Klesko was born on June 12, 1971, in Westminster, California. His father was an oilfields worker whom Klesko lost at a young age.[1][2] His mother, Lorene, worked at an aerospace parts company in Santa Ana and helped Klesko learn to play baseball.[3] When he was nine, she dug a pitcher's mound for him in his backyard. She enrolled him in pitching school with Ron Lefebvre and put on catcher's gear herself to catch Klesko three times a week.[2] Klesko attended Westminster High School, where even though he hit a lot of home runs, he starred as a pitcher, throwing a ninety-two mile per hour fastball and pitching for the USA Junior Olympic team. He strained a ligament pitching for the junior team at 17, though, and concentrated on hitting thereafter.[2] Klesko signed a letter of intent to play college baseball at Arizona State, but he never did so, instead signing with the Atlanta Braves after the team selected him in the fifth round of the 1989 Major League Baseball (MLB) Draft.[4][2]
Professional career
Klesko hit a home run in three consecutive World Series games against the Cleveland Indians in Games 3, 4, and 5 of the 1995 World Series.[5] In Game 3, he hit a solo shot off of Charles Nagy in the seventh inning of a 7–6 loss.[6] The Game 4 home run, another solo shot (this time off Ken Hill) put the Braves up 1–0 in the sixth; they would win the game 5–2.[7] In Game 5, his ninth-inning two-run home run to right field off José Mesa was almost caught by his mother; Klesko wound up trading the man who caught it an autographed Greg Maddux baseball for it. The Braves lost that game 5–4, but they beat the Indians for the fourth time in the sixth game to become World Series champions.[1]
Klesko hit at least 21 home runs in eight of his 13 major league seasons, with a high of 34 homers in 1996. His most productive season came in 2001, when he hit .286 with 30 home runs and posted career highs in RBI (113), runs (105), stolen bases (23) and slugging percentage (.539), and made the National League All-Star team. In 2002, Klesko hit .300 with 29 home runs and 95 RBI, and collected career-highs in hits (162) and doubles (39). Defensively he shuttled around the outfield and first base.
In his career, Klesko compiled a .370 on-base percentage with a .500 slugging average, for an .870 OPS. His .525 slugging percentage as a Brave ranks fourth all-time among the team's career leaders, ahead of Eddie Mathews. His .886 OPS as a Brave ranks him fifth among Braves' all-time leaders.[8]
Klesko missed nearly the entire 2006 season due to major shoulder surgery. He returned on September 21, drawing a walk as a pinch-hitter in his first plate appearance. On December 19, 2006, Klesko signed a one-year contract with the San Francisco Giants. Klesko announced his retirement from baseball on April 18, 2008.[9]
Klesko has been actively involved with the Padres Community Relations efforts. In 2001, he received the Chairman's Award, presented annually by the Padres Community Relations Department to the player who best exemplifies the community spirit of John Moores and his family. During his five seasons with the Padres, Klesko donated his time and money to support numerous philanthropic endeavors in the San Diego community.
Klesko has also served as the Padres' spokesperson for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, hosting Make-A-Wish children for batting practice, a pregame ceremony and a ballgame each home stand.[10] Through his Klesko's Korner program, he has regularly provided Padres tickets to children and families facing cancer for the last four years, and he has also been a leading supporter of the Padres Scholars program.
^"Klesko retiring from majors after 16-year career, agent says". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2008-08-01.
^"Feature: Ryan Klesko - Former Major League Baseball Player". SouthernJournalMagazine.com. Retrieved 2017-06-13.
^"Klesko, Bobick and Patulski to be inducted into Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame". SportsHeritage.org. Retrieved 2017-06-13.
External links
Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors)
February 08, 2023
ryan, klesko, ryan, anthony, klesko, born, june, 1971, former, major, league, baseball, first, baseman, corner, outfielder, played, atlanta, braves, diego, padres, francisco, giants, attended, westminster, high, school, westminster, california, klesko, with, f. Ryan Anthony Klesko born June 12 1971 is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and corner outfielder who played for the Atlanta Braves San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants He attended Westminster High School in Westminster California Ryan KleskoKlesko with the San Francisco Giants in 2007Left fielder First basemanBorn 1971 06 12 June 12 1971 age 51 Westminster California U S Batted LeftThrew LeftMLB debutSeptember 12 1992 for the Atlanta BravesLast MLB appearanceSeptember 29 2007 for the San Francisco GiantsMLB statisticsBatting average 279Home runs278Runs batted in987TeamsAtlanta Braves 1992 1999 San Diego Padres 2000 2006 San Francisco Giants 2007 Career highlights and awardsAll Star 2001 World Series champion 1995 Medals Men s baseballRepresenting United StatesWorld Junior Baseball Championship1988 Sydney Team Contents 1 Early life 2 Professional career 3 Off the field 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksEarly life EditKlesko was born on June 12 1971 in Westminster California His father was an oilfields worker whom Klesko lost at a young age 1 2 His mother Lorene worked at an aerospace parts company in Santa Ana and helped Klesko learn to play baseball 3 When he was nine she dug a pitcher s mound for him in his backyard She enrolled him in pitching school with Ron Lefebvre and put on catcher s gear herself to catch Klesko three times a week 2 Klesko attended Westminster High School where even though he hit a lot of home runs he starred as a pitcher throwing a ninety two mile per hour fastball and pitching for the USA Junior Olympic team He strained a ligament pitching for the junior team at 17 though and concentrated on hitting thereafter 2 Klesko signed a letter of intent to play college baseball at Arizona State but he never did so instead signing with the Atlanta Braves after the team selected him in the fifth round of the 1989 Major League Baseball MLB Draft 4 2 Professional career EditKlesko hit a home run in three consecutive World Series games against the Cleveland Indians in Games 3 4 and 5 of the 1995 World Series 5 In Game 3 he hit a solo shot off of Charles Nagy in the seventh inning of a 7 6 loss 6 The Game 4 home run another solo shot this time off Ken Hill put the Braves up 1 0 in the sixth they would win the game 5 2 7 In Game 5 his ninth inning two run home run to right field off Jose Mesa was almost caught by his mother Klesko wound up trading the man who caught it an autographed Greg Maddux baseball for it The Braves lost that game 5 4 but they beat the Indians for the fourth time in the sixth game to become World Series champions 1 Klesko hit at least 21 home runs in eight of his 13 major league seasons with a high of 34 homers in 1996 His most productive season came in 2001 when he hit 286 with 30 home runs and posted career highs in RBI 113 runs 105 stolen bases 23 and slugging percentage 539 and made the National League All Star team In 2002 Klesko hit 300 with 29 home runs and 95 RBI and collected career highs in hits 162 and doubles 39 Defensively he shuttled around the outfield and first base In his career Klesko compiled a 370 on base percentage with a 500 slugging average for an 870 OPS His 525 slugging percentage as a Brave ranks fourth all time among the team s career leaders ahead of Eddie Mathews His 886 OPS as a Brave ranks him fifth among Braves all time leaders 8 Klesko missed nearly the entire 2006 season due to major shoulder surgery He returned on September 21 drawing a walk as a pinch hitter in his first plate appearance On December 19 2006 Klesko signed a one year contract with the San Francisco Giants Klesko announced his retirement from baseball on April 18 2008 9 Off the field EditAs of 2019 Klesko serves as a pre game and post game analyst for the Atlanta Braves on Fox Sports South and SportsSouth Klesko has been actively involved with the Padres Community Relations efforts In 2001 he received the Chairman s Award presented annually by the Padres Community Relations Department to the player who best exemplifies the community spirit of John Moores and his family During his five seasons with the Padres Klesko donated his time and money to support numerous philanthropic endeavors in the San Diego community Klesko has also served as the Padres spokesperson for the Make A Wish Foundation hosting Make A Wish children for batting practice a pregame ceremony and a ballgame each home stand 10 Through his Klesko s Korner program he has regularly provided Padres tickets to children and families facing cancer for the last four years and he has also been a leading supporter of the Padres Scholars program ESPN reporter Pedro Gomez reported on November 16 2007 Klesko and teammate Barry Bonds were hunting together in Colorado at the time Bonds was notified he was indicted by a federal grand jury in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California Klesko was honored June 19 2014 with his induction into the National Polish American Sports Hall of Fame in Troy Michigan 11 See also Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ryan Klesko List of Major League Baseball career home run leadersReferences Edit a b Rosenberg B J July 8 2015 Braves Recall Ryan Klesko The Atlanta Journal Retrieved January 15 2020 a b c d Mell Randall February 27 1993 Mom s the Word in Klesko s Youth South Florida Sun Sentinel Retrieved January 15 2020 DiGiovanna Mike April 7 1994 Klesko Is Atlanta s Long Man The Los Angeles Times Retrieved January 15 2020 Westminster s Klesko Will Attend Arizona St Los Angeles Times 6 May 1989 Retrieved 15 December 2017 Dean Matt January 9 2018 Braves Slugger World Series Hero Ryan Klesko Signs on for Hot Stove Banquet milb com Retrieved January 15 2020 1995 World Series Game 3 Braves at Indians October 24 Baseball Reference Retrieved January 15 2020 1995 World Series Game 4 Braves at Indians October 25 Baseball Reference Retrieved January 15 2020 Atlanta Braves Top 10 Batting Leaders Baseball Reference com Klesko retiring from majors after 16 year career agent says ESPN com Retrieved 2008 08 01 Feature Ryan Klesko Former Major League Baseball Player SouthernJournalMagazine com Retrieved 2017 06 13 Klesko Bobick and Patulski to be inducted into Polish American Sports Hall of Fame SportsHeritage org Retrieved 2017 06 13 External links EditCareer statistics and player information from MLB or ESPN or Baseball Reference or Fangraphs or Baseball Reference Minors Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Ryan Klesko amp oldid 1134674680, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
