Joe Dobson
Born: 1/20/1917 in Durant, OK, USA
Died: 6/23/1994 in Jacksonville, FL, USA
MLB Debut: 1939-04-26 | Final Game: 1954-04-30
Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 6'2" | Weight: 197 lbs
Full name: Joseph Gordon Dobson
Biography
Joe Dobson was a skilled pitcher who made his mark in Major League Baseball from 1939 until his retirement in 1954. Born in 1917, Dobson built a solid career characterized by his competitive spirit and reliable performance on the mound. Over his 15-year career, he achieved a record of 137 wins and 103 losses, with an earned run average (ERA) of 3.62. He accumulated a total of 992 strikeouts and recorded 18 saves, showcasing his ability to both start games and finish them effectively. His prowess earned him an All-Star selection, highlighting his impact during a period when baseball was transitioning from the pre-World War II era into the more dynamic post-war years.
Dobson's playing style was marked by his consistency and capability as a workhorse pitcher. He navigated the challenges of different eras in baseball, including the evolution of the game in the 1940s and early 1950s, when pitching strategies and player conditioning began to change significantly. Dobson's contributions to his teams were crucial, as he not only provided depth in the pitching rotation but also exemplified the resilience of players during a time of significant social and economic shifts in America. His legacy remains as a testament to the hard work and dedication of pitchers who played in a transformative period of the sport.
Career Pitching Statistics
| W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | HR | BB | SO | ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 137 | 103 | 414 | 273 | 112 | 22 | 18 | 2170.0 | 2048 | 874 | 137 | 851 | 992 | 3.62 | 0 |
Season-by-Season Pitching
| Year | Team | Lg | W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1939 | CLE | AL | 2 | 3 | 35 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 78.0 | 87 | 51 | 51 | 27 | 5.88 | -1021.1 |
| 1940 | CLE | AL | 3 | 7 | 40 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 100.0 | 101 | 55 | 48 | 57 | 4.95 | -160.7 |
| 1941 | BOS | AL | 12 | 5 | 27 | 18 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 134.3 | 136 | 67 | 67 | 69 | 4.49 | -211.0 |
| 1942 | BOS | AL | 11 | 9 | 30 | 23 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 182.7 | 155 | 67 | 68 | 72 | 3.30 | 309.0 |
| 1943 | BOS | AL | 7 | 11 | 25 | 20 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 164.3 | 144 | 57 | 57 | 63 | 3.12 | 1415.7 |
| 1946 | BOS | AL | 13 | 7 | 32 | 24 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 166.7 | 148 | 60 | 68 | 91 | 3.24 | 279.9 |
| 1947 | BOS | AL | 18 | 8 | 33 | 31 | 15 | 1 | 1 | 228.7 | 203 | 75 | 73 | 110 | 2.95 | 3166.3 |
| 1948 | BOS | AL | 16 | 10 | 38 | 32 | 16 | 5 | 2 | 245.3 | 237 | 97 | 92 | 116 | 3.56 | 3412.4 |
| 1949 | BOS | AL | 14 | 12 | 33 | 27 | 12 | 2 | 2 | 212.7 | 219 | 91 | 97 | 87 | 3.85 | 1640.6 |
| 1950 | BOS | AL | 15 | 10 | 39 | 27 | 12 | 1 | 4 | 206.7 | 217 | 96 | 81 | 81 | 4.18 | 2370.8 |
| 1951 | CHW | AL | 7 | 6 | 28 | 21 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 146.7 | 136 | 59 | 51 | 67 | 3.62 | - |
| 1952 | CHW | AL | 14 | 10 | 29 | 25 | 11 | 3 | 1 | 200.7 | 164 | 56 | 60 | 101 | 2.51 | - |
| 1953 | CHW | AL | 5 | 5 | 23 | 15 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 100.7 | 96 | 41 | 37 | 50 | 3.67 | - |
| 1954 | BOS | AL | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.7 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6.75 | 0.0 |
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 414 | 697 | 46 | 106 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 35 | 1 | 54 | 244 | 0.152 | 0.220 | 0.174 | 0.394 | -3734.6 |
Season-by-Season Batting
| Year | Team | Lg | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1939 | CLE | AL | 35 | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0.056 | 0.0 |
| 1940 | CLE | AL | 40 | 24 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 14 | 0.125 | 0.0 |
| 1941 | BOS | AL | 27 | 47 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 14 | 0.149 | -308.8 |
| 1942 | BOS | AL | 30 | 69 | 6 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 17 | 0.145 | -524.9 |
| 1943 | BOS | AL | 25 | 52 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 21 | 0.096 | -493.8 |
| 1946 | BOS | AL | 32 | 50 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 28 | 0.100 | -495.9 |
| 1947 | BOS | AL | 33 | 77 | 4 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 22 | 0.208 | -368.4 |
| 1948 | BOS | AL | 38 | 84 | 9 | 17 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 27 | 0.202 | -354.0 |
| 1949 | BOS | AL | 33 | 68 | 5 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 22 | 0.147 | -502.6 |
| 1950 | BOS | AL | 39 | 70 | 6 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 9 | 23 | 0.214 | -297.6 |
| 1951 | CHW | AL | 28 | 46 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 0.065 | 0.0 |
| 1952 | CHW | AL | 29 | 63 | 3 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 20 | 0.190 | -388.7 |
| 1953 | CHW | AL | 23 | 29 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 0.069 | 0.0 |
| 1954 | BOS | AL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
Postseason Statistics
Playoff Career Batting
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.000 |
Playoff Batting by Year
| Year | Round | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1946 | WS | BOS | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.000 |
Playoff Career Pitching
| W | L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 12.7 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 10 | 0.00 |
Playoff Pitching by Year
| Year | Round | Team | W | L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1946 | WS | BOS | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 12.7 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 10 | 0.00 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | 414 | 0 | 126 | 341 | 11 | 24 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1939 | CLE | P | 35 | 0 | 3 | 16 | 0 | 0 |
| 1940 | CLE | P | 40 | 0 | 6 | 15 | 0 | 1 |
| 1941 | BOS | P | 27 | 0 | 10 | 13 | 0 | 0 |
| 1942 | BOS | P | 30 | 0 | 17 | 42 | 0 | 2 |
| 1943 | BOS | P | 25 | 0 | 9 | 22 | 1 | 2 |
| 1946 | BOS | P | 32 | 0 | 18 | 33 | 1 | 1 |
| 1947 | BOS | P | 33 | 0 | 13 | 25 | 0 | 1 |
| 1948 | BOS | P | 38 | 0 | 10 | 36 | 2 | 3 |
| 1949 | BOS | P | 33 | 0 | 12 | 30 | 0 | 3 |
| 1950 | BOS | P | 39 | 0 | 8 | 44 | 3 | 4 |
| 1951 | CHA | P | 28 | 0 | 6 | 25 | 1 | 5 |
| 1952 | CHA | P | 29 | 0 | 7 | 26 | 1 | 2 |
| 1953 | CHA | P | 23 | 0 | 6 | 14 | 2 | 0 |
| 1954 | BOS | P | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 414 |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1948 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 24th | 5.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1947 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 29th | 3.0 | 336 | 0 |