Phil Cavarretta and Ken Griffey, Sr.

Phil Cavarretta is like Ken Griffey, Sr?

The first nine players on Phil Cavarretta’s “Similarity Score” is a bunch of guys from Pre-WWII.

1. Dixie Walker (915)
2. Wally Pipp (911)
3. Sam West (903)
4. Augie Galan (899)
5. Harry Davis (891)
6. Wally Moses (890)
7. Gee Walker (890)
8. Ben Chapman (887)
9. Ed Konetchy (882)
10. Ken Griffey (880)

But then check out that guy listed at #10. Ken Griffey, Sr.

         Player From  To Yrs  WAR    G   AB    R    H  2B 3B  HR RBI  BB  SO
Phil Cavarretta 1934-1955 22 34.6 2030 6754  990 1977 347 99  95 920 820 598
Ken Griffey     1973-1991 19 34.4 2097 7229 1129 2143 364 77 152 859 719 898


         Player   BA  OBP  SLG  SB CS OPS+
Phil Cavarretta .293 .372 .416  65  0 118
Ken Griffey     .296 .359 .431 200 83 118


The career numbers do compare pretty well. You have the typical difference in strikeouts/homeruns from different eras. But the averages are pretty similar. Griffey stole more bases, but how in the world did Cavarretta never get caught stealing? Was that not a stat back then?

Hat-tip to the Chicago Tribune for running an Instagram photo of Cavarretta. This caught my attention to this under-appreciated Chicago Cub.

Phil Cavarretta, Chicago Cub, in September 1939. In his 2010 Tribune obituary, it was noted that Cavarretta went from Lane Tech High School to playing for the Cubs at age 18 and held the franchise record for longevity with 20 seasons. A first baseman and outfielder, he was the NL’s MVP and led the Cubs to their last World Series appearance in 1945. He also played his final 77 games as a White Sox. #gocubsgo #cubslegend #chisox #cavarretta

A photo posted by Vintage Tribune (@vintagetribune) on Aug 14, 2015 at 4:52pm PDT