Kris Benson

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Kris Benson
Baltimore Orioles — No. 34
Starting Pitcher
Bats: Right Throws: Right
Major League Baseball debut
April 9, 1999 for the Pittsburgh Pirates
Selected MLB statistics
(through August 31, 2006)
Record     68-71
ERA     4.32
Strikeouts     771
Teams

    Kristin James Benson (born November 7, 1974 in Superior, Wisconsin) is a Major League Baseball right-handed starting pitcher who plays for the Baltimore Orioles. Benson pitched for the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1997 to 2004 and for the New York Mets from 2004 to 2005. Benson graduated in 1993 from Sprayberry High in Marietta, Georgia.

    Contents

    [edit] College career

    Olympic medal record
    Men's Baseball
    Bronze Atlanta 1996 Team Competition

    Benson attended Clemson University from 1993 to 1996. He won the Rotary Smith Award in 1996 and still holds many school pitching records. His teammates included fellow future major-leaguers Billy Koch and Matthew LeCroy both of whom played with him in the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, USA where they won the bronze medal. He also was honored as the ACC Male Athlete of the Year in 1996.

    [edit] Professional career

    Benson was the first pick of the 1996 MLB Draft. His best season came in 2000 with Pittsburgh when he posted career bests in earned run average, strikeouts, innings pitched, and games pitched as well as his only double-digit strikeout games and his career-best three-hit complete game despite the fact that he is a groundball pitcher. After 2000, he needed Tommy John surgery and missed the entire 2001 season. The New York Mets infamously acquired him near the trading deadline of the 2004 season. On January 21, 2006, Benson was traded to the Baltimore Orioles for pitchers Jorge Julio and John Maine.

    [edit] Career Major League statistics

    Through the 2005 season:

    [edit] Pitching

    [edit] Batting

    [edit] Personal life

    Kris is married to Anna Benson, who was a mildly controversial figure during Benson's New York years due to her public statements [1]. The Bensons have 3 children and have founded the non-profit organization, Benson's Battalion.

    [edit] External links

    Preceded by
    Darin Erstad    		 First overall pick in the MLB Entry Draft
    1996    		 Succeeded by
    Matt Anderson
    Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../k/r/i/Kris_Benson_3d40.html"