Larry McWilliams, baseball player, 1978-1990

Larry McWilliams

Born: 2/10/1954 in Wichita, KS, USA

MLB Debut: 1978-07-17 | Final Game: 1990-05-12

Bats: L | Throws: L | Height: 6'5" | Weight: 180 lbs

Full name: Larry Dean McWilliams

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Biography

Larry McWilliams was a professional baseball pitcher who made his mark in Major League Baseball from 1978 until his retirement in 1990. Born in 1954, McWilliams played in an era characterized by evolving hitting techniques and strategies, which influenced the role of pitchers significantly. Throughout his career, he appeared in numerous games, finishing with a record of 78 wins and 90 losses. He maintained a respectable earned run average (ERA) of 3.99, showcasing his ability to navigate the challenges of competitive lineups. Over his career, McWilliams struck out 940 batters, demonstrating his effectiveness in the strikeout department, albeit with limited saves, totaling just 3. His playing style was marked by a mix of finesse and power, which allowed him to be a reliable option on the mound for several teams. As a pitcher who contributed to the game during a period of significant change, McWilliams left an imprint on the teams he played for, becoming a respected figure in the baseball community before his retirement on May 12, 1990.

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
78 90 370 224 34 13 3 1558.3 1548 690 137 542 940 3.99 0

Career ERA 3.99 vs. league average 3.86 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
1978 ATL NL 9 3 15 15 3 1 0 99.3 84 31 35 42 2.81 3.69 (+24%) -1544.0
1979 ATL NL 3 2 13 13 1 0 0 66.3 69 41 22 32 5.56 4.00 (-39%) 462.1
1980 ATL NL 9 14 30 30 4 1 0 163.7 188 90 39 77 4.95 3.84 (-29%) -4049.3
1981 ATL NL 2 1 6 5 2 1 0 37.7 31 13 8 23 3.11 3.58 (+13%) 832.3
1982 ATL NL 2 3 27 2 0 0 0 37.7 52 26 20 24 6.21 3.86 (-61%) -348.2
1982 PIT NL 6 5 19 18 2 2 1 121.7 106 42 24 94 3.11 3.86 (+20%) 3241.0
1983 PIT NL 15 8 35 35 8 4 0 238.0 205 86 87 199 3.25 3.87 (+16%) 3852.9
1984 PIT NL 12 11 34 32 7 2 1 227.3 226 74 78 149 2.93 3.81 (+23%) 1597.9
1985 PIT NL 7 9 30 19 2 0 0 126.3 139 66 62 52 4.70 3.89 (-21%) -1724.8
1986 PIT NL 3 11 49 15 0 0 0 122.3 129 70 49 80 5.15 3.97 (-30%) -1768.9
1987 ATL NL 0 1 9 2 0 0 0 20.3 25 13 7 13 5.75 4.29 (-34%) 48.3
1988 STL NL 6 9 42 17 2 1 1 136.0 130 59 45 70 3.90 3.73 (-5%) -
1989 PHI NL 2 11 40 16 2 1 0 120.7 123 55 49 54 4.10 3.71 (-11%) 623.3
1989 KCR AL 2 2 8 5 1 0 0 32.7 31 15 8 24 4.13 3.71 (-11%) -
1990 KCR AL 0 0 13 0 0 0 0 8.3 10 9 9 7 9.72 — -

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
380 446 26 60 6 2 0 15 1 12 193 0.135 0.161 0.157 0.317 -2029.8

Career AVG .135 vs. league average .259 across their career seasons — 48.1% below league average.

Career OBP .161 vs. league average .324 across their career seasons — 50.5% below league average.

Career SLG .157 vs. league average .388 across their career seasons — 59.5% below league average.

Career OPS 0.317 vs. league average 0.712 across their career seasons — 55.4% 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
1978 ATL NL 15 32 1 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 19 0.062 — — — — 0.0
1979 ATL NL 13 24 4 5 2 0 0 1 0 1 14 0.208 — — — — 0.0
1980 ATL NL 30 51 3 8 0 0 0 1 0 5 24 0.157 .264 (-41%) .326 (-29%) .387 (-60%) .714 (-46%) -371.4
1981 ATL NL 6 10 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 7 0.100 — — — — 0.0
1982 ATL NL 27 6 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 0.167 — — — — 0.0
1982 PIT NL 20 32 1 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 12 0.188 — — — — 0.0
1983 PIT NL 35 79 5 9 1 0 0 4 1 1 32 0.114 .260 (-56%) .324 (-62%) .389 (-67%) .714 (-65%) -855.8
1984 PIT NL 36 74 1 9 0 0 0 4 0 0 22 0.122 .259 (-53%) .322 (-62%) .384 (-68%) .707 (-66%) -802.6
1985 PIT NL 32 40 2 5 1 0 0 2 0 1 19 0.125 — — — — 0.0
1986 PIT NL 50 29 2 4 1 0 0 0 0 2 11 0.138 — — — — 0.0
1987 ATL NL 9 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.200 — — — — 0.0
1988 STL NL 45 37 6 6 1 0 0 3 0 0 12 0.162 — — — — 0.0
1989 PHI NL 41 27 1 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 14 0.111 — — — — 0.0
1989 KCR AL 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1990 KCR AL 13 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
P 370 224 85 275 13 22

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1978 ATL P 15 15 10 19 0 1
1979 ATL P 13 13 2 17 1 2
1980 ATL P 30 30 11 24 3 1
1981 ATL P 6 5 4 9 0 2
1982 ATL P 27 2 3 14 0 1
1982 PIT P 19 18 6 26 0 1
1983 PIT P 35 35 10 40 5 5
1984 PIT P 34 32 15 32 0 4
1985 PIT P 30 19 4 21 0 0
1986 PIT P 49 15 7 17 0 2
1987 ATL P 9 2 1 3 0 1
1988 SLN P 42 17 5 24 2 0
1989 PHI P 40 16 6 22 2 2
1989 KCA P 8 5 1 4 0 0
1990 KCA P 13 0 0 3 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 370

Awards & Honors

Year Award Notes
1983 TSN All-Star LHP
1980 Player of the Week Week of 1980-07-18

Salary History

Year Team League Salary
1990 KCA AL $300,000
1989 PHI NL $68,000
1986 PIT NL $1,080,000
1985 PIT NL $796,667
Total Career Earnings $2,244,667

College History

School Name City State Years Attended
Paris Junior College Paris TX 1973, 1974

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1983 Cy Young Award NL 5th 7.0 120 0