Walker Cooper was born on Friday, January 8, 1915, in Atherton, Missouri. Cooper was 25 years old when he broke into the big leagues on September 25, 1940, 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 Walker Cooper baseball stats page.
"When Big Coop was on your club, you didn't have to worry about squabbles with anybody else, because he was in all of them. He was the brawling type of fellow who comes to play, didn't ask for any quarter, and certainly didn't give any." - Teammate Musial, Stan. The Cardinals Encyclopedia. Eisenbath, Mike. Author. Temple University Press. 14 May 1999. Page 158.
Walker Cooper![]() Walker 'Big Coop' Cooper Autograph on a 1979 TCMA Baseball Card (#69) |
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| Biographical Data | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Walker CooperWalker Cooper 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 | ||
Walker CooperWalker Cooper 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 |
| 1940 | 25 | Cardinals | 6 | 19 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | - | 0 | 0 | .316 | .381 | .368 |
| 1941 | 26 | Cardinals | 68 | 200 | 19 | 49 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 20 | 13 | 4 | 14 | 2 | - | 0 | 7 | .245 | .291 | .315 |
| 1942 | 27 | Cardinals | 125 | 438 | 58 | 123 | 32 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 65 | 29 | 11 | 29 | 6 | - | 1 | 18 | .281 | .327 | .434 |
| 1943 | 28 | Cardinals | 122 | 449 | 52 | 143 | 30 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 81 | 19 | 7 | 19 | 6 | - | 2 | 13 | .318 | .349 | .463 |
| 1944 | 29 | Cardinals | 112 | 397 | 56 | 126 | 25 | 5 | 13 | 0 | 72 | 20 | 6 | 19 | 8 | - | 1 | 15 | .317 | .352 | .504 |
| 1945 | 30 | Cardinals | 4 | 18 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | 0 | 0 | .389 | .389 | .389 |
| 1946 | 31 | Giants | 87 | 280 | 29 | 75 | 10 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 46 | 17 | 7 | 12 | 3 | - | 0 | 10 | .268 | .310 | .396 |
| 1947 | 32 | Giants | 140 | 515 | 79 | 157 | 24 | 8 | 35 | 1 | 122 | 24 | 3 | 43 | 4 | - | 3 | 13 | .305 | .339 | .586 |
| 1948 | 33 | Giants | 91 | 290 | 40 | 77 | 12 | 0 | 16 | 2 | 54 | 28 | 8 | 29 | 3 | - | 1 | 14 | .266 | .332 | .472 |
| 1949 | 34 | Giants | 42 | 147 | 14 | 31 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 21 | 7 | 1 | 8 | 0 | - | 3 | 10 | .211 | .261 | .347 |
| 1949 | 34 | Reds | 82 | 307 | 34 | 86 | 9 | 2 | 16 | 1 | 62 | 21 | 4 | 24 | 1 | - | 2 | 9 | .280 | .330 | .479 |
| 1950 | 35 | Reds | 15 | 47 | 3 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | - | 0 | 1 | .191 | .191 | .255 |
| 1950 | 35 | Braves | 102 | 337 | 52 | 111 | 19 | 3 | 14 | 1 | 60 | 30 | 6 | 26 | 3 | - | 3 | 8 | .329 | .389 | .528 |
| 1951 | 36 | Braves | 109 | 342 | 42 | 107 | 14 | 1 | 18 | 0 | 59 | 28 | 5 | 18 | 1 | - | 1 | 10 | .313 | .367 | .518 |
| 1952 | 37 | Braves | 102 | 349 | 33 | 82 | 12 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 55 | 22 | 1 | 32 | 3 | - | 1 | 7 | .235 | .282 | .361 |
| 1953 | 38 | Braves | 53 | 137 | 12 | 30 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 16 | 12 | 3 | 15 | 1 | - | 1 | 6 | .219 | .287 | .328 |
| 1954 | 39 | Pirates | 14 | 15 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .200 | .294 | .333 |
| 1954 | 39 | Cubs | 57 | 158 | 21 | 49 | 10 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 32 | 21 | 4 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | .310 | .398 | .532 |
| 1955 | 40 | Cubs | 54 | 111 | 11 | 31 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 15 | 6 | 1 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | .279 | .322 | .559 |
| 1956 | 41 | Cardinals | 40 | 68 | 5 | 18 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .265 | .296 | .456 |
| 1957 | 42 | Cardinals | 48 | 78 | 7 | 21 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | .269 | .310 | .474 |
| Career | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG | ||
| 18 Years | 1,473 | 4,702 | 573 | 1,341 | 240 | 40 | 173 | 9 | 812 | 309 | 75 | 357 | 44 | 1 | 22 | 160 | .285 | .332 | .464 | ||
Walker CooperWalker Cooper Fielding Stats |
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| Team | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
| 1940 Cardinals | C | 6 | 5 | 144 | 23 | 3.8 | 23 | 19 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 4.31 |
| 1941 Cardinals | C | 63 | 45 | 1,118 | 296 | 4.7 | 286 | 247 | 39 | 10 | 11 | 3 | 13 | 0 | .966 | 6.91 |
| 1942 Cardinals | C | 115 | 105 | 2,769 | 598 | 5.2 | 581 | 519 | 62 | 17 | 6 | 8 | 21 | 0 | .972 | 5.67 |
| 1943 Cardinals | C | 112 | 104 | 2,758 | 567 | 5.1 | 553 | 504 | 49 | 14 | 5 | 9 | 9 | 21 | .975 | 5.41 |
| 1944 Cardinals | C | 97 | 91 | 2,336 | 492 | 5.1 | 482 | 442 | 40 | 10 | 7 | 4 | 21 | 0 | .980 | 5.57 |
| 1945 Cardinals | C | 4 | 4 | 109 | 29 | 7.3 | 28 | 27 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | .966 | 6.94 |
| 1946 Giants | C | 73 | 67 | 1,567 | 324 | 4.4 | 315 | 277 | 38 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 23 | 5 | .972 | 5.43 |
| 1947 Giants | C | 132 | 13 | 372 | 625 | 4.7 | 612 | 561 | 51 | 13 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 5 | .979 | 44.42 |
| 1948 Giants | C | 79 | 75 | 1,736 | 335 | 4.2 | 328 | 307 | 21 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 20 | 9 | .979 | 5.10 |
| 1949 Giants | C | 40 | 34 | 985 | 169 | 4.2 | 166 | 148 | 18 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 12 | 5 | .982 | 4.55 |
| 1949 Reds | C | 77 | 74 | 1,871 | 367 | 4.8 | 359 | 316 | 43 | 8 | 3 | 11 | 16 | 19 | .978 | 5.18 |
| 1950 Reds | C | 13 | 11 | 282 | 71 | 5.5 | 69 | 62 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | .972 | 6.61 |
| 1950 Braves | C | 88 | 88 | 2,218 | 445 | 5.1 | 433 | 386 | 47 | 12 | 9 | 5 | 25 | 22 | .973 | 5.27 |
| 1951 Braves | C | 90 | 84 | 2,191 | 432 | 4.8 | 424 | 367 | 57 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 27 | 26 | .981 | 5.23 |
| 1952 Braves | C | 89 | 87 | 2,260 | 480 | 5.4 | 472 | 417 | 55 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 21 | 24 | .983 | 5.64 |
| 1953 Braves | C | 35 | 34 | 855 | 174 | 5.0 | 171 | 165 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 3 | .983 | 5.40 |
| 1954 Pirates | C | 2 | 1 | 33 | 6 | 3.0 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1.000 | 4.91 |
| 1954 Cubs | C | 48 | 43 | 1,101 | 226 | 4.7 | 221 | 190 | 31 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 16 | 8 | .978 | 5.42 |
| 1955 Cubs | C | 31 | 21 | 602 | 103 | 3.3 | 99 | 88 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 4 | .961 | 4.44 |
| 1956 Cardinals | C | 16 | 12 | 336 | 61 | 3.8 | 60 | 56 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 0 | .984 | 4.82 |
| 1957 Cardinals | C | 13 | 12 | 305 | 70 | 5.4 | 67 | 62 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | .957 | 5.93 |
| Career | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
| C Totals | 1,223 | 1,010 | 25,948 | 5,893 | 4.8 | 5,755 | 5,166 | 589 | 138 | 80 | 79 | 256 | 153 | .977 | 5.99 | |
| 18 Years | 1,223 | 1,010 | 25,948 | 5,893 | 4.8 | 5,755 | 5,166 | 589 | 138 | 80 | 79 | 256 | 153 | .977 | 5.99 | |
Walker CooperWalker Cooper 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 |
| 1940 Cardinals | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 9.5 | 9.5 | - | - | - |
| 1941 Cardinals | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 5 | 0 | n/a | 200.0 | 14.3 | 10.0 | - | - | - |
| 1942 Cardinals | 4 | 1 | .800 | 10 | 0 | n/a | 62.6 | 15.1 | 6.7 | - | - | - |
| 1943 Cardinals | 1 | 2 | .333 | 10 | 0 | n/a | 49.9 | 23.6 | 5.5 | - | - | - |
| 1944 Cardinals | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | 16 | 0 | n/a | 30.5 | 20.9 | 5.5 | - | - | - |
| 1945 Cardinals | 0 | 1 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 18.0 | 18.0 | - | - | - |
| 1946 Giants | 0 | 2 | .000 | 14 | 0 | n/a | 35.0 | 23.3 | 6.1 | - | - | - |
| 1947 Giants | 2 | 1 | .667 | 8 | 0 | n/a | 14.7 | 12.0 | 4.2 | - | - | - |
| 1948 Giants | 1 | 1 | .500 | 12 | 0 | n/a | 18.1 | 10.0 | 5.4 | - | - | - |
| 1949 Giants | 0 | 1 | .000 | 4 | 0 | n/a | 36.8 | 18.4 | 7.0 | - | - | - |
| 1949 Reds | 0 | 0 | .000 | 5 | 0 | n/a | 19.2 | 12.8 | 5.0 | - | - | - |
| 1950 Reds | 0 | 0 | .000 | 3 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 9.4 | 11.8 | - | - | - |
| 1950 Braves | 1 | 1 | .500 | 14 | 0 | n/a | 24.1 | 13.0 | 5.6 | - | - | - |
| 1951 Braves | 1 | 1 | .500 | 23 | 0 | n/a | 19.0 | 19.0 | 5.8 | - | - | - |
| 1952 Braves | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 15 | 0 | n/a | 34.9 | 10.9 | 6.3 | - | - | - |
| 1953 Braves | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 18 | 0 | n/a | 45.7 | 9.1 | 8.6 | - | - | - |
| 1954 Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | 13 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 15.0 | 15.0 | - | - | - |
| 1954 Cubs | 0 | 0 | .000 | 13 | 0 | n/a | 22.6 | 6.9 | 4.9 | - | - | - |
| 1955 Cubs | 0 | 0 | .000 | 29 | 0 | n/a | 15.9 | 5.8 | 7.4 | - | - | - |
| 1956 Cardinals | 0 | 0 | .000 | 25 | 0 | n/a | 34.0 | 8.5 | 4.9 | - | - | - |
| 1957 Cardinals | 0 | 0 | .000 | 36 | 0 | n/a | 26.0 | 7.8 | 7.8 | - | - | - |
| Career | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
| 18 Years | 18 | 11 | .621 | 273 | 0 | n/a | 27.2 | 13.2 | 5.8 | - | - | - |

William Walker Cooper was a Major League Baseball player with the St. Louis Cardinals (1940–1945), New York Giants (1946–1949), Cincinnati Reds (1949–1950) Boston Braves (1950-1952), Milwaukee Braves (1953), Pittsburgh Pirates (1954), Chicago Cubs (1954–1955), and St. Louis Cardinals (1956–1957). Did you know that Coop, his nickname, was the second catcher in baseball history who collected ten or more RBIs in a single game — a feat rarer than a perfect game or four home run game? Walk joined the "club" on July 6, 1949, when he drove-in ten for Cincinnati (the only player on the list from the Reds).
Did you know that during that same game (July 6, 1949), Walker had six-hits, just the third player in Cincinnati Reds' history with a 6-hit game (joining Tony Cuccinello and Ernie Lombardi)?

Walker Cooper 6-Hit Game (Box Score) | The Wilkes-Barre Record | July 7, 1949 | Page 18
Walker Cooper once set a home run record by hitting grand slams with five different teams, a Major League mark subsequently tied by Dave Kingman and Dave Winfield. An 18-year veteran who appeared in eight All-Star Games and was behind the plate in 1,223 games, Big Coop finished with 1,341 hits (more than Hall of Fame catchers Roger Bresnahan & Roy Campanella), a .285 career batting average (higher than Hall of Fame catchers Johnny Bench, Roger Bresnahan, Roy Campanella, Gary Carter, Rick Ferrell, Carlton Fisk and Ray Schalk), and 173 home runs (more than Hall of Fame catchers Roger Bresnahan, Mickey Cochrane, Buck Ewing, Rick Ferrell, and Ray Schalk).
The Baseball Family Tree: Mort Cooper (1938 - 1949) is the brother of Walker Cooper, and, their father-in-law is Don Blasingame (1955 - 1966).