Babe Adams was born on Thursday, May 18, 1882, in Tipton, Indiana. Adams was 23 years old when he broke into the big leagues on April 18, 1906, with the St. Louis Cardinals. 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 Babe Adams baseball stats page.
"Pitching is an art only perfected by constant practice. It can not be learned in a day. There must be perfect harmony between the pitcher and catcher." - Babe Adams in Baseball Magazine (February 1910, Orel R. Geyer)
Babe Adams![]() Babe Adams Autograph on a 2018 Historic Autographs Baseball Card (#1/14) |
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| Biographical Data | |||||||||||||||
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Babe AdamsBabe Adams 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 |
| 1906 | 24 | Cardinals | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | 13.50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4.0 | 21 | 9 | 6 | 8 | 0 | 2 | - | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1907 | 25 | Pirates | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | .000 | 6.95 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 22.0 | 104 | 40 | 17 | 25 | 1 | 3 | - | 11 | 1 | 3 | 0 | - |
| 1909 | 27 | Pirates | 25 | 12 | 11 | 12 | 3 | .800 | 1.11 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 130.0 | 475 | 88 | 16 | 25 | 0 | 23 | - | 65 | 1 | 3 | 0 | - |
| 1910 | 28 | Pirates | 34 | 30 | 3 | 18 | 9 | .667 | 2.24 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 245.0 | 971 | 217 | 61 | 95 | 4 | 60 | - | 101 | 1 | 6 | 0 | - |
| 1911 | 29 | Pirates | 40 | 37 | 2 | 22 | 12 | .647 | 2.33 | 24 | 6 | 0 | 293.1 | 1,117 | 253 | 76 | 97 | 5 | 42 | - | 133 | 3 | 8 | 0 | - |
| 1912 | 30 | Pirates | 28 | 20 | 5 | 11 | 8 | .579 | 2.91 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 170.1 | 704 | 169 | 55 | 73 | 4 | 35 | - | 63 | 0 | 3 | 0 | - |
| 1913 | 31 | Pirates | 43 | 37 | 5 | 21 | 10 | .677 | 2.15 | 24 | 4 | 0 | 313.2 | 1,227 | 271 | 75 | 94 | 8 | 49 | - | 144 | 5 | 0 | 0 | - |
| 1914 | 32 | Pirates | 40 | 35 | 4 | 13 | 16 | .448 | 2.51 | 19 | 3 | 1 | 283.0 | 1,116 | 253 | 79 | 97 | 5 | 39 | - | 91 | 2 | 7 | 0 | - |
| 1915 | 33 | Pirates | 40 | 30 | 8 | 14 | 14 | .500 | 2.87 | 17 | 2 | 2 | 245.0 | 969 | 229 | 78 | 90 | 6 | 34 | - | 62 | 2 | 2 | 0 | - |
| 1916 | 34 | Pirates | 16 | 10 | 5 | 2 | 9 | .182 | 5.72 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 72.1 | 314 | 91 | 46 | 51 | 2 | 12 | - | 22 | 1 | 3 | 0 | - |
| 1918 | 36 | Pirates | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | .500 | 1.19 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 22.2 | 82 | 15 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1919 | 37 | Pirates | 34 | 29 | 5 | 17 | 10 | .630 | 1.98 | 23 | 6 | 1 | 263.1 | 1,017 | 213 | 58 | 66 | 1 | 23 | 2 | 92 | 2 | 3 | 0 | - |
| 1920 | 38 | Pirates | 35 | 33 | 2 | 17 | 13 | .567 | 2.16 | 19 | 8 | 2 | 263.0 | 1,035 | 240 | 63 | 83 | 6 | 18 | 0 | 84 | 5 | 1 | 0 | - |
| 1921 | 39 | Pirates | 25 | 20 | 3 | 14 | 5 | .737 | 2.64 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 160.0 | 646 | 155 | 47 | 57 | 4 | 18 | 2 | 55 | 0 | 0 | 1 | - |
| 1922 | 40 | Pirates | 27 | 19 | 4 | 8 | 11 | .421 | 3.57 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 171.1 | 707 | 191 | 68 | 77 | 1 | 15 | 4 | 39 | 1 | 4 | 0 | - |
| 1923 | 41 | Pirates | 26 | 22 | 2 | 13 | 7 | .650 | 4.42 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 158.2 | 676 | 196 | 78 | 83 | 8 | 25 | 0 | 38 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - |
| 1924 | 42 | Pirates | 9 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | .750 | 1.13 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 39.2 | 154 | 31 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - |
| 1925 | 43 | Pirates | 33 | 10 | 12 | 6 | 5 | .545 | 5.42 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 101.1 | 448 | 129 | 61 | 67 | 7 | 17 | 1 | 18 | 0 | 3 | 0 | - |
| 1926 | 44 | Pirates | 19 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 3 | .400 | 6.14 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 36.2 | 164 | 51 | 25 | 32 | 5 | 8 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 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 | ||
| 19 Years | 482 | 354 | 89 | 194 | 140 | .581 | 2.76 | 206 | 44 | 15 | 2,995.1 | 11,947 | 2,841 | 917 | 1,129 | 68 | 430 | 10 | 1,036 | 26 | 47 | 2 | 0 | ||
Babe AdamsBabe Adams 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 |
| 1906 | 24 | Cardinals | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| 1907 | 25 | Pirates | 4 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | .286 | .286 | .286 |
| 1909 | 27 | Pirates | 25 | 39 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 15 | 5 | 0 | 0 | - | .051 | .098 | .103 |
| 1910 | 28 | Pirates | 34 | 83 | 9 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 9 | 0 | 23 | 5 | 0 | 0 | - | .193 | .272 | .229 |
| 1911 | 29 | Pirates | 40 | 103 | 9 | 26 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | .252 | .274 | .320 |
| 1912 | 30 | Pirates | 28 | 53 | 5 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | .226 | .328 | .321 |
| 1913 | 31 | Pirates | 43 | 114 | 13 | 33 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | .289 | .296 | .377 |
| 1914 | 32 | Pirates | 40 | 97 | 8 | 16 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 29 | 2 | 0 | 1 | - | .165 | .198 | .237 |
| 1915 | 33 | Pirates | 40 | 85 | 4 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | .141 | .180 | .153 |
| 1916 | 34 | Pirates | 16 | 22 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | .273 | .333 | .364 |
| 1918 | 36 | Pirates | 3 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .333 | .333 | .556 |
| 1919 | 37 | Pirates | 34 | 92 | 2 | 17 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .185 | .235 | .228 |
| 1920 | 38 | Pirates | 35 | 89 | 4 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 18 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | .146 | .156 | .180 |
| 1921 | 39 | Pirates | 25 | 63 | 7 | 16 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .254 | .266 | .413 |
| 1922 | 40 | Pirates | 27 | 56 | 6 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | .286 | .333 | .375 |
| 1923 | 41 | Pirates | 26 | 55 | 5 | 15 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 6 | 0 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .273 | .344 | .400 |
| 1924 | 42 | Pirates | 9 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .182 | .182 | .273 |
| 1925 | 43 | Pirates | 33 | 31 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .226 | .294 | .258 |
| 1926 | 44 | Pirates | 19 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .222 | .222 | .222 |
| Career | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG | ||
| 19 Years | 482 | 1,019 | 79 | 216 | 31 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 75 | 53 | 0 | 194 | 35 | 0 | 1 | 18 | .212 | .252 | .281 | ||
Babe AdamsBabe Adams Fielding Stats |
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| Team | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
| 1906 Cardinals | P | 1 | 1 | 12 | 4 | 4.0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .750 | 6.75 |
| 1907 Pirates | P | 4 | 3 | 66 | 11 | 2.8 | 10 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .909 | 4.09 |
| 1909 Pirates | P | 25 | 12 | 390 | 37 | 1.5 | 34 | 1 | 33 | 3 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .919 | 2.35 |
| 1910 Pirates | P | 34 | 30 | 735 | 56 | 1.6 | 51 | 7 | 44 | 5 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .911 | 1.87 |
| 1911 Pirates | P | 40 | 37 | 880 | 46 | 1.2 | 45 | 3 | 42 | 1 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .978 | 1.38 |
| 1912 Pirates | P | 28 | 20 | 511 | 38 | 1.4 | 38 | 2 | 36 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.01 |
| 1913 Pirates | P | 43 | 37 | 941 | 85 | 2.0 | 84 | 10 | 74 | 1 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .988 | 2.41 |
| 1914 Pirates | P | 40 | 35 | 849 | 75 | 1.9 | 75 | 13 | 62 | 0 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.39 |
| 1915 Pirates | P | 40 | 30 | 735 | 70 | 1.8 | 70 | 3 | 67 | 0 | 5 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.57 |
| 1916 Pirates | P | 16 | 10 | 217 | 22 | 1.4 | 22 | 2 | 20 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.74 |
| 1918 Pirates | P | 3 | 3 | 68 | 4 | 1.3 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.59 |
| 1919 Pirates | P | 34 | 29 | 790 | 59 | 1.7 | 59 | 4 | 55 | 0 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.02 |
| 1920 Pirates | P | 35 | 33 | 789 | 71 | 2.0 | 69 | 3 | 66 | 2 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .972 | 2.36 |
| 1921 Pirates | P | 25 | 20 | 480 | 35 | 1.4 | 35 | 1 | 34 | 0 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.97 |
| 1922 Pirates | P | 27 | 19 | 514 | 49 | 1.8 | 48 | 5 | 43 | 1 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .980 | 2.52 |
| 1923 Pirates | P | 26 | 22 | 476 | 30 | 1.2 | 29 | 0 | 29 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .967 | 1.64 |
| 1924 Pirates | P | 9 | 3 | 119 | 6 | 0.7 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.36 |
| 1925 Pirates | P | 33 | 10 | 304 | 17 | 0.5 | 17 | 0 | 17 | 0 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.51 |
| 1926 Pirates | P | 19 | 0 | 110 | 8 | 0.4 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .875 | 1.72 |
| Career | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
| P Totals | 482 | 354 | 8,986 | 723 | 1.5 | 706 | 58 | 648 | 17 | 17 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .976 | 2.12 | |
| 19 Years | 482 | 354 | 8,986 | 723 | 1.5 | 706 | 58 | 648 | 17 | 17 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .976 | 2.12 | |
Babe AdamsBabe Adams 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 |
| 1906 Cardinals | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 4.50 |
| 1907 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 7.0 | 0.0 | 3.67 | 4.50 | 1.23 |
| 1909 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 2.6 | 39.0 | 2.83 | 4.50 | 1.59 |
| 1910 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 3.6 | 13.8 | 1.68 | 3.71 | 2.20 |
| 1911 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 6.1 | 10.3 | 3.17 | 4.08 | 1.29 |
| 1912 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 5.9 | 17.7 | 1.80 | 3.33 | 1.85 |
| 1913 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 7.1 | 8.8 | 2.94 | 4.13 | 1.41 |
| 1914 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 97.0 | 3.3 | 24.3 | 2.33 | 2.89 | 1.24 |
| 1915 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 6.1 | 12.1 | 1.82 | 2.28 | 1.25 |
| 1916 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 22.0 | 11.0 | 1.83 | 2.74 | 1.49 |
| 1918 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 3.0 | 0.0 | 1.50 | 2.38 | 1.59 |
| 1919 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 7.1 | 23.0 | 4.00 | 3.14 | 0.79 |
| 1920 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 89.0 | 4.9 | 29.7 | 4.67 | 2.87 | 0.62 |
| 1921 Pirates | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 9.0 | 10.5 | 3.06 | 3.09 | 1.01 |
| 1922 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 56.0 | 8.0 | 9.3 | 2.60 | 2.05 | 0.79 |
| 1923 Pirates | 0 | 1 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 4.2 | 6.9 | 1.52 | 2.16 | 1.42 |
| 1924 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 11.0 | 11.0 | 1.67 | 1.13 | 0.68 |
| 1925 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 5.2 | 31.0 | 1.06 | 1.60 | 1.51 |
| 1926 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.88 | 1.72 | 1.96 |
| Career | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
| 19 Years | 1 | 1 | .500 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 339.7 | 5.3 | 13.6 | 2.41 | 3.11 | 1.29 |
Babe AdamsBabe Adams Miscellaneous Items of Interest |
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| Team | Roster | Uniform Numbers | Salary | All-Star | World Series |
| 1906 St. Louis Cardinals | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1907 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1909 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | Stats |
| 1910 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1911 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1912 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1913 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1914 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1915 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1916 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1918 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1919 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1920 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1921 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1922 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1923 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1924 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1925 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | Stats |
| 1926 Pittsburgh Pirates | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| Babe Adams Stats by Baseball Almanac | ||||

Charles Benjamin Adams was a Major League Baseball player who pitched for the St. Louis Cardinals (1906) and Pittsburgh Pirates (1907, 1909-1916, 1918-1926). Babe, his nickname, shares the Bucs' franchise record for most career victories (194) by a right-handed twirler! Do you know who he is tied with? [Answer] Do you know what lefty has more than both of those flingers? [Answer]

Babe Adams Rookie Card | 1910 Tip Top Bread Baseball Card (#2)
Baseball Almanac Research Library
Did you know that when Babe Adams won Game 7 of the 1909 World Series, he became the first rookie in World Series history to start and win a game seven? The next rookie to match that Fall Classic feat was John Lackey, Game 7 of the 2002 World Series, ninety-three years later!
Did you know that Babe Adams, on July 17, 1914, set the Major League record for longest game ever thrown (twenty-one innings), by a single pitcher, without allowing a single walk across the entire game? [Bases On Balls Records]
Did you know that Babe Adams led the National League in bases on balls per nine innings four times (1919, 1920, 1921, 1922), WHIP five times (1911, 1914, 1919, 1920, 1921), and fielding percentage five times (1912, 1914, 1915, 1919, 1921)?
Did you know that Babe Adams was ranked the tenth greatest player in Pittsburgh Pirates history by historian David Finoli? The author wrote, "not only had he established himself as one of the greatest control pitchers in the history of the game, winning 194 games in a Pirates uniform, but became arguably the best pitcher in the history of the franchise." Source: The 50 Greatest Players in Pittsburgh Pirates History (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 03/10/2016, Page 72).
Did you know that Babe Adams is the only pitcher from this century, and the last century, to throw more than 250 innings in a season (263 IP in 1920), yet walk fewer than twenty batters (18 BB)?

Babe Adams | 1980 Laughlin Baseball Card (#38)
Baseball Almanac Research Library
Babe Adams hung up his cleats in 1926, managed a farm team in farmed in Mount Moriah, Missouri for a short while, then became a sportswriter. Then, when World War II started, he spent time abroad as a war correspondent. He returned to sports after the War, but once again went abroad to cover the Korean War.