Bob Thurman
| Bob Thurman | |||
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| Outfielder / Pitcher | |||
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Born: May 14, 1917 Kellyville, Oklahoma |
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Died: October 31, 1998 (aged 81) Wichita, Kansas |
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| MLB debut | |||
| April 14, 1955, for the Cincinnati Redlegs | |||
| Last MLB appearance | |||
| April 21, 1959, for the Cincinnati Redlegs | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .246 | ||
| Home runs | 35 | ||
| Runs batted in | 106 | ||
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Robert Burns Thurman (May 14, 1917, Kellyville, Oklahoma – October 31, 1998, Wichita, Kansas) was a professional baseball pitcher, outfielder and pinch-hitter. He played in the Negro Leagues, the Puerto Rican winter league (where he was a star), and for a few years at the end of his career, in Major League Baseball with the Cincinnati Reds. He is a member of the Puerto Rican Baseball Hall of Fame.
Several baseball reference books give Thurman's date of birth as 1921. However, like so many Negro Leaguers, Thurman took some years off his age in order to interest scouts in developing him as a prospect. In fact, 1917 is the correct year of his birth, as he himself admitted after his playing career was over. Therefore, he made his major league debut at the age of 38, and was still in the big leagues at 42.
A left-hander, he was listed at 6' 1" (185 cm) and 205 pounds (93 kg).
Thurman played semipro ball with various teams in the Wichita area before entering the U.S. Army at the beginning of World War II. He was stationed in New Guinea and Luzon and saw combat action in the Pacific Theater. When he was discharged in 1945, the Homestead Grays in the Negro National League offered him a contract.
He started with the Grays in 1946, playing alongside such greats as catcher Josh Gibson, first baseman Buck Leonard and outfielder Cool Papa Bell. His pitching was not impressive, but he played in the outfield as well. He hit .408 for the season. The following year he hit .338 with 6 home runs in 157 at-bats.
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