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Jim Bottomley
First baseman
Born: April 23, 1900(1900-04-23) Oglesby, Illinois
Died: December 11, 1959 (aged 59) St. Louis, Missouri
Batted: Left	Threw: Left
MLB debut
August 18, 1922 for the St. Louis Cardinals
Last MLB appearance
September 16, 1937 for the St. Louis Browns
Career statistics
Batting average	.310
Home runs	219
Runs batted in	1,422
Teams
As Player St. Louis Cardinals (1922-1932) Cincinnati Reds (1933-1935) St. Louis Browns (1936-1937) As Manager St. Louis Browns (1937)
Career highlights and awards
2× World Series champion (1926, 1931) 1928 NL MVP
Member of the National
Baseball Hall of Fame
Induction	1974
Election Method	Veteran's Committee

James Leroy Bottomley (April 23, 1900 – December 11, 1959) was born in Oglesby, Illinois and grew up in Nokomis, Illinois. Nicknamed "Sunny Jim", he was a left-handed Major League Baseball player. He also served as player-manager for the St. Louis Browns in 1937.

As a first baseman for the St. Louis Cardinals (1922-1932), Cincinnati Reds (1933-1935) and St. Louis Browns (1936-1937), Bottomley was noted for his upbeat demeanor and ability to drive in runs. He had over 100 RBIs in each season from 1924 to 1929.

Bottomley's best season came in 1928, when he hit .325 with 31 home runs and 136 RBIs. He also became the second Major League player in history to join the 20–20–20 club. That year, he won the National League Most Valuable Player award and led the Cardinals to the World Series, where they lost to the New York Yankees. He was the first player to win an MVP award after beginning his career in his team's farm system.

He set the Major League record for RBIs in a single game, with 12, on September 16, 1924 (since tied by Mark Whiten). Bottomley also holds the single-season record for most unassisted double plays by a first baseman, with eight. "Sunny" is also known as the only man to be sued for hitting a home run when a fan was hit by the ball when he wasn't looking.

After his career ended, Bottomley moved to near Bourbon, Missouri, where he raised Hereford cattle. He spent the last years of his life in nearby Sullivan, Missouri, where he and his wife were eventually laid to rest in the I.O.O.F. Cemetery.

A museum in Nokomis, Illinois, is dedicated to Bottomley and the Hall of Famers Ray Schalk and Red Ruffing.

Bottomly was the second player in baseball history to hit 20 or more doubles, triples, and home runs in one season (Frank Schulte being the first) and the first of two players (Lou Gehrig being the other) to collect 150 or more doubles, triples, and home runs in a career. He is the only player to achieve both.

"Sunny Jim" Bottomley was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame posthumously in 1974.

See also

• Top 500 home run hitters of all time
• List of major league players with 2,000 hits
• 20–20–20 club
• List of Major League Baseball players with 400 doubles
• List of Major League Baseball players with 100 triples
• List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 runs
• List of Major League Baseball RBI Records
• List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 RBI
• Hitting for the cycle
• List of Major League Baseball RBI champions
• List of Major League Baseball home run champions
• List of Major League Baseball doubles champions
• List of Major League Baseball triples champions

References

External links

• Baseball Hall of Fame – Member biography
• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
• Major league career managerial statistics from Baseball-Reference
• The Deadball Era
• Jim Bottomley at Find a Grave.com
• Nokomis Illinois, Historical Society of Montgomery County Illinois