Willie Horton was born on Sunday, October 18, 1942, in Arno, Virginia. Horton was 20 years old when he broke into the big leagues on September 10, 1963, with the Detroit Tigers. His biographical data, year-by-year hitting stats, fielding stats, pitching stats (where applicable), career totals, uniform numbers, salary data and miscellaneous items-of-interest are presented by Baseball Almanac on this comprehensive Willie Horton baseball stats page.
"Willie Horton is Detroit. Detroit is Willie Horton. This book (Willie Horton: Detroit's Own Willie the Wonder) is supposed to be for young readers. Wrong. It is also for 73-year-old, white-haired sportswriters. A true joy for all to read. Don't miss it." - Falls, Joe. Detroit News Staff Writer. Willie Horton Detroit's Own Willie the Wonder. 1 November 2001.
Willie HortonWillie 'The Wonder' Horton Autograph on a 2006 Fleer Greats of the Game (#DET-WH) |
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Willie HortonWillie Horton Pitching Stats |
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Year | Age | Team | G | GS | GF | W | L | PCT | ERA | CG | SHO | SV | IP | BFP | H | ER | R | HR | BB | IBB | SO | WP | HB | BK | HLD |
- | - | Did Not Pitch | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Career | G | GS | GF | W | L | PCT | ERA | CG | SHO | SV | IP | BFP | H | ER | R | HR | BB | IBB | SO | WP | HB | BK | HLD |
Willie HortonWillie Horton Hitting Stats |
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Year | Age | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG |
1963 | 21 | Tigers | 15 | 43 | 6 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .326 | .326 | .488 |
1964 | 22 | Tigers | 25 | 80 | 6 | 13 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 11 | 2 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .163 | .272 | .288 |
1965 | 23 | Tigers | 143 | 512 | 69 | 140 | 20 | 2 | 29 | 0 | 104 | 48 | 9 | 101 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 12 | .273 | .340 | .490 |
1966 | 24 | Tigers | 146 | 526 | 72 | 138 | 22 | 6 | 27 | 1 | 100 | 44 | 4 | 103 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 11 | .262 | .321 | .481 |
1967 | 25 | Tigers | 122 | 401 | 47 | 110 | 20 | 3 | 19 | 0 | 67 | 36 | 0 | 80 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 12 | .274 | .338 | .481 |
1968 | 26 | Tigers | 143 | 512 | 68 | 146 | 20 | 2 | 36 | 0 | 85 | 49 | 8 | 110 | 2 | 7 | 8 | 14 | .285 | .352 | .543 |
1969 | 27 | Tigers | 141 | 508 | 66 | 133 | 17 | 1 | 28 | 3 | 91 | 52 | 10 | 93 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 8 | .262 | .332 | .465 |
1970 | 28 | Tigers | 96 | 371 | 53 | 113 | 18 | 2 | 17 | 1 | 69 | 28 | 6 | 43 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 7 | .305 | .354 | .501 |
1971 | 29 | Tigers | 119 | 450 | 64 | 130 | 25 | 1 | 22 | 1 | 72 | 37 | 8 | 75 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 15 | .289 | .349 | .496 |
1972 | 30 | Tigers | 108 | 333 | 44 | 77 | 9 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 36 | 27 | 5 | 47 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 8 | .231 | .293 | .387 |
1973 | 31 | Tigers | 111 | 411 | 42 | 130 | 19 | 3 | 17 | 0 | 53 | 23 | 5 | 57 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 14 | .316 | .362 | .501 |
1974 | 32 | Tigers | 72 | 238 | 32 | 71 | 8 | 1 | 15 | 0 | 47 | 21 | 3 | 36 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 6 | .298 | .361 | .529 |
1975 | 33 | Tigers | 159 | 615 | 62 | 169 | 13 | 1 | 25 | 0 | 92 | 44 | 11 | 109 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 18 | .275 | .319 | .421 |
1976 | 34 | Tigers | 114 | 401 | 40 | 105 | 17 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 56 | 49 | 7 | 63 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 16 | .262 | .342 | .409 |
1977 | 35 | Tigers | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .250 | .250 | .250 |
1977 | 35 | Rangers | 139 | 519 | 55 | 150 | 23 | 3 | 15 | 0 | 75 | 42 | 5 | 117 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 15 | .289 | .337 | .432 |
1978 | 36 | Indians | 50 | 169 | 15 | 42 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 22 | 15 | 4 | 25 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 7 | .249 | .314 | .379 |
1978 | 36 | Athletics | 32 | 102 | 11 | 32 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 19 | 9 | 2 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .314 | .369 | .480 |
1978 | 36 | Blue Jays | 33 | 122 | 12 | 25 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 19 | 4 | 0 | 29 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | .205 | .228 | .328 |
1979 | 37 | Mariners | 162 | 646 | 77 | 180 | 19 | 5 | 29 | 2 | 106 | 42 | 4 | 112 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 20 | .279 | .326 | .458 |
1980 | 38 | Mariners | 97 | 335 | 32 | 74 | 10 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 36 | 39 | 2 | 70 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 5 | .221 | .306 | .328 |
Career | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG | ||
18 Years | 2,028 | 7,298 | 873 | 1,993 | 284 | 40 | 325 | 9 | 1,163 | 620 | 95 | 1,313 | 17 | 59 | 58 | 195 | .273 | .332 | .457 |
Willie HortonWillie Horton Fielding Stats |
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Team | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
1963 Tigers | LF | 8 | 8 | 207 | 11 | 1.4 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.43 |
1963 Tigers | RF | 1 | 1 | 27 | 2 | 2.0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.00 |
1964 Tigers | LF | 20 | 19 | 504 | 31 | 1.6 | 29 | 29 | 0 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .935 | 1.55 |
1964 Tigers | RF | 3 | 2 | 66 | 5 | 1.7 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.05 |
1965 Tigers | 3B | 1 | 0 | 18 | 2 | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 3.00 |
1965 Tigers | LF | 111 | 106 | 2,805 | 211 | 1.9 | 209 | 202 | 7 | 2 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .991 | 2.01 |
1965 Tigers | RF | 34 | 32 | 837 | 43 | 1.3 | 42 | 42 | 0 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .977 | 1.35 |
1966 Tigers | LF | 129 | 121 | 3,216 | 207 | 1.6 | 202 | 198 | 4 | 5 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .976 | 1.70 |
1966 Tigers | RF | 20 | 12 | 360 | 30 | 1.5 | 30 | 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.25 |
1967 Tigers | LF | 109 | 108 | 2,457 | 172 | 1.6 | 167 | 163 | 4 | 5 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .971 | 1.84 |
1967 Tigers | RF | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .000 | 0.00 |
1968 Tigers | LF | 139 | 137 | 3,600 | 215 | 1.5 | 209 | 203 | 6 | 6 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .972 | 1.57 |
1969 Tigers | LF | 134 | 131 | 3,387 | 280 | 2.1 | 273 | 266 | 7 | 7 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .975 | 2.18 |
1969 Tigers | RF | 4 | 4 | 96 | 9 | 2.3 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .889 | 2.25 |
1970 Tigers | LF | 94 | 92 | 2,442 | 155 | 1.6 | 152 | 142 | 10 | 3 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .981 | 1.68 |
1970 Tigers | RF | 4 | 4 | 90 | 6 | 1.5 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.80 |
1971 Tigers | LF | 107 | 92 | 2,511 | 157 | 1.5 | 151 | 143 | 8 | 6 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .962 | 1.62 |
1971 Tigers | RF | 28 | 24 | 525 | 34 | 1.2 | 33 | 33 | 0 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .971 | 1.70 |
1972 Tigers | LF | 80 | 65 | 1,632 | 97 | 1.2 | 97 | 93 | 4 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.60 |
1972 Tigers | RF | 30 | 28 | 606 | 42 | 1.4 | 42 | 41 | 1 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.87 |
1973 Tigers | LF | 107 | 105 | 2,496 | 173 | 1.6 | 163 | 161 | 2 | 10 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .942 | 1.76 |
1973 Tigers | RF | 1 | 1 | 24 | 3 | 3.0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 3.38 |
1974 Tigers | LF | 64 | 64 | 1,566 | 115 | 1.8 | 109 | 107 | 2 | 6 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .948 | 1.88 |
1977 Tigers | LF | 1 | 1 | 27 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.00 |
1977 Rangers | LF | 10 | 9 | 219 | 16 | 1.6 | 15 | 15 | 0 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .938 | 1.85 |
1978 Athletics | LF | 1 | 0 | 9 | 3 | 3.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .333 | 3.00 |
Career | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
LF Totals | 1,114 | 1,058 | 27,078 | 1,844 | 1.7 | 1,789 | 1,735 | 54 | 55 | 9 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .970 | 1.78 | |
RF Totals | 126 | 108 | 2,634 | 174 | 1.4 | 171 | 169 | 2 | 3 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .983 | 1.75 | |
3B Totals | 1 | 0 | 18 | 2 | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 3.00 | |
14 Years | 1,241 | 1,166 | 29,730 | 2,020 | 1.6 | 1,962 | 1,904 | 58 | 58 | 9 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .971 | 1.78 |
Willie HortonWillie Horton Miscellaneous Stats |
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Baserunning Statistics | Other Positions | Common Hitting Ratios | Common Pitching Ratios | |||||||||
Team | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
1963 Tigers | 2 | 0 | 1.000 | 6 | 0 | n/a | 43.0 | 5.4 | 10.8 | - | - | - |
1964 Tigers | 0 | 0 | .000 | 3 | 0 | n/a | 80.0 | 4.0 | 8.0 | - | - | - |
1965 Tigers | 5 | 9 | .357 | 3 | 0 | n/a | 17.7 | 5.1 | 4.9 | - | - | - |
1966 Tigers | 1 | 1 | .500 | 11 | 0 | n/a | 19.5 | 5.1 | 5.3 | - | - | - |
1967 Tigers | 0 | 0 | .000 | 14 | 0 | n/a | 21.1 | 5.0 | 6.0 | - | - | - |
1968 Tigers | 0 | 3 | .000 | 6 | 0 | n/a | 14.2 | 4.7 | 6.0 | - | - | - |
1969 Tigers | 3 | 3 | .500 | 6 | 0 | n/a | 18.1 | 5.5 | 5.6 | - | - | - |
1970 Tigers | 0 | 1 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 21.8 | 8.6 | 5.4 | - | - | - |
1971 Tigers | 1 | 5 | .167 | 2 | 0 | n/a | 20.5 | 6.0 | 6.3 | - | - | - |
1972 Tigers | 0 | 0 | .000 | 12 | 1 | n/a | 30.3 | 7.1 | 9.3 | - | - | - |
1973 Tigers | 1 | 4 | .200 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 24.2 | 7.2 | 7.8 | - | - | - |
1974 Tigers | 0 | 1 | .000 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 15.9 | 6.6 | 5.1 | - | - | - |
1975 Tigers | 1 | 2 | .333 | 0 | 0 | 159 | 24.6 | 5.6 | 6.7 | - | - | - |
1976 Tigers | 0 | 0 | .000 | 9 | 0 | 105 | 28.6 | 6.4 | 7.2 | - | - | - |
1977 Tigers | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | - | - | - |
1977 Rangers | 2 | 3 | .400 | 7 | 0 | 128 | 34.6 | 4.4 | 6.9 | - | - | - |
1978 Indians | 3 | 0 | 1.000 | 4 | 0 | 48 | 33.8 | 6.8 | 7.7 | - | - | - |
1978 Athletics | 0 | 1 | .000 | 4 | 0 | 27 | 34.0 | 6.8 | 5.4 | - | - | - |
1978 Blue Jays | 0 | 0 | .000 | 3 | 0 | 30 | 40.7 | 4.2 | 6.4 | - | - | - |
1979 Mariners | 1 | 1 | .500 | 0 | 0 | 162 | 22.3 | 5.8 | 6.1 | - | - | - |
1980 Mariners | 0 | 4 | .000 | 5 | 0 | 92 | 41.9 | 4.8 | 9.3 | - | - | - |
Career | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
18 Years | 20 | 38 | .345 | 106 | 1 | 753 | 22.5 | 5.6 | 6.3 | - | - | - |
Willie HortonWillie Horton Miscellaneous Items of Interest |
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Team | Roster | Uniform Numbers | Salary | All-Star | World Series |
1963 Detroit Tigers | 48 | $16,000.00 | - | - |
1964 Detroit Tigers | 23 | $18,000.00 | - | - |
1965 Detroit Tigers | 23 | $20,000.00 | Stats | - |
1966 Detroit Tigers | 23 | $30,000.00 | - | - |
1967 Detroit Tigers | 23 | $35,000.00 | - | - |
1968 Detroit Tigers | 23 | $40,000.00 | Stats | Stats |
1969 Detroit Tigers | 23 | $60,000.00 | - | - |
1970 Detroit Tigers | 23 | $72,000.00 | Stats | - |
1971 Detroit Tigers | 23 | $80,000.00 | - | - |
1972 Detroit Tigers | 23 | $80,000.00 | - | - |
1973 Detroit Tigers | 23 | $84,000.00 | Stats | - |
1974 Detroit Tigers | 23 | $84,000.00 | - | - |
1975 Detroit Tigers | 23 | $84,000.00 | - | - |
1976 Detroit Tigers | 23 | $105,000.00 | - | - |
1977 Detroit Tigers | 23 | $105,000.00 | - | - |
1977 Texas Rangers | 23 | " " | - | - |
1978 Cleveland Indians | 23 | $106,500.00 | - | - |
1978 Oakland Athletics | 23 | " " | - | - |
1978 Toronto Blue Jays | 48 | " " | - | - |
1979 Seattle Mariners | 53 | $175,000.00 | - | - |
1980 Seattle Mariners | 53 | $175,000.00 | - | - |
Willie Horton Stats by Baseball Almanac |
William Wattison Horton was a Major League Baseball player with the Detroit Tigers (1963-1977), Texas Rangers (1977), Cleveland Indians (1978), Oakland Athletics (1978), Toronto Blue Jays (1978), and Seattle Mariners (1979-1980). When Willie, his nickname, made his big league debut on September 10, 1963, he became the fourth former Northwestern High School (Detroit, MI) student to play in the majors, joining Hobie Landrith (1950), Harry Chiti (1950), and Willie Kirkland (1958). During his first full season (1965), Horton hit 29 home runs, collected 104 RBIs, and went to his first of four All-Star Games (1965, 1968, 1970, 1973), making Willie Northwestern's first to play in a Midsummer Classic.
Willie Horton Rookie Card | 1964 Topps Baseball Card (#512 | Checklist)
Baseball Almanac Research Library
In 1973, the designated hitter rule went into affect and Willie Horton was one of the first designated hitters in history for the Detroit Tigers. The 1973 Detroit Tigers used ten designated hitters: Gates Brown (119 games), Frank Howard (76 games), Norm Cash (3 games), Bill Freehan (3 games), Ike Brown (2 games), John Gamble (2 games), Tony Taylor (2 games), Willie Horton (1 game / box score), Dick McAuliffe (1 game) and Jim Northrup (1 game).
In 1975, Willie Horton became the first player from the Detroit Tigers to win the Outstanding Designated Hitter Award (setting new marks at the time for home runs in a season by a designated hitter and RBIs in a season by a designated hitter).
In 1979, Willie Horton became the first player from the Seattle Mariners to win the Outstanding Designated Hitter Award, the first designated hitter to win it twice, and the first designated hitter to win the award with more than one team.
Willie Horton | Plaque at Statue Base | Comerica Park | July 15, 2000Baseball Almanac Research Library
Willie Horton's #23 is one of six numbers retired by the Detroit Tigers. He is the only non-Hall of Famer among the six honored with statues at Comerica Park. When Michigan signed into law House Bill No. 5200 in 2004, declaring October 18 Willie Horton Day, Horton became only the fourth Michigander (Rosa Parks was the third) to be given that honor. One of the reasons that happened was explained by author Terry Foster in his highly recommended book, 100 Things Tigers Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die:
3. Willie Horton Tries to Quiet the Riot
We didn't understand. Why were people still looking and burning buildings in our neighborhood.
Everybody loved and respected Tigers slugger Willie Horton. When Horton saw smoke billowing near Tiger Stadium on a hot night in 1967, he knew he had to act fast. These were black people rioting and tearing up our city, and Horton believed his people would listen.
So he left Tiger Stadium in full uniform with a full police escort and went to a spot on Livernois. He figured people would put down their weapons, suppress their anger, and go back home.
In the wee hours of morning, a mostly white police force raided a blind pig on Detroit's near west side. The patrons were black, and the angry crowd that gathered was black, also. There was an uneasy relationship between the black community and the police. There'd been decades of abuse and mistrust, and this was the incident that broke relative peace.
The riots stunned the media. They did not see this coming. I grew up on the near west side in Detroit. I was eight years old at the time, and the unrest did not surprise me.
We used to hang out around a makeshift basketball court between Vancouver and Ivanhoe Streets, and we head bigger boys bragging abou how the city was going to burn the next summer.
We did not understand why at the time. But the riots happened. Once word got around the next morning about Horton's heroic stand, we figured the riots would be wrapped up with hours.
Willie Horton was our hero. He was the strong, strapping kid from Detroit who worked magic with his bat and was a better outfielder than the media gave him credit for. Black people loved Willie Horton. Everybody wanted to be like him.
Horton stood on top of a car with a bullhorn and asked that people go home. He wanted them to stop hurting one another and burning the city. However, this was bigger than Willie Horton. Nobody listened, and the riots continued for five days.
"You know I never had any fear," Horton told me. "I never thought I was in danger or anything. The funny thing is there were people there trying to make sure I was okay. Nobody wanted to see me get hurt. I was just trying to help my city in any way I could."
Source: 100 Things Tigers Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die. Terry Foster. Triumph Books. April 1, 2009.
Did you know that Willie Horton was the first Seattle Mariners player to have a 100+ RBI season? In 1979, Horton AND Bruce Bochte both reached the 100-RBI plateau, driving in 106 and 100 RBIs, respectively. The new Mariners team record for RBIs in a season, 106 by Horton, helped earned him a Comeback Player of the Year Award (the first by a Mariner) and stood until Alvin Davis drove in 116 runs in 1984. That record has since been broken as well, several times by several players, and is currently held by what Hall of Famer? [Answer]