Joe Bowman, baseball player, 1932-1945

Joe Bowman

Born: 6/17/1910 in Kansas City, KS, USA

Died: 11/22/1990 in Kansas City, MO, USA

MLB Debut: 1932-04-18 | Final Game: 1945-09-29

Bats: L | Throws: R | Height: 6'2" | Weight: 190 lbs

Full name: Joseph Emil Bowman

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Biography

Joe Bowman, born in 1910, was a professional baseball pitcher who played from 1932 until his retirement in 1945. Over the course of his career, Bowman compiled a record of 77 wins and 96 losses, with an earned run average (ERA) of 4.4. He was known for his strikeout ability, finishing his time in the majors with a total of 502 strikeouts. Additionally, he recorded 11 saves, showcasing his versatility as both a starter and a reliever. Bowman’s career unfolded during a transformative period in baseball, which included the tail end of the Great Depression and the onset of World War II. As a pitcher, he contributed to his teams with a competitive spirit and a reliable arm, making him a valuable asset to the rotations he was part of. His tenure in Major League Baseball exemplified the challenges and resilience of athletes during an era marked by significant societal changes and the evolving dynamics of the sport.

Negro Leagues Career Statistics

Batting

PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB BA OBP SLG OPS
9.0 8.0 0 2.0 0 0 0 0 1.0 1.0 0 0.250 0.333 0.250 0.583

Pitching

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H R ER HR BB SO ERA
0 0 0 1.0 0 0 0 0.0 13.0 6.0 4.0 0 0 0 5.14

Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Batting

Season PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB BA OBP SLG OPS
1933 1.0 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.0 0 .000 .000 .000 .000
1934 4.0 4.0 0 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.250 0.250 0.250 0.500
1935 4.0 3.0 0 1.0 0 0 0 0 1.0 0 0 0.333 0.500 0.333 0.833

Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Pitching

Season W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H R ER HR BB SO ERA
1933 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 6.0 2.0 0 0 0 0 0.00
1935 0 0 0 1.0 0 0 0 0.0 7.0 4.0 4.0 0 0 0 9.00

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
77 96 298 184 74 5 11 1465.7 1656 717 102 484 502 4.40 0

Career ERA 4.40 vs. league average 4.15 across their career seasons — 6.0% worse than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1932 PHA AL 0 1 7 0 0 0 0 11.0 14 10 6 4 8.18 4.13 (-98%) -852.1
1934 NY1 NL 5 4 30 10 3 0 3 107.3 119 43 36 36 3.61 4.29 (+16%) -1127.1
1935 PHI NL 7 10 33 17 6 1 1 148.3 157 70 56 58 4.25 4.35 (+2%) -1584.4
1936 PHI NL 9 20 40 28 12 0 1 203.7 243 114 53 80 5.04 4.59 (-10%) 1261.5
1937 PIT NL 8 8 30 19 7 0 1 128.0 161 65 35 38 4.57 4.34 (-5%) -760.6
1938 PIT NL 3 4 17 1 0 0 1 60.0 68 31 20 25 4.65 4.35 (-7%) 994.7
1939 PIT NL 10 14 37 27 10 1 1 184.7 217 92 43 58 4.48 4.28 (-5%) -117.6
1940 PIT NL 9 10 32 24 10 0 2 187.7 209 93 66 57 4.46 4.21 (-6%) -206.6
1941 PIT NL 3 2 18 7 1 1 1 69.3 77 23 28 22 2.99 3.94 (+24%) -90.2
1944 BOS AL 12 8 26 24 10 1 0 168.3 175 90 64 53 4.81 3.57 (-35%) -3189.7
1945 BOS AL 0 2 3 3 0 0 0 11.7 18 12 9 0 9.26 3.67 (-152%) -724.8
1945 CIN NL 11 13 25 24 15 1 0 185.7 198 74 68 71 3.59 3.67 (+2%) -277.4

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
430 639 62 141 24 8 2 75 3 46 90 0.221 0.275 0.293 0.568 -2126.8

Career AVG .221 vs. league average .272 across their career seasons — 18.9% below league average.

Career OBP .275 vs. league average .338 across their career seasons — 18.6% below league average.

Career SLG .293 vs. league average .386 across their career seasons — 24.2% below league average.

Career OPS 0.568 vs. league average 0.724 across their career seasons — 21.6% below league average.

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
1932 PHA AL 7 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000 — — — — 0.0
1934 NY1 NL 31 29 4 5 0 1 0 4 0 2 3 0.172 — — — — 0.0
1935 PHI NL 49 67 6 13 1 1 1 7 1 4 7 0.194 .279 (-31%) .342 (-30%) .399 (-29%) .742 (-30%) -366.3
1936 PHI NL 44 77 9 15 1 0 0 6 0 6 14 0.195 .283 (-31%) .349 (-28%) .404 (-49%) .753 (-39%) -530.6
1937 PIT NL 35 47 3 10 1 0 0 4 0 5 9 0.213 — — — — -229.9
1938 PIT NL 18 21 5 7 0 1 0 1 0 1 3 0.333 — — — — 0.0
1939 PIT NL 70 96 9 33 8 1 0 18 0 5 9 0.344 .274 (+25%) .342 (+12%) .393 (+14%) .735 (+13%) 214.2
1940 PIT NL 57 90 11 22 5 1 1 14 0 14 14 0.244 .267 (-9%) .335 (+5%) .387 (-8%) .722 (-2%) -0.3
1941 PIT NL 22 31 4 8 1 0 0 1 0 1 2 0.258 — — — — 0.0
1944 BOS AL 59 100 7 20 5 2 0 16 1 5 19 0.200 .261 (-24%) .325 (-27%) .357 (-19%) .683 (-23%) -422.7
1945 BOS AL 9 9 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 0.222 — — — — 0.0
1945 CIN NL 29 71 4 5 2 1 0 3 1 2 9 0.070 .260 (-73%) .328 (-71%) .354 (-64%) .683 (-67%) 0.0

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
OF 1 0 1 0 0 0
P 298 0 85 254 15 17

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1932 PHA P 7 0 1 6 1 0
1934 NY1 P 30 0 6 20 0 0
1935 PHI OF 1 0 1 0 0 0
1935 PHI P 33 0 8 28 2 2
1936 PHI P 40 0 7 32 5 4
1937 PIT P 30 0 14 24 0 3
1938 PIT P 17 0 2 8 1 2
1939 PIT P 37 0 6 39 0 3
1940 PIT P 32 0 15 36 1 0
1941 PIT P 18 0 5 13 0 0
1944 BOS P 26 0 9 20 2 3
1945 BOS P 3 0 0 2 0 0
1945 CIN P 25 0 12 26 3 0

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 298
Right Field 1