL 155 550 87 143 22 1 32 99 0 76 117 0.260 .254 (+2%) .317 (+11%) .377 (+27%) .695 (+19%) 2215.1
1989 OAK AL 143 490 74 113 17 0 33 95 1 83 94 0.231 .254 (-9%) .319 (+6%) .375 (+25%) .694 (+16%) 1592.6
1990 OAK AL 156 523 87 123 16 0 39 108 2 110 116 0.235 .257 (-9%) .324 (+14%) .385 (+27%) .710 (+21%) 2538.2
1991 OAK AL 154 483 62 97 22 0 22 75 2 93 116 0.201 .255 (-21%) .323 (+2%) .384 (avg) .708 (+1%) 282.6
1992 OAK AL 139 467 87 125 22 0 42 104 0 90 105 0.268 .255 (+5%) .322 (+20%) .377 (+55%) .699 (+39%) 3664.7
1993 OAK AL 27 84 16 28 6 0 9 24 0 21 19 0.333 .265 (+26%) .332 (+41%) .403 (+80%) .735 (+62%) 964.2
1994 OAK AL 47 135 26 34 3 0 9 25 0 37 40 0.252 .269 (-7%) .338 (+22%) .424 (+12%) .763 (+16%) 550.8
1995 OAK AL 104 317 75 87 13 0 39 90 1 88 77 0.274 .266 (+3%) .337 (+30%) .417 (+64%) .755 (+49%) 3426.1
1996 OAK AL 130 423 104 132 21 0 52 113 0 116 112 0.312 .269 (+16%) .340 (+37%) .426 (+71%) .767 (+56%) 5498.0
1997 OAK AL 105 366 48 104 24 0 34 81 1 58 98 0.284 .266 (+7%) .336 (+14%) .419 (+50%) .756 (+34%) 2447.1
1997 STL NL 51 174 38 44 3 0 24 42 2 43 61 0.253 .266 (-5%) .336 (+22%) .419 (+63%) .756 (+45%) 2447.1
1998 STL NL 155 509 130 152 21 0 70 147 1 162 155 0.299 .266 (+12%) .335 (+40%) .420 (+79%) .755 (+62%) 7529.4
1999 STL NL 153 521 118 145 21 1 65 147 0 133 141 0.278 .271 (+3%) .344 (+23%) .433 (+61%) .778 (+44%) 5318.0
2000 STL NL 89 236 60 72 8 0 32 73 1 76 78 0.305 .270 (+13%) .344 (+40%) .437 (+71%) .782 (+57%) 3077.0
2001 STL NL 97 299 48 56 4 0 29 64 0 56 118 0.187 .263 (-29%) .332 (-5%) .426 (+15%) .758 (+6%) 357.9

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
42 129 13 28 2 0 5 14 18 33 0.217

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
2001 NLDS2 SLN 4 11 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 6 0.091
2000 NLCS SLN 3 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.000
2000 NLDS1 SLN 3 2 1 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 0.500
1992 ALCS OAK 6 20 1 3 0 0 1 3 5 4 0.150
1990 ALCS OAK 4 13 2 2 0 0 0 2 3 3 0.154
1990 WS OAK 4 14 1 3 0 0 0 0 2 4 0.214
1989 ALCS OAK 5 18 3 7 1 0 1 3 1 4 0.389
1989 WS OAK 4 17 0 5 1 0 0 1 1 3 0.294
1988 ALCS OAK 4 15 4 5 0 0 1 3 1 5 0.333
1988 WS OAK 5 17 1 1 0 0 1 1 3 4 0.059

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 1763 1720 14451 1042 103 1408
3B 24 20 12 31 9 1
OF 4 2 1 0 0 0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1986 OAK 3B 16 15 10 20 6 1
1987 OAK 1B 145 141 1173 90 10 91
1987 OAK 3B 8 5 2 11 3 0
1987 OAK OF 3 2 1 0 0 0
1988 OAK 1B 154 146 1228 88 9 118
1988 OAK OF 1 0 0 0 0 0
1989 OAK 1B 141 139 1170 114 6 122
1990 OAK 1B 154 150 1329 95 5 126
1991 OAK 1B 152 142 1191 101 4 120
1992 OAK 1B 139 136 1118 71 6 118
1993 OAK 1B 25 25 197 14 0 20
1994 OAK 1B 40 37 307 18 4 26
1995 OAK 1B 91 88 775 64 12 65
1996 OAK 1B 109 107 913 60 10 118
1997 OAK 1B 101 101 884 60 6 88
1997 SLN 1B 50 49 439 34 1 40
1998 SLN 1B 151 152 1326 97 12 128
1999 SLN 1B 151 150 1180 80 13 119
2000 SLN 1B 70 70 535 23 1 49
2001 SLN 1B 90 87 686 33 4 60

Career Games by Position

Position Games
First Base 1763
Third Base 24
Right Field 4
Designated Hitter 37

Awards & Honors

Year Award Notes
1999 Lou Gehrig Memorial Award
1999 Player of the Month July
1999 Player of the Week Week of 1999-08-07
1998 MLB Players Choice Player of the Year
1998 Player of the Month April
1998 Player of the Month May
1998 Player of the Month September
1998 Player of the Week Week of 1998-04-04
1998 Player of the Week Week of 1998-05-23
1998 Player of the Week Week of 1998-09-26
1998 Silver Slugger 1B
1998 TSN All-Star 1B
1997 MLB Players Choice Man of the Year
1997 Player of the Month September
1997 Player of the Week Week of 1997-08-16
1996 Player of the Month June
1996 Silver Slugger 1B
1996 TSN All-Star 1B
1995 Player of the Week Week of 1995-06-10
1993 Player of the Week Week of 1993-05-08
1992 Player of the Week Week of 1992-04-11
1992 Silver Slugger 1B
1992 TSN All-Star 1B
1990 Gold Glove 1B
1989 Player of the Week Week of 1989-04-07
1987 Player of the Week Week of 1987-06-27
1987 Rookie of the Year
1987 TSN Rookie Player of the Year

Featured In Rankings

#13
Top 20 First Basemen in History of MLB Baseball
Ranked 13 of 20
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Salary History

Year Team League Salary
2001 SLN NL $11,000,000
2000 SLN NL $9,333,333
1999 SLN NL $9,358,667
1998 SLN NL $8,928,354
1997 OAK AL $7,150,000
1996 OAK AL $7,050,000
1995 OAK AL $6,925,000
1994 OAK AL $3,000,000
1993 OAK AL $4,000,000
1992 OAK AL $2,700,000
1991 OAK AL $2,850,000
1990 OAK AL $1,500,000
1989 OAK AL $510,500
1988 OAK AL $250,000
1987 OAK AL $72,500
1986 OAK AL $60,000
Total Career Earnings $74,688,354

College History

School Name City State Years Attended
University of Southern California Los Angeles CA 1982, 1983, 1984

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1999 Most Valuable Player NL 5th 115.0 448 0
1998 Most Valuable Player NL 2nd 272.0 448 2
1997 Most Valuable Player NL 16th 6.0 392 0
1996 Most Valuable Player AL 7th 100.0 392 0
1995 Most Valuable Player AL 16th 7.0 392 0
1992 Most Valuable Player AL 4th 155.0 392 1
1990 Most Valuable Player AL 11th 29.0 392 0
1989 Most Valuable Player AL 25th 1.0 392 0
1988 Most Valuable Player AL 19th 6.0 392 0
1987 Most Valuable Player AL 6th 109.0 392 0
1987 Rookie of the Year AL 1st 140.0 140 28