Ken Oberkfell

Born: 5/4/1956 in Highland, IL, USA

MLB Debut: 1977-08-22 | Final Game: 1992-10-04

Bats: L | Throws: R | Height: 6'0" | Weight: 175 lbs

Full name: Kenneth Ray Oberkfell

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Biography

Ken Oberkfell, born in 1956, was a versatile position player who enjoyed a lengthy career in Major League Baseball from 1977 until his retirement on October 4, 1992. Oberkfell was known for his solid batting skills and dependable defense, primarily playing as an infielder. Over the course of his 1,602 games, he compiled 1,354 hits, a batting average of .278, and drove in 446 runs, showcasing his ability to contribute to his team's offensive efforts. With 29 home runs and 62 stolen bases, Oberkfell demonstrated both power and speed, making him a well-rounded player during an era characterized by diverse playing styles. Oberkfell played for several teams, including the St. Louis Cardinals, New York Mets, and Atlanta Braves, and was particularly noted for his contributions to the Cardinals during the 1980s. His tenure coincided with a competitive period in baseball marked by the emergence of power hitters and changing defensive strategies. Oberkfell's ability to adapt to different roles and positions within the infield made him a valuable asset to the teams he played for. His career, highlighted by consistent performance and a strong work ethic, left a lasting impact on the franchises he represented, and he is remembered as a reliable player of his generation.

Career Batting Statistics

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
1602	4874	558	1354	237	44	29	446	62	546	356	0.278	0.351	0.362	0.713	1895.3

Career AVG .278 vs. league average .259 across their career seasons — +7.2% above league average.

Career OBP .351 vs. league average .324 across their career seasons — +8.1% above league average.

Career SLG .362 vs. league average .388 across their career seasons — 6.6% below league average.

Career OPS 0.713 vs. league average 0.712 across their career seasons — near 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
1977	STL	NL	9	9	0	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	3	0.111	—	—	—	—	0.0
1978	STL	NL	24	50	7	6	1	0	0	0	0	3	1	0.120	.257 (-53%)	.323 (-48%)	.378 (-63%)	.702 (-56%)	-451.6
1979	STL	NL	135	369	53	111	19	5	1	35	4	57	35	0.301	.265 (+13%)	.329 (+20%)	.397 (-3%)	.727 (+8%)	823.4
1980	STL	NL	116	422	58	128	27	6	3	46	4	51	23	0.303	.264 (+15%)	.326 (+16%)	.387 (+8%)	.714 (+11%)	1011.4
1981	STL	NL	102	376	43	110	12	6	2	45	13	37	28	0.293	.255 (+14%)	.320 (+10%)	.368 (+1%)	.688 (+5%)	394.9
1982	STL	NL	137	470	55	136	22	5	2	34	11	40	31	0.289	.261 (+11%)	.324 (+6%)	.388 (-5%)	.712 (avg)	91.0
1983	STL	NL	151	488	62	143	26	5	3	38	12	61	27	0.293	.260 (+12%)	.324 (+14%)	.389 (-1%)	.714 (+6%)	761.0
1984	STL	NL	50	152	17	47	11	1	0	11	1	16	10	0.309	.259 (+19%)	.322 (+17%)	.384 (+3%)	.707 (+9%)	289.8
1984	ATL	NL	50	172	21	40	8	1	1	10	1	15	17	0.233	.259 (-11%)	.322 (-10%)	.384 (-20%)	.707 (-16%)	289.8
1985	ATL	NL	134	412	30	112	19	4	3	35	1	51	38	0.272	.257 (+6%)	.323 (+11%)	.390 (-8%)	.714 (+1%)	234.6
1986	ATL	NL	151	503	62	136	24	3	5	48	7	83	40	0.270	.257 (+5%)	.325 (+15%)	.395 (-9%)	.720 (+2%)	509.0
1987	ATL	NL	135	508	59	142	29	2	3	48	3	48	29	0.280	.262 (+6%)	.331 (+3%)	.415 (-13%)	.746 (-6%)	-494.5
1988	ATL	NL	120	422	42	117	20	4	3	40	4	32	28	0.277	.254 (+9%)	.317 (+2%)	.377 (-3%)	.695 (-1%)	-109.4
1988	PIT	NL	20	54	7	12	2	0	0	2	0	5	6	0.222	.254 (-13%)	.317 (-9%)	.377 (-31%)	.695 (-21%)	-109.4
1989	PIT	NL	14	40	2	5	1	0	0	2	0	2	2	0.125	—	—	—	—	0.0
1989	SFG	NL	83	116	17	37	5	1	2	15	0	8	8	0.319	.254 (+26%)	.319 (+15%)	.375 (+15%)	.694 (+15%)	0.0
1990	HOU	NL	77	150	10	31	6	1	1	12	1	15	17	0.207	.257 (-20%)	.324 (-13%)	.385 (-27%)	.710 (-21%)	-553.0
1991	HOU	NL	53	70	7	16	4	0	0	14	0	14	8	0.229	.255 (-11%)	.323 (+10%)	.384 (-26%)	.708 (-9%)	-51.7
1992	LAA	AL	41	91	6	24	1	0	0	10	0	8	5	0.264	.255 (+3%)	.322 (-2%)	.377 (-27%)	.699 (-15%)	-219.7

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
17	49	6	12	1	0	0	3	5	1	0.245

Playoff Batting by Year

Year	Round	Team	G	AB	R	H	2B	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
1989	NLCS	SFN	3	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.000
1989	WS	SFN	4	6	1	2	0	0	3	0	0.333
1982	NLCS	SLN	3	15	1	3	0	2	0	0	0.200
1982	WS	SLN	7	24	4	7	1	1	2	1	0.292

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1B	43	28	261	22	2	21
2B	402	310	683	979	27	192
3B	1046	924	627	1996	96	180
SS	8	0	2	6	0	1

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1977	SLN	2B	6	1	3	4	0	1
1978	SLN	2B	17	14	30	48	1	8
1978	SLN	3B	4	0	0	0	0	0
1979	SLN	2B	117	96	213	323	8	65
1979	SLN	3B	17	7	10	19	1	2
1979	SLN	SS	2	0	0	1	0	0
1980	SLN	2B	101	100	223	310	6	62
1980	SLN	3B	16	13	4	30	1	2
1981	SLN	3B	102	101	77	246	15	23
1981	SLN	SS	1	0	0	1	0	0
1982	SLN	2B	1	0	2	1	0	0
1982	SLN	3B	135	131	78	304	11	23
1983	SLN	2B	32	21	51	69	5	16
1983	SLN	3B	127	107	79	231	13	27
1983	SLN	SS	1	0	2	3	0	1
1984	SLN	2B	2	0	1	1	0	0
1984	SLN	3B	46	39	29	90	4	7
1984	SLN	SS	1	0	0	0	0	0
1984	ATL	2B	4	3	3	5	0	0
1984	ATL	3B	45	45	31	77	4	8
1985	ATL	2B	16	12	18	37	1	7
1985	ATL	3B	117	101	70	220	11	19
1986	ATL	2B	41	19	51	77	3	15
1986	ATL	3B	130	119	65	258	8	24
1987	ATL	2B	11	5	13	17	0	3
1987	ATL	3B	126	120	76	248	7	20
1988	ATL	2B	1	0	1	0	0	0
1988	ATL	3B	113	109	83	207	15	21
1988	PIT	1B	1	1	7	0	0	0
1988	PIT	2B	11	10	15	24	0	3
1988	PIT	3B	2	2	1	5	0	0
1988	PIT	SS	3	0	0	1	0	0
1989	PIT	1B	9	9	75	5	1	4
1989	PIT	2B	3	2	5	5	0	1
1989	SFN	1B	7	3	35	2	0	4
1989	SFN	2B	7	3	8	10	2	1
1989	SFN	3B	38	8	8	25	1	1
1990	HOU	1B	11	7	69	7	1	7
1990	HOU	2B	11	7	12	14	0	6
1990	HOU	3B	24	18	12	31	3	3
1991	HOU	1B	13	7	66	8	0	6
1991	HOU	3B	4	4	4	5	2	0
1992	CAL	1B	2	1	9	0	0	0
1992	CAL	2B	21	17	34	34	1	4

Career Games by Position

Position	Games
First Base	43
Second Base	403
Third Base	1048
Shortstop	8
Designated Hitter	5

Salary History

Year	Team	League	Salary
1991	HOU	NL	$675,000
1990	HOU	NL	$625,000
1989	PIT	NL	$725,000
1988	ATL	NL	$725,000
1987	ATL	NL	$725,000
1986	ATL	NL	$825,000
1985	ATL	NL	$616,667
Total Career Earnings			$4,916,667