Andy Benes, baseball player, 1989-2002

Andy Benes

Born: 8/20/1967 in Evansville, IN, USA

MLB Debut: 1989-08-11 | Final Game: 2002-09-29

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 6'6" | Weight: 235 lbs

Full name: Andrew Charles Benes

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Biography

Andy Benes was a professional baseball pitcher born in 1967 who enjoyed a successful career in Major League Baseball from 1989 until his retirement in 2002. Over the course of his 14-year career, he established himself as a reliable starter, finishing with a record of 155-139 and an earned run average (ERA) of 3.97. Benes was known for his durability on the mound, amassing 2,000 strikeouts and showcasing a competitive spirit that earned him a selection to the All-Star Game during his career. Playing in an era that saw the rise of offensive power and high-scoring games, Benes adapted his pitching style to effectively navigate the challenges of the late 1980s through the early 2000s. His ability to get batters out while limiting runs made him a valuable asset to every team he played for, including the San Diego Padres, St. Louis Cardinals, and Seattle Mariners, among others. With a single save to his name, Benes primarily focused on starting games, contributing significantly to his teams' pitching rotations. His impact on the game and consistent performance throughout his career solidified his place in baseball history.

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
155 139 403 387 21 9 1 2505.3 2377 1106 289 909 2000 3.97 0

Career ERA 3.97 vs. league average 4.29 across their career seasons — 7.5% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1989 SDP NL 6 3 10 10 0 0 0 66.7 51 26 31 66 3.51 3.71 (+5%) -
1990 SDP NL 10 11 32 31 2 0 0 192.3 177 77 69 140 3.60 3.86 (+7%) -
1991 SDP NL 15 11 33 33 4 1 0 223.0 194 75 59 167 3.03 3.91 (+23%) -
1992 SDP NL 13 14 34 34 2 2 0 231.3 230 86 61 169 3.35 3.75 (+11%) -
1993 SDP NL 15 15 34 34 4 2 0 230.7 200 97 86 179 3.78 4.19 (+10%) -
1994 SDP NL 6 14 25 25 2 2 0 172.3 155 74 51 189 3.86 4.51 (+14%) -
1995 SDP NL 4 7 19 19 1 1 0 118.7 121 55 45 126 4.17 4.45 (+6%) -
1995 SEA AL 7 2 12 12 0 0 0 63.0 72 41 33 45 5.86 4.45 (-32%) -863.3
1996 STL NL 18 10 36 34 3 1 1 230.3 215 98 77 160 3.83 4.61 (+17%) -
1997 STL NL 10 7 26 26 0 0 0 177.0 149 61 61 175 3.10 4.39 (+29%) -
1998 AZ NL 14 13 34 34 1 0 0 231.3 221 102 74 164 3.97 4.43 (+10%) -
1999 AZ NL 13 12 33 32 0 0 0 198.3 216 106 82 141 4.81 4.71 (-2%) -
2000 STL NL 12 9 30 27 1 0 0 166.0 174 90 68 137 4.88 4.77 (-2%) -
2001 STL NL 7 7 27 19 0 0 0 107.3 122 88 61 78 7.38 4.42 (-67%) -
2002 STL NL 5 4 18 17 1 0 0 97.0 80 30 51 64 2.78 4.28 (+35%) -

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
405 741 48 106 21 0 8 50 0 34 307 0.143 0.186 0.204 0.390 -5361.9

Career AVG .143 vs. league average .264 across their career seasons — 45.8% below league average.

Career OBP .186 vs. league average .333 across their career seasons — 44.2% below league average.

Career SLG .204 vs. league average .411 across their career seasons — 50.5% below league average.

Career OPS 0.390 vs. league average 0.745 across their career seasons — 47.7% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1989 SDP NL 10 24 2 6 0 0 1 2 0 0 12 0.250 — — — — 0.0
1990 SDP NL 32 60 2 6 1 0 0 2 0 2 25 0.100 .257 (-61%) .324 (-61%) .385 (-70%) .710 (-66%) -668.5
1991 SDP NL 33 62 4 2 0 0 1 1 0 6 29 0.032 .255 (-87%) .323 (-56%) .384 (-79%) .708 (-68%) -701.9
1992 SDP NL 34 67 3 10 2 0 1 5 0 5 29 0.149 .255 (-42%) .322 (-36%) .377 (-41%) .699 (-39%) -440.9
1993 SDP NL 34 72 5 9 3 0 1 4 0 1 33 0.125 .265 (-53%) .332 (-55%) .403 (-48%) .735 (-51%) -649.0
1994 SDP NL 25 49 2 8 1 0 0 7 0 1 22 0.163 — — — — -446.6
1995 SDP NL 19 40 2 6 1 0 0 3 0 1 18 0.150 — — — — 0.0
1995 SEA AL 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1996 STL NL 36 73 5 11 4 0 0 6 0 1 37 0.151 .269 (-44%) .340 (-54%) .426 (-52%) .767 (-53%) -725.9
1997 STL NL 26 55 4 12 2 0 0 5 0 1 14 0.218 .266 (-18%) .336 (-27%) .419 (-39%) .756 (-34%) -320.7
1998 AZ NL 35 65 8 11 3 0 1 3 0 6 28 0.169 .266 (-36%) .335 (-25%) .420 (-38%) .755 (-32%) -367.7
1999 AZ NL 33 58 6 9 0 0 1 5 0 4 17 0.155 .271 (-43%) .344 (-36%) .433 (-52%) .778 (-45%) -465.1
2000 STL NL 30 50 1 4 0 0 1 1 0 4 19 0.080 .270 (-70%) .344 (-57%) .437 (-68%) .782 (-63%) -575.5
2001 STL NL 27 32 1 5 3 0 0 4 0 1 15 0.156 — — — — 0.0
2002 STL NL 19 34 3 7 1 0 1 2 0 1 9 0.206 — — — — 0.0

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
10 12 2 3 1 0 0 1 1 5 0.250

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
2002 NLCS SLN 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.000
2002 NLDS2 SLN 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0.000
2000 NLCS SLN 1 3 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.333
1996 NLCS SLN 3 4 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 2 0.250
1996 NLDS2 SLN 1 2 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.500
1995 ALCS SEA 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1995 ALDS2 SEA 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1 1 10 9 0 54.3 51 33 26 44 5.47

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
2002 NLCS SLN 0 0 1 1 0 5.3 2 2 4 5 3.38
2002 NLDS2 SLN 0 0 1 1 0 4.7 2 3 4 5 5.79
2000 NLCS SLN 1 0 1 1 0 8.0 6 2 3 5 2.25
1996 NLCS SLN 0 0 3 2 0 15.3 19 9 3 9 5.28
1996 NLDS2 SLN 0 0 1 1 0 7.0 6 4 1 9 5.14
1995 ALCS SEA 0 1 1 1 0 2.3 6 6 2 3 23.14
1995 ALDS2 SEA 0 0 2 2 0 11.7 10 7 9 8 5.40

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
P 403 387 156 241 10 17

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1989 SDN P 10 10 4 8 0 1
1990 SDN P 32 31 15 9 1 1
1991 SDN P 33 33 8 29 0 3
1992 SDN P 34 34 14 34 1 1
1993 SDN P 34 34 17 14 1 2
1994 SDN P 25 25 21 19 0 1
1995 SDN P 19 19 7 7 1 1
1995 SEA P 12 12 2 7 0 0
1996 SLN P 36 34 8 24 2 1
1997 SLN P 26 26 8 14 1 0
1998 ARI P 34 34 23 25 0 2
1999 ARI P 33 32 13 15 2 1
2000 SLN P 30 27 4 17 0 1
2001 SLN P 27 19 7 9 0 1
2002 SLN P 18 17 5 10 1 1

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 403

Awards & Honors

Year Award Notes
1993 Player of the Week Week of 1993-07-31
1989 TSN Rookie Pitcher of the Year

Salary History

Year Team League Salary
2002 SLN NL $6,367,542
2001 SLN NL $6,666,667
2000 SLN NL $2,867,542
1999 ARI NL $6,000,000
1998 ARI NL $6,450,000
1997 SLN NL $4,850,000
1996 SLN NL $3,375,000
1995 SDN NL $3,400,000
1994 SDN NL $3,005,000
1993 SDN NL $2,050,000
1992 SDN NL $475,000
1991 SDN NL $235,000
1990 SDN NL $130,000
1989 SDN NL $68,000
Total Career Earnings $45,939,751

College History

School Name City State Years Attended
University of Evansville Evansville IN 1986, 1987, 1988

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1996 Cy Young Award NL 3rd 9.0 140 0
1994 Most Valuable Player NL 22th 1.0 392 0
1991 Cy Young Award NL 6th 1.0 120 0
1989 Rookie of the Year NL 5th 3.0 120 0