Zeke Bonura

First Baseman · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1934-1940)

Zeke Bonura was a first baseman who played in Major League Baseball from 1934 to 1940 for 4 teams, including the Chicago White Sox, a span of 7 seasons. In 917 career games, he hit .307 with 1,099 hits, 119 home runs, and 704 RBI. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 12,904.

AVG (Batting Average):
Hits divided by at bats. .300 is the traditional mark of an excellent hitter.
HR (Home Runs):
Hits on which the batter circled the bases and scored, almost always by clearing the outfield fence.
RBI (Runs Batted In):
Runs that scored as a direct result of a batter's plate appearance.
OPS (On-Base Plus Slugging):
On-base percentage plus slugging percentage, the quickest single summary of offensive value. .900 or better is star-level.

Data updated

AVG .307
HR 119
RBI 704
H 1,099
OPS .867
PIV 12,904
Position
First Baseman
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
6'0" / 210 lb
Born
9/20/1908 in New Orleans, LA, USA
Died
3/9/1987 in New Orleans, LA, USA
MLB Debut
1934-04-17
Last Game
1940-09-26

Full name: Henry John Bonura

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Career Batting Statistics

Zeke Bonura — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
917 3,582 600 1,099 232 29 119 704 19 404 180 .307 .380 .487 .867 12,904

Career AVG .307 vs. league average .276 across their career seasons — +11.1% above league average.

Career OBP .380 vs. league average .342 across their career seasons — +11.0% above league average.

Career SLG .487 vs. league average .395 across their career seasons — +23.3% above league average.

Career OPS .867 vs. league average .737 across their career seasons — +17.6% above league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Zeke Bonura — Season-by-Season Batting
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1934 CHA AL 127 510 86 154 35 4 27 110 0 64 31 .302 .278 (+9%) .340 (+12%) .392 (+39%) .733 (+26%) 2645.9
1935 CHA AL 138 550 107 162 34 4 21 92 4 57 28 .295 .279 (+5%) .342 (+6%) .399 (+22%) .742 (+14%) 1618.6
1936 CHA AL 148 587 120 194 39 7 12 138 4 94 29 .330 .283 (+16%) .349 (+22%) .404 (+19%) .753 (+21%) 2893.4
1937 CHA AL 116 447 79 154 41 2 19 100 5 49 24 .345 .276 (+25%) .342 (+20%) .398 (+44%) .740 (+33%) 2924.5
1938 WS1 AL 137 540 72 156 27 3 22 114 2 44 29 .289 .272 (+6%) .341 (+1%) .392 (+20%) .734 (+11%) 1153.0
1939 NY1 NL 123 455 75 146 26 6 11 85 1 46 22 .321 .274 (+17%) .342 (+13%) .393 (+21%) .735 (+18%) 1633.8
1940 WS1 AL 79 311 41 85 16 3 3 45 2 40 13 .273 .267 (+2%) .335 (+7%) .387 (-4%) .722 (+1%) 142.1
1940 CHN NL 49 182 20 48 14 0 4 20 1 10 4 .264 .267 (-1%) .335 (-10%) .387 (+5%) .722 (-2%) 142.1
Career · 8 seasons 917 3,582 600 1,099 232 29 119 704 19 404 180 .307 — — — — 13,153

Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (917 games) →

Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).

Batting — Home / Away

Zeke Bonura — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home466178031755167363.310
Away451180228254752343.304

Last 10 Games — Batting

Zeke Bonura — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1940-09-26 CHCPITL 100000001
1940-09-22 CHCSTLL 100000000
1940-09-17 CHCNY1W 000000010
1940-09-14 CHCPHIL 400000000
1940-09-13 CHCPHIL 400000000
1940-09-12 CHCPHIW 412000110
1940-09-11 CHCBROW 421001100
1940-09-11 CHCBROW 512200000
1940-09-08 CHCCINW 412000000
1940-09-07 CHCCINL 501000100

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Zeke Bonura — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 900 0 8808 595 72 815

Season-by-Season Fielding

Zeke Bonura — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1934 CHA 1B 127 0 1239 77 5 94
1935 CHA 1B 138 0 1421 83 9 102
1936 CHA 1B 146 0 1500 107 7 150
1937 CHA 1B 115 0 1114 63 13 123
1938 WS1 1B 129 0 1209 93 9 132
1939 NY1 1B 122 0 1205 90 11 110
1940 WS1 1B 79 0 712 42 14 70
1940 CHN 1B 44 0 408 40 4 34

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Zeke Bonura — Career Games by Position
Position Games
First Base 900

Award Voting History

Zeke Bonura — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1936 Most Valuable Player AL 19th 1.0 80 0
1935 Most Valuable Player AL 15th 7.0 80 0

Most Similar Players

Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.

Career Spans

Zeke Bonura (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Don Hurst
    .298 avg, 115 HR
  2. 68
    Ripper Collins
    .296 avg, 135 HR
  3. 59
    Ed Morgan
    .313 avg, 52 HR
  4. 53
    Al Rosen
    .285 avg, 192 HR
  5. 51
    Vladimir Guerrero
    .285 avg, 192 HR
  6. 50
    Whitey Kurowski
    .286 avg, 106 HR

Zeke Bonura: the record in brief

Zeke Bonura's major league career runs from a debut on April 17, 1934 to a final game on September 26, 1940. By club, Bonura's seasons break down as the Chicago White Sox (1934 to 1937), the Washington Senators (1938 through 1940), the New York Giants (1939), and the Chicago Cubs (1940). Bonura played primarily as a first baseman and threw and hit right-handed. The bio adds a birth date on September 20, 1908, in New Orleans, LA, USA and a listed size of 6 feet, 0 inches and 210 pounds. Bonura's death is recorded on March 9, 1987, in New Orleans, LA, USA. The given name on file is Henry John Bonura.

Bonura's career batting table shows 917 games, 3,582 at bats and 1,099 hits, a .307 average, adding 119 home runs and 704 runs batted in. On-base and slugging figures of .380 and .487 give Bonura a career OPS of .867. Bonura's .307 average ran 11.1% above the .276 that the league posted over the same seasons.

Frequently Asked Questions about Zeke Bonura

What years did Zeke Bonura play?
Zeke Bonura played in Major League Baseball from 1934 to 1940.
Was Zeke Bonura a pitcher?
No. Zeke Bonura was a position player (First Baseman).
How many home runs did Zeke Bonura hit?
Zeke Bonura hit 119 career home runs with 1,099 hits.
What teams did Zeke Bonura play for?
Zeke Bonura played for 4 teams: the Chicago White Sox (1934–1937), the Washington Senators (1938, 1940), the New York Giants (1939), and the Chicago Cubs (1940).
What were Zeke Bonura's career stats?
In 917 games, Zeke Bonura had 1,099 hits, 119 home runs, 704 RBI, 600 runs, and 19 stolen bases, with a .307 batting average.
What position did Zeke Bonura play?
Zeke Bonura played primarily as a first baseman, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Zeke Bonura and how much did he weigh?
Zeke Bonura was listed at 6 feet and 210 pounds.
How many home runs did Zeke Bonura hit each season?
Zeke Bonura's home runs by season: 27 in 1934, 21 in 1935, 12 in 1936, 19 in 1937, 22 in 1938, 11 in 1939, and 7 in 1940. His most in one season was 27, in 1934.
What was Zeke Bonura's career batting average?
Zeke Bonura batted .307 over his career, with 1,099 hits in 3,582 at bats.
How many RBI did Zeke Bonura have?
Zeke Bonura drove in 704 runs in his career.
Is Zeke Bonura in the Hall of Fame?
No. Zeke Bonura has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.