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Johnny Bench - Winding Down

Of all the positions in baseball, the catcher's is the most physically demanding, so their longevity is limited. Bench suffered from various injuries throughout his career. "I had 15, 16 broken bones and seven broken cups," he once told a Houston Chronicle reporter. In 1978 Bench suffered another back injury at home plate and a few days later broke a bone in his foot. For several years, he played in constant pain and his numbers showed it. The team's fortunes dimmed too as key players became free agents and left the team. In 1981 Bench asked to be moved to another position. For awhile he played first base, then third. Finally, when the Reds finished in last place in 1983, the Big Red Machine ground to a halt and Bench retired.

Career Statistics

Yr Team AVG GP AB R H HR RBI BB SO SB
CIN: Cincinnati Reds.
1967 CIN .163 26 86 7 14 1 6 5 19 0
1968 CIN .275 154 564 67 155 15 82 31 96 1
1969 CIN .293 148 532 83 156 26 90 49 86 6
1970 CIN .293 158 605 97 177 45 148 54 102 5
1971 CIN .238 149 562 80 134 27 61 49 83 2
1972 CIN .270 147 538 87 145 40 125 100 84 6
1973 CIN .253 152 557 83 141 25 104 83 83 4
1974 CIN .280 160 621 108 174 33 129 80 90 5
1975 CIN .283 142 530 83 150 28 110 65 108 11
1976 CIN .234 135 465 62 109 16 74 81 95 13
1977 CIN .275 142 494 67 136 31 109 58 95 2
1978 CIN .260 120 393 52 102 23 73 50 83 4
1979 CIN .276 130 464 73 128 22 80 67 73 4
1980 CIN .250 114 360 52 90 24 68 41 64 4
1981 CIN .309 2 178 14 55 8 25 17 21 0
1982 CIN .258 119 399 44 103 13 38 37 58 1
1983 CIN .255 110 310 32 79 12 54 24 38 0
TOTAL .267 2158 7658 1091 2048 389 1376 891 1278 68

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