Johnny Watwood

John Clifford Watwood
(Lefty)

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 6' 1", Weight 186 lb.
• School Auburn University
• Debut April 16, 1929
• Final Game May 29, 1939
• Born August 17, 1905 in Alexander City, AL USA
• Died March 1, 1980 in Goodwater, AL USA

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Biographical Information

Johnny Watwood played six seasons in the majors, getting 300+ plate appearances in four seasons. He generally played center field, right field or first base. In both 1930 and 1931 he had an OBP over .380, but to be in the top ten in those years required an OBP over .400.

Watwood was born in Alexander City, AL, north of Montgomery, AL. He attended the Alabama Polytechnic Institute (now Auburn University) at the same time as Ben Sankey and Sol Carter.

Johnny played eight years in the minors, including parts of four seasons (1936-1939) with Houston. In 1936 he hit .339 with 11 triples, and in 1937 he was player-manager for part of the season, hitting .353 in 60 games. In addition to playing for three minor league teams in 1939, he briefly came back to the majors.

As of 1929, he was calling Goodwater, AL his home, and he eventually died there in 1980. Some sources refer to him as "Lefty Watwood".

Manager: 1937 Houston Buffaloes

Related Sites

• Johnny Watwood at the SABR Bio Project