Turkey Stearnes | |
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Outfielder | |
Born: Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. | May 8, 1901|
Died: September 4, 1979 Detroit, Michigan, U.S. | (aged 78)|
Batted: Left Threw: Left | |
Negro leagues debut | |
1920, for the Nashville Giants | |
Last Negro leagues appearance | |
1940, for the Kansas City Monarchs | |
Negro leagues statistics | |
Batting average | .348 |
Hits | 1,326 |
Home runs | 187 |
Runs batted in | 1,009 |
Stolen bases | 130 |
Teams | |
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Career highlights and awards | |
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Member of the National | |
Baseball Hall of Fame | |
Induction | 2000 |
Election method | Veterans Committee |
Norman Thomas "Turkey" Stearnes (May 8, 1901 – September 4, 1979) was an American baseball center fielder. He played 18 years in the Negro leagues, including nine years with the Detroit Stars (1923–1931), six years with the Chicago American Giants (1932–1935, 1937–1938), and three years with the Kansas City Monarchs (1938–1940).
Stearnes ranks fifth in Major League Baseball (MLB) history with a .616 career slugging percentage and seventh in MLB history with a .348 career batting average. He led the Negro National League (NNL) in home runs six times. He won the NNL batting championship in 1929 with a .390 batting average and repeated as batting champion in 1931 with a .376 average.
Stearnes was posthumously elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2000.