Bob Dernier

Robert Eugene Dernier
(The Deer or White Lightning)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 165 lb.
• School Longview Community College
• High school Raytown South High School
• Debut September 7, 1980
• Final Game October 1, 1989
• Born January 5, 1957 in Kansas City, MO USA

BR page

Biographical Information

An unsigned 12th-round draft pick in 1977, Bob Dernier caught on with the Philadelphia Phillies organization and had an impressive September cup of coffee with the Phillies' World Championship team in 1980. By 1982, he was a semi-regular, and was a platoon regular on the Phillies' 1983 pennant winners. Traded to the Chicago Cubs, Dernier played a Gold Glove center field for the 1984 NL East champions, the high-water mark of his career. He had 3 game-winning RBI in 1985.

Dernier was called "White Lightning" because he was fast (218 career stolen bases) and because the stereotypes of his day assumed that all fast players must be black. He was a platoon hitter, however, batting only .238 in his career against right-handed pitching, a weakness that limited his usefulness. He was eventually limited to the role of fourth or fifth outfielder for Chicago and Philadelphia in the late 1980s.

Following his playing days, Dernier was out of baseball for most of the period 1990-2006. Dernier did spend the 1998 season as a minor league outfield instructor for the Texas Rangers. He resigned after the season and did not reappear in a regular professional coaching position until 2007. Dernier was a minor league outfield and baserunning coordinator for the Cubs from 2007 until he was named the team's first base coach on August 23, 2010, replacing Mike Quade (who had become manager). Dernier retained the first base position for 2011. The Cubs did not bring Dernier back in 2012. Instead, he worked as an Associate Head Coach & Director of Baseball Operations for the Will County CrackerJacks in the Midwest Collegiate League.

Notable Achievements

• 1979 MVP Carolina League Peninsula Pilots
• NL Gold Glove Winner (1984)
• Won a World Series with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1980 (he did not play in the World Series)

Related Sites

• Bob Dernier at the SABR Bio Project