Bob Wood (baseball)

{{Short description|American baseball player (1865–1943)}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2024}}

{{Other people5|Robert Wood (disambiguation)|Bob Wood (disambiguation)|Bobby Wood (disambiguation)}}

{{Infobox baseball biography

|name=Bob Wood

|position=Catcher

|image=BobWood1905.jpg

|caption=Bob Wood, Detroit Tigers catcher, 1905

|bats=Right

|throws=Right

|birth_date={{Birth date|1865|7|28|mf=y}}

|birth_place=Glasgow, Scotland

|death_date={{death date and age|1943|5|22|1865|7|28}}

|death_place=Youngstown, Ohio

|debutleague = MLB

|debutdate=May 2

|debutyear=1898

|debutteam=Cincinnati Reds

|finalleague = MLB

|finaldate=May 6

|finalyear=1905

|finalteam=Detroit Tigers

|statleague = MLB

|stat1label=Batting average

|stat1value=.281

|stat2label=Home runs

|stat2value=2

|stat3label=Runs batted in

|stat3value=168

|teams=

}}

Robert Lynn Wood (July 28, 1865 – May 22, 1943) was a professional baseball player. He played all or part of seven seasons in Major League Baseball, three with the Cincinnati Reds (1898–1900), and two each with the Cleveland Blues/Bronchos (1901–1902) and Detroit Tigers (1904–1905).

Early years

Wood was born in 1865 at Glasgow, Scotland. He moved with his parents to the United States at age eight and was raised in Youngstown, Ohio.{{cite news|title=Brief Biographs of Our Baseball List: B. Wood, One of the Agriculturalists of the Team|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|date=March 27, 1905|page=8|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/107497386/bob-wood/|via=Newspapers.com}}

Baseball career

Wood began his professional baseball career with the Indianapolis Hoosiers of the Western League in 1895 at age 26. He remained with Indianapolis for three years.{{cite web|title=Bob Wood|publisher=Sports Reference LLC|work=Baseball-Reference.com|accessdate=August 12, 2022|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=wood--005rob}}

Wood made his major-league debut in 1898 for the Cincinnati Reds. He played three years for the Reds from 1898 to 1900. In 1899, he hit .313 with a .404 on-base percentage with the Reds.

Wood jumped to the American League in 1900, appearing in 36 games for the Chicago Whitestockings. When the American League reached major-league status in 1901, Wood joined the Cleveland Blues. He spent the 1901 and 1902 seasons with Cleveland.

Wood spent the 1903 season with the Milwaukee Brewers of the American Association. He hit .324 in 121 games for Milwaukee.

Wood returned to the American League in 1904, appearing in 49 games for the Detroit Tigers. In 1905, he appeared in only eight games for the Tigers. His batting average collapsed in 1905 with only two hits in 24 at bats. He was sold to Buffalo in May 1905.{{cite news|title=Bob Woo Has Jumped to an "Outlaw" Team|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|date=May 26, 1905|page=10|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/47332502/detroit-free-press/}}

Wood concluded his playing career for Buffalo in 1905 and 1906, Toronto in 1906 and 1907, and Little Rock in 1907 and 1908.

He played the majority of his major league career (290 out of 382 games) as a catcher. Over his entire major league career, he had a .281 batting average with two home runs, 168 RBI and a .338 on-base percentage.{{cite news|title=Bob Wood|publisher=Sports Reference LLC|work=Baseball-Reference.com|accessdate=July 3, 2022|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/w/woodbo01.shtml}}

Later years

During his time as a baseball player, Wood also owned two farms in Ohio.

Wood died at his home in Youngstown, Ohio, in May 1943.{{cite news|title=Old Ball Player Dies|newspaper=The Cincinnati Post|date=May 24, 1943|page=10|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/107497089/obituary-for-robert-lynn-wood-aged-78/|via=Newspapers.com}}

References