Birdie Tebbetts
Catcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1936-1952)
- Position
- Catcher
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 5'11" / 170 lb
- Died
- 3/24/1999 in Manatee, FL, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1936-09-16
- Last Game
- 1952-09-14
- Awards
- 4Γ All-Star
Full name: George Robert Tebbetts
π View Manager Career
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,162 | 3,704 | 357 | 1,000 | 169 | 22 | 38 | 469 | 29 | 389 | 261 | .270 | .341 | .358 | .700 | -961 |
Career AVG .270 vs. league average .266 across their career seasons β near league average.
Career OBP .341 vs. league average .338 across their career seasons β near league average.
Career SLG .358 vs. league average .382 across their career seasons β 6.3% below league average.
Career OPS .700 vs. league average .720 across their career seasons β near league average.
Season-by-Season Batting
Click a stat to plot it across every season.
| Year | Team | Lg | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | Lg AVG | Lg OBP | Lg SLG | Lg OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1936 | DET | AL | 10 | 33 | 7 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 3 | .303 | β | β | β | β | 0.0 |
| 1937 | DET | AL | 50 | 162 | 15 | 31 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 16 | 0 | 10 | 13 | .191 | .276 (-31%) | .342 (-30%) | .398 (-27%) | .740 (-29%) | -794.3 |
| 1938 | DET | AL | 53 | 143 | 16 | 42 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 25 | 1 | 12 | 13 | .294 | .272 (+8%) | .341 (+2%) | .392 (-2%) | .734 (avg) | -7.3 |
| 1939 | DET | AL | 106 | 341 | 37 | 89 | 22 | 2 | 4 | 53 | 2 | 25 | 20 | .261 | .274 (-5%) | .342 (-8%) | .393 (-5%) | .735 (-6%) | -398.3 |
| 1940 | DET | AL | 111 | 379 | 46 | 112 | 24 | 4 | 4 | 46 | 4 | 35 | 14 | .296 | .267 (+11%) | .335 (+6%) | .387 (+6%) | .722 (+6%) | 454.7 |
| 1941 | DET | AL | 110 | 359 | 28 | 102 | 19 | 4 | 2 | 47 | 1 | 38 | 29 | .284 | .262 (+8%) | .332 (+7%) | .373 (+1%) | .705 (+3%) | 272.5 |
| 1942 | DET | AL | 99 | 308 | 24 | 76 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 27 | 4 | 39 | 17 | .247 | .253 (-3%) | .323 (+4%) | .349 (-16%) | .672 (-7%) | -201.6 |
| 1946 | DET | AL | 87 | 280 | 20 | 68 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 34 | 1 | 28 | 23 | .243 | .256 (-5%) | .328 (-5%) | .358 (-14%) | .687 (-10%) | -417.9 |
| 1947 | DET | AL | 20 | 53 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 3 | .094 | .262 (-64%) | .336 (-58%) | .376 (-70%) | .712 (-64%) | -542.1 |
| 1947 | BOS | AL | 90 | 291 | 22 | 87 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 28 | 2 | 21 | 30 | .299 | .262 (+14%) | .336 (+3%) | .376 (-9%) | .712 (-3%) | -542.1 |
| 1948 | BOS | AL | 128 | 446 | 54 | 125 | 26 | 2 | 5 | 68 | 5 | 62 | 32 | .280 | .263 (+6%) | .340 (+9%) | .379 (+1%) | .719 (+5%) | 533.8 |
| 1949 | BOS | AL | 122 | 403 | 42 | 109 | 14 | 0 | 5 | 48 | 8 | 62 | 22 | .270 | .262 (+3%) | .343 (+7%) | .384 (-11%) | .727 (-2%) | 14.4 |
| 1950 | BOS | AL | 79 | 268 | 33 | 83 | 10 | 1 | 8 | 45 | 1 | 29 | 26 | .310 | .265 (+16%) | .346 (+9%) | .401 (+11%) | .747 (+10%) | 518.6 |
| 1951 | CLE | AL | 55 | 137 | 8 | 36 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 18 | 0 | 8 | 7 | .263 | .260 (+1%) | .336 (-8%) | .385 (-9%) | .721 (-9%) | -205.8 |
| 1952 | CLE | AL | 42 | 101 | 4 | 25 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 12 | 9 | .248 | .252 (-2%) | .326 (+4%) | .369 (-14%) | .696 (-6%) | -56.7 |
| Career · 15 seasons | 1,162 | 3,704 | 357 | 1,000 | 169 | 22 | 38 | 469 | 29 | 389 | 261 | .270 | — | — | — | — | -1,372 | ||
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 (1161 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 578 | 1860 | 204 | 522 | 27 | 273 | .281 |
| Away | 583 | 1841 | 153 | 477 | 11 | 196 | .259 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1952-09-14 | CLE | NYY | L | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1952-09-11 | CLE | PHA | W | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1952-09-07 | CLE | SLA | W | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1952-09-04 | CLE | DET | W | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1952-08-31 | CLE | CHW | W | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 1952-08-28 | CLE | DET | L | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1952-08-27 | CLE | PHA | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1952-08-22 | CLE | NYY | W | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1952-08-17 | CLE | CHW | W | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1952-08-03 | CLE | PHA | L | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | 1108 | 0 | 4667 | 666 | 119 | 87 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1936 | DET | C | 10 | 0 | 51 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| 1937 | DET | C | 48 | 0 | 155 | 25 | 7 | 1 |
| 1938 | DET | C | 53 | 0 | 108 | 20 | 2 | 4 |
| 1939 | DET | C | 100 | 0 | 449 | 64 | 16 | 10 |
| 1940 | DET | C | 107 | 0 | 572 | 89 | 17 | 10 |
| 1941 | DET | C | 98 | 0 | 461 | 83 | 13 | 11 |
| 1942 | DET | C | 97 | 0 | 446 | 69 | 12 | 10 |
| 1946 | DET | C | 87 | 0 | 486 | 53 | 10 | 4 |
| 1947 | DET | C | 20 | 0 | 95 | 15 | 0 | 3 |
| 1947 | BOS | C | 89 | 0 | 332 | 50 | 10 | 7 |
| 1948 | BOS | C | 126 | 0 | 470 | 56 | 10 | 8 |
| 1949 | BOS | C | 118 | 0 | 481 | 51 | 11 | 13 |
| 1950 | BOS | C | 74 | 0 | 285 | 44 | 4 | 5 |
| 1951 | CLE | C | 44 | 0 | 145 | 27 | 4 | 1 |
| 1952 | CLE | C | 37 | 0 | 131 | 15 | 2 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Catcher | 1099 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1948 | Baseball Magazine All-Star | C |
| 1948 | TSN All-Star | C |
College History
| School Name | City | State | Years Attended |
|---|---|---|---|
| Providence College | Providence | RI | 1931, 1932, 1933, 1934 |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1949 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 18th | 6.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1948 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 11th | 23.0 | 336 | 0 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative β closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Birdie Tebbetts (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Frequently Asked Questions about Birdie Tebbetts
- What years did Birdie Tebbetts play?
- Birdie Tebbetts played in Major League Baseball from 1936 to 1952.
- Was Birdie Tebbetts a pitcher?
- No. Birdie Tebbetts was a position player (Catcher).
- How many home runs did Birdie Tebbetts hit?
- Birdie Tebbetts hit 38 career home runs with 1000 hits.