What years did Karl Best play?

Karl Best played in Major League Baseball from 1983 to 1988.

Was Karl Best a pitcher?

Yes. Karl Best pitched in the major leagues, recording 5 wins and 73 strikeouts.

Karl Best

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1983-1988)

W–L 5–6

ERA 4.04

WHIP 1.48

SO 73

Pitcher PIV 1224.6

Position: Pitcher
Bats / Throws: R / R
Height / Weight: 6'4" / 190 lb
Born: 3/6/1959 in Aberdeen, WA, USA
MLB Debut: 1983-08-19
Last Game: 1988-06-20

Full name: Karl Jon Best

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Career Pitching Statistics

W	L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	SO	ERA	Pitcher PIV
5	6	61	0	0	0	5	91.3	96	41	7	39	73	4.04	1224.6

Career ERA 4.04 vs. league average 3.86 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Year	Team	Lg	W	L	G	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA	Lg ERA	Pitcher PIV
1983	SEA	AL	0	1	4	0	5.3	14	8	5	3	13.50	—	0.0
1984	SEA	AL	1	1	5	0	6.0	7	2	0	6	3.00	—	0.0
1985	SEA	AL	2	1	15	4	32.3	25	7	6	32	1.95	3.89 (+50%)	1738.9
1986	SEA	AL	2	3	26	1	35.7	35	16	21	23	4.04	3.97 (-2%)	-403.7
1988	MIN	AL	0	0	11	0	12.0	15	8	7	9	6.00	3.73 (-61%)	-110.6
Career · 5 seasons			5	6	61	5	91.1	96	41	39	73	4.04	—	1,225

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

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
61	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	.000	.000	.000	0

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Year	Team	Lg	G	AVG	Lg AVG	Lg OBP	Lg SLG	Lg OPS	PIV
1983	SEA	AL	4	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1984	SEA	AL	5	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1985	SEA	AL	15	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1986	SEA	AL	26	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1988	MIN	AL	11	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
Career · 5 seasons			61	—	—	—	—	—	0

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 (122 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Split	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	AVG
Home	37	0	0	0	0	0	—
Away	24	0	0	0	0	0	—

Pitching — Home / Away

Split	G	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
Home	37	59.1	59	21	17	48	3.19
Away	24	32.0	37	20	22	25	5.62

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Date	Tm	Opp	Dec	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR
1988-06-20	MIN	LAA	—	1.1	1	0	0	1	0	0
1988-06-18	MIN	SEA	—	0.2	0	0	0	2	1	0
1988-06-07	MIN	CHW	—	2.0	2	3	3	1	0	0
1988-06-04	MIN	OAK	—	1.0	3	1	1	0	0	0
1988-06-03	MIN	OAK	—	1.0	0	0	0	0	1	0
1988-05-30	MIN	TEX	—	1.0	0	0	0	1	1	0
1988-05-24	MIN	KCR	—	1.0	1	0	0	2	0	0
1988-05-19	MIN	KCR	—	1.0	2	1	1	0	3	1
1988-05-18	MIN	KCR	—	1.0	4	3	3	0	1	0
1988-05-13	MIN	DET	—	1.0	1	1	0	0	2	0

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
P	61	0	1	7	1	0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year	Team	Pos	G	PO	A	E
1983	SEA	P	4	0	0	0
1984	SEA	P	5	0	0	0
1985	SEA	P	15	0	3	1
1986	SEA	P	26	1	3	0
1988	MIN	P	11	0	1	0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Position	Games
Pitcher	61

Salary History

Year	Team	League	Salary
1989	SFN	NL	$105,000
1986	SEA	AL	$70,000
Total Career Earnings			$175,000

Frequently Asked Questions about Karl Best

What years did Karl Best play?: Karl Best played in Major League Baseball from 1983 to 1988.
Was Karl Best a pitcher?: Yes. Karl Best pitched in the major leagues, recording 5 wins and 73 strikeouts.