Bobby Doerr was born on Sunday, April 7, 1918, in Los Angeles, California. Doerr was 19 years old when he broke into the big leagues on April 20, 1937, with the Boston Red 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 Bobby Doerr baseball stats page.
"There is a lot of luck in baseball, and what is luck? Luck is really just a lot of practice and a lot of work. I think it goes back to bouncing the ball off the steps a jillion times and my God, pretty soon you have to get pretty good." - Doerr, Bobby. Hall of Fame Second Baseman. Class of 1986. The Cultural Encyclopedia of Baseball. Light, Jonathan Fraser. Author. McFarland & Company Publishing. 1 September 2017. Page 528.
Bobby Doerr![]() Bobby 'The Silent Captain' Doerr Autograph on a 1992 Conlon Collection Baseball Card (#467) |
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Bobby DoerrBobby Doerr Pitching Stats |
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| 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 | ||
Bobby DoerrBobby Doerr Hitting Stats |
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| Year | Age | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| 1937 | 19 | Red Sox | 55 | 147 | 22 | 33 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 14 | 18 | 0 | 25 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 2 | .224 | .313 | .313 |
| 1938 | 20 | Red Sox | 145 | 509 | 70 | 147 | 26 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 80 | 59 | 3 | 39 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 6 | .289 | .363 | .397 |
| 1939 | 21 | Red Sox | 127 | 525 | 75 | 167 | 28 | 2 | 12 | 1 | 73 | 38 | 0 | 32 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 17 | .318 | .365 | .448 |
| 1940 | 22 | Red Sox | 151 | 595 | 87 | 173 | 37 | 10 | 22 | 1 | 105 | 57 | 7 | 53 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 16 | .291 | .353 | .497 |
| 1941 | 23 | Red Sox | 132 | 500 | 74 | 141 | 28 | 4 | 16 | 1 | 93 | 43 | 5 | 43 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | .282 | .339 | .450 |
| 1942 | 24 | Red Sox | 144 | 545 | 71 | 158 | 35 | 5 | 15 | 0 | 102 | 67 | 6 | 55 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 11 | .290 | .369 | .455 |
| 1943 | 25 | Red Sox | 155 | 604 | 78 | 163 | 32 | 3 | 16 | 0 | 75 | 62 | 5 | 59 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 11 | .270 | .339 | .412 |
| 1944 | 26 | Red Sox | 125 | 468 | 95 | 152 | 30 | 10 | 15 | 0 | 81 | 58 | 1 | 31 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .325 | .399 | .528 |
| 1946 | 28 | Red Sox | 151 | 583 | 95 | 158 | 34 | 9 | 18 | 1 | 116 | 66 | 7 | 67 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 18 | .271 | .346 | .453 |
| 1947 | 29 | Red Sox | 146 | 561 | 79 | 145 | 23 | 10 | 17 | 1 | 95 | 59 | 4 | 47 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 25 | .258 | .329 | .426 |
| 1948 | 30 | Red Sox | 140 | 527 | 94 | 150 | 23 | 6 | 27 | 1 | 111 | 83 | 7 | 49 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 13 | .285 | .386 | .505 |
| 1949 | 31 | Red Sox | 139 | 541 | 91 | 167 | 30 | 9 | 18 | 0 | 109 | 75 | 2 | 33 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 31 | .309 | .393 | .497 |
| 1950 | 32 | Red Sox | 149 | 586 | 103 | 172 | 29 | 11 | 27 | 1 | 120 | 67 | 4 | 42 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 21 | .294 | .367 | .519 |
| 1951 | 33 | Red Sox | 106 | 402 | 60 | 116 | 21 | 2 | 13 | 0 | 73 | 57 | 2 | 33 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 10 | .289 | .378 | .448 |
| Career | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG | ||
| 14 Years | 1,865 | 7,093 | 1,094 | 2,042 | 381 | 89 | 223 | 8 | 1,247 | 809 | 53 | 608 | 115 | 0 | 11 | 190 | .288 | .362 | .461 | ||
Bobby DoerrBobby Doerr Fielding Stats |
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| Team | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
| 1937 Red Sox | 2B | 47 | 36 | 882 | 224 | 4.8 | 218 | 94 | 124 | 6 | 29 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .973 | 6.67 |
| 1938 Red Sox | 2B | 145 | 141 | 3,576 | 818 | 5.6 | 792 | 372 | 420 | 26 | 118 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .968 | 5.98 |
| 1939 Red Sox | 2B | 126 | 125 | 3,129 | 786 | 6.2 | 767 | 336 | 431 | 19 | 95 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .976 | 6.62 |
| 1940 Red Sox | 2B | 151 | 151 | 4,014 | 902 | 6.0 | 881 | 401 | 480 | 21 | 118 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .977 | 5.93 |
| 1941 Red Sox | 2B | 132 | 130 | 3,318 | 699 | 5.3 | 679 | 290 | 389 | 20 | 85 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .971 | 5.53 |
| 1942 Red Sox | 2B | 142 | 142 | 3,774 | 850 | 6.0 | 829 | 376 | 453 | 21 | 105 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .975 | 5.93 |
| 1943 Red Sox | 2B | 155 | 155 | 465 | 914 | 5.9 | 905 | 415 | 490 | 9 | 132 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .990 | 52.55 |
| 1944 Red Sox | 2B | 125 | 125 | 3,372 | 721 | 5.8 | 704 | 341 | 363 | 17 | 96 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .976 | 5.64 |
| 1946 Red Sox | 2B | 151 | 151 | 426 | 916 | 6.1 | 903 | 420 | 483 | 13 | 129 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .986 | 57.23 |
| 1947 Red Sox | 2B | 146 | 146 | 3,801 | 858 | 5.9 | 842 | 376 | 466 | 16 | 118 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .981 | 5.98 |
| 1948 Red Sox | 2B | 138 | 138 | 3,627 | 802 | 5.8 | 796 | 366 | 430 | 6 | 119 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .993 | 5.93 |
| 1949 Red Sox | 2B | 139 | 139 | 3,708 | 851 | 6.1 | 834 | 395 | 439 | 17 | 134 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .980 | 6.07 |
| 1950 Red Sox | 2B | 149 | 149 | 3,948 | 885 | 5.9 | 874 | 443 | 431 | 11 | 130 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .988 | 5.98 |
| 1951 Red Sox | 2B | 106 | 105 | 2,856 | 626 | 5.9 | 614 | 303 | 311 | 12 | 99 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .981 | 5.80 |
| Career | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
| 2B Totals | 1,852 | 1,833 | 40,896 | 10,852 | 5.9 | 10,638 | 4,928 | 5,710 | 214 | 1,507 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .980 | 7.02 | |
| 14 Years | 1,852 | 1,833 | 40,896 | 10,852 | 5.9 | 10,638 | 4,928 | 5,710 | 214 | 1,507 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .980 | 7.02 | |
Bobby DoerrBobby Doerr Miscellaneous Stats |
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| 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 |
| 1937 Red Sox | 2 | 4 | .333 | 1 | 9 | n/a | 73.5 | 5.9 | 10.5 | - | - | - |
| 1938 Red Sox | 5 | 10 | .333 | 0 | 1 | n/a | 101.8 | 13.1 | 6.4 | - | - | - |
| 1939 Red Sox | 1 | 10 | .091 | 1 | 0 | n/a | 43.8 | 16.4 | 7.2 | - | - | - |
| 1940 Red Sox | 10 | 5 | .667 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 27.0 | 11.2 | 5.7 | - | - | - |
| 1941 Red Sox | 1 | 3 | .250 | 1 | 0 | n/a | 31.3 | 11.6 | 5.4 | - | - | - |
| 1942 Red Sox | 4 | 4 | .500 | 2 | 0 | n/a | 36.3 | 9.9 | 5.3 | - | - | - |
| 1943 Red Sox | 8 | 8 | .500 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 37.8 | 10.2 | 8.1 | - | - | - |
| 1944 Red Sox | 5 | 2 | .714 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 31.2 | 15.1 | 5.8 | - | - | - |
| 1946 Red Sox | 5 | 6 | .455 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 32.4 | 8.7 | 5.0 | - | - | - |
| 1947 Red Sox | 3 | 3 | .500 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 33.0 | 11.9 | 5.9 | - | - | - |
| 1948 Red Sox | 3 | 2 | .600 | 2 | 0 | n/a | 19.5 | 10.8 | 4.7 | - | - | - |
| 1949 Red Sox | 2 | 2 | .500 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 30.1 | 16.4 | 5.0 | - | - | - |
| 1950 Red Sox | 3 | 4 | .429 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 21.7 | 14.0 | 4.9 | - | - | - |
| 1951 Red Sox | 2 | 1 | .667 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 30.9 | 12.2 | 5.5 | - | - | - |
| Career | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
| 14 Years | 54 | 64 | .458 | 7 | 10 | n/a | 31.8 | 11.7 | 5.7 | - | - | - |
Bobby DoerrBobby Doerr Miscellaneous Items of Interest |
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| Team | Roster | Uniform Numbers | Salary | All-Star | World Series |
| 1937 Boston Red Sox | 9 | $3,300.00 | - | - |
| 1938 Boston Red Sox | 1 | $4,000.00 | - | - |
| 1939 Boston Red Sox | 1 | $7,000.00 | - | - |
| 1940 Boston Red Sox | 1 | $10,000.00 | - | - |
| 1941 Boston Red Sox | 1 | $12,000.00 | Stats | - |
| 1942 Boston Red Sox | 1 | $12,000.00 | Stats | - |
| 1943 Boston Red Sox | 1 | $14,000.00 | Stats | - |
| 1944 Boston Red Sox | 1 | $14,000.00 | Stats | - |
| 1946 Boston Red Sox | 1 | $17,500.00 | Stats | Stats |
| 1947 Boston Red Sox | 1 | $22,500.00 | Stats | - |
| 1948 Boston Red Sox | 1 | $22,500.00 | Stats | - |
| 1949 Boston Red Sox | 1 | $27,500.00 | - | - |
| 1950 Boston Red Sox | 1 | $27,500.00 | Stats | - |
| 1951 Boston Red Sox | 1 | $27,500.00 | Stats | - |
| Bobby Doerr Stats by Baseball Almanac | ||||

Robert Pershing Doerr was a Major League Baseball player who spent his entire fourteen year hall of career with the Boston Red Sox (1937-1944, 1946-1951). Did you know that Bobby, his nickname, was the first Boston Red Sox player to hit for the cycle twice (May 17, 1944 & May 13, 1947)?

Bobby Doerr Rookie Card | 1938 Goudey Heads Up Baseball Card (#258)
Baseball Almanac Research Library
The Silent Captain, at the time of his retirement, held Red Sox records for career games played (1,865), at bats (7,093), hits (2,042), doubles (381), total bases (3,270) and runs batted in (1,247) — all of which were later broken by his longtime teammate Ted Williams, who said:
Bobby Doerr was an absolutely outstanding player. He was an exceptional second baseman, he rarely booted ground balls, he was a good clutch hitter and a good all-around hitter who could bat third, fourth or fifth in a lineup of good hitters. We never had a captain, but he was the silent captain of the team.

Bobby Doerr | National Baseball Hall of Fame Plaque | Class of 1986 (HOF)
Bobby Doerr's plaque (above) at the National Baseball Hall of Fame includes, "Quiet leader of Red Sox during 1940's, consistent second baseman, top double play man and fine clutch hitter." How consistent? Doerr set the American League (AL) record in 1948 by handling 414 consecutive chances over 73 games without a single error. He led junior circuit second basemen in double plays five times, tying an AL record, in putouts and fielding percentage four times, and in assists three times. He held the Major League record for career double plays at second base (1,507) until Nellie Fox surpassed his mark in 1963, and his career fielding percentage (.980) was a Major League record until Red Schoendienst passed him in 1953.
Ian Browne, an MLB Staff Writer and Baseball Historian, published research on April 6, 2020, where he described in detail the greatest second baseman in the history of the Boston Red Sox. An excerpt from his exceptional story appears below:
Doerr's brilliance on the field was matched only by his unflappable grace off it. Teaming with Ted Williams, Johnny Pesky and Dom DiMaggio on some memorable Red Sox teams in the 1940s, Doerr was considered the leader of those teams. In fact, it was Williams who once dubbed Doerr the silent captain. He led with such great example that words weren't needed.
The right-handed hitter made plenty of noise with his bat, slashing .288/.362/.461 with 223 homers and 1,247 RBIs in 1,865 career games -- all of them for the Red Sox. Doerr was also known for his rock-solid defense at second base. He led AL second basemen in fielding percentage six times and in double plays five times. Doerr once held the AL record for most consecutive chances at second base without an error (414). In 1969 and again in '82, Red Sox fans voted him the team's all-time best second baseman.
Doerr played in more games at the position (1,852) than any other player in Red Sox history, and he ranks first all-time in Red Sox history for homers by a second baseman. The avid fisherman from Oregon died in 2017 at the age of 99.

The Teammates | Bobby Doerr, Dom DiMaggio, Johnny Pesky & Ted WilliamsBaseball Almanac Research Library
On May 21, 1988, the Red Sox retired #1 in honor of Bobby Doerr who spent his entire 14-year big league career in Boston. From the day he made his debut, going 3-for-5 for the on Opening Day, April 20, 1937, to the day he retired; Tommy Henrich said of him, "He is one of the few who played the game hard and retired with no enemies," Doerr embodied all the quality traits of professional baseball player both on and off the field. The Teammates: A Portrait of a Friendship (cover seen above), discusses that time on and off the field, includes Bobby Doerr (and Dom DiMaggio, Johnny Pesky & Ted Williams), and is an absolutely superb and moving book about friendship that should not be missed (regardless if you are a Red Sox fan or not).