Ted Wilks, baseball player, 1944-1953

Ted Wilks

Born: 11/13/1915 in Fulton, NY, USA

Died: 8/21/1989 in Houston, TX, USA

MLB Debut: 1944-04-25 | Final Game: 1953-08-05

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 5'9" | Weight: 178 lbs

Full name: Theodore Wilks

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Biography

Ted Wilks was a prominent pitcher in Major League Baseball during the 1940s and early 1950s. Born in 1915, he began his professional career in 1944 and quickly established himself as a reliable arm on the mound. Over the course of his career, which lasted until 1953, Wilks amassed a record of 59 wins and 30 losses, along with an earned run average (ERA) of 3.26. He was known for his ability to strike out batters, totaling 403 strikeouts, and for his effectiveness in high-pressure situations, as evidenced by his 46 saves. Wilks played during a transformative time in baseball, shortly after World War II when the sport began to integrate and expand its appeal. His pitching style combined a keen understanding of the game with a competitive spirit, helping his teams secure crucial victories. His contributions on the mound not only made him a valuable player but also left a lasting impression on the teams he played for, showcasing the talent and determination that characterized pitchers of his era.

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
59 30 385 44 22 5 46 913.0 832 331 76 283 403 3.26 0

Career ERA 3.26 vs. league average 3.91 across their career seasons — 16.6% better than 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
1944 STL NL 17 4 36 21 16 4 0 207.7 173 61 49 70 2.64 3.57 (+26%) -
1945 STL NL 4 7 18 16 4 1 0 98.3 103 32 29 28 2.93 3.67 (+20%) -
1946 STL NL 8 0 40 4 0 0 1 95.0 88 36 38 40 3.41 3.59 (+5%) -
1947 STL NL 4 0 37 0 0 0 5 50.3 57 28 11 28 5.01 3.97 (-26%) -
1948 STL NL 6 6 57 2 1 0 13 130.7 113 38 39 71 2.62 4.10 (+36%) -
1949 STL NL 10 3 59 0 0 0 9 118.3 105 49 38 71 3.73 4.12 (+10%) -
1950 STL NL 2 0 18 0 0 0 0 24.3 27 18 9 15 6.66 4.36 (-53%) -
1951 STL NL 0 0 17 0 0 0 1 18.0 19 6 5 5 3.00 4.04 (+26%) -
1951 PIT NL 3 5 48 1 1 0 12 82.7 69 26 24 43 2.83 4.04 (+30%) 1501.6
1952 PIT NL 5 5 44 0 0 0 4 72.3 65 29 31 24 3.61 3.70 (+3%) -1856.0
1952 CLE AL 0 0 7 0 0 0 1 11.7 8 5 7 6 3.86 3.70 (-4%) 158.1
1953 CLE AL 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 3.7 5 3 3 2 7.36 — 0.0

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
385 206 15 27 3 0 0 13 0 16 59 0.131 0.194 0.146 0.339 -471.0

Career AVG .131 vs. league average .261 across their career seasons — 49.8% below league average.

Career OBP .194 vs. league average .335 across their career seasons — 42.1% below league average.

Career SLG .146 vs. league average .376 across their career seasons — 61.2% below league average.

Career OPS 0.339 vs. league average 0.710 across their career seasons — 52.2% 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
1944 STL NL 36 64 6 9 2 0 0 6 0 5 15 0.141 .261 (-46%) .325 (-38%) .357 (-52%) .683 (-45%) -471.0
1945 STL NL 18 30 2 4 0 0 0 1 0 4 7 0.133 — — — — 0.0
1946 STL NL 40 24 5 5 0 0 0 1 0 1 5 0.208 — — — — 0.0
1947 STL NL 37 6 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0.167 — — — — 0.0
1948 STL NL 57 30 1 5 1 0 0 4 0 3 7 0.167 — — — — 0.0
1949 STL NL 59 27 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 15 0.037 — — — — 0.0
1950 STL NL 18 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 — — — — 0.0
1951 STL NL 17 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 — — — — 0.0
1951 PIT NL 48 12 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 6 0.083 — — — — 0.0
1952 PIT NL 44 8 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.125 — — — — 0.0
1952 CLE AL 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1953 CLE AL 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
3 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.000

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1946 WS SLN 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1944 WS SLN 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.000

Playoff Career Pitching

W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
0 1 3 1 1 7.3 7 4 3 7 4.91

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1946 WS SLN 0 0 1 0 0 1.0 2 0 0 0 0.00
1944 WS SLN 0 1 2 1 1 6.3 5 4 3 7 5.68

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
P 385 0 30 120 8 11

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1944 SLN P 36 0 6 20 0 3
1945 SLN P 18 0 1 12 1 2
1946 SLN P 40 0 2 16 1 3
1947 SLN P 37 0 2 9 1 0
1948 SLN P 57 0 6 19 0 1
1949 SLN P 59 0 4 10 4 0
1950 SLN P 18 0 1 4 0 0
1951 SLN P 17 0 1 1 0 0
1951 PIT P 48 0 4 17 0 1
1952 PIT P 44 0 3 9 1 1
1952 CLE P 7 0 0 3 0 0
1953 CLE P 4 0 0 0 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 385

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1949 Most Valuable Player NL 19th 8.0 336 0
1944 Most Valuable Player NL 24th 4.0 336 0