Sturm was born in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1916. He attended Roosevelt High School in St. Louis and also played semi-pro baseball.\n', '

Sturm started his professional career in 1936 in the New York Yankees organization. In 1939 and 1940, he played for the American Association\'s Kansas City Blues alongside the double play combination of Phil Rizzuto and Jerry Priddy. The Blues won two league championships, and Sturm hit over .300 in both seasons. He joined the Yankees in 1941, replacing Babe Dahlgren at first base.\n', '

Sturm sat on the bench early in the season but broke into the lineup after the other infielders – including Hall of Famers Rizzuto and Joe Gordon – got off to slow starts. Sturm hit just .239 for the Yankees but still batted first in the lineup the rest of the way. He later claimed to have a back injury that year. He did, however, hit .286 in the 1941 World Series; the Yankees defeated the Brooklyn Dodgers in five games. After the season, Sturm enlisted in the United States Army and served in World War II. He was out of professional baseball from 1942 to 1945 and lost the tip of his right index finger in a tractor accident.\n', '

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