Wally Berger was born on Tuesday, October 10, 1905, in Chicago, Illinois. Berger was 24 years old when he broke into the big leagues on April 15, 1930, with the Boston Braves. 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 Wally Berger baseball stats page.
"(Wally) Berger was modest, quiet, hard-working, conscientious, and disciplined. He didn't kick dirt on umpires, become engaged in scandal, or engage in wacky behavior. He didn't make good copy for the boys in the press box. In his prime he played in a 'pitchers park' with a team that never came close to winning all the marbles. It was a club out of the mainstream. It was inadequately financed, poorly administered, and usually overmatched on the field. Despite all this, the Braves were always an interesting team, a team that had its great moments. They were led by the best manager of the times and supported by devoted and hopeful fans. And for seven seasons their most brilliant, courageous, and persevering player was Walter Anton Berger." - Snyder, George. Author. Freshly Remember'd. Schneider McGuirk Publishing, Redondo Beach, California. 1 June 1993.
Wally BergerWally Berger Autograph on a 1978 Grand Slam Baseball Card (#20) |
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Biographical Data | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Wally BergerWally Berger 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 |
Wally BergerWally Berger 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 |
1930 | 25 | Braves | 151 | 555 | 98 | 172 | 27 | 14 | 38 | 1 | 119 | 54 | 5 | 69 | 12 | 0 | 4 | 6 | .310 | .375 | .614 |
1931 | 26 | Braves | 156 | 617 | 94 | 199 | 44 | 8 | 19 | 0 | 84 | 55 | 4 | 70 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 8 | .323 | .380 | .512 |
1932 | 27 | Braves | 145 | 602 | 90 | 185 | 34 | 6 | 17 | 0 | 73 | 33 | 2 | 66 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 8 | .307 | .346 | .468 |
1933 | 28 | Braves | 137 | 528 | 84 | 165 | 37 | 8 | 27 | 1 | 106 | 41 | 3 | 77 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 6 | .313 | .365 | .566 |
1934 | 29 | Braves | 150 | 615 | 92 | 183 | 35 | 8 | 34 | 0 | 121 | 49 | 5 | 65 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 14 | .298 | .352 | .546 |
1935 | 30 | Braves | 150 | 589 | 91 | 174 | 39 | 4 | 34 | 3 | 130 | 50 | 4 | 80 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 14 | .295 | .355 | .548 |
1936 | 31 | Bees | 138 | 534 | 88 | 154 | 23 | 3 | 25 | 1 | 91 | 53 | 7 | 84 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 13 | .288 | .361 | .483 |
1937 | 32 | Bees | 30 | 113 | 14 | 31 | 9 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 22 | 11 | 0 | 33 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | .274 | .344 | .504 |
1937 | 32 | Giants | 59 | 199 | 40 | 58 | 11 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 43 | 18 | 0 | 30 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 5 | .291 | .359 | .548 |
1938 | 33 | Giants | 16 | 32 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .188 | .235 | .188 |
1938 | 33 | Reds | 99 | 407 | 74 | 125 | 23 | 4 | 16 | 0 | 56 | 29 | 0 | 44 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 9 | .307 | .356 | .501 |
1939 | 34 | Reds | 97 | 329 | 36 | 85 | 15 | 1 | 14 | 1 | 44 | 36 | 2 | 63 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 6 | .258 | .341 | .438 |
1940 | 35 | Reds | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
1940 | 35 | Phillies | 20 | 41 | 3 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .317 | .378 | .439 |
Career | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG | ||
11 Years | 1,350 | 5,163 | 809 | 1,550 | 299 | 59 | 242 | 7 | 898 | 435 | 32 | 694 | 27 | 0 | 38 | 91 | .300 | .359 | .522 |
Wally BergerWally Berger Fielding Stats |
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Team | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
1930 Braves | LF | 145 | 145 | 3,790 | 328 | 2.3 | 317 | 307 | 10 | 11 | 3 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .966 | 2.26 |
1931 Braves | 1B | 1 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 2.0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 9.00 |
1931 Braves | CF | 156 | 156 | 4,109 | 484 | 3.1 | 473 | 457 | 16 | 11 | 5 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .977 | 3.11 |
1932 Braves | 1B | 11 | 10 | 267 | 106 | 9.6 | 106 | 102 | 4 | 0 | 7 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 10.72 |
1932 Braves | CF | 134 | 133 | 3,557 | 409 | 3.1 | 406 | 396 | 10 | 3 | 3 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .993 | 3.08 |
1933 Braves | CF | 136 | 136 | 3,640 | 397 | 2.9 | 388 | 382 | 6 | 9 | 4 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .977 | 2.88 |
1934 Braves | CF | 150 | 150 | 4,026 | 403 | 2.7 | 394 | 385 | 9 | 9 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .978 | 2.64 |
1935 Braves | CF | 149 | 149 | 3,669 | 483 | 3.2 | 466 | 458 | 8 | 17 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .965 | 3.43 |
1936 Bees | CF | 133 | 133 | 3,539 | 408 | 3.1 | 394 | 384 | 10 | 14 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .966 | 3.01 |
1937 Bees | LF | 28 | 28 | 713 | 52 | 1.9 | 52 | 51 | 1 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.97 |
1937 Giants | CF | 45 | 44 | 743 | 102 | 2.3 | 98 | 96 | 2 | 4 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .961 | 3.56 |
1937 Giants | LF | 2 | 1 | 24 | 3 | 1.5 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 3.38 |
1937 Giants | RF | 5 | 5 | 51 | 10 | 2.0 | 10 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 5.29 |
1938 Giants | CF | 8 | 7 | 192 | 28 | 3.5 | 28 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 3.94 |
1938 Giants | RF | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 9.00 |
1938 Reds | LF | 98 | 95 | 2,549 | 206 | 2.1 | 199 | 192 | 7 | 7 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .966 | 2.11 |
1939 Reds | CF | 26 | 22 | 504 | 52 | 2.0 | 49 | 49 | 0 | 3 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .942 | 2.63 |
1939 Reds | LF | 69 | 67 | 1,552 | 118 | 1.7 | 115 | 109 | 6 | 3 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .975 | 2.00 |
1940 Phillies | 1B | 1 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 2.0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 9.00 |
1940 Phillies | CF | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .000 | 0.00 |
1940 Phillies | LF | 5 | 4 | 105 | 9 | 1.8 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.31 |
1940 Phillies | RF | 5 | 4 | 78 | 10 | 2.0 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .900 | 3.12 |
Career | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
CF Totals | 938 | 930 | 23,982 | 2,766 | 2.9 | 2,696 | 2,635 | 61 | 70 | 16 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .975 | 3.04 | |
LF Totals | 347 | 340 | 8,733 | 716 | 2.1 | 695 | 671 | 24 | 21 | 5 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .971 | 2.15 | |
1B Totals | 13 | 10 | 279 | 110 | 8.5 | 110 | 106 | 4 | 0 | 7 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 10.65 | |
RF Totals | 11 | 9 | 132 | 21 | 1.9 | 20 | 18 | 2 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .952 | 4.09 | |
11 Years | 1,309 | 1,289 | 33,126 | 3,613 | 2.8 | 3,521 | 3,430 | 91 | 92 | 28 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .975 | 2.87 |
Wally BergerWally Berger 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 |
1930 Braves | 3 | 4 | .429 | 6 | 0 | n/a | 14.6 | 8.0 | 4.7 | - | - | - |
1931 Braves | 13 | 7 | .650 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 32.5 | 8.8 | 7.3 | - | - | - |
1932 Braves | 5 | 7 | .417 | 1 | 0 | n/a | 35.4 | 9.1 | 8.2 | - | - | - |
1933 Braves | 2 | 3 | .400 | 1 | 0 | n/a | 19.6 | 6.9 | 5.0 | - | - | - |
1934 Braves | 2 | 2 | .500 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 18.1 | 9.5 | 5.1 | - | - | - |
1935 Braves | 3 | 2 | .600 | 1 | 0 | n/a | 17.3 | 7.4 | 4.5 | - | - | - |
1936 Bees | 1 | 5 | .167 | 5 | 0 | n/a | 21.4 | 6.4 | 5.9 | - | - | - |
1937 Bees | 0 | 1 | .000 | 2 | 0 | n/a | 22.6 | 3.4 | 5.1 | - | - | - |
1937 Giants | 3 | 3 | .500 | 7 | 0 | n/a | 16.6 | 6.6 | 4.6 | - | - | - |
1938 Giants | 0 | 0 | .000 | 6 | 1 | n/a | 0.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | - | - | - |
1938 Reds | 2 | 2 | .500 | 1 | 0 | n/a | 25.4 | 9.3 | 7.3 | - | - | - |
1939 Reds | 1 | 2 | .333 | 2 | 0 | n/a | 23.5 | 5.2 | 7.5 | - | - | - |
1940 Reds | 0 | 0 | .000 | 2 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 | - | - | - |
1940 Phillies | 1 | 1 | .500 | 8 | 0 | n/a | 41.0 | 5.1 | 8.2 | - | - | - |
Career | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
11 Years | 36 | 39 | .480 | 42 | 1 | n/a | 21.3 | 7.4 | 5.7 | - | - | - |
Wally BergerWally Berger Miscellaneous Items of Interest |
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Team | Roster | Uniform Numbers | Salary | All-Star | World Series |
1930 Boston Braves | n/a | $4,000.00 | n/a | - |
1931 Boston Braves | n/a | $8,500.00 | n/a | - |
1932 Boston Braves | 3 | $10,000.00 | n/a | - |
1933 Boston Braves | 3 | $10,000.00 | Stats | - |
1934 Boston Braves | 3 | $11,500.00 | Stats | - |
1935 Boston Braves | 4 | $12,500.00 | Stats | - |
1936 Boston Bees | 4 | $12,500.00 | Stats | - |
1937 Boston Bees | 4 | $12,000.00 | - | Stats |
1937 New York Giants | 3 | " " | - | Stats |
1938 New York Giants | 21 | $11,000.00 | - | - |
1938 Cincinnati Reds | 62 | " " | - | - |
1939 Cincinnati Reds | 22 | $10,000.00 | - | Stats |
1940 Cincinnati Reds | 22 | $7,250.00 | - | - |
1940 Philadelphia Phillies | 7 | " " | - | - |
Wally Berger Stats by Baseball Almanac |
Walter Anton Berger was a Major League Baseball player with the Boston Braves (1930–1935), Boston Bees (1936-1937), New York Giants (1937-1938), Cincinnati Reds (1938–1940), and Philadelphia Phillies (1940). Did you know that when Wally, his nickname, made his big league debut on April 15, 1930, he became the first Mission High School graduate to play in the majors?
Did you know that when Wally Berger hit thirty-eight home runs in his first season, he set the Major League record for Most Home Runs in a Season by a Rookie? In 1956, Hall of Fame outfielder Frank Robinson tied Berger, and the duo held the mark until 2017, when Cody Bellinger hit thirty-nine homers his rookie season. His record, however, only lasted two years, when it was crushed. Do you remember what National League rookie hit fifty-three home runs in 2019? [Answer]
Wally Berger | 1991 Conlon Baseball Card (#229) | Baseball Almanac Collection
Contemporaries, opponents (like Babe Ruth) and authors thought Berger was one of the best center fielders, including Bill James (The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract. Free Press Publishing. 13 June 2003. Page 780.), who ranked Berger as the thirteenth greatest center fielder in baseball history; behind Willie Mays (#1), Ty Cobb (#2), Mickey Mantle (#3), Tris Speaker (#4), Joe DiMaggio (#5), Duke Snider (#6), Ken Griffey, Jr. (#7), Kirby Puckett (#8), Billy Hamilton (#9), Jimmy Wynn (#10), Larry Doby (#11), and Dale Murphy (#12)!
Wally Berger was the starting centerfielder in the first All-Star Game ever played (1933). And the second (1934). And the third (1935)! [Note: Berger was selected by his peers, and sent to 1936 All-Star Game as well, but did not play.]