Bruce Petway

Career Batting:.228 BA .293 OBP .276 SLG. 7 HR. 5,940 PA.(1907-1922)

Bruce Petway was a solid backstop, magnificent defensively and good enough offensively to sustain a 15 year career.

Petway was consistent offensively–consistently mediocre, but consistent nonetheless. In our projections, he only has 4 seasons with an OPS over.600 and only 2 below .500. He just wasn’t much of a threat with the stick, having below average power across the board, and while able to draw the occasional walk, didn’t control the strike zone very well overall. He had a little bit of speed, but nothing terribly unusual.

We have delayed his career a year, having him debut in 1907, and have shaved a few years off at the end, where his effectiveness was in clear and rapid decline. Still, he plays until 1922, well into his mid 30s, with over a decade carrying a fulltime load behind the plate. Certainly, his career could end with a pretty dismal 1920 season; instead, he has a decent bounce back in 1921 (posting the highest OPS of his career in the dawn of the lively ball era) before struggles in 1922 show it to have been a mirage.

Buddy was magnificent defensively, with an exceptional arm and excellent mobility, sort of a prototypical model for a defensive catcher. He played a few games elsewhere, most notably in RF, and was above-average with the glove everywhere, a testament to his athleticism and his understanding of the game.

I’m just a hair more pessimistic about Petway’s offensive skill than others are, but I would defend that pretty strongly. Where I could see change in this projection is usage–I believe I may be underestimating the PA’s he would see each year as a full time catcher. If so, that would add another 50-100 PA’s at the same level of efficiency, a change to his career totals, but not to the shape of his contribution.

NameBruce Petway (Buddy)
ID / Statuspetwa01bru / Draft
PosC
DOB / i9s Career12/23/1885 / 1907 - 1922
BirthplaceNashville, TN (USA)
Height / Weight5'10" / 159
B / TB / R

 

Batting Projections

YearABH2B3BHRBBSOSBCSBAOBPSLGOPS
1907325818102251154.249.297.280.577
19084039011302645175.223.270.266.536
19094249913413637167.233.293.290.583
19104198911204660226.212.290.248.538
19114671159405059278.246.319.283.602
191244410012504355178.225.294.275.569
1913421985304149237.233.301.259.560
19143936812304050124.173.249.219.468
1915489121124050701810.247.317.288.605
19163418114523446114.238.307.326.633
1917308561010333583.182.261.221.482
191832476540263194.235.291.275.566
1919259551130202782.212.269.278.547
192012124310131322.198.276.240.516
192124275823121953.310.343.397.740
1922641430141300.219.265.313.578
TOTALS5,4441,24214745749666021077.228.293.276.569

 

Pitching Projections