Roger Maris was born on Monday, September 10, 1934, in Hibbing, Minnesota. Maris was 22 years old when he broke into the big leagues on April 16, 1957, with the Cleveland Indians. 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 Roger Maris baseball stats page.
"When he (Roger Maris) hit it (home run #61 in 1961), he came into the dugout and they were all applauding. I mean, this is something that's only happened once in baseball, right? And the people were all applauding. They wanted him to come back out. He wouldn't come out, so the players had to push him back out. They forced him to come out and take a bow. That's the kind of guy he was. He was great, and I really liked him." - Mickey Mantle in The Ultimate Yankee Book (Harvey Frommer. Page Street Publishing. 2017 October 24. Page 231.) [Roger Maris Quotes]
Roger MarisRoger Maris Autograph on a 1960 Topps Baseball Card (#377 | Checklist) |
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Biographical Data | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Roger MarisRoger Maris 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 |
Roger MarisRoger Maris 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 |
1957 | 23 | Indians | 116 | 358 | 61 | 84 | 9 | 5 | 14 | 1 | 51 | 60 | 5 | 79 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 6 | .235 | .344 | .405 |
1958 | 24 | Indians | 51 | 182 | 26 | 41 | 5 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 27 | 17 | 2 | 33 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | .225 | .287 | .412 |
1958 | 24 | Athletics | 99 | 401 | 61 | 99 | 14 | 3 | 19 | 2 | 53 | 28 | 1 | 52 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | .247 | .298 | .439 |
1959 | 25 | Athletics | 122 | 433 | 69 | 118 | 21 | 7 | 16 | 1 | 72 | 58 | 5 | 53 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 4 | .273 | .359 | .464 |
1960 | 26 | Yankees | 136 | 499 | 98 | 141 | 18 | 7 | 39 | 0 | 112 | 70 | 4 | 65 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 6 | .283 | .371 | .581 |
1961 | 27 | Yankees | 161 | 590 | 132 | 159 | 16 | 4 | 61 | 0 | 141 | 94 | 0 | 67 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 16 | .269 | .372 | .620 |
1962 | 28 | Yankees | 157 | 590 | 92 | 151 | 34 | 1 | 33 | 1 | 100 | 87 | 11 | 78 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 7 | .256 | .356 | .485 |
1963 | 29 | Yankees | 90 | 312 | 53 | 84 | 14 | 1 | 23 | 0 | 53 | 35 | 3 | 40 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | .269 | .346 | .542 |
1964 | 30 | Yankees | 141 | 513 | 86 | 144 | 12 | 2 | 26 | 0 | 71 | 62 | 1 | 78 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 7 | .281 | .364 | .464 |
1965 | 31 | Yankees | 46 | 155 | 22 | 37 | 7 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 27 | 29 | 1 | 29 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | .239 | .357 | .439 |
1966 | 32 | Yankees | 119 | 348 | 37 | 81 | 9 | 2 | 13 | 0 | 43 | 36 | 3 | 60 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 8 | .233 | .307 | .382 |
1967 | 33 | Cardinals | 125 | 410 | 64 | 107 | 18 | 7 | 9 | 0 | 55 | 52 | 3 | 61 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 10 | .261 | .346 | .405 |
1968 | 34 | Cardinals | 100 | 310 | 25 | 79 | 18 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 45 | 24 | 3 | 38 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 3 | .255 | .307 | .374 |
Career | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG | ||
12 Years | 1,463 | 5,101 | 826 | 1,325 | 195 | 42 | 275 | 5 | 850 | 652 | 42 | 733 | 12 | 43 | 38 | 75 | .260 | .345 | .476 |
Roger MarisRoger Maris Fielding Stats |
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Team | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
1957 Indians | CF | 87 | 74 | 2,037 | 218 | 2.5 | 213 | 206 | 7 | 5 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .977 | 2.82 |
1957 Indians | LF | 27 | 19 | 531 | 55 | 2.0 | 53 | 49 | 4 | 2 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .964 | 2.69 |
1957 Indians | RF | 7 | 6 | 159 | 14 | 2.0 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.38 |
1958 Indians | CF | 27 | 23 | 600 | 76 | 2.8 | 74 | 72 | 2 | 2 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .974 | 3.33 |
1958 Indians | RF | 23 | 21 | 570 | 46 | 2.0 | 44 | 41 | 3 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .957 | 2.08 |
1958 Athletics | CF | 21 | 19 | 450 | 53 | 2.5 | 52 | 51 | 1 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .981 | 3.12 |
1958 Athletics | RF | 90 | 79 | 2,184 | 148 | 1.6 | 144 | 136 | 8 | 4 | 3 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .973 | 1.78 |
1959 Athletics | CF | 5 | 4 | 102 | 9 | 1.8 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.38 |
1959 Athletics | RF | 114 | 106 | 2,880 | 235 | 2.1 | 229 | 223 | 6 | 6 | 4 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .974 | 2.15 |
1960 Yankees | CF | 8 | 4 | 153 | 17 | 2.1 | 16 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .941 | 2.82 |
1960 Yankees | RF | 127 | 127 | 3,306 | 262 | 2.1 | 259 | 253 | 6 | 3 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .989 | 2.12 |
1961 Yankees | CF | 17 | 12 | 360 | 31 | 1.8 | 30 | 30 | 0 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .968 | 2.25 |
1961 Yankees | RF | 150 | 148 | 417 | 259 | 1.7 | 251 | 242 | 9 | 8 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .969 | 16.25 |
1962 Yankees | CF | 65 | 62 | 1,698 | 162 | 2.5 | 160 | 158 | 2 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .988 | 2.54 |
1962 Yankees | RF | 102 | 89 | 2,340 | 160 | 1.6 | 159 | 157 | 2 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .994 | 1.83 |
1963 Yankees | CF | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .000 | 0.00 |
1963 Yankees | RF | 86 | 85 | 2,118 | 168 | 2.0 | 166 | 161 | 5 | 2 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .988 | 2.12 |
1964 Yankees | CF | 23 | 23 | 630 | 42 | 1.8 | 42 | 42 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.80 |
1964 Yankees | RF | 114 | 109 | 2,961 | 212 | 1.9 | 211 | 206 | 5 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .995 | 1.92 |
1965 Yankees | RF | 43 | 42 | 1,101 | 67 | 1.6 | 65 | 64 | 1 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .970 | 1.59 |
1966 Yankees | CF | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .000 | 0.00 |
1966 Yankees | RF | 94 | 92 | 2,328 | 133 | 1.4 | 132 | 129 | 3 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .992 | 1.53 |
1967 Cardinals | CF | 2 | 0 | 27 | 1 | 0.5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.00 |
1967 Cardinals | RF | 118 | 100 | 2,799 | 228 | 1.9 | 226 | 221 | 5 | 2 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .991 | 2.18 |
1968 Cardinals | RF | 84 | 71 | 2,001 | 176 | 2.1 | 173 | 170 | 3 | 3 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .983 | 2.33 |
Career | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
RF Totals | 1,152 | 1,075 | 25,164 | 2,108 | 1.8 | 2,073 | 2,017 | 56 | 35 | 11 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .983 | 2.22 | |
CF Totals | 257 | 222 | 6,069 | 609 | 2.4 | 597 | 584 | 13 | 12 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .980 | 2.66 | |
LF Totals | 27 | 19 | 531 | 55 | 2.0 | 53 | 49 | 4 | 2 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .964 | 2.69 | |
12 Years | 1,436 | 1,316 | 31,764 | 2,772 | 1.9 | 2,723 | 2,650 | 73 | 49 | 14 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .982 | 2.31 |
Roger MarisRoger Maris 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 |
1957 Indians | 8 | 4 | .667 | 6 | 3 | n/a | 25.6 | 4.5 | 7.0 | - | - | - |
1958 Indians | 4 | 2 | .667 | 6 | 0 | n/a | 20.2 | 5.5 | 6.7 | - | - | - |
1958 Athletics | 0 | 0 | .000 | 1 | 0 | n/a | 21.1 | 7.7 | 7.6 | - | - | - |
1959 Athletics | 2 | 1 | .667 | 8 | 0 | n/a | 27.1 | 8.2 | 6.0 | - | - | - |
1960 Yankees | 2 | 2 | .500 | 5 | 0 | n/a | 12.8 | 7.7 | 4.5 | - | - | - |
1961 Yankees | 0 | 0 | .000 | 1 | 0 | n/a | 9.7 | 8.8 | 4.2 | - | - | - |
1962 Yankees | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 4 | 0 | n/a | 17.9 | 7.6 | 5.9 | - | - | - |
1963 Yankees | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 5 | 0 | n/a | 13.6 | 7.8 | 5.9 | - | - | - |
1964 Yankees | 3 | 0 | 1.000 | 6 | 0 | n/a | 19.7 | 6.6 | 7.2 | - | - | - |
1965 Yankees | 0 | 0 | .000 | 4 | 0 | n/a | 19.4 | 5.3 | 5.7 | - | - | - |
1966 Yankees | 0 | 0 | .000 | 26 | 0 | n/a | 26.8 | 5.8 | 8.1 | - | - | - |
1967 Cardinals | 0 | 0 | .000 | 22 | 0 | n/a | 45.6 | 6.7 | 7.5 | - | - | - |
1968 Cardinals | 0 | 0 | .000 | 27 | 0 | n/a | 62.0 | 8.2 | 6.9 | - | - | - |
Career | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
12 Years | 21 | 9 | .700 | 121 | 3 | n/a | 18.5 | 7.0 | 6.0 | - | - | - |
Roger MarisRoger Maris Miscellaneous Items of Interest |
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Team | Roster | Uniform Numbers | Salary | All-Star | World Series |
1957 Cleveland Indians | 32 | $8,500.00 | - | - |
1958 Cleveland Indians | 5 | $10,000.00 | - | - |
1958 Kansas City Athletics | 35 | " " | - | - |
1959 Kansas City Athletics | 3 | $15,000.00 | Stats | - |
1960 New York Yankees | 9 | $18,000.00 | Stats | Stats |
1961 New York Yankees | 9 | $42,000.00 | Stats | Stats |
1962 New York Yankees | 9 | $70,000.00 | Stats | Stats |
1963 New York Yankees | 9 | $72,000.00 | - | Stats |
1964 New York Yankees | 9 | $67,500.00 | - | Stats |
1965 New York Yankees | 9 | $72,000.00 | - | - |
1966 New York Yankees | 9 | $75,000.00 | - | - |
1967 St. Louis Cardinals | 9 | $75,000.00 | - | Stats |
1968 St. Louis Cardinals | 9 | $75,000.00 | - | Stats |
Roger Maris Stats by Baseball Almanac |
Roger Maris will always be associated with number sixty-one, which is the number of home runs he hit in 1961, during his Most Valuable Player season. Maris did more than just set a new Major League record for home runs during a single season (since broken), he broke an unbreakable record set by Babe Ruth, who hit sixty homers in Most Valuable Player in 1927. Books and movies were made about that historical baseball season, but Maris has many more numbers of interest:
1 - Roger Maris played 127 games in right field in 1960, committed only three errors, and won a Gold Glove Award. Only one other New York Yankees outfielder had ever won a Gold Glove at that position before Maris, and he did it in 1958, playing left field. Do you know who it was? [Answer]
2 - Roger Maris was the American League Most Valuable Player in 1960, and 1961, and through today, he remains the only eligible player from the junior circuit with two consecutive MVP Awards that is not in the Hall of Fame.
3 - Roger Maris finished his career with three world championships rings (1961, 1962, 1967). Maris played in seven different World Series, five with the Bronx Bomber (1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964), and two with the St. Louis Cardinals (1967, 1968). [Roger Maris World Series Stats]
9 - Roger Maris wore #9 with the New York Yankees. On July 21, 1984, they honored him by retiring his number. Names that appeared in Monument Park before Maris were; Lou Gehrig (1939), Babe Ruth (1948), Joe DiMaggio (1952), Mickey Mantle (1969), Casey Stengel (1970), Yogi Berra (1972), Bill Dickey (1972), Whitey Ford (1974), and Thurman Munson (1979).
Did you know that Roger Maris was the first, and through today the only, Major League Baseball player from Hibbling, Minnesota? Did you know his parents were named Rudy Maras and Corrine Maras? Roger Eugene Maras changed his surname to Maris - read more about his early life in Roger Maras: Chasing the Ghost of the Babe.
Roger Maris | 1962 Topps Baseball Card (#313)
Baseball Almanac Research Library
Did you know that when Baseball Almanac came online in 1999, one of the very first pages we ever built that year was called The Historic 61? We've updated it since, adding links to the pitchers, and once again, adding links to each box score - check out the old radio at the bottom where you can hear Phil Rizzuto on the radio broadcasting as Maris broke The Sultan of Swat's record for home runs in a season.
Did you know that Roger Maris was eliminated from the Hall of Fame ballot after reaching the maximum allotted number of attempts (15)? His vote totals were; 1974 BBWAA (21.4%), 1975 BBWAA (19.3%), 1976 BBWAA (22.4%), 1977 BBWAA (21.4%), 1978 BBWAA (21.9%), 1979 BBWAA (29.4%), 1980 BBWAA (28.8%), 1981 BBWAA (23.4%), 1982 BBWAA (16.6%), 1983 BBWAA (18.4%), 1984 BBWAA (26.6%), 1985 BBWAA (32.4%), 1986 BBWAA (41.6%), 1987 BBWAA (42.6%), 1988 BBWAA (43.1%). Forbes staff writer Rich Karlgaard (2006 March 24. Roger Maris Belongs in the Hall. Source.) shared his opinion (excerpt below):
"Best All-Around Baseball Player I Ever Saw"
Maris has never made it into the Baseball Hall of Fame, and that is a scandal. The case against Maris is this: a somewhat short career (1957 to 1968) and a weak batting average (.260 career). Maris batted only .269 in his famous year of 1961. It didn't help that he was extremely shy, a cold North Dakotan of Croatian heritage, and unpopular with fans, unlike teammate Mickey Mantle.
The case for Maris to be named to the Hall is much more powerful. He was a two-time league MVP winner (1960, 1961). Of the 11 Major Leaguers who have won back-to-back MVPs and are eligible for the Hall, only Maris and Dale Murphy have not been inducted. Maris' low batting average isn't all that damaging. Baseball statistics gurus, such as Bill James, have shown that batting average may be the most overrated stat in the game. Maris walked a lot and drove people home, including himself 61 times in 1961.
Mickey Mantle said this: "Roger Maris was the best all-around baseball player I ever saw." Maris was a Golded Glove right fielder with a howitzer arm. He was an extremely fast runner. In 1951, as a high school footballer at Fargo, N.D.'s Shanley High, Maris returned four kickoffs for touchdowns in a single game.
What about the short career? In 1965 Maris developed hand problems. He couldn't check his powerful swing, which left him vulnerable to a high rate of strikeouts. So he instead became a slap hitter, a role he played on the 1967 world champion St. Louis Cardinals. Had Maris had access to today's huge advances in sports medicine, it's likely he could have enjoyed a longer career as a slugger.
Steroids began to trickle into American sports in the mid-1960s. A decade later Eastern bloc women on steroids began obliterating every track and field record. Today any high-level sport demanding bursts of strength or speed is suspect. Users have been one step ahead of testers--almost always.
However, 1961 was still an age of innocence. Roger Maris was 6 feet tall and 197 pounds when he began that season. By season's end, wracked by tension and smoking cigarettes like a fiend--which might have contributed to his death at 51 from lymphoma--Maris was down to 185 pounds.
Do you think any 185-pounder could hit 61 home runs today? Not a chance. Maris belongs in the Hall.
Agree? Disagree? Tell us on Baseball Fever.
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