Bob Horner
| Bob Horner | |||
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Horner circa 1980.
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| Third baseman / First baseman | |||
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Born: August 6, 1957 Junction City, Kansas |
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| Professional debut | |||
| MLB: June 16, 1978, for the Atlanta Braves | |||
| NPB: 1987, for the Yakult Swallows | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| NPB: 1987, for the Yakult Swallows | |||
| MLB: June 18, 1988, for the St. Louis Cardinals | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .277 | ||
| Home runs | 218 | ||
| Runs batted in | 685 | ||
| NPB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .327 | ||
| Home runs | 31 | ||
| Runs batted in | 73 | ||
| Teams | |||
| Career highlights and awards | |||
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James Robert "Bob" Horner (born August 6, 1957) is a former Major League Baseball third baseman/first baseman and right-handed batter who played for the Atlanta Braves (1978–86) and St. Louis Cardinals (1988). Horner was hampered by injuries for most of his major league career, and his career was cut short by collusion by team owners to drive down salaries by agreeing to not make offers to veteran stars like Horner.
Horner was born in Junction City, Kansas, but grew up in Glendale, Arizona, attending Apollo High School in Glendale where he set school records. His college career at Arizona State University culminated with being named the first winner of the Golden Spikes Award. With his nine home runs in 1976 he is tied with Ike Davis (2006) for third all-time by a Sun Devil freshman, two behind Barry Bonds (in 1983).
A second baseman for TSN's College All-America team in 1977 and 1978, Horner set a then-NCAA record of 58 career home runs for Arizona State, set a 25-homer single-season record, and was selected the MVP of 1977 College World Series.
Horner was drafted by Atlanta with the first overall pick in the 1978 amateur draft, and he made his Major League Baseball debut the same year. He is one of a handful of players to go directly to the starting lineup in the majors without spending a day in the minor leagues. In his first game, he belted a home run off future Hall of Fame pitcher Bert Blyleven of the Pirates. In 89 games Horner batted .266 with 23 home runs and 63 runs batted in in 323 at-bats, with an on-base percentage of .313 and a slugging percentage of .539. His 23 home runs led all National League third basemen in 1978. He won the National League Rookie of the Year honor over Ozzie Smith.
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