Bob Johnson
| Birthdate | 11/26/1905 |
| Death Date | 07/06/1982 |
| Debut Year | 1933 |
| Year of Induction | |
| Teams | Athletics, Red Sox, Senators |
| Positions | Left Field, Outfield |
Bob Johnson was the 5th player in history with 9 straight years of 20+ homers; the first four were Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Jimmie Foxx and Mel Ott.
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Indian Bob Johnson held the career record for homers by an Athletics player from 1942-1993
Indian Bob Johnson held the career record for homers by an Athletics player from 1942-1993
Indian Bob Johnson’s prolific career lasted from 1933-1945. His exclusion from the Hall of Fame is likely rooted in a career shortened by a late big league start. Johnson was forced to wait until age 27 to make his Major League debut.
Once he became a big leaguer, Johnson was immediately productive. He drove in at least 100 runs in eight of his thirteen big league seasons, and at least 90 in two more. He was the fifth player to have nine consecutive seasons of 20 or more homers. The four before him are inner-circle Hall of Famers Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Jimmie Foxx and Mel Ott.
Johnson appeared in seven All Star games representing three different teams. Johnson finished his time with the A’s as the franchise’s #2 career home run hitter behind Foxx. Indian Bob held that position until Reggie Jackson passed him in 1975.
Johnson left the game at age 39. At the time of his retirement, Johnson’s 288 career round trippers ranked 8th in Major League history. Johnson was in the top 5 in AL career marks for right handed hitters in RBI, slugging percentage, total bases, and walks. His .393 career on-base percentage ranks favorably to many contemporaries and Hall of Famers.
Somehow he is largely overlooked when it comes time for consideration for the Hall of Fame.
Johnson’s signature is not rare – he lived until he was 76 years old and died in 1982. However, vintage pieces signed by Johnson during his playing career are uncommon. In the collection is this photo from Who’s Who in Baseball signed neatly by Indian Bob Johnson in green pen just above his bat.
Bob was born 11/26/1905. I like this page.
Thank you for the correction. You can click on the link and see that the Bob Johnson’s birthdate is now correct thanks to you.
Glad you corrected the birthdate. I was the one who found out through Bob’s family’s Indian background and their interviews for a land allotment with the government that Bob was born in 1905 instead of 1906, as he was mentioned in the interviews as being a few months old in 1906!
Why is he not Member of The Hall of Fame??? He has the statistics to be included. During that era of the game, he showed Very Positive Stats.
Hall of Famer? Yes, Bob Johnson is seriously overlooked!
Unknown to me until now. HOF worthy!