Jim Sundberg Stats & Facts

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Jim Sundberg

Positions: Catcher
Bats: R Throws: R
Height: 72 Weight: 190
Born: Friday, May 18, 1951 in Galesburg, IL USA
Debut: 4/4/1974
Last Game: 9/24/1989
Full Name: James Howard Sundberg

 

Notable Events and Chronology for Jim Sundberg Career

Jim Sundberg

The best defensive catcher in the American League in the 1970s, squeaky-clean Jim Sundberg won six Gold Glove Awards. A poor offensive player, Sundberg stayed in the lineup because of his amazing defensive attributes, including his strong arm, ability to block pitches, and knack for handling pitchers. An indication of his value came in 1977 and 1978, when he had his best offensive seasons and received votes for AL MVP, despite playing for the low-profile Texas Rangers. Late in his career, Sundberg provided veteran leadership to the Kansas City Royals as they won the 1985 World Series. He homered in Game Five of the ALCS that year, helping the Royals to overcome a 5-1 deficit.

Quotes From Jim Sundberg
“I’m sure there are fans, good baseball fans, too, over in the National League who still never have heard of Jim Sundberg.” — Sundberg in 1978

Best Season: 1977
There’s no indication that he changed his batting stance in mid-season, or that he had an injury in the first half of the year, but Sundberg suddenly started hitting in July. He batted .383 with 39 RBI in July and August. He finished with career-high marks in batting, HR and RBI, and won the Gold Glove Award.

Notes
Sundberg was a notoriously streaky hitter, with a few exceptions. For example, through June in 1977, Sundberg was hitting .217 with one home run and 19 RBI. He hit a blistering .397 with a .482 OBP in July, .374 with 26 RBI in August, and .258 in September, having caught 149 games. His final batting marks stood at .291 with six homers and 65 RBI, all career-highs. Then, showing it was no-fluke, he batted .324 through the first three months of 1978. He tailed off, tiring under the strain of more than 140 games behind the plate, and hit .278 for the season. The following year, in 1979, he reversed the trend, getting off to a dismal start (.218 through June), and finishing fast: batting .356 in July, .294 in August, and .338 in September. In 1980, he had his most consistent season, batting .290 or better in four months, but he hit an abysmal .152 in June… In 1976, he was hitting .185 in the first two months of the season, but his defense kept him behind the plate and he eventually hit .228 for the year… He also tired under the wear-and-tear of his workload behind the mask. In 1975, when he hit .199 for the season, he batted .180 from July 1 until the end of the season.

 

 

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