Joe Morgan was born on Sunday, September 19, 1943, in Bonham, Texas. Morgan was 20 years old when he broke into the big leagues on September 21, 1963, with the Houston Colt .45s. 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 Joe Morgan baseball stats page.
"Have you no shame? You just got beat by a guy (Joe Morgan) who looks like a Little Leaguer!" - Gene Mauch in Baseball Digest (Herskowitz, Mickey. The Houston Chronicle: Despite His Small Stature, Joe Morgan Was A Big Success. 2000 July.) [Joe Morgan Quotes]
Joe MorganJoe 'The Little General' Morgan Autograph on a 1993 Ted Williams Baseball Card (#M18) |
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Biographical Data | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Joe MorganJoe Morgan 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 |
Joe MorganJoe Morgan 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 | 20 | Colt .45s | 8 | 25 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .240 | .367 | .320 |
1964 | 21 | Colt .45s | 10 | 37 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .189 | .302 | .189 |
1965 | 22 | Astros | 157 | 601 | 100 | 163 | 22 | 12 | 14 | 0 | 40 | 97 | 1 | 77 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 | .271 | .373 | .418 |
1966 | 23 | Astros | 122 | 425 | 60 | 121 | 14 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 42 | 89 | 3 | 43 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 2 | .285 | .410 | .391 |
1967 | 24 | Astros | 133 | 494 | 73 | 136 | 27 | 11 | 6 | 0 | 42 | 81 | 5 | 51 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | .275 | .378 | .411 |
1968 | 25 | Astros | 10 | 20 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .250 | .444 | .350 |
1969 | 26 | Astros | 147 | 535 | 94 | 126 | 18 | 5 | 15 | 0 | 43 | 110 | 1 | 74 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 5 | .236 | .365 | .372 |
1970 | 27 | Astros | 144 | 548 | 102 | 147 | 28 | 9 | 8 | 0 | 52 | 102 | 3 | 55 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 11 | .268 | .383 | .396 |
1971 | 28 | Astros | 160 | 583 | 87 | 149 | 27 | 11 | 13 | 0 | 56 | 88 | 2 | 52 | 10 | 7 | 1 | 4 | .256 | .351 | .407 |
1972 | 29 | Reds | 149 | 552 | 122 | 161 | 23 | 4 | 16 | 0 | 73 | 115 | 1 | 44 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 5 | .292 | .417 | .435 |
1973 | 30 | Reds | 157 | 576 | 116 | 167 | 35 | 2 | 26 | 0 | 82 | 111 | 3 | 61 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 12 | .290 | .406 | .493 |
1974 | 31 | Reds | 149 | 512 | 107 | 150 | 31 | 3 | 22 | 1 | 67 | 120 | 8 | 69 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 7 | .293 | .427 | .494 |
1975 | 32 | Reds | 146 | 498 | 107 | 163 | 27 | 6 | 17 | 0 | 94 | 132 | 3 | 52 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 3 | .327 | .466 | .508 |
1976 | 33 | Reds | 141 | 472 | 113 | 151 | 30 | 5 | 27 | 2 | 111 | 114 | 8 | 41 | 0 | 12 | 1 | 2 | .320 | .444 | .576 |
1977 | 34 | Reds | 153 | 521 | 113 | 150 | 21 | 6 | 22 | 1 | 78 | 117 | 2 | 58 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 5 | .288 | .417 | .478 |
1978 | 35 | Reds | 132 | 441 | 68 | 104 | 27 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 75 | 79 | 3 | 40 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 6 | .236 | .347 | .385 |
1979 | 36 | Reds | 127 | 436 | 70 | 109 | 26 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 32 | 93 | 11 | 45 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 8 | .250 | .379 | .376 |
1980 | 37 | Astros | 141 | 461 | 66 | 112 | 17 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 49 | 93 | 6 | 47 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 4 | .243 | .367 | .373 |
1981 | 38 | Giants | 90 | 308 | 47 | 74 | 16 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 31 | 66 | 7 | 37 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | .240 | .371 | .377 |
1982 | 39 | Giants | 134 | 463 | 68 | 134 | 19 | 4 | 14 | 0 | 61 | 85 | 4 | 60 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 3 | .289 | .400 | .438 |
1983 | 40 | Phillies | 123 | 404 | 72 | 93 | 20 | 1 | 16 | 0 | 59 | 89 | 1 | 54 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 13 | .230 | .370 | .403 |
1984 | 41 | Athletics | 116 | 365 | 50 | 89 | 21 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 43 | 66 | 4 | 39 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 6 | .244 | .356 | .351 |
Career | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG | ||
22 Years | 2,649 | 9,277 | 1,650 | 2,517 | 449 | 96 | 268 | 4 | 1,133 | 1,865 | 76 | 1,015 | 51 | 96 | 40 | 105 | .271 | .392 | .427 |
Joe MorganJoe Morgan 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 Colt .45s | 2B | 7 | 6 | 162 | 33 | 4.7 | 30 | 15 | 15 | 3 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .909 | 5.00 |
1964 Colt .45s | 2B | 10 | 10 | 282 | 59 | 5.9 | 56 | 31 | 25 | 3 | 4 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .949 | 5.36 |
1965 Astros | 2B | 157 | 155 | 4,227 | 867 | 5.5 | 840 | 348 | 492 | 27 | 82 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .969 | 5.37 |
1966 Astros | 2B | 117 | 117 | 3,114 | 593 | 5.1 | 572 | 256 | 316 | 21 | 61 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .965 | 4.96 |
1967 Astros | 2B | 130 | 126 | 3,381 | 655 | 5.0 | 641 | 297 | 344 | 14 | 67 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .979 | 5.12 |
1967 Astros | LF | 1 | 1 | 24 | 2 | 2.0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.25 |
1968 Astros | 2B | 5 | 5 | 129 | 17 | 3.4 | 15 | 9 | 6 | 2 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .882 | 3.14 |
1968 Astros | LF | 1 | 1 | 15 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.80 |
1969 Astros | 2B | 132 | 131 | 3,414 | 649 | 4.9 | 631 | 303 | 328 | 18 | 79 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .972 | 4.99 |
1969 Astros | CF | 2 | 2 | 48 | 1 | 0.5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 0.56 |
1969 Astros | LF | 12 | 11 | 288 | 10 | 0.8 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 0.94 |
1970 Astros | 2B | 142 | 141 | 3,762 | 796 | 5.6 | 779 | 349 | 430 | 17 | 98 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .979 | 5.59 |
1971 Astros | 2B | 157 | 153 | 447 | 830 | 5.3 | 818 | 336 | 482 | 12 | 93 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .986 | 49.41 |
1972 Reds | 2B | 149 | 148 | 4,011 | 814 | 5.5 | 806 | 370 | 436 | 8 | 92 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .990 | 5.43 |
1973 Reds | 2B | 154 | 151 | 4,023 | 866 | 5.6 | 857 | 417 | 440 | 9 | 106 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .990 | 5.75 |
1974 Reds | 2B | 142 | 140 | 3,642 | 742 | 5.2 | 729 | 344 | 385 | 13 | 92 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .982 | 5.40 |
1975 Reds | 2B | 142 | 141 | 3,615 | 792 | 5.6 | 781 | 356 | 425 | 11 | 96 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .986 | 5.83 |
1976 Reds | 2B | 133 | 130 | 3,378 | 690 | 5.2 | 677 | 342 | 335 | 13 | 85 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .981 | 5.41 |
1977 Reds | 2B | 151 | 147 | 3,732 | 715 | 4.7 | 710 | 351 | 359 | 5 | 100 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .993 | 5.14 |
1978 Reds | 2B | 124 | 120 | 3,030 | 553 | 4.5 | 542 | 252 | 290 | 11 | 49 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .980 | 4.83 |
1979 Reds | 2B | 121 | 120 | 3,054 | 600 | 5.0 | 588 | 259 | 329 | 12 | 74 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .980 | 5.20 |
1980 Astros | 2B | 130 | 123 | 3,111 | 599 | 4.6 | 592 | 244 | 348 | 7 | 68 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .988 | 5.14 |
1981 Giants | 2B | 87 | 84 | 2,229 | 439 | 5.0 | 435 | 177 | 258 | 4 | 61 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .991 | 5.27 |
1982 Giants | 2B | 120 | 117 | 3,102 | 625 | 5.2 | 618 | 254 | 364 | 7 | 69 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .989 | 5.38 |
1982 Giants | 3B | 3 | 2 | 42 | 4 | 1.3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .750 | 1.93 |
1983 Phillies | 2B | 117 | 109 | 2,754 | 579 | 4.9 | 562 | 231 | 331 | 17 | 63 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .971 | 5.51 |
1984 Athletics | 2B | 100 | 97 | 2,313 | 440 | 4.4 | 430 | 201 | 229 | 10 | 62 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .977 | 5.02 |
Career | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
2B Totals | 2,527 | 2,471 | 60,912 | 12,953 | 5.1 | 12,709 | 5,742 | 6,967 | 244 | 1,505 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .981 | 5.63 | |
LF Totals | 14 | 13 | 327 | 13 | 0.9 | 13 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.07 | |
3B Totals | 3 | 2 | 42 | 4 | 1.3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .750 | 1.93 | |
CF Totals | 2 | 2 | 48 | 1 | 0.5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 0.56 | |
22 Years | 2,546 | 2,488 | 61,329 | 12,971 | 5.1 | 12,726 | 5,757 | 6,969 | 245 | 1,505 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .981 | 5.60 |
Joe MorganJoe Morgan 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 Colt .45s | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 1 | 1 | n/a | 0.0 | 5.0 | 8.3 | - | - | - |
1964 Colt .45s | 0 | 1 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 5.3 | 0.0 | - | - | - |
1965 Astros | 20 | 9 | .690 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 42.9 | 7.8 | 15.0 | - | - | - |
1966 Astros | 11 | 8 | .579 | 5 | 0 | n/a | 85.0 | 9.9 | 10.1 | - | - | - |
1967 Astros | 29 | 5 | .853 | 5 | 0 | n/a | 82.3 | 9.7 | 11.8 | - | - | - |
1968 Astros | 3 | 0 | 1.000 | 4 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 5.0 | 0.0 | - | - | - |
1969 Astros | 49 | 14 | .778 | 3 | 0 | n/a | 35.7 | 7.2 | 12.4 | - | - | - |
1970 Astros | 42 | 13 | .764 | 3 | 0 | n/a | 68.5 | 10.0 | 10.5 | - | - | - |
1971 Astros | 40 | 8 | .833 | 5 | 0 | n/a | 44.8 | 11.2 | 10.4 | - | - | - |
1972 Reds | 58 | 17 | .773 | 1 | 0 | n/a | 34.5 | 12.5 | 7.6 | - | - | - |
1973 Reds | 67 | 15 | .817 | 4 | 1 | n/a | 22.2 | 9.4 | 7.0 | - | - | - |
1974 Reds | 58 | 12 | .829 | 7 | 2 | n/a | 23.3 | 7.4 | 7.6 | - | - | - |
1975 Reds | 67 | 10 | .870 | 5 | 0 | n/a | 29.3 | 9.6 | 5.3 | - | - | - |
1976 Reds | 60 | 9 | .870 | 8 | 2 | n/a | 17.5 | 11.5 | 4.3 | - | - | - |
1977 Reds | 49 | 10 | .831 | 6 | 0 | n/a | 23.7 | 9.0 | 6.7 | - | - | - |
1978 Reds | 19 | 5 | .792 | 12 | 0 | n/a | 33.9 | 11.0 | 5.9 | - | - | - |
1979 Reds | 28 | 6 | .824 | 6 | 0 | n/a | 48.4 | 9.7 | 13.6 | - | - | - |
1980 Astros | 24 | 6 | .800 | 18 | 0 | n/a | 41.9 | 9.8 | 9.4 | - | - | - |
1981 Giants | 14 | 5 | .737 | 5 | 0 | n/a | 38.5 | 8.3 | 9.9 | - | - | - |
1982 Giants | 24 | 4 | .857 | 15 | 0 | n/a | 33.1 | 7.7 | 7.6 | - | - | - |
1983 Phillies | 18 | 2 | .900 | 13 | 0 | n/a | 25.3 | 7.5 | 6.8 | - | - | - |
1984 Athletics | 8 | 3 | .727 | 16 | 0 | 5 | 60.8 | 9.4 | 8.5 | - | - | - |
Career | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
22 Years | 689 | 162 | .810 | 142 | 6 | 5 | 34.6 | 9.1 | 8.2 | - | - | - |
Joe Leonard Morgan was a Major League Baseball player with the Houston Colt .45s (1963-1964), Houston Astros (1965-1971), Cincinnati Reds (1972-1979), Houston Astros (1980), San Francisco Giants (1981-1982), Philadelphia Phillies (1983), and Oakland Athletics (1984). Joe, his nickname, was ranked by Bill James in the The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract (James, Bill. Free Press Publishing. 100 Greatest Second Basemen: #1 Joe Morgan. Page 480.) the best second baseman in baseball history!
Joe Morgan Rookie Card | 1965 Topps Baseball Card (#16 | Checklist)
Baseball Almanac Collection
Did you know that when Joe Morgan made his big league debut on September 21, 1963, he became the first Colt .45s (Astros) player to wear #12 in a regular season game? Did you know that after the franchise officially changed their name, he became the first to wear #18 in an Astros uniform?
Did you know Joe Morgan, the day he made his debut, was actually the second Castlemont High School graduate to play in the majors? Do you know who preceded The Little General, way back in 1939? [Answer]
Did you know then when Joe Morgan walked (BB) to first one-hundred fifteen times in 1972, it set a new Reds' record for most bases on a balls in a single season, set originally in 1905, by Miller Huggins (103 BB), then tied in 1923, by George Burns? Morgan shattered his own record in 1975, when he had a league-leading 132 bases on balls, and he held the franchise record until Joey Votto broke it in 2013 (135 BB), and again in 2015 (143 BB).
Did you know then when Joe Morgan won his fifth consecutive Gold Glove Award (1973-1977), he tied the all-time record for most consecutively by a second baseman? Set originally by Bobby Richardson (1961-1965), then tied by Bill Mazeroski (1963-1967 | also won in 1958 and 1960-1961), the record stood until Frank White won six-in-a-row (1977-1982), which stood until Ryne Sandberg won a still-standing record nine-in-a-row (1983-1991)!
Did you know then when Joe Morgan won back-to-back Most Valuable Player Awards (1975-1976), he became the first second baseman in baseball history to win two MVPs in a row?
Did you know then when Joe Morgan won his first and only Silver Slugger Award, in 1982, it was also the first time a Giants' player at any position had received the honor?
Did you know that when Joe Morgan retired, his career Wins Above Replacement (WAR) was 100.5, fourth in baseball history amongst second basemen; behind Nap Lajoie (107.3 Career WAR), Eddie Collins (123.9 Career WAR) and Rogers Hornsby (127.1 Career WAR). Did you know that not one second baseman since Morgan's retirement in 1984, has passed him?
Did you know Joe Morgan was the very first color commentator used on the ESPN Sunday Night Baseball program? The series made its debut in 1990, and featured Jon Miller on play-by-play alongside Morgan. The broadcast team worked together every Sunday night until the 2010 season ended!
Did you know Joe Morgan was inducted into the Houston Astros Hall of Fame during their inaugural class? See the other fifteen players chosen for this unique honor in the Astros Hall of Fame on Baseball Almanac.
Joe Morgan | National Baseball Hall of Fame Plaque | Class of 1990 (HOF)
Joe Morgan was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1990, the first year of his eligibility. The only other second baseman sent to Cooperstown at that time on their first ballot was Jackie Robinson (1962). [Hall of Fame Fast Facts]