Billy Jurges, baseball player, 1931-1947

Billy Jurges

Born: 5/9/1908 in Bronx, NY, USA

Died: 3/3/1997 in Clearwater, FL, USA

MLB Debut: 1931-05-04 | Final Game: 1947-09-09

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 5'11" | Weight: 175 lbs

Full name: William Frederick Jurges

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Biography

Billy Jurges was a professional baseball player who made significant contributions to the game during his career from 1931 to 1947. Born in 1908, Jurges played as a position player and became known for his solid defensive skills and steady batting. Over the course of his 16-year career, he appeared in 1,816 games, accumulating 1,613 hits, 43 home runs, and 656 RBIs. His career batting average stood at .258, complemented by 36 stolen bases, demonstrating his ability to contribute both at the plate and on the base paths. Jurges earned three All-Star selections, showcasing his talent during an era that saw the emergence of many baseball legends. His versatility and consistency made him a valuable player on the teams he represented. Jurges played in a time when baseball was evolving, navigating through the pre-World War II years and into the post-war era, and he left an indelible mark on the game before retiring on September 9, 1947. His legacy is remembered not only through his statistics but also through his contributions to the teams and the sport as a whole.

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
1816 6253 721 1613 245 55 43 656 36 568 530 0.258 0.325 0.335 0.660 -8945.2

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 0.660 vs. league average 0.714 across their career seasons — 7.6% 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
1931 CHC NL 88 293 34 59 15 5 0 23 2 25 41 0.201 .276 (-27%) .338 (-22%) .388 (-26%) .726 (-24%) -1379.4
1932 CHC NL 115 396 40 100 24 4 2 52 1 19 26 0.253 .275 (-8%) .335 (-14%) .391 (-11%) .726 (-12%) -1044.7
1933 CHC NL 143 487 49 131 17 6 5 50 3 26 39 0.269 .270 (avg) .329 (-5%) .377 (-5%) .707 (-5%) -523.6
1934 CHC NL 100 358 43 88 15 2 8 33 1 19 34 0.246 .278 (-12%) .340 (-15%) .392 (-7%) .733 (-11%) -799.8
1935 CHC NL 146 519 69 125 33 1 1 59 3 42 39 0.241 .279 (-14%) .342 (-11%) .399 (-21%) .742 (-17%) -1799.8
1936 CHC NL 118 429 51 120 25 1 1 42 4 23 25 0.280 .283 (-2%) .349 (-8%) .404 (-13%) .753 (-11%) -990.0
1937 CHC NL 129 450 53 134 18 10 1 65 2 42 41 0.298 .276 (+8%) .342 (+7%) .398 (-2%) .740 (+2%) 232.7
1938 CHC NL 137 465 53 114 18 3 1 47 3 58 53 0.245 .272 (-10%) .341 (-2%) .392 (-23%) .734 (-13%) -1078.4
1939 NY1 NL 138 543 84 155 21 11 6 63 3 47 34 0.285 .274 (+4%) .342 (+2%) .393 (+1%) .735 (+2%) 163.0
1940 NY1 NL 63 214 23 54 3 3 2 36 2 25 14 0.252 .267 (-6%) .335 (+3%) .387 (-17%) .722 (-7%) -190.0
1941 NY1 NL 134 471 50 138 25 2 5 61 0 47 36 0.293 .262 (+12%) .332 (+9%) .373 (+4%) .705 (+6%) 620.6
1942 NY1 NL 127 464 45 119 7 1 2 30 1 43 42 0.256 .253 (+1%) .323 (avg) .349 (-17%) .672 (-9%) -651.4
1943 NY1 NL 136 481 46 110 8 2 4 29 2 53 38 0.229 .255 (-11%) .324 (-4%) .346 (-20%) .671 (-12%) -974.4
1944 NY1 NL 85 246 28 52 2 1 1 23 4 23 20 0.211 .261 (-19%) .325 (-14%) .357 (-33%) .683 (-24%) -1003.5
1945 NY1 NL 61 176 22 57 3 1 3 24 2 24 11 0.324 .260 (+24%) .328 (+23%) .354 (+14%) .683 (+18%) 635.8
1946 CHC NL 82 221 26 49 9 2 0 17 3 43 28 0.222 .256 (-14%) .328 (+7%) .358 (-22%) .687 (-8%) -162.4
1947 CHC NL 14 40 5 8 2 0 1 2 0 9 9 0.200 — — — — 0.0

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
13 40 4 11 2 0 0 2 5 8 0.275

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 0.231
1935 WS CHN 6 16 3 4 0 0 0 1 4 4 0.250
1932 WS CHN 3 11 1 4 1 0 0 1 0 1 0.364

Fielding Statistics

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

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 Games
Second Base 36
Third Base 199
Shortstop 1541

Awards & Honors

Year Award Notes
1941 Baseball Magazine All-Star SS

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