Ray Fosse was born on Friday, April 4, 1947, in Marion, Illinois. Fosse was 20 years old when he broke into the big leagues on September 8, 1967, with the Cleveland Indians. 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 Ray Fosse baseball stats page.
"Ray Fosse, the catcher who was injured by Pete Rose in 1970, was asked about a possible rule change. His response was the rules should be left alone. 'The game has been around more than 100 years, and now they're going to start protecting catchers?" Fosse told the San Francisco Chronicle. "In high school, you can't run over the catcher. But that is high school. The idea is to score runs. If the catcher has the ball and he's standing there, the runner has to stop? Is that protection?" - Coker, W. Laurence. M.D. Baseball Injuries: Case Studies, by Type, in the Major Leagues. McFarland Publishing. 25 March 2013. Page 180.
Ray FosseRay 'The Marion Mule' Fosse Autograph on a 1970 Topps Baseball Card (#184 | Checklist) |
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Biographical Data | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Ray FosseRay Fosse 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 |
Ray FosseRay Fosse 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 |
1967 | 20 | Indians | 7 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .063 | .063 | .063 |
1968 | 21 | Indians | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
1969 | 22 | Indians | 37 | 116 | 11 | 20 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 29 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | .172 | .230 | .250 |
1970 | 23 | Indians | 120 | 450 | 62 | 138 | 17 | 1 | 18 | 1 | 61 | 39 | 5 | 55 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 9 | .307 | .361 | .469 |
1971 | 24 | Indians | 133 | 486 | 53 | 134 | 21 | 1 | 12 | 1 | 62 | 36 | 6 | 62 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 15 | .276 | .329 | .397 |
1972 | 25 | Indians | 134 | 457 | 42 | 110 | 20 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 41 | 45 | 15 | 46 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 18 | .241 | .312 | .354 |
1973 | 26 | Athletics | 143 | 492 | 37 | 126 | 23 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 52 | 25 | 4 | 62 | 9 | 5 | 1 | 10 | .256 | .291 | .354 |
1974 | 27 | Athletics | 69 | 204 | 20 | 40 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 23 | 11 | 1 | 31 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 6 | .196 | .241 | .324 |
1975 | 28 | Athletics | 82 | 136 | 14 | 19 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 8 | 0 | 19 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | .140 | .192 | .191 |
1976 | 29 | Indians | 90 | 276 | 26 | 83 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 30 | 20 | 1 | 20 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 8 | .301 | .347 | .362 |
1977 | 30 | Indians | 78 | 238 | 25 | 63 | 7 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 27 | 7 | 2 | 26 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 5 | .265 | .293 | .378 |
1977 | 30 | Mariners | 11 | 34 | 3 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .353 | .389 | .441 |
1979 | 32 | Brewers | 19 | 52 | 6 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | .231 | .286 | .327 |
Career | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG | ||
12 Years | 924 | 2,957 | 299 | 758 | 117 | 13 | 61 | 2 | 324 | 203 | 35 | 363 | 28 | 20 | 18 | 82 | .256 | .306 | .367 |
Ray FosseRay Fosse Fielding Stats |
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Team | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
1967 Indians | C | 7 | 5 | 142 | 53 | 7.6 | 53 | 46 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 1.000 | 10.08 |
1968 Indians | C | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 4.50 |
1969 Indians | C | 37 | 32 | 885 | 261 | 7.1 | 255 | 237 | 18 | 6 | 2 | 7 | 36 | 14 | .977 | 7.78 |
1970 Indians | C | 120 | 120 | 2,430 | 934 | 7.8 | 924 | 854 | 70 | 10 | 7 | 17 | 40 | 48 | .989 | 10.27 |
1971 Indians | 1B | 4 | 5 | 111 | 19 | 4.8 | 19 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 6 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 4.62 |
1971 Indians | C | 126 | 119 | 3,156 | 831 | 6.6 | 821 | 748 | 73 | 10 | 16 | 13 | 56 | 38 | .988 | 7.02 |
1972 Indians | 1B | 3 | 2 | 63 | 28 | 9.3 | 28 | 27 | 1 | 0 | 3 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 12.00 |
1972 Indians | C | 124 | 121 | 3,258 | 795 | 6.4 | 783 | 713 | 70 | 12 | 9 | 12 | 54 | 31 | .985 | 6.49 |
1973 Athletics | C | 141 | 137 | 3,602 | 786 | 5.6 | 776 | 713 | 63 | 10 | 5 | 5 | 41 | 52 | .987 | 5.82 |
1974 Athletics | C | 68 | 64 | 1,589 | 336 | 4.9 | 327 | 299 | 28 | 9 | 6 | 3 | 35 | 19 | .973 | 5.56 |
1975 Athletics | 1B | 1 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 3.0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 13.50 |
1975 Athletics | 2B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .000 | 0.00 |
1975 Athletics | C | 82 | 41 | 1,214 | 270 | 3.3 | 265 | 250 | 15 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 35 | 12 | .981 | 5.89 |
1976 Indians | 1B | 3 | 1 | 39 | 11 | 3.7 | 11 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 7.62 |
1976 Indians | C | 85 | 78 | 2,057 | 532 | 6.3 | 525 | 483 | 42 | 7 | 9 | 4 | 67 | 30 | .987 | 6.89 |
1977 Indians | 1B | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 4.50 |
1977 Indians | C | 77 | 67 | 1,810 | 482 | 6.3 | 474 | 426 | 48 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 67 | 35 | .983 | 7.07 |
1977 Mariners | C | 8 | 7 | 171 | 31 | 3.9 | 30 | 29 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | .968 | 4.74 |
1979 Brewers | 1B | 1 | 1 | 24 | 9 | 9.0 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 10.13 |
1979 Brewers | C | 13 | 5 | 178 | 35 | 2.7 | 35 | 32 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1.000 | 5.31 |
Career | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
C Totals | 889 | 796 | 20,498 | 5,347 | 6.0 | 5,269 | 4,831 | 438 | 78 | 61 | 70 | 438 | 285 | .985 | 6.94 | |
1B Totals | 13 | 9 | 249 | 71 | 5.5 | 71 | 69 | 2 | 0 | 10 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 7.70 | |
2B Totals | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .000 | 0.00 | |
12 Years | 903 | 805 | 20,747 | 5,418 | 6.0 | 5,340 | 4,900 | 440 | 78 | 71 | 70 | 438 | 285 | .986 | 6.95 |
Ray FosseRay Fosse 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 |
1967 Indians | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 3.2 | 0.0 | - | - | - |
1968 Indians | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | - | - | - |
1969 Indians | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 1 | 0 | n/a | 58.0 | 4.0 | 12.9 | - | - | - |
1970 Indians | 1 | 5 | .167 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 25.0 | 8.2 | 7.4 | - | - | - |
1971 Indians | 4 | 1 | .800 | 7 | 1 | n/a | 40.5 | 7.8 | 7.8 | - | - | - |
1972 Indians | 5 | 1 | .833 | 9 | 0 | n/a | 45.7 | 9.9 | 11.1 | - | - | - |
1973 Athletics | 2 | 2 | .500 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 70.3 | 7.9 | 9.5 | - | - | - |
1974 Athletics | 1 | 1 | .500 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 51.0 | 6.6 | 8.9 | - | - | - |
1975 Athletics | 0 | 1 | .000 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 7.2 | 11.3 | - | - | - |
1976 Indians | 1 | 2 | .333 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 138.0 | 13.8 | 9.2 | - | - | - |
1977 Indians | 0 | 5 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 39.7 | 9.2 | 8.8 | - | - | - |
1977 Mariners | 0 | 1 | .000 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0.0 | 17.0 | 6.8 | - | - | - |
1979 Brewers | 0 | 0 | .000 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0.0 | 8.7 | 26.0 | - | - | - |
Career | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
12 Years | 15 | 19 | .441 | 32 | 1 | 12 | 48.5 | 8.1 | 9.1 | - | - | - |
Ray FosseRay Fosse Miscellaneous Items of Interest |
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Team | Roster | Uniform Numbers | Salary | All-Star | World Series |
1967 Cleveland Indians | 8 | $4,100.00 | - | - |
1968 Cleveland Indians | 8 | $5,300.00 | - | - |
1969 Cleveland Indians | 8 | $5,700.00 | - | - |
1970 Cleveland Indians | 8 | $15,000.00 | Stats | - |
1971 Cleveland Indians | 8 | $28,000.00 | Stats | - |
1972 Cleveland Indians | 8 | $28,000.00 | - | - |
1973 Oakland Athletics | 10 | $40,500.00 | - | Stats |
1974 Oakland Athletics | 10 | $50,000.00 | - | Stats |
1975 Oakland Athletics | 10 | $50,000.00 | - | - |
1976 Cleveland Indians | 10 | $59,000.00 | - | - |
1977 Cleveland Indians | 10 | $75,000.00 | - | - |
1977 Seattle Mariners | 38 | " " | - | - |
1979 Milwaukee Brewers | 13 | $68,500.00 | - | - |
Ray Fosse Stats by Baseball Almanac |
Raymond Earl Fosse was a Major League Baseball player with the Cleveland Indians (1967–1972), Oakland Athletics (1973–1975), Cleveland Indians (1976–1977), Seattle Mariners (1977), and Milwaukee Brewers (1979). When Ray, his nickname, made his big league debut on September 8, 1967, he became the first Marion High School graduate to play in the majors.
Ray Fosse Rookie Card | 1969 Topps Baseball Card (#244 | Checklist)
Baseball Almanac Collection
Did you know that Ray Fosse was named one of the 100 Greatest Cleveland Indians Players ever? As part of the club’s 100th Anniversary Celebration in 2001, a panel of veteran baseball writers, historians and executives selected a roster of the Top 100 Greatest Indians and Fosse was named one of the seven catchers. The other six catchers were: Sandy Alomar, Joe Azcue, Jim Hegan, Steve O'Neill, Johnny Romano, and Hall of Famer Luke Sewell.
In 1970, Ray Fosse hit safely in 23 consecutive games, the longest streak in the American League since 1961. A excellent first half, .313 batting average / 45 runs batted in / 16 home runs, made The Marion Mule an easy choice for Earl Weaver when picking a reserve catcher during the 1970 All-Star Game. The video (below) is an absolutely iconic moment in baseball history, the Ray Fosse / Pete Rose Collision at Home Plate:
Ray Fosse Video | Collision At Home Plate | 14 July 1970
One of Baseball Almanac's favorite baseball bookshelf descriptions of this historic play was wonderfully detailed in Pete Rose: A Biography (Baseball's All-Time Greatest Hitters) (Jordan, David M. Greenwood Publishing. 30 September 2004. Page 52.), an excerpt:
Initial reaction was mostly favorable to Rose, who said, "Fosse was about two feet in front of the plate. If I'd slid in there, I could have broken both legs," somehow overlooking the fact that players, himself included, slid into home plate all the time. "If I had slid head-first," he continued, "I could have broken my neck." Fosse said, "I know he didn't mean it. But who knows? Maybe he should have run around me. It all happened so quick. I never got hit like that before." Later, Fosse said, "if he had slid conventionally on his rear, he would have made it easily.".
Infielder Jim Fregosi of the Angels said, "I didn't particularly like the play. All Rose has to do is slide and nobody gets hurt." (Clyde) Wright, the American League pitcher, had as good a view of what happened as anyone; he said, "I don't know why he had to hit him so hard. I guess it was instinct with Rose. That's the way he plays. But I was standing there and he could have gone around Fosse."
But few players were willing to criticize Rose publicly. The play was within the rules, Fosse was technically in error for occupying the base line without the ball, and Rose's body block had succeeded. Very few observers called it a cheap shot. But there was an uncomfortable feeling about it, a feeling that Pete Rose's "enthusiasm" had become something a bit more dangerous. From this time on, a feeling grew that boyish, playful Pete Rose would do anything to win, even it risked maiming another player.
Dallas Green, who was to manage Rose in Philadelphia years later, felt that Pete's style of play angered quite a few players. "I think there were plenty of times he was 'sent a message' by pitchers during his career," Green said.
For Ray Fosse, the Rose collision was just something that had happened. As a couple of years went by, though, with his shoulder still achy, Fosse began to wonder. He heard of Rose boasting about the play, about proving his manhood, showing his greatness as a competitor. Rose started telling of how he and Fosse ahd been out carousing together till two in the morning the night before but he had still been willing to slam into a good griend the way he had. Fosse had never met Rose until the night before the All Star Game when, after a press conference, Rose, Fosse, his teammate Sam McDowell, and their wives had gone out to dinner. They returned briefly to the Rose home to talk a little baseball before the Indians players and their wives returned to their hotel. Fosse resented Rose portraying him as a bosom buddy.
Finally, Fosse read an article in 1974 in which Rose responded to a question about the collision by saying, "I could never have looked my father in the eye again, if I hadn't hit Fosse that day." This statement confirmed to Fosse that Rose had crashed into him with malicious intent. Later still, he read that Rose had said, "nobody told me the changed it to girls' softball between third and home." Nevertheless, Ray Fosse held no bitterness toward Pete Rose.
Rose missed three games with a bruised thigh from the Fosse collision before getting back to the business of the National League West.
Excerpt from Pete Rose: A Biography.
Do you agree with the play? Disagree? Was the collision in the spirit of game? Or did it go beyond fair play? Share your opinon with us on Baseball Fever.
Ray Fosse Trivia: (1) When the Cleveland Indians selected The Marion Mule during the 1965 baseball draft, he became the answer to, 'name the first player ever drafted by the Cleveland Indians.' (2) When Ray Fosse won his first Gold Glove Award in 1970, he became the answer to, 'name the first Gold Glove catcher in Cleveland Indians history.' Fosse won again in 1971, making him the only Indians two-time recipient (consecutive winner as well).