Gene Tenace, baseball player, 201 home runs, 1969-1983

Gene Tenace

Born: 10/10/1946 in Russellton, PA, USA

MLB Debut: 1969-05-29 | Final Game: 1983-09-30

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 6'0" | Weight: 190 lbs

Full name: Fury Gene Tenace

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Biography

Gene Tenace was a professional baseball player born in 1946, whose career spanned from 1969 to 1983. Known primarily as a position player, Tenace played in 1,555 games over his 14-year career, during which he established himself as a reliable contributor at the plate and an asset to his teams. He recorded 1,060 hits, including 201 home runs and 674 RBIs, while maintaining a batting average of .241. His ability to draw walks and work counts made him a valuable player in the lineup, as he also stole 36 bases throughout his career. Tenace gained particular acclaim during the postseason, earning the World Series MVP award for his outstanding performance in the 1972 World Series, which highlighted his ability to rise to the occasion in crucial moments. He was selected as an All-Star once, reflecting his standing among peers during his era. Tenace played in an era marked by a transition in baseball dynamics, witnessing the evolution of power hitting and the growing significance of on-base skills, which he exhibited in his playing style. His contributions to the game and his remarkable playoff performances have secured his place in baseball history.

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
1555 4390 653 1060 179 20 201 674 36 984 998 0.241 0.388 0.429 0.817 18515.7

Career AVG .241 vs. league average .257 across their career seasons — 6.1% below league average.

Career OBP .388 vs. league average .323 across their career seasons — +19.9% above league average.

Career SLG .429 vs. league average .379 across their career seasons — +13.2% above league average.

Career OPS 0.817 vs. league average 0.702 across their career seasons — +16.3% 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
1969 OAK AL 16 38 1 6 0 0 1 2 0 1 15 0.158 — — — — 0.0
1970 OAK AL 38 105 19 32 6 0 7 20 0 23 30 0.305 .253 (+20%) .325 (+32%) .385 (+46%) .711 (+39%) 777.4
1971 OAK AL 65 179 26 49 7 0 7 25 2 29 34 0.274 .249 (+10%) .316 (+20%) .365 (+18%) .682 (+19%) 685.4
1972 OAK AL 82 227 22 51 5 3 5 32 0 24 42 0.225 .243 (-8%) .310 (-1%) .353 (-4%) .664 (-3%) -72.2
1973 OAK AL 160 510 83 132 18 2 24 84 2 101 94 0.259 .256 (+1%) .325 (+19%) .378 (+17%) .703 (+18%) 2266.1
1974 OAK AL 158 484 71 102 17 1 26 73 2 110 105 0.211 .256 (-18%) .324 (+13%) .369 (+11%) .693 (+12%) 1654.0
1975 OAK AL 158 498 83 127 17 0 29 87 7 106 127 0.255 .257 (-1%) .327 (+21%) .374 (+24%) .701 (+22%) 2755.6
1976 OAK AL 128 417 64 104 19 1 22 66 5 81 91 0.249 .255 (-2%) .320 (+16%) .360 (+27%) .681 (+22%) 1964.8
1977 SDP NL 147 437 66 102 24 4 15 61 5 125 119 0.233 .264 (-12%) .329 (+26%) .401 (+2%) .730 (+13%) 1896.3
1978 SDP NL 142 401 60 90 18 4 16 61 6 101 98 0.224 .257 (-13%) .323 (+21%) .378 (+8%) .702 (+14%) 1658.4
1979 SDP NL 151 463 61 122 16 4 20 67 2 105 106 0.263 .265 (-1%) .329 (+22%) .397 (+12%) .727 (+17%) 2071.7
1980 SDP NL 133 316 46 70 11 1 17 50 4 92 63 0.222 .264 (-16%) .326 (+22%) .387 (+9%) .714 (+15%) 1420.4
1981 STL NL 58 129 26 30 7 0 5 22 0 38 26 0.233 .255 (-9%) .320 (+30%) .368 (+9%) .688 (+19%) 639.2
1982 STL NL 66 124 18 32 9 0 7 18 1 36 31 0.258 .261 (-1%) .324 (+35%) .388 (+29%) .712 (+31%) 896.2
1983 PIT NL 53 62 7 11 5 0 0 6 0 12 17 0.177 .260 (-32%) .324 (+7%) .389 (-34%) .714 (-15%) -97.6

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
42 114 10 18 3 0 4 14 30 33 0.158

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1982 WS SLN 5 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0.000
1975 ALCS OAK 3 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 2 0.000
1974 ALCS OAK 4 11 1 0 0 0 0 1 4 4 0.000
1974 WS OAK 5 9 0 2 0 0 0 0 3 4 0.222
1973 ALCS OAK 5 17 3 4 1 0 0 0 2 4 0.235
1973 WS OAK 7 19 0 3 1 0 0 3 11 7 0.158
1972 ALCS OAK 5 17 1 1 0 0 0 1 3 5 0.059
1972 WS OAK 7 23 5 8 1 0 4 9 2 4 0.348
1971 ALCS OAK 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0.000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 625 517 4754 275 36 420
2B 6 0 3 1 0 0
3B 17 14 18 26 4 4
C 892 759 3945 441 63 65
OF 11 7 11 0 0 0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1969 OAK C 13 8 61 6 0 0
1970 OAK C 30 29 180 18 2 7
1971 OAK C 52 45 300 20 2 3
1971 OAK OF 1 1 0 0 0 0
1972 OAK 1B 7 6 49 3 0 4
1972 OAK 2B 2 0 2 0 0 0
1972 OAK 3B 2 1 1 2 1 0
1972 OAK C 49 46 266 18 6 1
1972 OAK OF 9 6 11 0 0 0
1973 OAK 1B 134 132 1095 61 13 104
1973 OAK 2B 1 0 0 1 0 0
1973 OAK C 33 23 123 9 1 4
1974 OAK 1B 106 97 816 41 4 80
1974 OAK 2B 3 0 1 0 0 0
1974 OAK C 79 58 293 42 6 3
1975 OAK 1B 68 39 401 21 1 27
1975 OAK C 125 114 541 63 10 10
1976 OAK 1B 70 62 577 31 3 47
1976 OAK C 65 61 263 25 5 3
1977 SDN 1B 36 28 280 27 1 20
1977 SDN 3B 14 13 17 24 3 4
1977 SDN C 99 89 523 61 12 9
1978 SDN 1B 80 67 668 37 5 61
1978 SDN 3B 1 0 0 0 0 0
1978 SDN C 71 56 276 42 3 7
1979 SDN 1B 72 58 582 32 7 55
1979 SDN C 94 77 413 51 1 10
1980 SDN 1B 19 11 125 10 1 9
1980 SDN C 104 82 415 46 10 7
1981 SLN 1B 7 3 39 4 0 3
1981 SLN C 38 36 126 18 3 1
1982 SLN 1B 7 4 39 3 0 4
1982 SLN C 37 33 149 21 1 0
1983 PIT 1B 19 10 83 5 1 6
1983 PIT C 3 2 16 1 1 0
1983 PIT OF 1 0 0 0 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Catcher 893
First Base 627
Second Base 5
Third Base 17
Left Field 1
Right Field 10
Designated Hitter 6

Awards & Honors

Year Award Notes
1980 Player of the Week Week of 1980-09-05
1975 Player of the Month September
1975 Player of the Week Week of 1975-09-12
1972 Babe Ruth Award C
1972 World Series MVP

Featured In Rankings

#17
Top 20 Catchers in History of MLB Baseball
Ranked 17 of 20
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Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1976 Most Valuable Player AL 18th 13.0 336 0
1975 Most Valuable Player AL 18th 7.0 336 0