Luis Tiant
Full name: Luis Clemente Tiant Vega
Also known as: Luis · Luis Tiant
- Bats / Throws
- Right / Right
- Height
- 183 cm
- Weight
- 82 kg
- Born
- 1940-11-23 · Marianao, La Habana
- Died
- 2024-10-08
- Debut
- 1964-07-19
Luis Tiant was a Cuban baseball player, born on 23 November 1940 in Marianao, La Habana. His full name is recorded as Luis Clemente Tiant Vega. He died on 8 October 2024. He batted and threw right-handed.
The record here covers 19 seasons in the American League and National League, between 1964 and 1982. Most of that was with Boston Red Sox, 8 seasons of it, with the remainder for California Angels, Cleveland Guardians, Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees and Pittsburgh Pirates.
Across his recorded career he batted .164, with 84 hits, 5 home runs and 44 runs batted in. He is credited with 229 wins against 172 losses, an earned run average of 3.30, and 2,416 strikeouts. His 229 wins are the highest total among the 95 Cuban-born major leaguers in this record. His 2,416 strikeouts are the highest total among the 126 Cuban-born major leaguers in this record. His best recorded season earned run average was 1.60, in 1968 (258.1 IP). His most wins in a season was 22, in 1974.
Career summary
- Seasons 19 (1964–1982)
- Leagues American League, National League
- TeamsBoston Red Sox, California Angels, Cleveland Guardians, Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates
- AVG / OBP / SLG
.163 / .184 / .221 - ERA 3.29
· Innings 3429.0
Batting
| Season | Team | League | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | CS | BB | SO | HBP | IBB | SH | SF | TB | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 | Cleveland Guardians | American League | 19 | 48 | 45 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 8 | .111 | .111 | .178 | .289 |
| 1965 | Cleveland Guardians | American League | 41 | 75 | 68 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 30 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 9 | .088 | .127 | .132 | .259 |
| 1966 | Cleveland Guardians | American League | 46 | 45 | 36 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 4 | .111 | .135 | .111 | .246 |
| 1967 | Cleveland Guardians | American League | 33 | 77 | 71 | 9 | 18 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 24 | .254 | .270 | .338 | .608 |
| 1968 | Cleveland Guardians | American League | 34 | 98 | 87 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 8 | .080 | .080 | .092 | .172 |
| 1969 | Cleveland Guardians | American League | 38 | 90 | 81 | 8 | 19 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 29 | .235 | .267 | .358 | .625 |
| 1970 | Minnesota Twins | American League | 18 | 36 | 32 | 7 | 13 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 17 | .406 | .424 | .531 | .955 |
| 1971 | Boston Red Sox | American League | 21 | 19 | 19 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | .158 | .158 | .211 | .369 |
| 1972 | Boston Red Sox | American League | 43 | 61 | 56 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | .107 | .138 | .125 | .263 |
| 1973 | Boston Red Sox | American League | 35 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — |
| 1974 | Boston Red Sox | American League | 38 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — |
| 1975 | Boston Red Sox | American League | 35 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| 1976 | Boston Red Sox | American League | 38 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| 1977 | Boston Red Sox | American League | 32 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — |
| 1978 | Boston Red Sox | American League | 32 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — |
| 1979 | New York Yankees | American League | 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — |
| 1980 | New York Yankees | American League | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — |
| 1981 | Pittsburgh Pirates | National League | 9 | 19 | 16 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | .188 | .235 | .312 | .547 |
| 1982 | California Angels | American League | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — |
| Career total | — | American League | 564 | 551 | 497 | 36 | 81 | 12 | 1 | 5 | 40 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 143 | 1 | 0 | 39 | 2 | 110 | .163 | .184 | .221 | .405 |
| Career total | — | National League | 9 | 19 | 16 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | .188 | .235 | .312 | .547 |
Pitching
| Season | Team | League | W | L | ERA | G | GS | SV | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | SO | WHIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 | Cleveland Guardians | American League | 10 | 4 | 2.83 | 19 | 16 | 1 | 127.0 | 94 | 41 | 40 | 13 | 47 | 105 | 1.110 |
| 1965 | Cleveland Guardians | American League | 11 | 11 | 3.53 | 41 | 30 | 1 | 196.1 | 166 | 88 | 77 | 20 | 66 | 152 | 1.182 |
| 1966 | Cleveland Guardians | American League | 12 | 11 | 2.79 | 46 | 16 | 8 | 155.0 | 121 | 50 | 48 | 16 | 50 | 145 | 1.103 |
| 1967 | Cleveland Guardians | American League | 12 | 9 | 2.74 | 33 | 29 | 2 | 213.2 | 177 | 76 | 65 | 24 | 67 | 219 | 1.142 |
| 1968 | Cleveland Guardians | American League | 21 | 9 | 1.60 | 34 | 32 | 0 | 258.1 | 152 | 53 | 46 | 16 | 73 | 264 | .871 |
| 1969 | Cleveland Guardians | American League | 9 | 20 | 3.71 | 38 | 37 | 0 | 249.2 | 229 | 123 | 103 | 37 | 129 | 156 | 1.434 |
| 1970 | Minnesota Twins | American League | 7 | 3 | 3.40 | 18 | 17 | 0 | 92.2 | 84 | 36 | 35 | 12 | 41 | 50 | 1.349 |
| 1971 | Boston Red Sox | American League | 1 | 7 | 4.85 | 21 | 10 | 0 | 72.1 | 73 | 42 | 39 | 8 | 32 | 59 | 1.452 |
| 1972 | Boston Red Sox | American League | 15 | 6 | 1.91 | 43 | 19 | 3 | 179.0 | 128 | 45 | 38 | 7 | 65 | 123 | 1.078 |
| 1973 | Boston Red Sox | American League | 20 | 13 | 3.34 | 35 | 35 | 0 | 272.0 | 217 | 105 | 101 | 32 | 78 | 206 | 1.085 |
| 1974 | Boston Red Sox | American League | 22 | 13 | 2.92 | 38 | 38 | 0 | 311.1 | 281 | 106 | 101 | 21 | 82 | 176 | 1.166 |
| 1975 | Boston Red Sox | American League | 18 | 14 | 4.02 | 35 | 35 | 0 | 260.0 | 262 | 126 | 116 | 25 | 72 | 142 | 1.285 |
| 1976 | Boston Red Sox | American League | 21 | 12 | 3.06 | 38 | 38 | 0 | 279.0 | 274 | 107 | 95 | 25 | 64 | 131 | 1.211 |
| 1977 | Boston Red Sox | American League | 12 | 8 | 4.53 | 32 | 32 | 0 | 188.2 | 210 | 98 | 95 | 26 | 51 | 124 | 1.383 |
| 1978 | Boston Red Sox | American League | 13 | 8 | 3.31 | 32 | 31 | 0 | 212.1 | 185 | 80 | 78 | 26 | 57 | 114 | 1.140 |
| 1979 | New York Yankees | American League | 13 | 8 | 3.91 | 30 | 30 | 0 | 195.2 | 190 | 94 | 85 | 22 | 53 | 104 | 1.242 |
| 1980 | New York Yankees | American League | 8 | 9 | 4.89 | 25 | 25 | 0 | 136.1 | 139 | 79 | 74 | 10 | 50 | 84 | 1.386 |
| 1981 | Pittsburgh Pirates | National League | 2 | 5 | 3.92 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 57.1 | 54 | 31 | 25 | 3 | 19 | 32 | 1.273 |
| 1982 | California Angels | American League | 2 | 2 | 5.76 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 29.2 | 39 | 20 | 19 | 3 | 8 | 30 | 1.584 |
| Career total | — | American League | 227 | 167 | 3.29 | 564 | 475 | 15 | 3429.0 | 3021 | 1369 | 1255 | 343 | 1085 | 2384 | 1.197 |
| Career total | — | National League | 2 | 5 | 3.92 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 57.1 | 54 | 31 | 25 | 3 | 19 | 32 | 1.273 |
Frequently asked questions
When was Luis Tiant born?
Luis Tiant was born on 1940-11-23 in Marianao, La Habana.
Which teams did Luis Tiant play for?
Luis Tiant appears for Boston Red Sox, California Angels, Cleveland Guardians, Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates across 19 recorded seasons.
What are Luis Tiant's career statistics?
In 19 recorded seasons Luis Tiant batted .163 with 81 hits, 5 home runs and 40 runs batted in.
Sources and licences
- Identity data from the Chadwick Bureau Register, made available under the Open Data Commons Attribution License v1.0. ODC-By-1.0 (retrieved 2026-08-29)
- The information used here was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted by Retrosheet. Interested parties may contact Retrosheet at "www.retrosheet.org". custom-permissive (retrieved 2026-09-01)
- Biographical data from Wikidata, released under CC0 1.0. CC0-1.0 (retrieved 2026-08-29)
