Don Baylor was born on Tuesday, June 28, 1949, in Austin, Texas. Baylor was 21 years old when he broke into the big leagues on September 18, 1970, with the Baltimore Orioles. 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 Don Baylor baseball stats page.
"He (Don Baylor) played under many managers and once commented, 'Playing for Yogi (Berra) is like playing for your father. Playing for Billy (Martin) is like playing for your father-in-law.' Regardless of his manager, Baylor excelled. His finest season was in 1979, when he led the AL in runs scored, with 120; runs driving in, 139; and home runs, 36 - all career bests. Surprisingly, that was the only season he was a member of an All-Star roster. As fearless as they come, he led his league for the most times hit by pitches - an eye popping and body-aching eight times." - Author Brad Engel in Tales from First Base: The Best, Funniest, and Slickest First Basemen Ever (Potomac Books, 03/01/2013, Page 19)
Don Baylor![]() Don Baylor Autograph on a 1982 Topps Baseball Card (#415) |
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Don BaylorDon Baylor 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 | ||
Don BaylorDon Baylor 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 |
| 1970 | 21 | Orioles | 8 | 17 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | .235 | .300 | .235 |
| 1971 | 22 | Orioles | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .000 | .600 | .000 |
| 1972 | 23 | Orioles | 102 | 320 | 33 | 81 | 13 | 3 | 11 | 0 | 38 | 29 | 0 | 50 | 2 | 3 | 9 | 9 | .253 | .330 | .416 |
| 1973 | 24 | Orioles | 118 | 405 | 64 | 116 | 20 | 4 | 11 | 0 | 51 | 35 | 3 | 48 | 0 | 6 | 13 | 11 | .286 | .357 | .437 |
| 1974 | 25 | Orioles | 137 | 489 | 66 | 133 | 22 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 59 | 43 | 6 | 56 | 3 | 4 | 10 | 10 | .272 | .341 | .382 |
| 1975 | 26 | Orioles | 145 | 524 | 79 | 148 | 21 | 6 | 25 | 0 | 76 | 53 | 8 | 64 | 4 | 4 | 13 | 12 | .282 | .360 | .489 |
| 1976 | 27 | Athletics | 157 | 595 | 85 | 147 | 25 | 1 | 15 | 0 | 68 | 58 | 4 | 72 | 1 | 11 | 20 | 11 | .247 | .329 | .368 |
| 1977 | 28 | Angels | 154 | 561 | 87 | 141 | 27 | 0 | 25 | 1 | 75 | 62 | 7 | 76 | 2 | 8 | 12 | 16 | .251 | .334 | .433 |
| 1978 | 29 | Angels | 158 | 591 | 103 | 151 | 26 | 0 | 34 | 2 | 99 | 56 | 9 | 71 | 0 | 12 | 18 | 15 | .255 | .332 | .472 |
| 1979 | 30 | Angels | 162 | 628 | 120 | 186 | 33 | 3 | 36 | 2 | 139 | 71 | 6 | 51 | 0 | 12 | 11 | 10 | .296 | .371 | .530 |
| 1980 | 31 | Angels | 90 | 340 | 39 | 85 | 12 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 51 | 24 | 4 | 32 | 0 | 5 | 11 | 9 | .250 | .316 | .341 |
| 1981 | 32 | Angels | 103 | 377 | 52 | 90 | 18 | 1 | 17 | 0 | 66 | 42 | 1 | 51 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 13 | .239 | .322 | .427 |
| 1982 | 33 | Angels | 157 | 608 | 80 | 160 | 24 | 1 | 24 | 1 | 93 | 57 | 7 | 69 | 0 | 8 | 7 | 18 | .263 | .329 | .424 |
| 1983 | 34 | Yankees | 144 | 534 | 82 | 162 | 33 | 3 | 21 | 2 | 85 | 40 | 11 | 53 | 2 | 8 | 13 | 10 | .303 | .361 | .494 |
| 1984 | 35 | Yankees | 134 | 493 | 84 | 129 | 29 | 1 | 27 | 0 | 89 | 38 | 6 | 68 | 1 | 3 | 23 | 10 | .262 | .341 | .489 |
| 1985 | 36 | Yankees | 142 | 477 | 70 | 110 | 24 | 1 | 23 | 2 | 91 | 52 | 6 | 90 | 1 | 10 | 24 | 10 | .231 | .330 | .430 |
| 1986 | 37 | Red Sox | 160 | 585 | 93 | 139 | 23 | 1 | 31 | 1 | 94 | 62 | 8 | 111 | 0 | 5 | 35 | 12 | .238 | .344 | .439 |
| 1987 | 38 | Red Sox | 108 | 339 | 64 | 81 | 8 | 0 | 16 | 1 | 57 | 40 | 3 | 47 | 0 | 6 | 24 | 10 | .239 | .355 | .404 |
| 1987 | 38 | Twins | 20 | 49 | 3 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3 | .286 | .397 | .306 |
| 1988 | 39 | Athletics | 92 | 264 | 28 | 58 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 34 | 34 | 2 | 44 | 0 | 3 | 12 | 7 | .220 | .332 | .326 |
| Career | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG | ||
| 19 Years | 2,292 | 8,198 | 1,236 | 2,135 | 366 | 28 | 338 | 12 | 1,276 | 805 | 91 | 1,069 | 16 | 115 | 267 | 196 | .260 | .342 | .436 | ||
Don BaylorDon Baylor Fielding Stats |
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| Team | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
| 1970 Orioles | CF | 3 | 2 | 78 | 9 | 3.0 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 3.12 |
| 1970 Orioles | RF | 4 | 1 | 66 | 7 | 1.8 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.86 |
| 1971 Orioles | RF | 1 | 1 | 27 | 4 | 4.0 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 4.00 |
| 1972 Orioles | 1B | 9 | 8 | 192 | 57 | 6.3 | 56 | 54 | 2 | 1 | 5 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .982 | 7.88 |
| 1972 Orioles | CF | 13 | 11 | 279 | 27 | 2.1 | 26 | 26 | 0 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .963 | 2.52 |
| 1972 Orioles | LF | 39 | 29 | 817 | 63 | 1.6 | 62 | 60 | 2 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .984 | 2.05 |
| 1972 Orioles | RF | 45 | 32 | 912 | 67 | 1.5 | 65 | 65 | 0 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .970 | 1.92 |
| 1973 Orioles | 1B | 6 | 5 | 114 | 31 | 5.2 | 29 | 24 | 5 | 2 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .935 | 6.87 |
| 1973 Orioles | LF | 110 | 96 | 2,671 | 211 | 1.9 | 207 | 202 | 5 | 4 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .981 | 2.09 |
| 1973 Orioles | RF | 2 | 0 | 12 | 2 | 1.0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 4.50 |
| 1974 Orioles | 1B | 8 | 7 | 150 | 43 | 5.4 | 43 | 42 | 1 | 0 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 7.74 |
| 1974 Orioles | CF | 1 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .000 | 0.00 |
| 1974 Orioles | LF | 114 | 97 | 2,765 | 190 | 1.7 | 185 | 184 | 1 | 5 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .974 | 1.81 |
| 1974 Orioles | RF | 26 | 23 | 513 | 32 | 1.2 | 32 | 32 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.68 |
| 1975 Orioles | 1B | 2 | 2 | 42 | 18 | 9.0 | 18 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 11.57 |
| 1975 Orioles | CF | 4 | 4 | 99 | 13 | 3.3 | 12 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .923 | 3.27 |
| 1975 Orioles | LF | 127 | 124 | 3,344 | 263 | 2.1 | 260 | 252 | 8 | 3 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .989 | 2.10 |
| 1975 Orioles | RF | 6 | 5 | 127 | 5 | 0.8 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .800 | 0.85 |
| 1976 Athletics | 1B | 69 | 62 | 1,678 | 682 | 9.9 | 673 | 629 | 44 | 9 | 40 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .987 | 10.83 |
| 1976 Athletics | CF | 2 | 1 | 21 | 1 | 0.5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.29 |
| 1976 Athletics | LF | 27 | 26 | 708 | 51 | 1.9 | 49 | 48 | 1 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .961 | 1.87 |
| 1976 Athletics | RF | 50 | 45 | 1,191 | 104 | 2.1 | 103 | 103 | 0 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .990 | 2.34 |
| 1977 Angels | 1B | 18 | 16 | 427 | 156 | 8.7 | 154 | 141 | 13 | 2 | 14 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .987 | 9.74 |
| 1977 Angels | CF | 11 | 11 | 276 | 16 | 1.5 | 16 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.57 |
| 1977 Angels | LF | 48 | 47 | 1,191 | 91 | 1.9 | 87 | 85 | 2 | 4 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .956 | 1.97 |
| 1977 Angels | RF | 19 | 19 | 460 | 38 | 2.0 | 37 | 36 | 1 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .974 | 2.17 |
| 1978 Angels | 1B | 17 | 17 | 423 | 131 | 7.7 | 127 | 118 | 9 | 4 | 6 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .969 | 8.11 |
| 1978 Angels | LF | 39 | 39 | 981 | 79 | 2.0 | 77 | 77 | 0 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .975 | 2.12 |
| 1979 Angels | 1B | 1 | 0 | 12 | 5 | 5.0 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 11.25 |
| 1979 Angels | LF | 78 | 78 | 2,003 | 167 | 2.1 | 164 | 161 | 3 | 3 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .982 | 2.21 |
| 1979 Angels | RF | 20 | 19 | 486 | 43 | 2.2 | 41 | 40 | 1 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .953 | 2.28 |
| 1980 Angels | LF | 37 | 36 | 934 | 89 | 2.4 | 87 | 84 | 3 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .978 | 2.51 |
| 1980 Angels | RF | 19 | 18 | 463 | 37 | 1.9 | 35 | 34 | 1 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .946 | 2.04 |
| 1981 Angels | 1B | 4 | 4 | 99 | 35 | 8.8 | 35 | 32 | 3 | 0 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 9.55 |
| 1981 Angels | LF | 1 | 1 | 27 | 6 | 6.0 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 6.00 |
| 1983 Yankees | 1B | 1 | 1 | 24 | 16 | 16.0 | 15 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .938 | 16.88 |
| 1983 Yankees | LF | 2 | 1 | 30 | 2 | 1.0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.80 |
| 1983 Yankees | RF | 4 | 3 | 96 | 9 | 2.3 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.53 |
| 1984 Yankees | LF | 1 | 1 | 24 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .000 | 0.00 |
| 1984 Yankees | RF | 5 | 3 | 84 | 8 | 1.6 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.57 |
| 1986 Red Sox | 1B | 13 | 13 | 303 | 70 | 5.4 | 69 | 65 | 4 | 1 | 7 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .986 | 6.15 |
| 1986 Red Sox | LF | 3 | 3 | 72 | 6 | 2.0 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 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 |
| LF Totals | 626 | 578 | 15,567 | 1,219 | 1.9 | 1,192 | 1,167 | 25 | 27 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .978 | 2.07 | |
| RF Totals | 201 | 169 | 4,437 | 356 | 1.8 | 347 | 344 | 3 | 9 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .975 | 2.11 | |
| 1B Totals | 148 | 135 | 3,464 | 1,244 | 8.4 | 1,224 | 1,141 | 83 | 20 | 80 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .984 | 9.54 | |
| CF Totals | 34 | 29 | 762 | 66 | 1.9 | 64 | 64 | 0 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .970 | 2.27 | |
| 15 Years | 1,009 | 911 | 24,230 | 2,885 | 2.9 | 2,827 | 2,716 | 111 | 58 | 80 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .980 | 3.15 | |
Don BaylorDon Baylor 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 |
| 1970 Orioles | 1 | 1 | .500 | 0 | 2 | n/a | 0.0 | 5.7 | 4.3 | - | - | - |
| 1971 Orioles | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | - | - | - |
| 1972 Orioles | 24 | 2 | .923 | 17 | 2 | n/a | 29.1 | 6.4 | 8.4 | - | - | - |
| 1973 Orioles | 32 | 9 | .780 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 36.8 | 8.4 | 7.9 | - | - | - |
| 1974 Orioles | 29 | 12 | .707 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 48.9 | 8.7 | 8.3 | - | - | - |
| 1975 Orioles | 32 | 17 | .653 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 21.0 | 8.2 | 6.9 | - | - | - |
| 1976 Athletics | 52 | 12 | .813 | 1 | 1 | 23 | 39.7 | 8.3 | 8.8 | - | - | - |
| 1977 Angels | 26 | 12 | .684 | 0 | 0 | 61 | 22.4 | 7.4 | 7.5 | - | - | - |
| 1978 Angels | 22 | 9 | .710 | 0 | 0 | 102 | 17.4 | 8.3 | 6.0 | - | - | - |
| 1979 Angels | 22 | 12 | .647 | 0 | 0 | 65 | 17.4 | 12.3 | 4.5 | - | - | - |
| 1980 Angels | 6 | 6 | .500 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 68.0 | 10.6 | 6.7 | - | - | - |
| 1981 Angels | 3 | 3 | .500 | 1 | 0 | 97 | 22.2 | 7.4 | 5.7 | - | - | - |
| 1982 Angels | 10 | 4 | .714 | 2 | 0 | 155 | 25.3 | 8.8 | 6.5 | - | - | - |
| 1983 Yankees | 17 | 7 | .708 | 11 | 0 | 136 | 25.4 | 10.1 | 6.3 | - | - | - |
| 1984 Yankees | 1 | 1 | .500 | 12 | 0 | 127 | 18.3 | 7.3 | 5.5 | - | - | - |
| 1985 Yankees | 0 | 4 | .000 | 16 | 0 | 140 | 20.7 | 5.3 | 5.2 | - | - | - |
| 1986 Red Sox | 3 | 5 | .375 | 1 | 0 | 143 | 18.9 | 5.3 | 6.2 | - | - | - |
| 1987 Red Sox | 5 | 2 | .714 | 17 | 1 | 97 | 21.2 | 7.2 | 5.9 | - | - | - |
| 1987 Twins | 0 | 1 | .000 | 5 | 1 | 14 | 0.0 | 4.1 | 8.2 | - | - | - |
| 1988 Athletics | 0 | 1 | .000 | 19 | 0 | 80 | 37.7 | 6.0 | 7.8 | - | - | - |
| Career | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
| 19 Years | 285 | 120 | .704 | 126 | 13 | 1,285 | 24.3 | 7.7 | 6.4 | - | - | - |
Don BaylorDon Baylor Miscellaneous Items of Interest |
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| Team | Roster | Uniform Numbers | Salary | All-Star | World Series |
| 1970 Baltimore Orioles | 23 | $12,000.00 | - | - |
| 1971 Baltimore Orioles | 25 | $12,750.00 | - | - |
| 1972 Baltimore Orioles | 25 | $13,500.00 | - | - |
| 1973 Baltimore Orioles | 25 | $25,500.00 | - | - |
| 1974 Baltimore Orioles | 25 | $32,400.00 | - | - |
| 1975 Baltimore Orioles | 25 | $44,000.00 | - | - |
| 1976 Oakland Athletics | 20 | $35,200.00 | - | - |
| 1977 California Angels | 12 | $246,667.00 | - | - |
| 1978 California Angels | 25 | $256,667.00 | - | - |
| 1979 California Angels | 25 | $256,667.00 | Stats | - |
| 1980 California Angels | 25 | $256,667.00 | - | - |
| 1981 California Angels | 25 | $256,667.00 | - | - |
| 1982 California Angels | 25 | $316,667.00 | - | - |
| 1983 New York Yankees | 25 | $680,000.00 | - | - |
| 1984 New York Yankees | 25 | $787,500.00 | - | - |
| 1985 New York Yankees | 25 | $810,000.00 | - | - |
| 1986 Boston Red Sox | 25 | $660,696.00 | - | Stats |
| 1987 Boston Red Sox | 25 | $731,123.00 | - | - |
| 1987 Minnesota Twins | 18 | " " | - | Stats |
| 1988 Oakland Athletics | 12 | $495,000.00 | - | Stats |
| Don Baylor Stats by Baseball Almanac | ||||

Did you know that when Don Baylor won his second Silver Slugger Award in 1985, he became the first designated hitter (DH) two-time recipient? When Baylor won it a third time, in 1986, he became the first Boston Red Sox player to ever win a Silver Slugger as a DH, and Don set the record for most Silver Sluggers (3) by any DH, a mark he held for ten years, until hall of famer Paul Molitor won his fourth (1987, 1988, 1993, 1996).
Did you know that Don Baylor made more baseball award history in 1979, when he led the American League in runs scored (year by year leaders) and runs batted in (year by year leaders), earning him the American League Most Valuable Player Award, the first Angels (California) player to ever win an MVP? Baylor received twenty, out of a possible twenty-eight, first place votes. Ken Singleton (3), Mike Flanagan (3), and George Brett (2) rounded out the set.

Don Baylor | 1982 Kmart MVP Baseball Card (#35 | Checklist) | Baseball Almanac Collection
Groove, who after hanging up his playing cleats became the first manager in Colorado Rockies history (1993-1998 | 440-469), "never let them know it hurt. Two hundred and forty seven - that is the number of times Baylor was hit by a pitch in his 19-year playing career, the fourth-highest total in Major League history (Top 1,000). Every time he was hit, no matter how hard or soft the pitch came in, Baylor would always just turn his shoulder, drop the bat, and jog to first base. Never would he grimace or hop around or glare at the pitcher. To Baylor, getting hit by a pitch meant a free base and potential winning advantage to his team."
That exceptional excerpt was included in 100 Things Rockies Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die (Adrian Dater, Triumph Books, 04/01/2009) and it illustrates how fearless The Sneak Thief was during his Major League career. Baylor still remains fourth on the Top 1,000 Hit by Pitch chart, he holds the American League record for most times being hit by a pitch, and his eight league leading appearances, is two shy of the Major League record!
Don Baylor played in the 1986 World Series (Boston Red Sox), the 1987 World Series (Minnesota Twins), and the 1988 World Series (Oakland Athletics) - three consecutive Fall Classics with three different teams, the first player in Major League history to accomplish the feat. Only one player since Baylor has duplicated this feat, do you know who it was? [Answer]