Bruce Kison, baseball player, 1971-1985

Bruce Kison

Born: 2/18/1950 in Pasco, WA, USA

Died: 6/2/2018 in Bradenton, FL, USA

MLB Debut: 1971-07-04 | Final Game: 1985-10-05

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 6'4" | Weight: 178 lbs

Full name: Bruce Eugene Kison

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Biography

Bruce Kison, born in 1950, was a skilled pitcher who made significant contributions to Major League Baseball from 1971 until his retirement in 1985. Known for his steady presence on the mound, Kison finished his career with a record of 115-88 and an earned run average (ERA) of 3.66. Over his 14 seasons in the league, he recorded 1,073 strikeouts and notched 12 saves, showcasing both his ability to dominate batters and his versatility as a relief pitcher when needed. Kison's career spanned a transformative era in baseball, marked by the rise of power hitters and an increased emphasis on pitching depth. He played for several teams during his career, where he earned a reputation for his competitive spirit and resilience on the field. His contributions to the game have been remembered not just for his statistics, but also for his role in shaping the pitching landscape of his time, making him a noteworthy figure in baseball history.

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
115 88 380 246 36 8 12 1809.7 1693 736 150 662 1073 3.66 0

Career ERA 3.66 vs. league average 3.74 across their career seasons — near 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
1971 PIT NL 6 5 18 13 2 1 0 95.3 93 36 36 60 3.40 3.47 (+2%) 331.6
1972 PIT NL 9 7 32 18 6 1 3 152.0 123 55 69 102 3.26 3.26 (avg) -1070.5
1973 PIT NL 3 0 7 7 0 0 0 43.7 36 15 24 26 3.09 3.75 (+17%) -591.7
1974 PIT NL 9 8 40 16 1 0 2 129.0 123 50 57 71 3.49 3.63 (+4%) -787.0
1975 PIT NL 12 11 33 29 6 0 0 192.0 160 69 92 89 3.23 3.71 (+13%) -630.7
1976 PIT NL 14 9 31 29 6 1 1 193.0 180 66 52 98 3.08 3.51 (+12%) 1849.3
1977 PIT NL 9 10 33 32 3 1 0 193.0 209 105 55 122 4.90 4.00 (-22%) -538.8
1978 PIT NL 6 6 28 11 0 0 0 96.0 81 34 39 62 3.19 3.69 (+14%) 1499.1
1979 PIT NL 13 7 33 25 3 1 0 172.3 157 61 45 105 3.19 4.00 (+20%) 2921.0
1980 LAA AL 3 6 13 13 2 1 0 73.3 73 40 32 28 4.91 3.84 (-28%) -
1981 LAA AL 1 1 11 4 0 0 0 44.0 40 17 14 19 3.48 3.58 (+3%) -
1982 LAA AL 10 5 33 16 3 1 1 142.0 120 50 44 86 3.17 3.86 (+18%) -
1983 LAA AL 11 5 26 17 4 1 2 126.7 128 57 43 83 4.05 3.87 (-5%) -
1984 LAA AL 4 5 20 7 0 0 2 65.3 72 39 28 66 5.37 3.81 (-41%) -
1985 BOS AL 5 3 22 9 0 0 1 92.0 98 42 32 56 4.11 3.89 (-6%) 184.5

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
388 404 31 66 15 5 3 31 2 16 158 0.163 0.200 0.248 0.448 -1583.0

Career AVG .163 vs. league average .258 across their career seasons — 36.7% below league average.

Career OBP .200 vs. league average .323 across their career seasons — 38.0% below league average.

Career SLG .248 vs. league average .380 across their career seasons — 34.9% below league average.

Career OPS 0.448 vs. league average 0.703 across their career seasons — 36.3% 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
1971 PIT NL 18 31 2 2 1 0 0 1 0 2 16 0.065 — — — — 0.0
1972 PIT NL 32 53 3 10 4 1 0 9 0 1 27 0.189 .243 (-23%) .310 (-34%) .353 (-15%) .664 (-24%) -226.1
1973 PIT NL 7 12 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 6 0.083 — — — — 0.0
1974 PIT NL 40 37 1 4 1 0 0 0 0 3 17 0.108 — — — — 0.0
1975 PIT NL 35 59 4 7 0 0 0 3 1 2 29 0.119 .257 (-54%) .327 (-55%) .374 (-68%) .701 (-62%) -603.4
1976 PIT NL 31 59 4 12 2 2 0 3 0 5 20 0.203 .255 (-20%) .320 (-17%) .360 (-15%) .681 (-16%) -166.7
1977 PIT NL 35 69 8 18 4 0 1 7 1 2 19 0.261 .264 (-1%) .329 (-14%) .401 (-10%) .730 (-12%) -149.9
1978 PIT NL 28 29 2 4 1 1 1 1 0 0 5 0.138 — — — — 0.0
1979 PIT NL 37 55 6 8 2 0 1 6 0 1 19 0.145 .265 (-45%) .329 (-51%) .397 (-41%) .727 (-45%) -436.8
1980 LAA AL 13 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1981 LAA AL 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1982 LAA AL 33 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1983 LAA AL 26 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1984 LAA AL 20 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1985 BOS AL 22 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
10 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 0.000

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1982 ALCS CAL 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1979 WS PIT 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1975 NLCS PIT 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1974 NLCS PIT 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.000
1972 NLCS PIT 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1971 NLCS PIT 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.000
1971 WS PIT 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0.000

Playoff Career Pitching

W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
5 1 10 4 0 36.3 19 8 15 27 1.98

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1982 ALCS CAL 1 0 2 2 0 14.0 8 3 3 12 1.93
1979 WS PIT 0 1 1 1 0 0.3 3 4 2 0 108.00
1975 NLCS PIT 0 0 1 0 0 2.0 2 1 0 1 4.50
1974 NLCS PIT 1 0 1 1 0 6.7 2 0 6 5 0.00
1972 NLCS PIT 1 0 2 0 0 2.3 1 0 0 3 0.00
1971 NLCS PIT 1 0 1 0 0 4.7 2 0 2 3 0.00
1971 WS PIT 1 0 2 0 0 6.3 1 0 2 3 0.00

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
P 380 246 140 297 16 27

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1971 PIT P 18 13 8 18 1 5
1972 PIT P 32 18 9 15 1 2
1973 PIT P 7 7 2 7 0 0
1974 PIT P 40 16 10 25 2 2
1975 PIT P 33 29 11 39 1 5
1976 PIT P 31 29 16 31 2 2
1977 PIT P 33 32 11 33 2 0
1978 PIT P 28 11 11 14 0 1
1979 PIT P 33 25 10 30 1 2
1980 CAL P 13 13 2 11 3 0
1981 CAL P 11 4 3 9 0 1
1982 CAL P 33 16 19 24 1 2
1983 CAL P 26 17 5 22 0 2
1984 CAL P 20 7 7 3 2 1
1985 BOS P 22 9 16 16 0 2

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 380

Salary History

Year Team League Salary
1985 BOS AL $370,000
Total Career Earnings $370,000