Johnny Bench

⭐ Hall of Fame 1989

Born: 12/7/1947 in Oklahoma City, OK, USA

MLB Debut: 1967-08-28 | Final Game: 1983-09-29

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 6'1" | Weight: 197 lbs

Full name: Johnny Lee Bench

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Biography

Johnny Bench, born in 1947, was a legendary figure in Major League Baseball, celebrated for his exceptional skills as a catcher and his powerful hitting. Playing his entire career from August 28, 1967, to September 29, 1983, Bench became an integral part of the Cincinnati Reds' success during the 1970s, a period marked by the team's dominance in the National League. Over his 2,158 games, he amassed 2,048 hits, including 389 home runs, and drove in 1,376 runs, all while maintaining a batting average of .267. Known for his strong arm and quick release behind the plate, Bench revolutionized the catching position and set new standards for defensive play. A 14-time All-Star, Bench was not only a key player during the Reds' "Big Red Machine" era but also a two-time National League Most Valuable Player. His contributions helped the team secure two World Series championships in 1975 and 1976. Beyond his impressive statistics, Bench's impact on the game extended to his ability to inspire future generations of catchers, demonstrating the importance of offensive prowess combined with defensive excellence. His legacy remains a benchmark for excellence in baseball, earning him a place in the Hall of Fame in 1989, cementing his status as one of the greatest catchers in the history of the sport.

Career Batting Statistics

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
2158	7658	1091	2048	381	24	389	1376	68	891	1278	0.267	0.342	0.476	0.817	25301.2

Season-by-Season Batting

Year	Team	Lg	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	PIV
1967	CIN	NL	26	86	7	14	3	1	1	6	0	5	19	0.163	-431.1
1968	CIN	NL	154	564	67	155	40	2	15	82	1	31	96	0.275	1399.6
1969	CIN	NL	148	532	83	156	23	1	26	90	6	49	86	0.293	2151.7
1970	CIN	NL	158	605	97	177	35	4	45	148	5	54	102	0.293	3401.7
1971	CIN	NL	149	562	80	134	19	2	27	61	2	49	83	0.238	490.3
1972	CIN	NL	147	538	87	145	22	2	40	125	6	100	84	0.270	4044.8
1973	CIN	NL	152	557	83	141	17	3	25	104	4	83	83	0.253	1150.8
1974	CIN	NL	160	621	108	174	38	2	33	129	5	80	90	0.280	3138.1
1975	CIN	NL	142	530	83	150	39	1	28	110	11	65	108	0.283	2489.8
1976	CIN	NL	135	465	62	109	24	1	16	74	13	81	95	0.234	987.2
1977	CIN	NL	142	494	67	136	34	2	31	109	2	58	95	0.275	2044.1
1978	CIN	NL	120	393	52	102	17	1	23	73	4	50	83	0.260	1252.4
1979	CIN	NL	130	464	73	128	19	0	22	80	4	67	73	0.276	1352.6
1980	CIN	NL	114	360	52	90	12	0	24	68	4	41	64	0.250	887.8
1981	CIN	NL	52	178	14	55	8	0	8	25	0	17	21	0.309	737.9
1982	CIN	NL	119	399	44	103	16	0	13	38	1	37	58	0.258	42.3
1983	CIN	NL	110	310	32	79	15	2	12	54	0	24	38	0.255	161.4

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
45	169	27	45	8	3	10	20	18	29	0.266

Playoff Batting by Year

Year	Round	Team	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
1979	NLCS	CIN	3	12	1	3	0	1	1	1	2	2	0.250
1976	NLCS	CIN	3	12	3	4	1	0	1	1	1	2	0.333
1976	WS	CIN	4	15	4	8	1	1	2	6	0	1	0.533
1975	WS	CIN	7	29	5	6	2	0	1	4	2	4	0.207
1975	NLCS	CIN	3	13	1	1	0	0	0	0	1	6	0.077
1973	NLCS	CIN	5	19	1	5	2	0	1	1	2	3	0.263
1972	WS	CIN	7	23	4	6	1	0	1	1	5	5	0.261
1972	NLCS	CIN	5	18	3	6	1	1	1	2	1	3	0.333
1970	WS	CIN	5	19	3	4	0	0	1	3	1	2	0.211
1970	NLCS	CIN	3	9	2	2	0	0	1	1	3	1	0.222

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1B	145	98	966	54	16	94
3B	195	182	107	284	30	17
C	1742	1627	9249	850	97	127
OF	111	96	147	3	8	0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1967	CIN	C	26	26	175	16	1	0
1968	CIN	C	154	139	942	102	9	10
1969	CIN	C	147	135	793	76	7	10
1970	CIN	C	139	130	755	73	12	12
1970	CIN	1B	12	5	74	4	1	7
1970	CIN	3B	1	0	1	0	0	0
1970	CIN	OF	24	17	24	1	2	0
1971	CIN	C	141	133	687	59	9	9
1971	CIN	1B	12	1	34	1	1	7
1971	CIN	3B	3	3	2	6	0	0
1971	CIN	OF	12	10	12	1	0	0
1972	CIN	C	129	124	735	56	6	9
1972	CIN	1B	7	2	24	0	1	1
1972	CIN	3B	4	4	2	7	1	0
1972	CIN	OF	17	17	30	0	2	0
1973	CIN	C	134	124	693	61	4	7
1973	CIN	1B	4	3	29	0	0	3
1973	CIN	3B	1	1	0	2	0	0
1973	CIN	OF	23	22	35	0	2	0
1974	CIN	C	137	129	757	68	6	16
1974	CIN	1B	5	0	15	0	0	0
1974	CIN	3B	36	30	22	55	3	2
1975	CIN	C	121	115	568	51	7	9
1975	CIN	1B	9	3	45	0	1	2
1975	CIN	OF	19	18	33	1	0	0
1976	CIN	C	128	120	651	60	2	11
1976	CIN	1B	1	0	0	0	0	0
1976	CIN	OF	5	3	4	0	2	0
1977	CIN	C	135	125	705	66	10	10
1977	CIN	1B	4	2	21	2	1	3
1977	CIN	3B	1	0	0	1	1	0
1977	CIN	OF	8	7	9	0	0	0
1978	CIN	C	107	96	605	48	7	6
1978	CIN	1B	11	9	75	5	2	7
1978	CIN	OF	2	2	0	0	0	0
1979	CIN	C	126	123	619	68	10	11
1979	CIN	1B	2	2	13	1	0	1
1980	CIN	C	105	98	505	39	5	7
1981	CIN	C	7	7	41	5	1	0
1981	CIN	1B	38	37	334	23	6	35
1982	CIN	C	1	0	1	0	0	0
1982	CIN	1B	8	5	53	4	0	7
1982	CIN	3B	107	103	54	155	19	10
1983	CIN	C	5	3	17	2	1	0
1983	CIN	1B	32	29	249	14	3	21
1983	CIN	3B	42	41	26	58	6	5
1983	CIN	OF	1	0	0	0	0	0

Career Games by Position

Position	Games
Catcher	1743
First Base	146
Third Base	195
Left Field	55
Center Field	2
Right Field	55

Awards & Honors

Year	Award	Notes
2018	Bob Feller Act of Valor Award - HOF Player
1983	Player of the Week	Week of 1983-04-08
1981	Hutch Award
1977	Gold Glove	C
1976	Babe Ruth Award	C
1976	Gold Glove	C
1976	Player of the Week	Week of 1976-04-30
1976	World Series MVP
1975	Gold Glove	C
1975	Lou Gehrig Memorial Award
1975	TSN All-Star	C
1974	Gold Glove	C
1974	Player of the Week	Week of 1974-07-12
1974	TSN All-Star	C
1973	Gold Glove	C
1973	TSN All-Star	C
1972	Gold Glove	C
1972	Most Valuable Player
1972	TSN All-Star	C
1971	Gold Glove	C
1970	Gold Glove	C
1970	Most Valuable Player
1970	TSN All-Star	C
1970	TSN Major League Player of the Year
1970	TSN Player of the Year
1969	Gold Glove	C
1969	TSN All-Star	C
1968	Gold Glove	C
1968	Rookie of the Year
1968	TSN All-Star	C
1968	TSN Rookie Player of the Year

Award Voting History

Year	Award	League	Finish	Points Won	Points Max	Votes First
1980	Most Valuable Player	NL	17th	7.0	336	0
1979	Most Valuable Player	NL	23th	7.0	336	0
1977	Most Valuable Player	NL	21th	3.0	336	0
1975	Most Valuable Player	NL	4th	117.0	336	0
1974	Most Valuable Player	NL	4th	141.0	336	0
1973	Most Valuable Player	NL	10th	41.0	336	0
1972	Most Valuable Player	NL	1st	263.0	336	11
1970	Most Valuable Player	NL	1st	326.0	336	22
1969	Most Valuable Player	NL	13th	12.0	336	0
1968	Most Valuable Player	NL	16th	11.0	280	0
1968	Rookie of the Year	NL	1st	10.0	20	10