Bob Kennedy

Outfielder · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1939-1957)

Bob Kennedy was an outfielder who played in Major League Baseball from 1939 to 1957 for 5 teams, including the Chicago White Sox, a span of 19 seasons. In 1,483 career games, he hit .254 with 1,176 hits, 63 home runs, and 514 RBI.

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 .254
HR 63
RBI 514
H 1,176
OPS .665
PIV -5,586
Position
Outfielder
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
6'2" / 193 lb
Born
8/18/1920 in Chicago, IL, USA
Died
4/7/2005 in Mesa, AZ, USA
MLB Debut
1939-09-14
Last Game
1957-09-29

Full name: Robert Daniel Kennedy

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Career Batting Statistics

Bob Kennedy — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
1,483 4,624 514 1,176 196 41 63 514 45 364 443 .254 .309 .355 .665 -5,586

Career AVG .254 vs. league average .261 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .309 vs. league average .334 across their career seasons — 7.5% below league average.

Career SLG .355 vs. league average .382 across their career seasons — 7.1% below league average.

Career OPS .665 vs. league average .717 across their career seasons — 7.3% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Bob Kennedy 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
1939 CHA AL 3 8 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 .250 — — — — 0.0
1940 CHA AL 154 606 74 153 23 3 3 52 3 42 58 .252 .267 (-6%) .335 (-10%) .387 (-19%) .722 (-15%) -1437.4
1941 CHA AL 76 257 16 53 9 3 1 29 5 17 23 .206 .262 (-21%) .332 (-23%) .373 (-26%) .705 (-25%) -1031.8
1942 CHA AL 113 412 37 95 18 5 0 38 11 22 41 .231 .253 (-9%) .323 (-17%) .349 (-15%) .672 (-16%) -1059.7
1946 CHA AL 113 411 43 106 13 5 5 34 6 24 42 .258 .256 (avg) .328 (-9%) .358 (-2%) .687 (-5%) -424.0
1947 CHA AL 115 428 47 112 19 3 6 48 3 18 38 .262 .262 (avg) .336 (-13%) .376 (-4%) .712 (-8%) -684.7
1948 CHA AL 30 113 4 28 8 1 0 14 0 4 17 .248 .263 (-6%) .340 (-20%) .379 (-11%) .719 (-15%) -314.8
1948 CLE AL 66 73 10 22 3 2 0 5 0 4 6 .301 .263 (+14%) .340 (-1%) .379 (+5%) .719 (+2%) -314.8
1949 CLE AL 121 424 49 117 23 5 9 57 5 37 40 .276 .262 (+5%) .343 (-3%) .384 (+9%) .727 (+3%) 145.5
1950 CLE AL 146 540 79 157 27 5 9 54 3 53 31 .291 .265 (+9%) .346 (+3%) .401 (+2%) .747 (+2%) 223.9
1951 CLE AL 108 321 30 79 15 4 7 29 4 34 33 .246 .260 (-6%) .336 (-5%) .385 (-1%) .721 (-3%) -169.8
1952 CLE AL 22 40 6 12 3 1 0 12 1 9 5 .300 — — — — 0.0
1953 CLE AL 100 161 22 38 5 0 3 22 0 19 11 .236 .264 (-11%) .335 (-5%) .397 (-19%) .733 (-12%) -287.8
1954 CLE AL 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1954 BAL AL 106 323 37 81 13 2 6 45 2 28 43 .251 .261 (-4%) .333 (-8%) .390 (-8%) .723 (-8%) 0.0
1955 BAL AL 26 70 10 10 1 0 0 5 0 10 10 .143 .258 (-45%) .332 (-25%) .393 (-60%) .726 (-44%) -473.1
1955 CHA AL 83 214 28 65 10 2 9 43 0 16 16 .304 .258 (+17%) .332 (+6%) .393 (+26%) .726 (+17%) -473.1
1956 CHA AL 8 13 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 4 .077 — — — — 0.0
1956 DET AL 69 177 17 41 5 0 4 22 2 24 19 .232 .258 (-10%) .331 (-1%) .397 (-18%) .728 (-10%) 0.0
1957 CHA AL 4 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 — — — — 0.0
1957 BRO NL 19 31 5 4 1 0 1 4 0 1 5 .129 — — — — 0.0
Career · 21 seasons 1,483 4,624 514 1,176 196 41 63 514 45 364 443 .254 — — — — -6,301

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

Bob Kennedy — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
3 2 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 .500

Playoff Batting by Year

Bob Kennedy — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1948 WS CLE 3 2 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 .500

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (1484 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Bob Kennedy — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home723215022854931248.255
Away761247228662732267.254

Last 10 Games — Batting

Bob Kennedy — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1957-09-29 BROPHIL 400000001
1957-09-27 BROPHIL 100000001
1957-09-04 BROPHIW 111100000
1957-08-30 BRONY1W 100000001
1957-08-18 BROPITL 100000000
1957-08-08 BRONY1L 311001110
1957-08-07 BRONY1L 400000000
1957-08-04 BROATLL 100000000
1957-08-03 BROATLW 110000100
1957-07-31 BROCHCW 000000000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Bob Kennedy — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 10 6 57 4 0 8
2B 2 0 4 5 0 1
3B 540 118 555 1067 105 90
OF 821 68 1400 63 33 14

Season-by-Season Fielding

Bob Kennedy — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1939 CHA 3B 2 0 0 3 1 0
1940 CHA 3B 154 0 178 322 33 25
1941 CHA 3B 71 0 88 153 17 12
1942 CHA 3B 96 0 99 207 14 17
1942 CHA OF 16 0 31 2 1 0
1946 CHA 3B 29 0 19 77 10 6
1946 CHA OF 75 0 157 10 6 1
1947 CHA 3B 1 0 1 2 0 0
1947 CHA OF 106 0 204 8 7 3
1948 CHA OF 30 0 61 3 2 0
1948 CLE 1B 1 0 3 0 0 1
1948 CLE 2B 2 0 4 5 0 1
1948 CLE OF 50 0 35 2 0 1
1949 CLE 3B 21 0 13 44 1 4
1949 CLE OF 98 0 190 12 2 4
1950 CLE OF 144 0 294 13 4 3
1951 CLE OF 106 0 174 9 6 2
1952 CLE 3B 3 0 1 12 0 1
1952 CLE OF 13 0 24 0 0 0
1953 CLE OF 89 0 91 2 0 0
1954 CLE OF 1 0 0 0 0 0
1954 BAL 3B 71 59 81 131 14 10
1954 BAL OF 21 17 40 0 1 0
1955 BAL 1B 6 5 47 4 0 6
1955 BAL 3B 1 0 0 0 0 0
1955 BAL OF 14 12 27 0 0 0
1955 CHA 1B 3 1 7 0 0 1
1955 CHA 3B 55 32 32 73 7 10
1955 CHA OF 20 15 16 0 0 0
1956 CHA 3B 6 4 4 3 0 2
1956 DET 3B 27 21 35 38 8 3
1956 DET OF 29 20 52 2 4 0
1957 BRO 3B 3 2 4 2 0 0
1957 BRO OF 9 4 4 0 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Bob Kennedy Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
First Base 10
Second Base 2
Third Base 540
Left Field 205
Center Field 36
Right Field 596

Award Voting History

Bob Kennedy — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1940 Most Valuable Player AL 23th 3.0 336 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Bob Kennedy (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Jim Busby
    .262 avg, 48 HR
  2. 92
    Ken Berry
    .255 avg, 58 HR
  3. 87
    Del Unser
    .258 avg, 87 HR
  4. 86
    Jerry Morales
    .259 avg, 95 HR
  5. 83
    Mickey Stanley
    .248 avg, 117 HR
  6. 81
    Rick Manning
    .257 avg, 56 HR

Bob Kennedy: the record in brief

According to the bio, Bob Kennedy debuted on September 14, 1939 and played a final game on September 29, 1957. The season rows list, in order, the Chicago White Sox (1939 to 1957), the Cleveland Indians (1948 through 1954), the Baltimore Orioles (1954 to 1955), the Detroit Tigers (1956), and the Brooklyn Dodgers (1957). At 193 pounds on a 6-foot-2 frame, Kennedy is listed as an outfielder. Kennedy batted and threw right-handed, per the bio block. Kennedy was born on August 18, 1920, in Chicago, IL, USA. Kennedy's death is recorded on April 7, 2005, in Mesa, AZ, USA. The given name on file is Robert Daniel Kennedy.

Kennedy collected 1,176 hits in 4,624 at bats across 1,483 games, good for a .254 batting average; the totals also include 63 home runs, 514 RBI, and 45 stolen bases. Reaching base at a .309 clip and slugging .355, Kennedy finished with a .665 OPS. Against a .261 league average for those years, Kennedy's .254 average was near the norm. The OPS comparison is .665 to a league .717, 7.3% below average. 1950 produced Kennedy's most hits, 157 of them for the Cleveland Indians.

Frequently Asked Questions about Bob Kennedy

What years did Bob Kennedy play?
Bob Kennedy played in Major League Baseball from 1939 to 1957.
Was Bob Kennedy a pitcher?
No. Bob Kennedy was a position player (Outfielder).
How many home runs did Bob Kennedy hit?
Bob Kennedy hit 63 career home runs with 1,176 hits.
What teams did Bob Kennedy play for?
Bob Kennedy played for 5 teams: the Chicago White Sox (1939–1942, 1946–1948, 1955–1957), the Cleveland Indians (1948–1954), the Baltimore Orioles (1954–1955), the Detroit Tigers (1956), and the Brooklyn Dodgers (1957).
What were Bob Kennedy's career stats?
In 1,483 games, Bob Kennedy had 1,176 hits, 63 home runs, 514 RBI, 514 runs, and 45 stolen bases, with a .254 batting average.
What position did Bob Kennedy play?
Bob Kennedy played primarily as an outfielder, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Bob Kennedy and how much did he weigh?
Bob Kennedy was listed at 6 feet 2 inches and 193 pounds.
How many home runs did Bob Kennedy hit each season?
Bob Kennedy's home runs by season: 0 in 1939, 3 in 1940, 1 in 1941, 0 in 1942, 5 in 1946, 6 in 1947, 0 in 1948, 9 in 1949, 9 in 1950, 7 in 1951, 0 in 1952, 3 in 1953, 6 in 1954, 9 in 1955, 4 in 1956, and 1 in 1957. His most in one season was 9, in 1949, 1950, and 1955.
What was Bob Kennedy's career batting average?
Bob Kennedy batted .254 over his career, with 1,176 hits in 4,624 at bats.
How many RBI did Bob Kennedy have?
Bob Kennedy drove in 514 runs in his career.
Is Bob Kennedy in the Hall of Fame?
No. Bob Kennedy has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.