Ryne Sandberg, baseball player, 282 home runs, 1981-1997

Ryne Sandberg

⭐ Hall of Fame 2005

Born: 9/18/1959 in Spokane, WA, USA

Died: 7/28/2025 in Lake Bluff, IL, USA

MLB Debut: 1981-09-02 | Final Game: 1997-09-28

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 6'1" | Weight: 175 lbs

Full name: Ryne Dee Sandberg

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Biography

Ryne Sandberg, born in 1959, was a prominent professional baseball player whose career spanned from 1981 to 1997. Primarily playing as a second baseman, Sandberg was known for his exceptional defensive skills and offensive production. Over the course of his career, he appeared in 2,164 games, accumulating 2,386 hits, 282 home runs, and 1,061 RBIs, while maintaining a career batting average of .285. His speed on the bases was notable, as he recorded 344 stolen bases, embodying the all-around talent that defined his playing style. Sandberg's impact on the game was recognized with ten All-Star selections and a well-deserved induction into the Hall of Fame in 2005. He played during a transformative era in baseball, marked by the rise of power hitters and the increasing importance of analytics in evaluating player performance. Sandberg’s combination of hitting prowess, base-running agility, and defensive excellence made him one of the foremost second basemen of his generation, solidifying his legacy as a key figure in the history of Major League Baseball.

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
2164 8385 1318 2386 403 76 282 1061 344 761 1260 0.285 0.344 0.452 0.795 17242.7

Career AVG .285 vs. league average .260 across their career seasons — +9.3% above league average.

Career OBP .344 vs. league average .327 across their career seasons — +5.2% above league average.

Career SLG .452 vs. league average .395 across their career seasons — +14.4% above league average.

Career OPS 0.795 vs. league average 0.722 across their career seasons — +10.2% 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
1981 PHI NL 13 6 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.167 — — — — 0.0
1982 CHC NL 156 635 103 172 33 5 7 54 32 36 90 0.271 .261 (+4%) .324 (-4%) .388 (-4%) .712 (-4%) -623.9
1983 CHC NL 158 633 94 165 25 4 8 48 37 51 79 0.261 .260 (avg) .324 (-3%) .389 (-10%) .714 (-7%) -824.6
1984 CHC NL 156 636 114 200 36 19 19 84 32 52 101 0.314 .259 (+21%) .322 (+14%) .384 (+35%) .707 (+25%) 3029.1
1985 CHC NL 153 609 113 186 31 6 26 83 54 57 97 0.305 .257 (+19%) .323 (+13%) .390 (+29%) .714 (+21%) 2571.7
1986 CHC NL 154 627 68 178 28 5 14 76 34 46 79 0.284 .257 (+10%) .325 (+1%) .395 (+4%) .720 (+3%) 260.1
1987 CHC NL 132 523 81 154 25 2 16 59 21 59 79 0.294 .262 (+12%) .331 (+11%) .415 (+6%) .746 (+8%) 1011.2
1988 CHC NL 155 618 77 163 23 8 19 69 25 54 91 0.264 .254 (+4%) .317 (+1%) .377 (+11%) .695 (+6%) 692.2
1989 CHC NL 157 606 104 176 25 5 30 76 15 59 85 0.290 .254 (+14%) .319 (+11%) .375 (+32%) .694 (+23%) 2697.0
1990 CHC NL 155 615 116 188 30 3 40 100 25 50 84 0.306 .257 (+19%) .324 (+9%) .385 (+45%) .710 (+29%) 3284.5
1991 CHC NL 158 585 104 170 32 2 26 100 22 87 89 0.291 .255 (+14%) .323 (+17%) .384 (+26%) .708 (+22%) 2763.0
1992 CHC NL 158 612 100 186 32 8 26 87 17 68 73 0.304 .255 (+19%) .322 (+15%) .377 (+35%) .699 (+26%) 3105.4
1993 CHC NL 117 456 67 141 20 0 9 45 9 37 62 0.309 .265 (+17%) .332 (+8%) .403 (+2%) .735 (+5%) 473.0
1994 CHC NL 57 223 36 53 9 5 5 24 2 23 40 0.238 .269 (-12%) .338 (-8%) .424 (-8%) .763 (-8%) -346.4
1996 CHC NL 150 554 85 135 28 4 25 92 12 54 116 0.244 .269 (-10%) .340 (-7%) .426 (+4%) .767 (-1%) -222.2
1997 CHC NL 135 447 54 118 26 0 12 64 7 28 94 0.264 .266 (-1%) .336 (-8%) .419 (-4%) .756 (-6%) -627.2

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
10 39 9 15 5 1 1 6 6 6 0.385

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1989 NLCS CHN 5 20 6 8 3 1 1 4 3 4 0.400
1984 NLCS CHN 5 19 3 7 2 0 0 2 3 2 0.368

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
2B 1995 1965 3807 6363 109 1158
3B 133 131 79 278 11 19
SS 7 0 6 7 0 0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1981 PHI 2B 1 0 1 2 0 1
1981 PHI SS 5 0 6 5 0 0
1982 CHN 2B 24 24 57 95 1 9
1982 CHN 3B 133 131 79 278 11 19
1983 CHN 2B 157 153 330 571 13 126
1983 CHN SS 1 0 0 1 0 0
1984 CHN 2B 156 156 314 550 6 102
1985 CHN 2B 153 152 353 500 12 99
1985 CHN SS 1 0 0 1 0 0
1986 CHN 2B 153 153 309 492 5 86
1987 CHN 2B 131 130 294 375 10 84
1988 CHN 2B 153 151 291 522 11 79
1989 CHN 2B 155 154 294 466 6 80
1990 CHN 2B 154 152 278 469 8 81
1991 CHN 2B 157 154 267 515 4 66
1992 CHN 2B 157 157 283 539 8 94
1993 CHN 2B 115 114 209 347 7 76
1994 CHN 2B 57 56 96 202 4 35
1996 CHN 2B 146 144 228 421 6 82
1997 CHN 2B 126 115 203 297 8 58

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Second Base 1994
Third Base 133
Shortstop 7
Designated Hitter 1

Awards & Honors

Year Award Notes
1992 Player of the Week Week of 1992-09-19
1992 Silver Slugger 2B
1992 TSN All-Star 2B
1991 Gold Glove 2B
1991 Silver Slugger 2B
1991 TSN All-Star 2B
1990 Gold Glove 2B
1990 Player of the Month June
1990 Player of the Week Week of 1990-05-05
1990 Silver Slugger 2B
1990 TSN All-Star 2B
1989 Gold Glove 2B
1989 Player of the Week Week of 1989-08-12
1989 Silver Slugger 2B
1989 TSN All-Star 2B
1988 Gold Glove 2B
1988 Silver Slugger 2B
1988 TSN All-Star 2B
1987 Gold Glove 2B
1986 Gold Glove 2B
1986 Player of the Week Week of 1986-05-30
1985 Gold Glove 2B
1985 Player of the Week Week of 1985-06-28
1985 Silver Slugger 2B
1984 Gold Glove 2B
1984 Most Valuable Player
1984 Player of the Month June
1984 Player of the Week Week of 1984-05-11
1984 Player of the Week Week of 1984-06-22
1984 Silver Slugger 2B
1984 TSN All-Star 2B
1984 TSN Major League Player of the Year
1984 TSN Player of the Year
1983 Gold Glove 2B

Featured In Rankings

#8
Top 20 Second Basemen in history of MLB Baseball
Ranked 8 of 20
→

Salary History

Year Team League Salary
1997 CHN NL $3,250,000
1996 CHN NL $2,300,000
1994 CHN NL $5,975,000
1993 CHN NL $5,975,000
1992 CHN NL $2,150,000
1990 CHN NL $1,550,000
1989 CHN NL $950,000
1988 CHN NL $840,000
1987 CHN NL $760,000
1986 CHN NL $665,000
1985 CHN NL $505,000
Total Career Earnings $24,920,000

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1992 Most Valuable Player NL 12th 12.0 336 0
1991 Most Valuable Player NL 17th 2.0 336 0
1990 Most Valuable Player NL 4th 151.0 336 0
1989 Most Valuable Player NL 4th 157.0 336 0
1985 Most Valuable Player NL 13th 14.0 336 0
1984 Most Valuable Player NL 1st 326.0 336 22
1982 Rookie of the Year NL 6th 9.0 120 1