Ray Schalk was born on Friday, August 12, 1892, in Harvel, Illinois. Schalk was 19 years old when he broke into the big leagues on August 11, 1912, with the Chicago White Sox. 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 Schalk baseball stats page.
"(Ray) Schalk is unquestionably the hardest working catcher in baseball as he is doubtless also the brainiest, the nerviest, the most competent. He presents the unique distinction of performing more work than any other catcher and at the same time performing it better. Both in quantity and in quality of service Ray Schalk is unquestionably the premier backstop in baseball." - John C. Ward in Baseball Magazine (1920, SABR Baseball Biography Project, "Ray Schalk", Source)
Ray Schalk![]() Ray Schalk Autograph on a 1961 Fleer Baseball Card (#136) |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Biographical Data | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ray SchalkRay Schalk Pitching Stats |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 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 SchalkRay Schalk Hitting Stats |
|||||||||||||||||||||
| Year | Age | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| 1912 | 20 | White Sox | 23 | 63 | 7 | 18 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 3 | - | - | 3 | - | 4 | - | .286 | .357 | .317 |
| 1913 | 21 | White Sox | 129 | 401 | 38 | 98 | 15 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 38 | 27 | - | 36 | 14 | - | 3 | - | .244 | .297 | .314 |
| 1914 | 22 | White Sox | 136 | 392 | 30 | 106 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 38 | - | 24 | 21 | - | 8 | - | .270 | .347 | .314 |
| 1915 | 23 | White Sox | 135 | 413 | 46 | 110 | 14 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 54 | 62 | - | 21 | 17 | - | 3 | - | .266 | .366 | .327 |
| 1916 | 24 | White Sox | 129 | 410 | 36 | 95 | 12 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 41 | 41 | - | 31 | 15 | - | 6 | - | .232 | .311 | .305 |
| 1917 | 25 | White Sox | 140 | 424 | 48 | 96 | 12 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 51 | 59 | - | 27 | 17 | - | 7 | - | .226 | .331 | .292 |
| 1918 | 26 | White Sox | 108 | 333 | 35 | 73 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 36 | - | 22 | 15 | - | 3 | - | .219 | .301 | .255 |
| 1919 | 27 | White Sox | 131 | 394 | 57 | 111 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 51 | - | 25 | 14 | - | 2 | - | .282 | .367 | .320 |
| 1920 | 28 | White Sox | 151 | 485 | 64 | 131 | 25 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 61 | 68 | - | 19 | 21 | - | 2 | - | .270 | .362 | .348 |
| 1921 | 29 | White Sox | 128 | 416 | 32 | 105 | 24 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 47 | 40 | - | 36 | 9 | - | 7 | - | .252 | .328 | .329 |
| 1922 | 30 | White Sox | 142 | 442 | 57 | 124 | 22 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 60 | 67 | - | 36 | 22 | - | 3 | - | .281 | .379 | .371 |
| 1923 | 31 | White Sox | 123 | 382 | 42 | 87 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 44 | 39 | - | 28 | 17 | - | 4 | - | .228 | .306 | .277 |
| 1924 | 32 | White Sox | 57 | 153 | 15 | 30 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 21 | - | 10 | 6 | - | 2 | - | .196 | .301 | .268 |
| 1925 | 33 | White Sox | 125 | 343 | 44 | 94 | 18 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 52 | 57 | - | 27 | 14 | - | 3 | - | .274 | .382 | .332 |
| 1926 | 34 | White Sox | 82 | 226 | 26 | 60 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 27 | - | 11 | 8 | - | 2 | - | .265 | .349 | .314 |
| 1927 | 35 | White Sox | 16 | 26 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | - | 1 | 1 | - | 0 | - | .231 | .286 | .308 |
| 1928 | 36 | White Sox | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 0 | - | 1.000 | 1.000 | 1.000 |
| 1929 | 37 | Giants | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| Career | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG | ||
| 18 Years | 1,762 | 5,306 | 579 | 1,345 | 199 | 49 | 11 | 0 | 594 | 638 | 0 | 355 | 214 | 0 | 59 | - | .253 | .340 | .316 | ||
Ray SchalkRay Schalk Fielding Stats |
||||||||||||||||
| Team | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
| 1912 White Sox | C | 23 | - | - | 169 | 7.3 | 155 | 115 | 40 | 14 | 4 | 0 | - | - | .917 | 0.00 |
| 1913 White Sox | C | 125 | - | - | 768 | 6.1 | 753 | 599 | 154 | 15 | 18 | 15 | 15 | - | .980 | 0.00 |
| 1914 White Sox | C | 125 | - | - | 817 | 6.5 | 796 | 613 | 183 | 21 | 20 | 12 | 12 | - | .974 | 0.00 |
| 1915 White Sox | C | 134 | 13 | 351 | 827 | 6.2 | 814 | 655 | 159 | 13 | 8 | 12 | 0 | 12 | .984 | 62.62 |
| 1916 White Sox | C | 124 | 121 | 93 | 829 | 6.7 | 819 | 653 | 166 | 10 | 25 | 3 | 0 | 3 | .988 | 237.77 |
| 1917 White Sox | C | 139 | 13 | 378 | 787 | 5.7 | 772 | 624 | 148 | 15 | 18 | 8 | 0 | 8 | .981 | 55.14 |
| 1918 White Sox | C | 106 | 104 | 2,558 | 548 | 5.2 | 536 | 422 | 114 | 12 | 15 | 8 | 67 | 0 | .978 | 5.66 |
| 1919 White Sox | C | 129 | 12 | 327 | 694 | 5.4 | 681 | 551 | 130 | 13 | 14 | 4 | 0 | 4 | .981 | 56.23 |
| 1920 White Sox | C | 151 | 15 | 417 | 729 | 4.8 | 719 | 581 | 138 | 10 | 19 | 6 | 0 | 6 | .986 | 46.55 |
| 1921 White Sox | C | 126 | 126 | 2,837 | 591 | 4.7 | 582 | 453 | 129 | 9 | 19 | 11 | 47 | 51 | .985 | 5.54 |
| 1922 White Sox | C | 142 | 14 | 378 | 749 | 5.3 | 741 | 591 | 150 | 8 | 16 | 3 | 50 | 3 | .989 | 52.93 |
| 1923 White Sox | C | 121 | 116 | 2,765 | 584 | 4.8 | 574 | 481 | 93 | 10 | 20 | 3 | 58 | 41 | .983 | 5.61 |
| 1924 White Sox | C | 56 | 48 | 1,076 | 241 | 4.3 | 231 | 176 | 55 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 22 | 23 | .959 | 5.80 |
| 1925 White Sox | C | 125 | 111 | 2,439 | 475 | 3.8 | 467 | 368 | 99 | 8 | 15 | 5 | 17 | 51 | .983 | 5.17 |
| 1926 White Sox | C | 80 | 70 | 1,552 | 303 | 3.8 | 296 | 251 | 45 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 13 | 17 | .977 | 5.15 |
| 1927 White Sox | C | 15 | 9 | 191 | 32 | 2.1 | 32 | 24 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 1.000 | 4.52 |
| 1928 White Sox | C | 1 | 1 | - | 4 | 4.0 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 0 | 1.000 | 0.00 |
| 1929 Giants | C | 5 | 1 | - | 7 | 1.4 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 0.00 |
| Career | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
| C Totals | 1,727 | 774 | 15,362 | 9,154 | 5.3 | 8,979 | 7,168 | 1,811 | 175 | 226 | 98 | 305 | 224 | .981 | 15.78 | |
| 18 Years | 1,727 | 774 | 15,362 | 9,154 | 5.3 | 8,979 | 7,168 | 1,811 | 175 | 226 | 98 | 305 | 224 | .981 | 15.78 | |
Ray SchalkRay Schalk Miscellaneous Stats |
||||||||||||
| 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 |
| 1912 White Sox | 2 | 0 | 1.000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 0.0 | 7.9 | - | - | - |
| 1913 White Sox | 14 | - | - | 0 | 0 | n/a | 401.0 | 11.1 | 10.6 | - | - | - |
| 1914 White Sox | 24 | 11 | .686 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 16.3 | 10.9 | - | - | - |
| 1915 White Sox | 15 | 18 | .455 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 413.0 | 19.7 | 7.6 | - | - | - |
| 1916 White Sox | 30 | 13 | .698 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 13.2 | 10.0 | - | - | - |
| 1917 White Sox | 19 | - | - | 0 | 0 | n/a | 212.0 | 15.7 | 8.3 | - | - | - |
| 1918 White Sox | 12 | - | - | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 15.1 | 15.1 | - | - | - |
| 1919 White Sox | 11 | - | - | 2 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 15.8 | 11.6 | - | - | - |
| 1920 White Sox | 10 | 4 | .714 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 485.0 | 25.5 | 8.0 | - | - | - |
| 1921 White Sox | 3 | 4 | .429 | 2 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 11.6 | 8.9 | - | - | - |
| 1922 White Sox | 12 | 4 | .750 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 110.5 | 12.3 | 7.4 | - | - | - |
| 1923 White Sox | 7 | 4 | .636 | 2 | 0 | n/a | 382.0 | 13.6 | 8.7 | - | - | - |
| 1924 White Sox | 1 | 5 | .167 | 1 | 0 | n/a | 153.0 | 15.3 | 13.9 | - | - | - |
| 1925 White Sox | 11 | 5 | .688 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 12.7 | 6.6 | - | - | - |
| 1926 White Sox | 5 | 1 | .833 | 2 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 20.5 | 7.1 | - | - | - |
| 1927 White Sox | 0 | 0 | .000 | 1 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 26.0 | 13.0 | - | - | - |
| 1928 White Sox | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 1 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | - | - | - |
| 1929 Giants | 0 | - | - | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 | - | - | - |
| Career | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
| 18 Years | 177 | 69 | .720 | 11 | 0 | n/a | 482.4 | 14.9 | 8.9 | - | - | - |
Ray SchalkRay Schalk Miscellaneous Items of Interest |
||||
| Team | Roster | Uniform Numbers | Salary | All-Star | World Series |
| 1912 Chicago White Sox | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1913 Chicago White Sox | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1914 Chicago White Sox | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1915 Chicago White Sox | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1916 Chicago White Sox | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1917 Chicago White Sox | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | Stats |
| 1918 Chicago White Sox | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| 1919 Chicago White Sox | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | Stats |
| 1920 Chicago White Sox | n/a | $10,000.00 | n/a | - |
| 1921 Chicago White Sox | n/a | $10,000.00 | n/a | - |
| 1922 Chicago White Sox | n/a | $10,000.00 | n/a | - |
| 1923 Chicago White Sox | n/a | $15,000.00 | n/a | - |
| 1924 Chicago White Sox | n/a | $15,000.00 | n/a | - |
| 1925 Chicago White Sox | n/a | $15,000.00 | n/a | - |
| 1926 Chicago White Sox | n/a | $15,000.00 | n/a | - |
| 1927 Chicago White Sox | n/a | $15,000.00 | n/a | - |
| 1928 Chicago White Sox | n/a | $25,000.00 | n/a | - |
| 1929 New York Giants | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
| Ray Schalk Stats by Baseball Almanac | ||||

Ray Schalk was one of the most outstanding defensive catchers in baseball history, leading the league in putouts nine times, fielding percentage eight times, double plays four times and assists twice - while also setting the standard for durability, catching 100 or more games for eleven consecutive seasons! An excerpt from the Hall of Fame write-up:
Where Schalk really made his name was on defense. Combining his sharp mind for the game with a blue-collar approach, Schalk proved adept at handling a wide variety of pitching styles. A true workhorse, Schalk led the American League in games caught seven times, including his 1920 sea-son when he caught 151 of Chicago’s 154 games. His defensive prowess stands out even more since he was doing it at a time when spitballs and other trick pitches were legal. Schalk was also credited with catching four no-hitters in his career, though one of those was taken away when the standards for no-hitters were adjusted in 1991.
Schalk pioneered aspects of the catcher’s position often taken for granted. An active part of the infield, he was believed to be the first catcher to back up throws to first base on ground outs or third base on throws from the outfield. He also recorded putouts at every base over the course of his career, even second base, and he led AL catchers in fielding percentage five times.

Ray Scahlk | National Baseball Hall of Fame Plaque | Class of 1955 (HOF)
On April 30, 1922, Ray Scahlk caught his third no-hitter, tying the American League record, set previously by Bill Carrigan. Val Picinich, Luke Sewell, Yogi Berra, and Jim Hegan each tied the mark after Schalk hung up his tools of ignorance. Do you know what backstop broke their record in 2008? [Answer] [Most No Hitters Caught Record Book]
Did you know that Ray Schalk is the only catcher in Major League history to turn more than two-hundred double plays during his career? Rounding out the top ten (double plays while catching) are: 2. Steve O'Neill (193 DP), Yogi Berra (175 DP), Gabby Hartnett (163 DP), Tony Pena (156 DP), Ivan Rodriguez (156 DP), Bob Boone (154 DP), Jimmie Wilson (153 DP), Wally Schang (149 DP), and Gary Carter (149 DP). [Double Play Records by Catchers]