Kris Benson

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1999-2010)

Kris Benson was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1999 to 2010 for 5 teams, including the Pittsburgh Pirates, a span of 12 seasons. Across 206 career appearances, he went 70-75 with a 4.42 ERA and 806 strikeouts. He also batted .131 with 1 home runs.

W (Wins):
Games credited to a pitcher whose team took a lead it never surrendered while he was the pitcher of record.
ERA (Earned Run Average):
Earned runs allowed per nine innings pitched: (ER × 9) ÷ IP. The primary measure of pitching effectiveness.
SO (Strikeouts):
For a batter, times retired on a third strike; for a pitcher, batters retired on a third strike.
WHIP (Walks and Hits per Inning Pitched):
Baserunners allowed per inning: (BB + H) ÷ IP. Under 1.00 is elite.

Data updated

W–L 70–75
ERA 4.42
WHIP 1.39
SO 806
Pitcher PIV -714.0
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
6'4" / 190 lb
Born
11/7/1974 in Kennesaw, GA, USA
MLB Debut
1999-04-09
Last Game
2010-04-28

Full name: Kristen James Benson

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Career Pitching Statistics

Kris Benson — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
70 75 206 200 8 2 0 1243.2 1,292 611 152 441 806 4.42 -714.0

Career ERA 4.42 vs. league average 4.43 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Kris Benson Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1999 PIT NL 11 14 31 31 2 0 0 196.2 184 89 83 139 4.07 4.71 (+14%) 2930.2
2000 PIT NL 10 12 32 32 2 1 0 217.2 206 93 86 184 3.85 4.77 (+19%) 3238.0
2002 PIT NL 9 6 25 25 0 0 0 130.1 152 68 50 79 4.70 4.28 (-10%) -1587.0
2003 PIT NL 5 9 18 18 0 0 0 105.0 127 58 36 68 4.97 4.40 (-13%) -333.5
2004 PIT NL 8 8 20 20 0 0 0 132.1 137 62 44 83 4.22 4.46 (+6%) 2884.1
2004 NYN NL 4 4 11 11 1 1 0 68.0 65 34 17 51 4.50 4.46 (-1%) 792.1
2005 NYN NL 10 8 28 28 0 0 0 174.1 171 80 49 95 4.13 4.29 (+4%) -1485.9
2006 BAL AL 11 12 30 30 3 0 0 183.0 199 98 58 88 4.82 4.53 (-6%) -4886.1
2009 TEX AL 1 1 8 2 0 0 0 22.1 33 21 12 11 8.46 4.32 (-96%) -1841.2
2010 ARI NL 1 1 3 3 0 0 0 14.0 18 8 6 8 5.14 4.08 (-26%) -424.7
Career · 10 seasons 70 75 206 200 8 2 0 1,243.2 1,292 611 441 806 4.42 — -714

Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.

Career Batting Statistics

Kris Benson — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
208 321 23 42 7 0 1 22 0 15 127 .131 .175 .162 .337 -1,549

Career AVG .131 vs. league average .265 across their career seasons — 50.7% below league average.

Career OBP .175 vs. league average .335 across their career seasons — 47.9% below league average.

Career SLG .162 vs. league average .423 across their career seasons — 61.7% below league average.

Career OPS .337 vs. league average .758 across their career seasons — 55.6% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Kris Benson Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1999 PIT NL 31 65 7 10 3 0 0 7 0 3 24 .154 .271 (-43%) .344 (-45%) .433 (-54%) .778 (-50%) -555.6
2000 PIT NL 32 65 3 6 2 0 0 1 0 4 29 .092 .270 (-66%) .344 (-54%) .437 (-72%) .782 (-64%) -717.6
2002 PIT NL 27 40 3 7 1 0 0 1 0 0 11 .175 — — — — 0.0
2003 PIT NL 18 30 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 11 .000 — — — — 0.0
2004 PIT NL 20 39 2 7 0 0 0 3 0 1 17 .179 — — — — 0.0
2004 NYN NL 11 19 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 1 9 .053 — — — — 0.0
2005 NYN NL 28 49 4 9 1 0 0 6 0 5 22 .184 — — — — -275.7
2006 BAL AL 30 9 1 1 0 0 1 2 0 0 3 .111 — — — — 0.0
2009 TEX AL 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
2010 ARI NL 3 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .200 — — — — 0.0
Career · 10 seasons 208 321 23 42 7 0 1 22 0 15 127 .131 — — — — -1,549

Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (414 games) →

Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).

Batting — Home / Away

Kris Benson — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home1051541221014.136
Away103167112118.126

Pitching — Home / Away

Kris Benson — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home104647.06542992144304.16
Away102596.26383122273764.71

Last 10 Games — Batting

Kris Benson — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
2010-04-28 AZCOLW 000000000
2010-04-23 AZPHIW 300000001
2010-04-17 AZSDPL 201000000
2009-06-06 TEXBOSL 000000000
2009-06-02 TEXNYYL 000000000
2009-05-27 TEXNYYL 000000000
2009-05-25 TEXNYYL 000000000
2009-05-19 TEXDETL 000000000
2009-05-07 TEXOAKL 000000000
2009-04-15 TEXBALW 000000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Kris Benson — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
2010-04-28 AZCOL — 2.0444221
2010-04-23 AZPHI W 6.0832050
2010-04-17 AZSDP L 6.0622411
2009-06-06 TEXBOS — 2.1343311
2009-06-02 TEXNYY — 1.0000000
2009-05-27 TEXNYY — 1.0211111
2009-05-25 TEXNYY — 3.0644210
2009-05-19 TEXDET — 1.0100000
2009-05-07 TEXOAK — 3.0522131
2009-04-15 TEXBAL W 6.0644321

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Kris Benson — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 206 200 83 157 10 16

Season-by-Season Fielding

Kris Benson — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1999 PIT P 31 31 15 27 2 6
2000 PIT P 32 32 8 28 2 0
2002 PIT P 25 25 12 11 2 2
2003 PIT P 18 18 6 10 1 2
2004 PIT P 20 20 12 19 0 2
2004 NYN P 11 11 5 6 1 0
2005 NYN P 28 28 7 29 0 2
2006 BAL P 30 30 15 25 2 2
2009 TEX P 8 2 2 1 0 0
2010 ARI P 3 3 1 1 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Kris Benson Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 206

Salary History

Kris Benson's recorded salaries total $38,661,222 over 10 seasons, 1999 to 2009. This total is partial: the salary data covers 1985 to 2016, and Benson's career ran from 1999 to 2010. No salary is recorded for 2010.

Kris Benson — Salary History
Year Team League Salary
2009 TEX AL $750,000
2007 BAL AL $7,144,556
2006 BAL AL $8,333,333
2005 NYN NL $5,333,333
2004 PIT NL $6,150,000
2003 PIT NL $4,300,000
2002 PIT NL $2,700,000
2001 PIT NL $3,450,000
2000 PIT NL $300,000
1999 PIT NL $200,000
Total recorded salary (partial) $38,661,222

College History

Kris Benson — College History
School Name City State Years Attended
Clemson University Clemson SC 1994, 1995, 1996

Award Voting History

Kris Benson — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1999 Rookie of the Year NL 4th 5.0 160 0

Most Similar Players

Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.

Career Spans

Kris Benson (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Joey Hamilton
    74-73, 4.44 ERA
  2. 85
    Clayton Richard
    69-84, 4.51 ERA
  3. 77
    Chris Tillman
    74-60, 4.57 ERA
  4. 77
    Pete Schourek
    66-77, 4.59 ERA
  5. 71
    Roberto Hernandez
    71-99, 4.60 ERA
  6. 71
    Jerome Williams
    52-66, 4.59 ERA

Kris Benson: the record in brief

Kris Benson played a first major league game on April 9, 1999 and a last one on April 28, 2010. By club, Benson's seasons break down as the Pittsburgh Pirates (1999 to 2004), the New York Mets (2004 to 2005), the Baltimore Orioles (2006), the Texas Rangers (2009), and the Arizona Diamondbacks (2010). Benson played primarily as a pitcher and both batted and threw right-handed. Born on November 7, 1974, in Kennesaw, GA, USA, Benson was listed at 6'4" and 190 pounds. Benson's full given name, per the bio, is Kristen James Benson.

Benson's career pitching line is 70 wins, 75 losses and a 4.42 ERA over 206 appearances. Benson had 806 strikeouts. Benson's 4.42 ERA was close to the 4.43 league figure for those seasons. The best win total was 11, in 1999. 2000 produced Benson's most strikeouts, 184. 2000 was Benson's sharpest full season, a 3.85 ERA against the league's 4.77.

In award voting, Benson's best finish was 4th for the Rookie of the Year in 1999.

Frequently Asked Questions about Kris Benson

What years did Kris Benson play?
Kris Benson played in Major League Baseball from 1999 to 2010.
Was Kris Benson a pitcher?
Yes. Kris Benson pitched in the major leagues, recording 70 wins and 806 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Kris Benson hit?
Kris Benson hit 1 career home run with 42 hits.
What teams did Kris Benson play for?
Kris Benson played for 5 teams: the Pittsburgh Pirates (1999–2000, 2002–2004), the New York Mets (2004–2005), the Baltimore Orioles (2006), the Texas Rangers (2009), and the Arizona Diamondbacks (2010).
What were Kris Benson's career stats?
In 206 games, Kris Benson went 70-75 with a 4.42 ERA, 806 strikeouts, and 1,243.2 innings pitched. At the plate he had 42 hits and 1 home runs.
How much did Kris Benson earn in his career?
Kris Benson's recorded salaries total $38,661,222 over 10 seasons, 1999 to 2009. This total is partial: the salary data covers 1985 to 2016, and Benson's career ran from 1999 to 2010. No salary is recorded for 2010.
What was Kris Benson's salary?
Kris Benson's last recorded salary was $750,000, in 2009. His highest recorded salary was $8,333,333, in 2006, and his lowest was $200,000, in 1999. The Salary History table lists each season from 1999 to 2009.
What position did Kris Benson play?
Kris Benson played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Kris Benson and how much did he weigh?
Kris Benson was listed at 6 feet 4 inches and 190 pounds.
What was Kris Benson's career ERA?
Kris Benson finished with a 4.42 career ERA, going 70-75 with 806 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Kris Benson have?
Kris Benson recorded 806 career strikeouts.
Is Kris Benson in the Hall of Fame?
No. Kris Benson has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.