Early Wynn, baseball player, 1939-1963

Early Wynn

⭐ Hall of Fame 1972

Born: 1/6/1920 in Hartford, AL, USA

Died: 4/4/1999 in Venice, FL, USA

MLB Debut: 1939-09-13 | Final Game: 1963-09-13

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

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Biography

Early Wynn was a prominent American professional baseball pitcher whose career spanned from 1939 to 1963. Born in 1920, he developed into one of the most effective and durable pitchers of his era, finishing his career with a record of 300 wins and 244 losses, and an earned run average (ERA) of 3.54. Wynn was known for his fierce competitive spirit and his ability to dominate hitters, amassing a total of 2,334 strikeouts throughout his time in Major League Baseball. He also contributed to his teams with 15 saves, showcasing his versatility as a pitcher. Wynn's career was marked by significant achievements, including being named an All-Star nine times and winning the prestigious Cy Young Award. His excellence on the mound earned him a place in the Baseball Hall of Fame, where he was inducted in 1972. Playing during a transformative era in baseball, Wynn's contributions helped shape the game in the post-World War II period, and he remained a respected figure in the sport long after his retirement. His legacy is one of resilience and skill, making him a revered member of baseball history.

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
300 244 691 612 290 49 15 4564.0 4291 1796 338 1775 2334 3.54 0

Career ERA 3.54 vs. league average 3.89 across their career seasons — 8.9% 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
1939 WSN AL 0 2 3 3 1 0 0 20.3 26 13 10 1 5.75 4.28 (-34%) -
1941 WSN AL 3 1 5 5 4 0 0 40.0 35 7 10 15 1.57 3.94 (+60%) -
1942 WSN AL 10 16 30 28 10 1 0 190.0 246 108 73 58 5.12 3.57 (-43%) -
1943 WSN AL 18 12 37 33 12 3 0 256.7 232 83 83 89 2.91 3.50 (+17%) -
1944 WSN AL 8 17 33 25 19 2 2 207.7 221 78 67 65 3.38 3.57 (+5%) -
1946 WSN AL 8 5 17 12 9 0 0 107.0 112 37 33 36 3.11 3.59 (+13%) -
1947 WSN AL 17 15 33 31 22 2 0 247.0 251 100 90 73 3.64 3.97 (+8%) -
1948 WSN AL 8 19 33 31 15 1 0 198.0 236 128 94 49 5.82 4.10 (-42%) -
1949 CLE AL 11 7 26 23 6 0 0 164.7 186 76 57 62 4.15 4.12 (-1%) 2863.6
1950 CLE AL 18 8 32 28 14 2 0 213.7 166 76 101 143 3.20 4.36 (+27%) 2359.2
1951 CLE AL 20 13 37 34 21 3 1 274.3 227 92 107 133 3.02 4.04 (+25%) 3446.2
1952 CLE AL 23 12 42 33 19 4 3 285.7 239 92 132 153 2.90 3.70 (+22%) -456.5
1953 CLE AL 17 12 36 34 16 1 0 251.7 234 110 107 138 3.93 4.14 (+5%) 2243.8
1954 CLE AL 23 11 40 36 20 3 2 270.7 225 82 83 155 2.73 3.90 (+30%) 5128.6
1955 CLE AL 17 11 32 31 16 6 0 230.0 207 72 80 122 2.82 4.00 (+30%) 3227.9
1956 CLE AL 20 9 38 35 18 4 2 277.7 233 84 91 158 2.72 3.96 (+31%) 5934.5
1957 CLE AL 14 17 40 37 13 1 1 263.0 270 126 104 184 4.31 3.83 (-12%) -343.3
1958 CHW AL 14 16 40 34 11 4 2 239.7 214 110 104 179 4.13 3.86 (-7%) -
1959 CHW AL 22 10 37 37 14 5 0 255.7 202 90 119 179 3.17 3.90 (+19%) -
1960 CHW AL 13 12 36 35 13 4 1 237.3 220 92 112 158 3.49 3.82 (+9%) -
1961 CHW AL 8 2 17 16 5 0 0 110.3 88 43 47 64 3.51 4.03 (+13%) -
1962 CHW AL 7 15 27 26 11 3 0 167.7 171 83 56 91 4.46 3.96 (-13%) -
1963 CLE AL 1 2 20 5 1 0 1 55.3 50 14 15 29 2.28 3.46 (+34%) 1042.3

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
796 1704 136 365 59 5 17 173 1 141 330 0.214 0.274 0.285 0.559 -5867.8

Career AVG .214 vs. league average .259 across their career seasons — 17.4% below league average.

Career OBP .274 vs. league average .330 across their career seasons — 16.9% below league average.

Career SLG .285 vs. league average .381 across their career seasons — 25.3% below league average.

Career OPS 0.559 vs. league average 0.711 across their career seasons — 21.4% 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
1939 WSN AL 3 6 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 0.167 — — — — 0.0
1941 WSN AL 5 15 1 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 5 0.133 — — — — 0.0
1942 WSN AL 30 69 4 15 2 0 0 7 0 3 13 0.217 .253 (-14%) .323 (-23%) .349 (-30%) .672 (-26%) -293.9
1943 WSN AL 38 98 6 29 3 1 1 11 0 1 11 0.296 .255 (+16%) .324 (-7%) .346 (+9%) .671 (+1%) -21.5
1944 WSN AL 43 92 4 19 2 0 1 6 0 3 21 0.207 .261 (-21%) .325 (-29%) .357 (-27%) .683 (-28%) -436.4
1946 WSN AL 25 47 4 15 2 0 1 9 0 5 7 0.319 — — — — 141.2
1947 WSN AL 54 120 6 33 6 0 2 13 0 1 19 0.275 .262 (+5%) .336 (-17%) .376 (avg) .712 (-8%) -215.3
1948 WSN AL 73 106 9 23 3 1 0 16 0 14 22 0.217 .263 (-18%) .340 (-9%) .379 (-30%) .719 (-20%) -374.1
1949 CLE AL 35 70 3 10 1 0 1 7 0 4 10 0.143 .262 (-46%) .343 (-45%) .384 (-48%) .727 (-47%) -573.4
1950 CLE AL 39 77 12 18 5 1 2 10 0 10 12 0.234 .265 (-12%) .346 (-7%) .401 (avg) .747 (-3%) -57.6
1951 CLE AL 41 108 8 20 8 1 1 13 0 7 9 0.185 .260 (-29%) .336 (-30%) .385 (-21%) .721 (-25%) -513.6
1952 CLE AL 44 99 5 22 2 0 0 10 0 9 15 0.222 .252 (-12%) .326 (-12%) .369 (-34%) .696 (-24%) -382.4
1953 CLE AL 37 91 11 25 2 0 3 10 0 7 17 0.275 .264 (+4%) .335 (-3%) .397 (avg) .733 (-2%) -25.9
1954 CLE AL 40 93 10 17 3 0 0 4 0 7 13 0.183 .261 (-30%) .333 (-28%) .390 (-45%) .723 (-37%) -587.7
1955 CLE AL 34 84 8 15 3 0 1 7 0 6 17 0.179 .258 (-31%) .332 (-30%) .393 (-37%) .726 (-33%) -484.7
1956 CLE AL 38 101 5 23 5 0 1 15 1 7 22 0.228 .258 (-12%) .331 (-16%) .397 (-23%) .728 (-20%) -347.5
1957 CLE AL 40 86 4 10 0 0 0 4 0 11 23 0.116 .257 (-55%) .323 (-34%) .391 (-70%) .715 (-54%) -773.2
1958 CHW AL 40 75 7 15 1 0 0 11 0 10 25 0.200 .257 (-22%) .324 (-11%) .394 (-46%) .719 (-30%) -358.4
1959 CHW AL 37 90 11 22 7 0 2 8 0 9 18 0.244 .256 (-5%) .323 (-2%) .392 (-1%) .715 (-1%) -27.6
1960 CHW AL 36 75 8 15 2 1 1 7 0 14 17 0.200 .255 (-22%) .323 (+2%) .387 (-24%) .711 (-12%) -120.5
1961 CHW AL 17 37 4 6 0 0 0 2 0 3 11 0.162 — — — — 0.0
1962 CHW AL 27 54 5 7 1 0 0 2 0 7 17 0.130 .257 (-50%) .326 (-30%) .393 (-62%) .719 (-48%) -415.2
1963 CLE AL 20 11 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 5 0.273 — — — — 0.0

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
4 7 0 2 2 0 0 1 0 3 0.286

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1959 WS CHA 3 5 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 2 0.200
1954 WS CLE 1 2 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0.500

Playoff Career Pitching

W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1 2 4 4 0 20.0 23 11 6 15 4.95

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1959 WS CHA 1 1 3 3 0 13.0 19 8 4 10 5.54
1954 WS CLE 0 1 1 1 0 7.0 4 3 2 5 3.86

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
P 691 291 193 670 29 47

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1939 WS1 P 3 0 1 0 0 0
1941 WS1 P 5 0 2 9 1 1
1942 WS1 P 30 0 5 36 2 3
1943 WS1 P 37 0 5 49 3 3
1944 WS1 P 33 0 4 31 1 4
1946 WS1 P 17 0 7 18 1 2
1947 WS1 P 33 0 15 33 1 3
1948 WS1 P 33 0 6 32 2 1
1949 CLE P 26 0 16 31 0 3
1950 CLE P 32 0 5 36 3 5
1951 CLE P 37 0 13 42 1 2
1952 CLE P 42 0 20 46 4 2
1953 CLE P 36 0 11 36 0 2
1954 CLE P 40 36 17 27 2 1
1955 CLE P 32 31 7 27 2 0
1956 CLE P 38 35 15 48 3 3
1957 CLE P 40 37 10 38 0 5
1958 CHA P 40 34 12 25 0 2
1959 CHA P 37 37 6 39 2 2
1960 CHA P 36 34 7 28 1 1
1961 CHA P 17 16 4 11 0 0
1962 CHA P 27 26 3 20 0 2
1963 CLE P 20 5 2 8 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 691

Awards & Honors

Year Award Notes
1959 Cy Young Award
1959 TSN All-Star P
1959 TSN Major League Player of the Year
1959 TSN Pitcher of the Year

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1959 Cy Young Award ML 1st 13.0 16 13
1959 Most Valuable Player AL 3rd 123.0 336 0
1956 Most Valuable Player AL 13th 32.0 336 0
1955 Most Valuable Player AL 20th 6.0 336 0
1954 Most Valuable Player AL 6th 72.0 336 0
1952 Most Valuable Player AL 5th 99.0 336 0
1951 Most Valuable Player AL 16th 29.0 336 0
1947 Most Valuable Player AL 23th 7.0 336 0
1943 Most Valuable Player AL 18th 13.0 336 0