A first-round pick by the Oakland Athletics in the 1975 Major League Baseball Draft, Robinson's career was derailed by an automobile accident while playing for the New York Yankees in 1980.

He never returned to the majors, though he continued to play in the minor leagues in 1983, with the Pittsburgh Pirates AAA affiliate in Hawaii and in 1984 with the A's in Tacoma and Modesto.

Bruce Robinson was born in La Jolla, California, a beach community within the city of San Diego.

Robinson received All-American recognition during both summer and college seasons at Stanford, breaking the university's single-season home run record in 1975.

[citation needed] After finishing the school year at Stanford, Robinson joined the top summer collegiate program in the nation, the Alaska Goldpanners of Fairbanks.