Johnny Klippstein, baseball player, 1950-1967

Johnny Klippstein

Born: 10/17/1927 in Washington, DC, USA

Died: 10/10/2003 in Elgin, IL, USA

MLB Debut: 1950-05-03 | Final Game: 1967-05-27

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 6'1" | Weight: 173 lbs

Full name: John Calvin Klippstein

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Biography

Johnny Klippstein was a professional baseball pitcher who enjoyed a lengthy career spanning from 1950 to 1967. Born in 1927, Klippstein made his debut in an era marked by the transition from the deadball era into a more offensive-friendly environment in Major League Baseball. Over his 17 seasons in the big leagues, he played for several teams, establishing himself as a reliable arm on the mound. Klippstein finished his career with a record of 101 wins and 118 losses, showcasing his resilience and determination throughout a competitive career. Klippstein recorded an earned run average (ERA) of 4.24 and struck out 1,158 batters, demonstrating his ability to miss bats and contribute significantly to his teams' pitching staffs. He also secured 66 saves, reflecting his effectiveness in high-leverage situations and his versatility as a pitcher. Known for his competitive spirit and work ethic, Klippstein left a lasting impact on the teams he played for, including stints with the Chicago Cubs and Cincinnati Reds, and is remembered as a solid contributor during a transformative period in baseball history.

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
101 118 711 161 37 6 66 1967.7 1915 927 203 978 1158 4.24 0

Career ERA 4.24 vs. league average 3.80 across their career seasons — 11.6% worse 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
1950 CHC NL 2 9 33 11 3 0 1 104.7 112 61 64 51 5.25 4.36 (-20%) -
1951 CHC NL 6 6 35 11 1 1 2 123.7 125 59 53 56 4.29 4.04 (-6%) -
1952 CHC NL 9 14 41 25 7 2 3 202.7 208 100 89 110 4.44 3.70 (-20%) -
1953 CHC NL 10 11 48 19 5 0 6 167.7 169 90 107 113 4.83 4.14 (-17%) -
1954 CHC NL 4 11 36 21 4 0 1 148.0 155 87 96 69 5.29 3.90 (-36%) -
1955 CIN NL 9 10 39 14 3 2 0 138.0 120 52 60 68 3.39 4.00 (+15%) -0.1
1956 CIN NL 12 11 37 29 11 0 1 211.0 219 96 82 86 4.09 3.96 (-3%) -2755.9
1957 CIN NL 8 11 46 18 3 1 3 146.0 146 82 68 99 5.05 3.83 (-32%) -903.6
1958 CIN NL 3 2 12 4 0 0 1 33.0 37 18 14 22 4.91 3.86 (-27%) -510.9
1958 LAD NL 3 5 45 0 0 0 9 90.0 81 38 44 73 3.80 3.86 (+2%) -
1959 LAD NL 4 0 28 0 0 0 2 45.7 48 30 33 30 5.91 3.90 (-51%) -
1960 CLE AL 5 5 49 0 0 0 14 74.3 53 24 35 46 2.91 3.82 (+24%) -612.1
1961 WS2 AL 2 2 42 1 0 0 0 71.7 83 54 43 41 6.78 4.03 (-68%) -3143.5
1962 CIN NL 7 6 40 7 0 0 4 108.7 113 54 64 67 4.47 3.96 (-13%) -2392.2
1963 PHI NL 5 6 49 1 0 0 8 112.0 80 24 46 86 1.93 3.46 (+44%) 2448.9
1964 PHI NL 2 1 11 0 0 0 1 22.3 22 10 8 13 4.03 3.58 (-13%) -1512.2
1964 MIN AL 0 4 33 0 0 0 2 45.7 44 10 20 39 1.97 3.58 (+45%) 190.6
1965 MIN AL 9 3 56 0 0 0 5 76.3 59 19 31 59 2.24 3.50 (+36%) -331.9
1966 MIN AL 1 1 26 0 0 0 3 39.7 35 15 20 26 3.40 3.52 (+3%) -42.4
1967 DET AL 0 0 5 0 0 0 0 6.7 6 4 1 4 5.40 — 0.0

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
713 502 28 63 8 1 5 29 0 14 190 0.125 0.152 0.175 0.328 -1656.5

Career AVG .125 vs. league average .255 across their career seasons — 50.8% below league average.

Career OBP .152 vs. league average .324 across their career seasons — 52.9% below league average.

Career SLG .175 vs. league average .385 across their career seasons — 54.5% below league average.

Career OPS 0.328 vs. league average 0.709 across their career seasons — 53.8% 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
1950 CHC NL 35 33 4 11 3 0 1 3 0 0 5 0.333 — — — — 0.0
1951 CHC NL 35 37 1 4 0 0 1 4 0 0 12 0.108 — — — — 0.0
1952 CHC NL 41 63 3 11 1 1 1 9 0 1 24 0.175 .252 (-31%) .326 (-39%) .369 (-27%) .696 (-33%) -363.5
1953 CHC NL 48 58 5 9 2 0 1 4 0 1 20 0.155 .264 (-41%) .335 (-50%) .397 (-39%) .733 (-44%) -465.6
1954 CHC NL 36 45 2 6 1 0 0 3 0 0 14 0.133 — — — — 0.0
1955 CIN NL 39 31 3 2 1 0 0 1 0 3 15 0.065 — — — — 0.0
1956 CIN NL 37 71 4 7 0 0 0 3 0 3 19 0.099 .258 (-62%) .331 (-59%) .397 (-75%) .728 (-68%) -827.5
1957 CIN NL 46 41 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 20 0.073 — — — — 0.0
1958 CIN NL 12 8 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 0.125 — — — — 0.0
1958 LAD NL 45 20 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 0.050 — — — — 0.0
1959 LAD NL 28 7 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.143 — — — — 0.0
1960 CLE AL 49 14 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 0.143 — — — — 0.0
1961 WS2 AL 42 7 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0.143 — — — — 0.0
1962 CIN NL 40 24 2 3 0 0 1 1 0 2 14 0.125 — — — — 0.0
1963 PHI NL 49 26 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 14 0.038 — — — — 0.0
1964 PHI NL 11 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0.000 — — — — 0.0
1964 MIN AL 33 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0.000 — — — — 0.0
1965 MIN AL 56 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 0.000 — — — — 0.0
1966 MIN AL 26 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0.000 — — — — 0.0
1967 DET AL 5 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
3 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
1965 WS MIN 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1959 WS LAN 1 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 0 3 0 0 4.7 3 0 2 5 0.00

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1965 WS MIN 0 0 2 0 0 2.7 2 0 2 3 0.00
1959 WS LAN 0 0 1 0 0 2.0 1 0 0 2 0.00

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
P 711 95 106 324 15 23

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1950 CHN P 33 0 7 15 3 3
1951 CHN P 35 0 4 23 0 3
1952 CHN P 41 0 6 43 0 4
1953 CHN P 48 0 5 21 2 1
1954 CHN P 36 21 15 27 0 3
1955 CIN P 39 14 9 23 3 0
1956 CIN P 37 29 10 42 1 3
1957 CIN P 46 18 10 17 0 0
1958 CIN P 12 4 1 2 0 0
1958 LAN P 45 0 7 9 0 1
1959 LAN P 28 0 2 7 2 0
1960 CLE P 49 0 13 9 1 0
1961 WS2 P 42 1 3 14 0 2
1962 CIN P 40 7 3 22 0 1
1963 PHI P 49 1 5 15 0 0
1964 PHI P 11 0 1 7 1 0
1964 MIN P 33 0 1 12 0 2
1965 MIN P 56 0 0 11 2 0
1966 MIN P 26 0 4 4 0 0
1967 DET P 5 0 0 1 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 711