Bobby Sturgeon

Robert Harwood Sturgeon

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 175 lb.
• High School Long Beach Polytechnic High School
• Debut April 16, 1940
• Final Game October 3, 1948
• Born August 6, 1919 in Clinton, IN USA
• Died March 10, 2007 in San Dimas, CA USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Infielder Bobby Sturgeon was signed as an amateur free agent by the St. Louis Cardinals in 1937. He played his first of seventeen seasons in pro ball with the Albuquerque Cardinals of the class D Arizona-Texas League. Bobby spent three seasons in the minors (1937-1939) before getting his first chance at the major league game after he was sold by the Cardinals to the Chicago Cubs, on December 27, 1939.

He debuted with the Cubs on April 16, 1940, appeared in 7 games with not much success. He spent the rest of the 1940 season with the Jersey City Giants of the International League. Sturgeon spent the next two years with the Wrigley Field team, hitting .245 in 1941 and .247 in 1942 before serving the next three seasons (1943-1945) with the United States Navy during World War II.

After returning from military service, Sturgeon was back with the Cubs in 1946 and had his best batting average while in the majors, when he hit at a .296 clip for the season. Bobby's production fell the following year and on March 1, 1948 the Cubs traded him to the Boston Braves for Dick Culler and Walt Lanfranconi. He hit .218 in 28 games for the Braves and this signaled the end of Sturgeon's time in the big leagues. He finished out having appeared in 420 games with a .277 batting average and fielded the six seasons at a .959 percentage.

Sturgeon went back to the minors where he spent the next seven seasons with eight different clubs, all the way from AAA to class C. Looking at his numbers it appears that his most productive year came early on in the 1939 season, with the Columbus Red Birds of the American Association, when he appeared in 151 games and hit .297. In total, his minor league career record showed a .270 batting average, while appearing in 1,168 games. Bobby also served as a player-manager in minor league baseball for five years (1951-1955), in the Western International League, California League and the Pioneer League.

After baseball Robert Harwood Sturgeon made his home in San Dimas, CA, where he worked and lived until his death on March 10, 2007.

Year-by-Year Managerial Record

Year	Team	League	Record	Finish	Organization	Playoffs	Notes
1951	Victoria Athletics	Western International League	36-43	7th	none	none	replaced Dick Barrett (26-40) on June 25
1952	Ventura Braves	California League	41-62	--	Boston Braves	--	replaced by Jose Perez (15-22) on August 2
1953	Edmonton Eskimos	Western International League	79-61	3rd	none
1954	Edmonton Eskimos	Western International League	62-63	5th	none
1955	Salt Lake City Bees	Pioneer League	35-36	--	Philadelphia Phillies	--	replaced by Sven Jessen (26-34) on July 11

Related Sites

• Bobby Sturgeon at the SABR Bio Project