Wilbur Wood was born on Wednesday, October 22, 1941, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Wood was 19 years old when he broke into the big leagues on June 30, 1961, with the Boston Red Sox. 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 Wilbur Wood baseball stats page.
"And master it (the knuckleball) he did. With the introduction of the designated hitter rule in the American League for the 1973 season, many predicted (Wilbur) Wood would have his biggest season ever. Now that the rubber-armed southpaw did not have to be removed for a pinch hitter in the late innings, it was figured he would be a lock for 30 wins. Some even predicted 40. Instead, Wilbur finished 24-20 for a White Sox club that won ten fewer games than in 1973. Still, Wood made history as his won-lost figure represented the first time a hurler both won and lost 20 games in the same season since Walter Johnson posted a 25-20 mark in 1916." - Wolinsky, Russell. Baseball Historian. Wilbur Wood's Rubber Arm. Can of Corn. 2004.
Wilbur WoodWilbur Wood Autograph on a 1975 Topps Baseball Card (#110 | Checklist) |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Biographical Data | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
Wilbur WoodWilbur Wood Pitching Stats |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 |
1961 | 20 | Red Sox | 6 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 5.54 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13.0 | 61 | 14 | 8 | 8 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - |
1962 | 21 | Red Sox | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 3.52 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7.2 | 31 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1963 | 22 | Red Sox | 25 | 6 | 11 | 0 | 5 | .000 | 3.76 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 64.2 | 271 | 67 | 27 | 35 | 10 | 13 | 1 | 28 | 2 | 3 | 1 | - |
1964 | 23 | Red Sox | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 17.47 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5.2 | 34 | 13 | 11 | 11 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - |
1964 | 23 | Pirates | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .000 | 3.63 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 17.1 | 79 | 16 | 7 | 8 | 0 | 11 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 1 | - |
1965 | 24 | Pirates | 34 | 1 | 9 | 1 | 1 | .500 | 3.16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 51.1 | 206 | 44 | 18 | 21 | 3 | 16 | 3 | 29 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - |
1967 | 26 | White Sox | 51 | 8 | 10 | 4 | 2 | .667 | 2.45 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 95.1 | 404 | 95 | 26 | 34 | 2 | 28 | 4 | 47 | 6 | 1 | 2 | - |
1968 | 27 | White Sox | 88 | 2 | 46 | 13 | 12 | .520 | 1.87 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 159.0 | 626 | 127 | 33 | 39 | 8 | 33 | 12 | 74 | 3 | 3 | 0 | - |
1969 | 28 | White Sox | 76 | 0 | 50 | 10 | 11 | .476 | 3.01 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 119.2 | 511 | 113 | 40 | 48 | 13 | 40 | 15 | 73 | 5 | 3 | 0 | - |
1970 | 29 | White Sox | 77 | 0 | 62 | 9 | 13 | .409 | 2.81 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 121.2 | 507 | 118 | 38 | 50 | 7 | 36 | 7 | 85 | 4 | 2 | 0 | - |
1971 | 30 | White Sox | 44 | 42 | 2 | 22 | 13 | .629 | 1.91 | 22 | 7 | 1 | 334.0 | 1,316 | 272 | 71 | 95 | 21 | 62 | 2 | 210 | 6 | 7 | 0 | - |
1972 | 31 | White Sox | 49 | 49 | 0 | 24 | 17 | .585 | 2.51 | 20 | 8 | 0 | 376.2 | 1,490 | 325 | 105 | 119 | 28 | 74 | 5 | 193 | 11 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
1973 | 32 | White Sox | 49 | 48 | 1 | 24 | 20 | .545 | 3.46 | 21 | 4 | 0 | 359.1 | 1,531 | 381 | 138 | 166 | 25 | 91 | 3 | 199 | 7 | 7 | 0 | - |
1974 | 33 | White Sox | 42 | 42 | 0 | 20 | 19 | .513 | 3.60 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 320.1 | 1,316 | 305 | 128 | 143 | 27 | 80 | 8 | 169 | 5 | 9 | 0 | 0 |
1975 | 34 | White Sox | 43 | 43 | 0 | 16 | 20 | .444 | 4.11 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 291.1 | 1,245 | 309 | 133 | 148 | 26 | 92 | 5 | 140 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 0 |
1976 | 35 | White Sox | 7 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 3 | .571 | 2.24 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 56.1 | 225 | 51 | 14 | 24 | 3 | 11 | 0 | 31 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1977 | 36 | White Sox | 24 | 18 | 2 | 7 | 8 | .467 | 4.99 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 122.2 | 548 | 139 | 68 | 75 | 10 | 50 | 0 | 42 | 0 | 10 | 0 | - |
1978 | 37 | White Sox | 28 | 27 | 1 | 10 | 10 | .500 | 5.20 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 168.0 | 753 | 187 | 97 | 103 | 23 | 74 | 1 | 69 | 9 | 3 | 0 | - |
Career | G | GS | GF | W | L | PCT | ERA | CG | SHO | SV | IP | BFP | H | ER | R | HR | BB | IBB | SO | WP | HB | BK | HLD | ||
17 Years | 651 | 297 | 198 | 164 | 156 | .513 | 3.24 | 114 | 24 | 57 | 2,684.0 | 11,154 | 2,582 | 965 | 1,130 | 209 | 724 | 71 | 1,411 | 72 | 63 | 6 | 0 |
Wilbur WoodWilbur Wood Hitting Stats |
|||||||||||||||||||||
Year | Age | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG |
1961 | 20 | Red Sox | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
1962 | 21 | Red Sox | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
1963 | 22 | Red Sox | 25 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
1964 | 23 | Red Sox | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
1964 | 23 | Pirates | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
1965 | 24 | Pirates | 34 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
1967 | 26 | White Sox | 51 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .063 | .118 | .125 |
1968 | 27 | White Sox | 88 | 22 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 17 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .091 | .167 | .091 |
1969 | 28 | White Sox | 76 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .000 | .063 | .000 |
1970 | 29 | White Sox | 77 | 18 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .111 | .111 | .167 |
1971 | 30 | White Sox | 44 | 96 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 57 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .052 | .150 | .052 |
1972 | 31 | White Sox | 49 | 125 | 8 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 65 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 4 | .136 | .176 | .136 |
1973 | 32 | White Sox | 49 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
1974 | 33 | White Sox | 42 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
1975 | 34 | White Sox | 43 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
1976 | 35 | White Sox | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
1977 | 36 | White Sox | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
1978 | 37 | White Sox | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
Career | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG | ||
17 Years | 651 | 322 | 11 | 27 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 20 | 0 | 189 | 38 | 0 | 1 | 7 | .084 | .140 | .090 |
Wilbur WoodWilbur Wood Fielding Stats |
||||||||||||||||
Team | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
1961 Red Sox | P | 6 | 1 | 39 | 2 | 0.3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.38 |
1962 Red Sox | P | 1 | 1 | 23 | 3 | 3.0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 3.52 |
1963 Red Sox | P | 25 | 6 | 194 | 13 | 0.5 | 12 | 2 | 10 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .923 | 1.67 |
1964 Red Sox | P | 4 | 0 | 17 | 3 | 0.8 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 4.76 |
1964 Pirates | P | 3 | 2 | 52 | 1 | 0.3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 0.52 |
1965 Pirates | P | 34 | 1 | 154 | 8 | 0.2 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.40 |
1967 White Sox | P | 51 | 8 | 286 | 22 | 0.4 | 20 | 7 | 13 | 2 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .909 | 1.89 |
1968 White Sox | P | 88 | 2 | 477 | 32 | 0.4 | 32 | 7 | 25 | 0 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.81 |
1969 White Sox | P | 76 | 0 | 359 | 28 | 0.4 | 27 | 5 | 22 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .964 | 2.03 |
1970 White Sox | P | 77 | 0 | 365 | 34 | 0.4 | 34 | 7 | 27 | 0 | 3 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.52 |
1971 White Sox | P | 44 | 42 | 1,002 | 77 | 1.8 | 76 | 11 | 65 | 1 | 3 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .987 | 2.05 |
1972 White Sox | P | 49 | 49 | 1,130 | 95 | 1.9 | 91 | 9 | 82 | 4 | 8 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .958 | 2.17 |
1973 White Sox | P | 49 | 48 | 1,078 | 72 | 1.5 | 71 | 9 | 62 | 1 | 3 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .986 | 1.78 |
1974 White Sox | P | 42 | 42 | 961 | 78 | 1.9 | 75 | 8 | 67 | 3 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .962 | 2.11 |
1975 White Sox | P | 43 | 43 | 874 | 62 | 1.4 | 61 | 8 | 53 | 1 | 3 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .984 | 1.88 |
1976 White Sox | P | 7 | 7 | 169 | 13 | 1.9 | 13 | 1 | 12 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.08 |
1977 White Sox | P | 24 | 18 | 368 | 36 | 1.5 | 36 | 3 | 33 | 0 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.64 |
1978 White Sox | P | 28 | 27 | 504 | 42 | 1.5 | 42 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.25 |
Career | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
P Totals | 651 | 297 | 8,052 | 621 | 1.0 | 607 | 84 | 523 | 14 | 26 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .977 | 2.04 | |
17 Years | 651 | 297 | 8,052 | 621 | 1.0 | 607 | 84 | 523 | 14 | 26 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .977 | 2.04 |
Wilbur WoodWilbur Wood Miscellaneous Stats |
||||||||||||
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 |
1961 Red Sox | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 1.5 | 0.0 | 1.00 | 4.85 | 4.85 |
1962 Red Sox | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 1.00 | 3.52 | 3.52 |
1963 Red Sox | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 2.15 | 3.90 | 1.81 |
1964 Red Sox | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 1.67 | 7.94 | 4.76 |
1964 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 1.7 | 0.0 | 0.64 | 3.63 | 5.71 |
1965 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 1.2 | 0.0 | 1.81 | 5.08 | 2.81 |
1967 White Sox | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 1.5 | 16.0 | 1.68 | 4.44 | 2.64 |
1968 White Sox | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 1.3 | 11.0 | 2.24 | 4.19 | 1.87 |
1969 White Sox | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 1.9 | 0.0 | 1.83 | 5.49 | 3.01 |
1970 White Sox | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 1.6 | 6.0 | 2.36 | 6.29 | 2.66 |
1971 White Sox | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 1.7 | 0.0 | 3.39 | 5.66 | 1.67 |
1972 White Sox | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 1.9 | 17.9 | 2.61 | 4.61 | 1.77 |
1973 White Sox | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.19 | 4.98 | 2.28 |
1974 White Sox | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.11 | 4.75 | 2.25 |
1975 White Sox | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.52 | 4.32 | 2.84 |
1976 White Sox | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.82 | 4.95 | 1.76 |
1977 White Sox | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.84 | 3.08 | 3.67 |
1978 White Sox | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.93 | 3.70 | 3.96 |
Career | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
17 Years | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 1.7 | 24.8 | 1.95 | 4.73 | 2.43 |
Wilbur WoodWilbur Wood Miscellaneous Items of Interest |
||||
Team | Roster | Uniform Numbers | Salary | All-Star | World Series |
1961 Boston Red Sox | 28 | Undetermined | - | - |
1962 Boston Red Sox | 41 | Undetermined | - | - |
1963 Boston Red Sox | 19 | Undetermined | - | - |
1964 Boston Red Sox | 19 | Undetermined | - | - |
1964 Pittsburgh Pirates | 16 | Undetermined | - | - |
1965 Pittsburgh Pirates | 35 | Undetermined | - | - |
1967 Chicago White Sox | 28 | $12,000.00 | - | - |
1968 Chicago White Sox | 28 | Undetermined | - | - |
1969 Chicago White Sox | 28 | Undetermined | - | - |
1970 Chicago White Sox | 28 | Undetermined | - | - |
1971 Chicago White Sox | 28 | Undetermined | Stats | - |
1972 Chicago White Sox | 28 | Undetermined | Stats | - |
1973 Chicago White Sox | 28 | Undetermined | - | - |
1974 Chicago White Sox | 28 | $125,000.00 | Stats | - |
1975 Chicago White Sox | 28 | $130,000.00 | - | - |
1976 Chicago White Sox | 28 | $135,000.00 | - | - |
1977 Chicago White Sox | 28 | $140,000.00 | - | - |
1978 Chicago White Sox | 28 | $140,000.00 | - | - |
Wilbur Wood Stats by Baseball Almanac |
On July 20, 1973, Wilbur Wood started both ends of a doubleheader (Game 1 / Game 2) — the last pitcher in baseball history to do so. Wood lost both games and finished the season with twenty-four wins, and twenty-losses, the last pitcher in American League history to reach both plateaus (20-wins / 20-losses) during the season. Do you know who did it last in the National League? Clue: He was a real Knucksie. [Answer]
American League pitchers in the 20-wins & 20-losses club are Joe McGinnity (1901 / 26 wins & 20 losses), Bill Dinneen (1902 / 21 wins & 21 losses), George Mullin (1905 / 21 wins & 21 losses AND 1907 / 20 wins & 20 losses), Jim Scott (1913 / 20 wins & 21 losses), and Walter Johnson (1916 / 25 wins and 20 losses).
Wilbur Wood Cartoon | Artwork by Kurt Snibbe | On This Day in SportsBaseball Almanac Research Library
In 1965, Eddie Fisher pitched in 82 games for the Chicago White Sox, the first pitcher in team history to pitch in 80-or-more games in a single season. Three years later, Wilbur Wood pitched in 88 games for the Pale Hose, setting a new single season team record that is still the most in team history.
Wilbur Wood not only set the team record, he set a new American League record for most games pitched in single season, a mark since broken by Mike Marshall, who pitched in a record setting 90 games for the 1979 Minnesota Twins.
Did you know that Wilbur Wood tied the American League record for most batters hit in an inning on September 10, 1977? In the bottom of the first inning, at Anaheim Stadium, Wood plunked Dave Kingman, then Don Baylor, then Dave Chalk, consecutively, tying the Major League record. [Hit by Pitch Record Book]