Rookie of the Year: Bob Horner, 1978

Third Baseman, Atlanta Braves

Age:  21 (Aug. 6)

Bats – Both, Throws – Right

Height: 6’1”    Weight: 195

Prior to 1978:

Born in Kansas, Horner moved with his family to southern California, and later Arizona, where he was a shortstop at Apollo High School in Glendale. Drafted by the Oakland A’s in 1975, he chose instead to attend Arizona State Univ. He was shifted to second base as a freshman and hit the first 9 of his then-record career 58 home runs. Horner played third base in his sophomore and junior seasons. As a junior in 1978 he batted .412 with 25 home runs and 100 RBIs and was the first recipient of the Golden Spikes Award as the nation’s best amateur player. He was chosen by the Braves with the first overall pick in the ’78 amateur draft and signed and bypassed the minor leagues to move directly into the Atlanta lineup.

1978 Season Summary

Appeared in 89 games

3B – 89

[Bracketed numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]

Batting

Plate Appearances – 359

At Bats – 323

Runs – 50

Hits – 86

Doubles – 17

Triples – 1

Home Runs – 23 [11, tied with four others]

RBI – 63

Bases on Balls – 24

Int. BB – 2

Strikeouts – 42

Stolen Bases – 0

Caught Stealing – 0

Average - .266

OBP - .313

Slugging Pct. - .539 [Non-qualifying]

Total Bases – 174

GDP – 7

Hit by Pitches – 2

Sac Hits – 1

Sac Flies – 9 [6, tied with Jack Clark & Willie Montanez]

Midseason snapshot: HR – 4, RBI – 15, AVG – .267, SLG - .500

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Most hits, game – 4 (in 4 AB) vs. LA Dodgers 9/9

Longest hitting streak – 10 games

Most HR, game – 2 (in 4 AB) vs. Montreal 7/28, (in 4 AB) vs. Montreal 7/29, (in 4 AB) at Chi. Cubs 8/14, (in 5 AB) vs. St. Louis 8/25

HR at home – 19

HR on road – 4

Multi-HR games – 4

Most RBIs, game – 5 vs. St. Louis 8/25

Pinch-hitting – No appearances

Fielding

Chances – 293

Put Outs – 81

Assists – 199

Errors – 13

DP - 17

Pct. - .956

Awards & Honors:

NL Rookie of the Year: BBWAA

NL ROY Voting:

Bob Horner, Atl.: 12 of 23 votes, 50% share

Ozzie Smith, SD: 8 votes, 33% share

Don Robinson, Pitt.: 3 votes, 13% share

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Braves went 69-93 to finish sixth (last) in the NL Western Division, 26 games behind the division-winning Los Angeles Dodgers while leading the league in fewest hits (1313) and lowest batting average (.244). While finishing in the cellar for the third straight year the Braves received a midseason lift due to the arrival of Horner and LHP Larry McWilliams.

Aftermath of ‘78:

Horner followed up his impressive rookie season by hitting .314 in 1979 with 33 home runs and 98 RBIs. When he got off to a poor start in 1980, batting just .059 after ten games, owner Ted Turner ordered his demotion to the minors. Horner sought legal recourse, while fans and media complained about the move, and eventually the Braves reinstated him. He went on to hit .268 with 35 home runs and 89 RBIs in 124 games. Struggling with his weight and injuries during the strike-interrupted 1981 season, Horner dropped to 15 home runs and 42 RBIs with a .277 average. The Braves topped the NL West in 1982, and despite an elbow injury, Horner, who was an All-Star for the only time in his career, contributed a .261 average with 32 home runs and 97 RBIs. He batted only .091 as the Braves were swept by the Cardinals in the NLCS. Signing a contract extension that provided incentives if he kept his weight under 215 pounds, he was hitting .303 with 20 home runs and 68 RBIs in 1983 when he broke his right wrist in August and was lost for the remainder of the season. Horner broke the same wrist again in May of 1984 while diving for a foul ball and again was lost for the rest of the year. In 32 games he hit .274 with three home runs and 19 RBIs. Lacking range at third base, Horner was shifted to first base during the 1985 season, during which his numbers rebounded to .267 with 27 home runs and 89 RBIs. He hit another 27 home runs in 1986, which included a record-tying four in one game against Montreal, which was won by the Expos, making Horner just the second major league player to perform the feat in a game that his team lost. He also ended up with 87 RBIs and a .273 average. A free agent in the offseason, Horner was unable to come to terms on a suitable contract and signed with the Yakult Swallows of the Japan Central League for one year at $2 million. Popular in Japan, he batted .327 in 93 games with 31 home runs and 73 RBIs. Resisting a lucrative offer to stay in Japan, Horner returned to the National League with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1988, who hoped he could adequately replace departed free agent Jack Clark. A shoulder injury limited him to 60 games. Invited to spring training by the Baltimore Orioles in 1989 he chose to retire. For his major league career, Horner batted .277 with 1047 hits that included 169 doubles, 8 triples, and 218 home runs. He further compiled 685 RBIs and scored 560 runs. With the Braves he batted .278 with 994 hits, 160 doubles, 7 triples, 215 home runs, 652 RBIs, and 545 runs scored. A one-time All-Star, he finished in the top ten in league MVP voting once as well. Horner was inducted into the College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2006.

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Rookie of the Year Profiles feature players who were recipients of the Rookie of the Year Award by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (1947 to present). The award was presented to a single major league winner from its inception through 1948 and from 1949 on to one recipient from each major league.