Clark Griffith
The Old Fox earned his Hall of Fame plaque not just for his 237 wins, but for revolutionizing how pitchers approached batters. Griffith mastered the screwball and became one of the first hurlers to systematically study opposing hitters, keeping detailed notes that gave him an edge in the dead-ball era.
His 3.31 ERA and 109 ERA+ spanning 24 seasons tell the story of remarkable durability rather than dominance. Griffith never posted eye-popping strikeout numbers, maxing out at just 955 career punchouts, but he understood that getting outs efficiently mattered more than overpowering hitters.
What made Griffith special was his baseball mind. After his playing days ended, he became one of the game's most influential owners and executives, helping shape the modern structure of professional baseball for decades.
Career · Hitting
21 seasons| Year | Team | G | AB | HR | RBI | AVG | OPS | OPS+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1891 | SL4 | 37 | 100 | 2 | 11 | .160 | — | — |
| 1893 | CHC | 4 | 11 | 0 | 2 | .182 | — | — |
| 1894 | CHC | 46 | 142 | 0 | 15 | .232 | — | — |
| 1895 | CHC | 43 | 144 | 1 | 27 | .319 | — | — |
| 1896 | CHC | 38 | 135 | 1 | 16 | .267 | — | — |
| 1897 | CHC | 46 | 162 | 0 | 21 | .235 | — | — |
| 1898 | CHC | 38 | 122 | 0 | 15 | .164 | — | — |
| 1899 | CHC | 39 | 120 | 0 | 14 | .258 | — | — |
| 1900 | CHC | 30 | 95 | 1 | 7 | .253 | — | — |
| 1901 | CWS | 35 | 89 | 2 | 14 | .303 | — | — |
| 1902 | CWS | 35 | 92 | 0 | 8 | .217 | — | — |
| 1903 | NYY | 25 | 69 | 1 | 7 | .159 | — | — |
| 1904 | NYY | 16 | 42 | 0 | 1 | .143 | — | — |
| 1905 | NYY | 26 | 32 | 0 | 5 | .219 | — | — |
| 1906 | NYY | 17 | 18 | 0 | 1 | .111 | — | — |
| 1907 | NYY | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — |
| 1909 | CIN | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — |
| 1910 | CIN | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — |
| 1912 | WS1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — |
| 1913 | WS1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1.000 | — | — |
| 1914 | WS1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1.000 | — | — |
| Career | 485 | 1380 | 8 | 166 | .233 | — | — | |
Career · Pitching
20 seasons| Year | Team | G | IP | W | L | ERA | ERA+ | SO | WHIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1891 | SL4 | 34 | 226.3 | 14 | 9 | 3.74 | 94 | 88 | 1.392 |
| 1893 | CHC | 4 | 19.7 | 1 | 2 | 5.03 | 93 | 9 | 1.475 |
| 1894 | CHC | 36 | 261.3 | 21 | 14 | 4.92 | 108 | 71 | 1.580 |
| 1895 | CHC | 42 | 353.0 | 26 | 14 | 3.93 | 121 | 79 | 1.487 |
| 1896 | CHC | 36 | 317.7 | 23 | 11 | 3.54 | 123 | 81 | 1.385 |
| 1897 | CHC | 41 | 343.7 | 21 | 18 | 3.72 | 116 | 102 | 1.443 |
| 1898 | CHC | 38 | 325.7 | 24 | 10 | 1.88 | 191 | 97 | 1.133 |
| 1899 | CHC | 38 | 319.7 | 22 | 14 | 2.79 | 138 | 73 | 1.233 |
| 1900 | CHC | 30 | 248.0 | 14 | 13 | 3.05 | 121 | 61 | 1.194 |
| 1901 | CWS | 35 | 266.7 | 24 | 7 | 2.67 | 131 | 67 | 1.219 |
| 1902 | CWS | 28 | 213.0 | 15 | 9 | 4.18 | 76 | 51 | 1.380 |
| 1903 | NYY | 25 | 213.0 | 14 | 11 | 2.70 | 115 | 69 | 1.099 |
| 1904 | NYY | 16 | 100.3 | 7 | 5 | 2.87 | 93 | 36 | 1.066 |
| 1905 | NYY | 25 | 101.7 | 9 | 6 | 1.68 | 168 | 46 | 0.954 |
| 1906 | NYY | 17 | 59.7 | 2 | 2 | 3.02 | 89 | 16 | 1.223 |
| 1907 | NYY | 4 | 8.3 | 0 | 0 | 8.64 | 29 | 5 | 2.520 |
| 1909 | CIN | 1 | 6.0 | 0 | 1 | 6.00 | 42 | 3 | 2.167 |
| 1912 | WS1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | — |
| 1913 | WS1 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | — | 0 | 1.000 |
| 1914 | WS1 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | — | 1 | 1.000 |
| Career | 453 | 3385.8 | 237 | 146 | — | — | 955 | — | |
Matchups, projections, comps — grounded in Lahman, Retrosheet, and Statcast.