Steve Kline, baseball player, 1997-2007

Steve Kline

Born: 8/22/1972 in Sunbury, PA, USA

MLB Debut: 1997-04-02 | Final Game: 2007-09-25

Bats: B | Throws: L | Height: 6'2" | Weight: 200 lbs

Full name: Steven James Kline

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Biography

Steve Kline, born in 1972, was a professional baseball pitcher whose career spanned from 1997 to 2007. He made a name for himself in Major League Baseball during an era characterized by offensive prowess, showcasing his skills as a reliable relief pitcher. Kline played for several teams, including the St. Louis Cardinals and the San Francisco Giants, and he was known for his ability to come through in high-pressure situations, earning a total of 39 saves throughout his career. With a career record of 34-39 and an earned run average (ERA) of 3.51, Kline demonstrated consistency and durability on the mound. He accumulated 493 strikeouts, highlighting his capability to overpower hitters with his pitching arsenal. Kline's contributions were particularly valuable during the late 1990s and early 2000s, a time when the league was rapidly evolving and offense was at a premium. His effective pitching style and ability to handle late-game situations established him as a key asset to the teams he played for and left a lasting impression in the minds of baseball fans.

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
34 39 796 1 0 0 39 682.3 649 266 60 295 493 3.51 0

Career ERA 3.51 vs. league average 4.47 across their career seasons — 21.5% 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
1997 CLE AL 3 1 20 1 0 0 0 26.3 42 17 13 17 5.81 4.39 (-32%) -1314.3
1997 WSN NL 1 3 26 0 0 0 0 26.3 31 18 10 20 6.15 4.39 (-40%) -
1998 WSN NL 3 6 78 0 0 0 1 71.7 62 22 41 76 2.76 4.43 (+38%) -
1999 WSN NL 7 4 82 0 0 0 0 69.7 56 29 33 69 3.75 4.71 (+20%) -
2000 WSN NL 1 5 83 0 0 0 14 82.3 88 32 27 64 3.50 4.77 (+27%) -
2001 STL NL 3 3 89 0 0 0 9 75.0 53 15 29 54 1.80 4.42 (+59%) -
2002 STL NL 2 1 66 0 0 0 6 58.3 54 22 21 41 3.39 4.28 (+21%) -
2003 STL NL 5 5 78 0 0 0 3 63.7 56 27 30 31 3.82 4.40 (+13%) -
2004 STL NL 2 2 67 0 0 0 3 50.3 37 10 17 35 1.79 4.46 (+60%) -
2005 BAL AL 2 4 67 0 0 0 0 61.0 59 29 30 36 4.28 4.29 (avg) -2113.0
2006 SFG NL 4 3 72 0 0 0 1 51.7 53 21 26 33 3.66 4.53 (+19%) -
2007 SFG NL 1 2 68 0 0 0 2 46.0 58 24 18 17 4.70 4.47 (-5%) -

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
796 14 1 2 1 0 0 2 0 0 6 0.143 0.143 0.214 0.357 0.0

Career AVG .143 vs. league average .267 across their career seasons — 46.4% below league average.

Career OBP .143 vs. league average .336 across their career seasons — 57.5% below league average.

Career SLG .214 vs. league average .425 across their career seasons — 49.6% below league average.

Career OPS 0.357 vs. league average 0.761 across their career seasons — 53.1% 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
1997 CLE AL 20 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1997 WSN NL 26 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 — — — — 0.0
1998 WSN NL 78 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 — — — — 0.0
1999 WSN NL 82 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 — — — — 0.0
2000 WSN NL 83 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 — — — — 0.0
2001 STL NL 89 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.500 — — — — 0.0
2002 STL NL 66 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.000 — — — — 0.0
2003 STL NL 78 2 0 1 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 0.500 — — — — 0.0
2004 STL NL 67 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
2005 BAL AL 67 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
2006 SFG NL 72 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
2007 SFG NL 68 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 — — — — 0.0

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
13 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
2004 NLCS SLN 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2004 NLDS1 SLN 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2002 NLCS SLN 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2002 NLDS2 SLN 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2001 NLDS2 SLN 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
0 1 13 0 2 9.3 9 1 3 1 0.96

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
2004 NLCS SLN 0 0 1 0 0 0.0 2 0 0 0 0.00
2004 NLDS1 SLN 0 0 2 0 0 1.3 0 0 0 0 0.00
2002 NLCS SLN 0 0 4 0 0 2.3 2 0 0 1 0.00
2002 NLDS2 SLN 0 0 2 0 0 1.3 1 0 1 0 0.00
2001 NLDS2 SLN 0 1 4 0 2 4.3 4 1 2 0 2.08

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
P 796 1 37 111 7 7

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1997 CLE P 20 1 2 1 1 0
1997 MON P 26 0 1 4 0 0
1998 MON P 78 0 3 10 1 0
1999 MON P 82 0 5 17 1 2
2000 MON P 83 0 4 10 1 1
2001 SLN P 89 0 3 10 0 0
2002 SLN P 66 0 4 6 0 0
2003 SLN P 78 0 1 16 0 3
2004 SLN P 67 0 4 10 0 0
2005 BAL P 67 0 2 14 1 1
2006 SFN P 72 0 5 10 1 0
2007 SFN P 68 0 3 3 1 0

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 796

Salary History

Year Team League Salary
2007 SFN NL $1,750,000
2006 SFN NL $3,000,000
2005 BAL AL $2,500,000
2004 SLN NL $1,700,000
2003 SLN NL $1,800,000
2002 SLN NL $1,200,000
2001 SLN NL $750,000
2000 MON NL $355,000
1999 MON NL $260,000
1998 MON NL $173,500
1997 CLE AL $150,000
Total Career Earnings $13,638,500

College History

School Name City State Years Attended
West Virginia University Morgantown WV 1993

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
2001 Most Valuable Player NL 24th 1.0 448 0