Bob Sykes

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1977-1981)

Bob Sykes was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1977 to 1981 for the Detroit Tigers and the St. Louis Cardinals, a span of 5 seasons. Across 116 career appearances, he went 23-26 with a 4.65 ERA and 215 strikeouts.

W (Wins):
Games credited to a pitcher whose team took a lead it never surrendered while he was the pitcher of record.
ERA (Earned Run Average):
Earned runs allowed per nine innings pitched: (ER × 9) ÷ IP. The primary measure of pitching effectiveness.
SO (Strikeouts):
For a batter, times retired on a third strike; for a pitcher, batters retired on a third strike.
WHIP (Walks and Hits per Inning Pitched):
Baserunners allowed per inning: (BB + H) ÷ IP. Under 1.00 is elite.

Data updated

W–L 23–26
ERA 4.65
WHIP 1.50
SO 215
Pitcher PIV -8187.1
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
B / L
Height / Weight
6'1" / 195 lb
Born
12/11/1954 in Neptune, NJ, USA
MLB Debut
1977-04-09
Last Game
1981-10-04

Full name: Robert Joseph Sykes

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Career Pitching Statistics

Bob Sykes — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
23 26 116 61 10 5 2 456.2 497 236 54 190 215 4.65 -8187.1

Career ERA 4.65 vs. league average 3.84 across their career seasons — 21.1% worse than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Bob Sykes — Season-by-Season Pitching
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1977 DET AL 5 7 32 20 3 0 0 132.2 141 65 50 58 4.41 4.00 (-10%) -1694.4
1978 DET AL 6 6 22 10 3 2 2 93.2 99 41 34 58 3.94 3.69 (-7%) -1694.2
1979 SLN NL 4 3 13 11 0 0 0 67.0 86 46 34 35 6.18 4.00 (-54%) -2323.0
1980 SLN NL 6 10 27 19 4 3 0 126.0 134 65 54 50 4.64 3.84 (-21%) -2018.2
1981 SLN NL 2 0 22 1 0 0 0 37.1 37 19 18 14 4.58 3.58 (-28%) -457.3
Career · 5 seasons 23 26 116 61 10 5 2 456.2 497 236 190 215 4.65 — -8,187

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.

Career Batting Statistics

Bob Sykes — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
116 62 4 6 0 0 0 2 0 3 27 .097 .174 .097 .271 0

Career AVG .097 vs. league average .262 across their career seasons — 63.1% below league average.

Career OBP .174 vs. league average .326 across their career seasons — 46.7% below league average.

Career SLG .097 vs. league average .388 across their career seasons — 75.1% below league average.

Career OPS .271 vs. league average .714 across their career seasons — 62.1% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Bob Sykes — 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
1977 DET AL 32 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1978 DET AL 22 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1979 SLN NL 13 21 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 11 .095 — — — — 0.0
1980 SLN NL 27 39 2 4 0 0 0 2 0 1 14 .103 — — — — 0.0
1981 SLN NL 22 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 .000 — — — — 0.0
Career · 5 seasons 116 62 4 6 0 0 0 2 0 3 27 .097 — — — — 0

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 (232 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Bob Sykes — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home61292502.172
Away55332100.030

Pitching — Home / Away

Bob Sykes — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home61257.1288130891274.55
Away55199.1209106101884.79

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Bob Sykes — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1981-10-04 STLPIT — 1.0100010
1981-09-30 STLPHI — 0.1000000
1981-09-25 STLPIT — 3.0200000
1981-09-22 STLCHC — 0.2111001
1981-09-20 STLNYN — 0.1000010
1981-09-18 STLNYN — 2.0100110
1981-09-09 STLCHC — 1.2300110
1981-09-07 STLCHC — 3.0322120
1981-08-30 STLSDP — 1.0000000
1981-08-29 STLSDP W 1.2200110

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Bob Sykes — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 116 61 15 56 4 6

Season-by-Season Fielding

Bob Sykes — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1977 DET P 32 20 6 20 2 3
1978 DET P 22 10 1 7 1 0
1979 SLN P 13 11 0 7 0 0
1980 SLN P 27 19 4 14 1 2
1981 SLN P 22 1 4 8 0 1

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Bob Sykes — Career Games by Position
Position Games
Pitcher 116

College History

Bob Sykes — College History
School Name City State Years Attended
Miami-Dade College - North Campus Miami FL 1974

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

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

  1. 98
    Ray Poat
    22-30, 4.54 ERA
  2. 96
    Dave Fleming
    38-32, 4.67 ERA
  3. 96
    Aaron Laffey
    26-29, 4.44 ERA
  4. 95
    Emery Adams
    28-25, 4.57 ERA
  5. 94
    Zach Day
    21-27, 4.66 ERA
  6. 93
    Cliff Carter
    31-28, 4.79 ERA

Bob Sykes: the record in brief

April 9, 1977 and October 4, 1981 bracket Bob Sykes's time in the majors: the debut and the last game on record. Sykes played for the Detroit Tigers (1977 through 1978) and the St. Louis Cardinals (1979 through 1981). At 6 feet, 1 inch and 195 pounds, Sykes is listed as a pitcher. The bio says Sykes switch-hit and threw left-handed. Sykes was born on December 11, 1954, in Neptune, NJ, USA. The given name on file is Robert Joseph Sykes.

The pitching table credits Sykes with a 23-26 record and a 4.65 ERA in 116 games. Also on Sykes's record: 215 strikeouts, 10 complete games, and 5 shutouts. The league ERA over Sykes's seasons was 3.84, so the 4.65 figure ran 21.1% worse than average. Sykes won 6 games in 1978, the most of any season listed. Sykes struck out 58 batters in 1977, a career high. In 1978, one of the busiest seasons, Sykes posted a 3.94 ERA; the league figure that year was 3.69.

Frequently Asked Questions about Bob Sykes

What years did Bob Sykes play?
Bob Sykes played in Major League Baseball from 1977 to 1981.
Was Bob Sykes a pitcher?
Yes. Bob Sykes pitched in the major leagues, recording 23 wins and 215 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Bob Sykes hit?
Bob Sykes hit 0 career home runs with 6 hits.
What teams did Bob Sykes play for?
Bob Sykes played for 2 teams: the Detroit Tigers (1977–1978) and the St. Louis Cardinals (1979–1981).
What were Bob Sykes's career stats?
In 116 games, Bob Sykes went 23-26 with a 4.65 ERA, 215 strikeouts, 456.2 innings pitched, and 2 saves.
What position did Bob Sykes play?
Bob Sykes played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Bob Sykes and how much did he weigh?
Bob Sykes was listed at 6 feet 1 inch and 195 pounds.
What was Bob Sykes's career ERA?
Bob Sykes finished with a 4.65 career ERA, going 23-26 with 215 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Bob Sykes have?
Bob Sykes recorded 215 career strikeouts.
Is Bob Sykes in the Hall of Fame?
No. Bob Sykes has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.