Billy Sullivan, Jr.

Who was Billy Sullivan, Jr.?

William Joseph Sullivan, Jr. born in Chicago, Illinois was a catcher, first baseman and third baseman for the Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati Reds, Cleveland Indians, St. Louis Browns, Detroit Tigers, Brooklyn Dodgers and Pittsburgh Pirates. He played college baseball at the University of Notre Dame in 1930 and 1931. He helped the Tigers win the 1940 American League pennant.

He finished 24th in voting for the 1932 American League Most Valuable Player Award for playing in 93 Games and having 97 hits in 307 at bats for a .316 batting average, along with 1 home run and 45 runs batted in. Sullivan had his best season in 1936 with Cleveland, when he had a .351 batting average with 32 doubles and 48 runs batted in.

In 12 seasons he played in 962 Games and had 2,840 At Bats, 347 Runs, 820 Hits, 152 Doubles, 32 Triples, 29 Home Runs, 388 RBI, 30 Stolen Bases, 240 Walks, .289 Batting Average, .346 On-base percentage, .395 Slugging Percentage, 1,123 Total Bases and 39 Sacrifice Hits. Sullivan led National League catchers in 1938 with a .990 fielding percentage. His father, Billy Sullivan, was also a major league catcher.