Billy Jurges

Shortstop · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1931-1947)

Billy Jurges was a shortstop who played in Major League Baseball from 1931 to 1947 for the Chicago Cubs and the New York Giants, a span of 17 seasons. In 1,816 career games, he hit .258 with 1,613 hits, 43 home runs, and 656 RBI. Billy Jurges was a 3-time All-Star.

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 .258
HR 43
RBI 656
H 1,613
OPS .660
PIV -6,978
Position
Shortstop
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
5'11" / 175 lb
Born
5/9/1908 in Bronx, NY, USA
Died
3/3/1997 in Clearwater, FL, USA
MLB Debut
1931-05-04
Last Game
1947-09-09
Awards
3× All-Star

Full name: William Frederick Jurges

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Career Batting Statistics

Billy Jurges — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
1,816 6,253 721 1,613 245 55 43 656 36 568 530 .258 .325 .335 .660 -6,978

Career AVG .258 vs. league average .269 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .325 vs. league average .335 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .335 vs. league average .379 across their career seasons — 11.5% below league average.

Career OPS .660 vs. league average .714 across their career seasons — 7.6% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Billy Jurges Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1931 CHN NL 88 293 34 59 15 5 0 23 2 25 41 .201 .276 (-27%) .338 (-22%) .388 (-26%) .726 (-24%) -1177.6
1932 CHN NL 115 396 40 100 24 4 2 52 1 19 26 .253 .275 (-8%) .335 (-14%) .391 (-11%) .726 (-12%) -853.5
1933 CHN NL 143 487 49 131 17 6 5 50 3 26 39 .269 .270 (avg) .329 (-5%) .377 (-5%) .707 (-5%) -409.5
1934 CHN NL 100 358 43 88 15 2 8 33 1 19 34 .246 .278 (-12%) .340 (-15%) .392 (-7%) .733 (-11%) -669.4
1935 CHN NL 146 519 69 125 33 1 1 59 3 42 39 .241 .279 (-14%) .342 (-11%) .399 (-21%) .742 (-17%) -1401.2
1936 CHN NL 118 429 51 120 25 1 1 42 4 23 25 .280 .283 (-2%) .349 (-8%) .404 (-13%) .753 (-11%) -805.0
1937 CHN NL 129 450 53 134 18 10 1 65 2 42 41 .298 .276 (+8%) .342 (+7%) .398 (-2%) .740 (+2%) 232.7
1938 CHN NL 137 465 53 114 18 3 1 47 3 58 53 .245 .272 (-10%) .341 (-2%) .392 (-23%) .734 (-13%) -851.3
1939 NY1 NL 138 543 84 155 21 11 6 63 3 47 34 .285 .274 (+4%) .342 (+2%) .393 (+1%) .735 (+2%) 163.0
1940 NY1 NL 63 214 23 54 3 3 2 36 2 25 14 .252 .267 (-6%) .335 (+3%) .387 (-17%) .722 (-7%) -169.2
1941 NY1 NL 134 471 50 138 25 2 5 61 0 47 36 .293 .262 (+12%) .332 (+9%) .373 (+4%) .705 (+6%) 620.6
1942 NY1 NL 127 464 45 119 7 1 2 30 1 43 42 .256 .253 (+1%) .323 (avg) .349 (-17%) .672 (-9%) -522.2
1943 NY1 NL 136 481 46 110 8 2 4 29 2 53 38 .229 .255 (-11%) .324 (-4%) .346 (-20%) .671 (-12%) -770.4
1944 NY1 NL 85 246 28 52 2 1 1 23 4 23 20 .211 .261 (-19%) .325 (-14%) .357 (-33%) .683 (-24%) -860.9
1945 NY1 NL 61 176 22 57 3 1 3 24 2 24 11 .324 .260 (+24%) .328 (+23%) .354 (+14%) .683 (+18%) 635.8
1946 CHN NL 82 221 26 49 9 2 0 17 3 43 28 .222 .256 (-14%) .328 (+7%) .358 (-22%) .687 (-8%) -140.0
1947 CHN NL 14 40 5 8 2 0 1 2 0 9 9 .200 — — — — 0.0
Career · 17 seasons 1,816 6,253 721 1,613 245 55 43 656 36 568 530 .258 — — — — -6,978

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.

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

Billy Jurges — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
13 40 4 11 2 0 0 2 5 8 .275

Playoff Batting by Year

Billy Jurges — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1938 WS CHN 4 13 0 3 1 0 0 0 1 3 .231
1935 WS CHN 6 16 3 4 0 0 0 1 4 4 .250
1932 WS CHN 3 11 1 4 1 0 0 1 0 1 .364

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (1816 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Billy Jurges — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home883293535475228304.256
Away933331536786015349.259

Last 10 Games — Batting

Billy Jurges — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1947-09-09 CHCBROW 000000000
1947-09-07 CHCPITW 311000010
1947-09-06 CHCPITL 413200011
1947-09-03 CHCSTLL 300000011
1947-09-01 CHCCINL 000000000
1947-09-01 CHCCINW 200000011
1947-08-31 CHCPITW 300000010
1947-08-30 CHCPITL 300000001
1947-08-28 CHCBROL 300000010
1947-08-27 CHCBROW 300000011

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Billy Jurges — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
2B 36 0 67 83 5 21
3B 199 0 169 404 23 32
SS 1540 0 3133 4959 305 929

Season-by-Season Fielding

Billy Jurges — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1931 CHN 2B 33 0 66 83 5 21
1931 CHN 3B 54 0 42 115 6 11
1931 CHN SS 3 0 5 4 0 0
1932 CHN 3B 5 0 4 7 0 1
1932 CHN SS 108 0 223 394 23 69
1933 CHN SS 143 0 298 476 34 95
1934 CHN SS 98 0 205 334 19 63
1935 CHN SS 146 0 348 484 31 99
1936 CHN SS 116 0 249 379 26 80
1937 CHN SS 128 0 258 370 16 74
1938 CHN SS 136 0 277 417 34 82
1939 NY1 SS 137 0 295 482 28 95
1940 NY1 SS 63 0 123 196 11 36
1941 NY1 SS 134 0 230 432 30 82
1942 NY1 SS 124 0 251 401 15 67
1943 NY1 3B 28 0 27 56 1 10
1943 NY1 SS 99 0 209 303 24 44
1944 NY1 2B 1 0 1 0 0 0
1944 NY1 3B 61 0 48 124 7 7
1944 NY1 SS 10 0 15 25 1 6
1945 NY1 3B 44 0 40 94 9 3
1945 NY1 SS 8 0 15 22 1 1
1946 CHN 2B 2 0 0 0 0 0
1946 CHN 3B 7 0 8 8 0 0
1946 CHN SS 73 0 119 204 8 26
1947 CHN SS 14 0 13 36 4 10

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Billy Jurges Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Second Base 36
Third Base 199
Shortstop 1541

Awards & Honors

Billy Jurges — Awards & Honors
Year Award Notes
1941 Baseball Magazine All-Star SS

Award Voting History

Billy Jurges — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1939 Most Valuable Player NL 12th 20.0 336 0
1937 Most Valuable Player NL 17th 4.0 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

Billy Jurges (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Marty Marion
    .263 avg, 36 HR
  2. 93
    Manny Trillo
    .263 avg, 61 HR
  3. 87
    Scott Fletcher
    .262 avg, 34 HR
  4. 80
    Cookie Rojas
    .263 avg, 54 HR
  5. 79
    Jose Vizcaino
    .270 avg, 36 HR
  6. 76
    Roy McMillan
    .243 avg, 68 HR

Billy Jurges: the record in brief

Between the debut on May 4, 1931 and the final game on September 9, 1947, Billy Jurges built the record summarized on this page. The season rows list, in order, the Chicago Cubs (1931 through 1947) and the New York Giants (1939 through 1945). Jurges is listed as a shortstop at 175 pounds on a 5-foot-11 frame. The bio says Jurges threw and hit right-handed. Jurges was born on May 9, 1908, in Bronx, NY, USA. Jurges's death is recorded on March 3, 1997, in Clearwater, FL, USA. Jurges's full given name, per the bio, is William Frederick Jurges.

Jurges collected 1,613 hits in 6,253 at bats across 1,816 games, good for a .258 batting average; the totals also include 43 home runs, 656 RBI, and 36 stolen bases. Jurges's career OPS of .660 combines a .325 on-base mark with .335 slugging. Against a .269 league average for those years, Jurges's .258 average was near the norm. The OPS comparison is .660 to a league .714, 7.6% below average. 1939 produced Jurges's most hits, 155 of them for the New York Giants.

Frequently Asked Questions about Billy Jurges

What years did Billy Jurges play?
Billy Jurges played in Major League Baseball from 1931 to 1947.
Was Billy Jurges a pitcher?
No. Billy Jurges was a position player (Shortstop).
How many home runs did Billy Jurges hit?
Billy Jurges hit 43 career home runs with 1,613 hits.
What teams did Billy Jurges play for?
Billy Jurges played for 2 teams: the Chicago Cubs (1931–1938, 1946–1947) and the New York Giants (1939–1945).
Did Billy Jurges win an MVP award?
No. Billy Jurges did not win the MVP award.
What awards did Billy Jurges win?
Billy Jurges was selected to 3 All-Star Games.
What were Billy Jurges's career stats?
In 1,816 games, Billy Jurges had 1,613 hits, 43 home runs, 656 RBI, 721 runs, and 36 stolen bases, with a .258 batting average.
What position did Billy Jurges play?
Billy Jurges played primarily as a shortstop, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Billy Jurges and how much did he weigh?
Billy Jurges was listed at 5 feet 11 inches and 175 pounds.
How many home runs did Billy Jurges hit each season?
Billy Jurges's home runs by season: 0 in 1931, 2 in 1932, 5 in 1933, 8 in 1934, 1 in 1935, 1 in 1936, 1 in 1937, 1 in 1938, 6 in 1939, 2 in 1940, 5 in 1941, 2 in 1942, 4 in 1943, 1 in 1944, 3 in 1945, 0 in 1946, and 1 in 1947. His most in one season was 8, in 1934.
What was Billy Jurges's career batting average?
Billy Jurges batted .258 over his career, with 1,613 hits in 6,253 at bats.
How many RBI did Billy Jurges have?
Billy Jurges drove in 656 runs in his career.
Is Billy Jurges in the Hall of Fame?
No. Billy Jurges has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
How many All-Star Games did Billy Jurges make?
Billy Jurges was selected to 3 All-Star Games.