Bruce Bochte
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Bruce Anton Bochte ( ; born November 12, 1950) is an American former professional
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...
and
outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...
who played in
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
from – and –. He played his entire career in the
American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...
for the
California Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West Division. Since 1966, the team has pl ...
,
Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...
,
Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. The Mariners compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. The team joined the American ...
and
Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...
. Bochte graduated from Arcadia High School in California and played collegiate ball for the
Santa Clara Broncos baseball The Santa Clara Broncos baseball team is the varsity intercollegiate baseball team that represents Santa Clara University in NCAA Division I college baseball. Santa Clara Baseball competes in the West Coast Conference, of which the Santa Clara Br ...
team until he was drafted by the Angels in the second round (34th overall) of the
1972 Major League Baseball draft The 1972 Major League Baseball draft took place prior to the 1972 MLB season. The draft saw the San Diego Padres select Dave Roberts first overall. First round selections The following are the first round picks in the 1972 Major League Baseba ...
. Bochte was called up to the Angels in 1974 after hitting .355 with nine home runs and 56 RBI in 92 games for the Triple-A
Salt Lake City Angels In common usage, salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl). When used in food, especially in granulated form, it is more formally called table salt. In the form of a natural crystalline mineral, salt is also known as ro ...
of the
Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...
, and made his major league debut on July 19, 1974. In his first game, Bochte appeared as a pinch runner for Bob Oliver, and scored a run while going 0-for-1 in a 5–4 loss to the
Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...
. He spent the next four seasons with the Angels, hitting .272 during that span. He batted .290 with two
home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...
s and 8
runs batted in A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if th ...
(RBI) to begin the 1977 campaign before being traded along with
Sid Monge Isidro Monge Pedroza (born April 11, 1951) is a Mexican former Major League Baseball relief pitcher who pitched from 1975 to 1984. He played Major League Baseball (MLB) for the California Angels, Cleveland Indians, Philadelphia Phillies, San D ...
and cash from the
Angels An angel is a spiritual (without a physical body), heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the transcendent) and humanity (the profane) in variou ...
to the
Indians Indian or Indians may refer to: Associated with India * of or related to India ** Indian people ** Indian diaspora ** Languages of India ** Indian English, a dialect of the English language ** Indian cuisine Associated with indigenous peoples o ...
for
Dave LaRoche David Eugene LaRoche (né Garcia; born May 14, 1948) is an American former professional baseball pitcher and coach. LaRoche is most famous for throwing his own variant of the eephus pitch, which he called "La Lob". Over his career, LaRoche wen ...
and Dave Schuler on May 11. After finishing 1977 with Cleveland, he became a free agent and signed with the Seattle Mariners, who he played with for the next five seasons. Bochte was selected for the
American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...
All-Star An all-star team is a group of people all having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and has been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry. Sports "All-star" as a sport ...
team in 1979 when he hit .316 with 16 home runs and 100 RBI in 150 games and set career highs in virtually every major offensive category. He sat out the entire 1983 season for because he "was fed up with the business of baseball and worried about the state of the world", but returned to play with the Oakland Athletics from 1984–1986. In a 12-year, 1,538 game major league career, Bochte compiled a .282
batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...
(1,478-for-5,233) with 643 runs, 250 doubles, 21
triples TripleS (; ; stylized as tripleS) is a South Korean 24-member multinational girl group formed by Modhaus. They aim to be the world's first decentralized idol group, where the members will rotate between the full group, sub-units, and solo activi ...
, 100
home runs In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run ...
, 658 RBI, 653 walks, 662
strikeouts In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It means the batter is out, unless the third strike is not caught by the catcher and the batter reaches first base safe ...
, .360
on-base percentage In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) measures how frequently a batting (baseball), batter reaches base (baseball), base. An official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1984, it is sometimes referred to as on-base average (OBA ...
and .396
slugging percentage In baseball statistics, slugging percentage (SLG) is a measure of the batting productivity of a hitter. It is calculated as total bases divided by at-bats, through the following formula, where ''AB'' is the number of at-bats for a given player, an ...
. Defensively, he recorded a career .991
fielding percentage In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a baseball positions, defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putout ...
playing at first base and all three outfield positions. For his college career, he was inducted into the
Santa Clara University Santa Clara University is a private university, private Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California, United States. Established in 1851, Santa Clara University is the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California. The university' ...
Athletic Hall of Fame in 1987. As of 2001, Bochte was an avowed
agnostic Agnosticism is the view or belief that the existence of God, the divine, or the supernatural is either unknowable in principle or unknown in fact. (page 56 in 1967 edition) It can also mean an apathy towards such religious belief and refer to ...
, and was studying
cosmology Cosmology () is a branch of physics and metaphysics dealing with the nature of the universe, the cosmos. The term ''cosmology'' was first used in English in 1656 in Thomas Blount's ''Glossographia'', with the meaning of "a speaking of the wo ...
and working on environmental conservation. He stated that he has no contact with anyone from his playing days except for
Dusty Baker Johnnie B "Dusty" Baker Jr. (born June 15, 1949) is an American former professional baseball outfielder and Manager (baseball), manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in MLB for 19 seasons, most notably with the Los Angeles Dodgers. D ...
. Bochte married twice, and has two daughters from his first marriage.


References

*1975 Baseball Register published by ''
The Sporting News ''The Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a ...
''


External links


College Basketball Stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bochte, Bruce 1950 births Living people California Angels players Cleveland Indians players Baseball players from Pasadena, California Seattle Mariners players Oakland Athletics players Salt Lake City Angels players Stockton Ports players El Paso Sun Kings players Santa Clara Broncos baseball players Santa Clara Broncos men's basketball players American League All-Stars Major League Baseball first basemen American agnostics Baseball players from Arcadia, California Sportspeople from Island County, Washington American men's basketball players Anchorage Glacier Pilots players Arcadia High School (California) alumni Humboldt Crabs players 20th-century American sportsmen