Steve Kemp

Outfielder · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1977-1988)

Steve Kemp was an outfielder who played in Major League Baseball from 1977 to 1988 for 5 teams, including the Detroit Tigers, a span of 12 seasons. In 1,168 career games, he hit .278 with 1,128 hits, 130 home runs, and 634 RBI. Steve Kemp was an All-Star. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 11,015.

AVG (Batting Average):
Hits divided by at bats. .300 is the traditional mark of an excellent hitter.
HR (Home Runs):
Hits on which the batter circled the bases and scored, almost always by clearing the outfield fence.
RBI (Runs Batted In):
Runs that scored as a direct result of a batter's plate appearance.
OPS (On-Base Plus Slugging):
On-base percentage plus slugging percentage, the quickest single summary of offensive value. .900 or better is star-level.

Data updated

AVG .278
HR 130
RBI 634
H 1,128
OPS .797
PIV 11,015
Position
Outfielder
Bats / Throws
L / L
Height / Weight
6'0" / 195 lb
Born
8/7/1954 in San Angelo, TX, USA
MLB Debut
1977-04-07
Last Game
1988-05-24
Awards
All-Star

Full name: Steven F. Kemp

📊 Compare This Player 📈 View Career Timeline

Career Batting Statistics

Steve Kemp — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
1,168 4,058 581 1,128 179 25 130 634 39 576 605 .278 .367 .431 .797 11,015

Career AVG .278 vs. league average .260 across their career seasons — +6.9% above league average.

Career OBP .367 vs. league average .324 across their career seasons — +13.0% above league average.

Career SLG .431 vs. league average .388 across their career seasons — +11.0% above league average.

Career OPS .797 vs. league average .712 across their career seasons — +11.9% above league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Steve Kemp 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
1977 DET AL 151 552 75 142 29 4 18 88 3 71 93 .257 .264 (-3%) .329 (+4%) .401 (+5%) .730 (+5%) 608.2
1978 DET AL 159 582 75 161 18 4 15 79 2 97 87 .277 .257 (+7%) .323 (+17%) .378 (+5%) .702 (+11%) 1665.4
1979 DET AL 134 490 88 156 26 3 26 105 5 68 70 .318 .265 (+20%) .329 (+21%) .397 (+37%) .727 (+29%) 2959.8
1980 DET AL 135 508 88 149 23 3 21 101 5 69 64 .293 .264 (+11%) .326 (+15%) .387 (+22%) .714 (+19%) 2028.9
1981 DET AL 105 372 52 103 18 4 9 49 9 70 48 .277 .255 (+8%) .320 (+22%) .368 (+14%) .688 (+17%) 1437.7
1982 CHA AL 160 580 91 166 23 1 19 98 7 89 83 .286 .261 (+10%) .324 (+17%) .388 (+10%) .712 (+13%) 1918.1
1983 NYA AL 109 373 53 90 17 3 12 49 1 41 37 .241 .260 (-8%) .324 (-2%) .389 (+3%) .714 (avg) 38.2
1984 NYA AL 94 313 37 91 12 1 7 41 4 40 54 .291 .259 (+12%) .322 (+14%) .384 (+5%) .707 (+9%) 627.1
1985 PIT NL 92 236 19 59 13 2 2 21 1 25 54 .250 .257 (-3%) .323 (-2%) .390 (-11%) .714 (-7%) -268.1
1986 PIT NL 13 16 1 3 0 0 1 1 1 4 6 .188 — — — — 0.0
1988 TEX AL 16 36 2 8 0 0 0 2 1 2 9 .222 — — — — 0.0
Career · 11 seasons 1,168 4,058 581 1,128 179 25 130 634 39 576 605 .278 — — — — 11,015

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 (1168 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Steve Kemp — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home591201230556264320.279
Away577204627656666314.277

Last 10 Games — Batting

Steve Kemp — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1988-05-24 TEXTORL 100000000
1988-05-22 TEXMINL 110000011
1988-05-15 TEXKCRL 000000000
1988-05-11 TEXBALW 100000000
1988-05-08 TEXNYYW 402000100
1988-05-02 TEXBALL 300000012
1988-04-30 TEXNYYL 100000000
1988-04-26 TEXMILW 201000100
1988-04-24 TEXDETW 401000002
1988-04-23 TEXDETL 100000001

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Steve Kemp — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 1 0 1 0 0 0
OF 1004 978 1962 55 37 12

Season-by-Season Fielding

Steve Kemp — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1977 DET OF 148 147 252 10 5 1
1978 DET OF 157 156 325 11 8 2
1979 DET OF 120 117 229 12 6 2
1980 DET OF 85 84 197 4 1 3
1981 DET OF 92 92 207 4 3 0
1982 CHA OF 154 154 280 6 7 1
1983 NYA OF 101 92 215 5 3 3
1984 NYA OF 75 70 138 2 4 0
1985 PIT OF 63 61 105 1 0 0
1986 PIT OF 4 3 9 0 0 0
1988 TEX 1B 1 0 1 0 0 0
1988 TEX OF 5 2 5 0 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Steve Kemp Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
First Base 1
Left Field 925
Right Field 89
Designated Hitter 92

Awards & Honors

Steve Kemp — Awards & Honors
Year Award Notes
1984 Player of the Week Week of 1984-06-01
1980 Player of the Week Week of 1980-09-19

Salary History

Steve Kemp's recorded salaries total $3,960,000 over 3 seasons, 1985 to 1987. This total is partial: the salary data covers 1985 to 2016, and Kemp's career ran from 1977 to 1988. His seasons before 1985 are not included, and no salary is recorded for 1988.

Steve Kemp — Salary History
Year Team League Salary
1987 NYA AL $1,320,000
1986 NYA AL $1,220,000
1985 NYA AL $1,420,000
Total recorded salary (partial) $3,960,000

College History

Steve Kemp — College History
School Name City State Years Attended
University of Southern California Los Angeles CA 1973, 1974, 1975

Award Voting History

Steve Kemp — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1981 Most Valuable Player AL 23th 3.0 392 0
1979 Most Valuable Player AL 17th 15.0 392 0

Most Similar Players

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

Career Spans

Steve Kemp (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Sixto Lezcano
    .271 avg, 148 HR
  2. 88
    Orlando Merced
    .277 avg, 103 HR
  3. 86
    Johnny Grubb
    .278 avg, 99 HR
  4. 85
    Milton Bradley
    .271 avg, 125 HR
  5. 79
    Hoot Evers
    .278 avg, 98 HR
  6. 78
    Bernard Gilkey
    .275 avg, 118 HR

Steve Kemp: the record in brief

Between the debut on April 7, 1977 and the final game on May 24, 1988, Steve Kemp built the record summarized on this page. Club by club, the record runs the Detroit Tigers (1977 to 1981), the Chicago White Sox (1982), the New York Yankees (1983 through 1984), the Pittsburgh Pirates (1985 to 1986), and the Texas Rangers (1988). Kemp, born on August 7, 1954, in San Angelo, TX, USA, is listed as an outfielder and batted and threw left-handed. Size on record: 6-foot-0 and 195 pounds. Steve Kemp was the playing name; the full given name is Steven F.

The batting record for Kemp: 1,168 games, 1,128 hits in 4,058 at bats, and a .278 average; the totals also include 130 home runs, 634 runs batted in, and 39 stolen bases. Kemp got on base at a .367 rate and slugged .431 (.797 OPS). Over the seasons Kemp played, league hitters batted .260; the .278 career figure is 6.9% above that. For power, 1979 stands out: 26 home runs with the Detroit Tigers.

Frequently Asked Questions about Steve Kemp

What years did Steve Kemp play?
Steve Kemp played in Major League Baseball from 1977 to 1988.
Was Steve Kemp a pitcher?
No. Steve Kemp was a position player (Outfielder).
How many home runs did Steve Kemp hit?
Steve Kemp hit 130 career home runs with 1,128 hits.
What teams did Steve Kemp play for?
Steve Kemp played for 5 teams: the Detroit Tigers (1977–1981), the Chicago White Sox (1982), the New York Yankees (1983–1984), the Pittsburgh Pirates (1985–1986), and the Texas Rangers (1988).
Did Steve Kemp win an MVP award?
No. Steve Kemp did not win the MVP award.
What awards did Steve Kemp win?
Steve Kemp was selected to 1 All-Star Game.
What were Steve Kemp's career stats?
In 1,168 games, Steve Kemp had 1,128 hits, 130 home runs, 634 RBI, 581 runs, and 39 stolen bases, with a .278 batting average.
How much did Steve Kemp earn in his career?
Steve Kemp's recorded salaries total $3,960,000 over 3 seasons, 1985 to 1987. This total is partial: the salary data covers 1985 to 2016, and Kemp's career ran from 1977 to 1988. His seasons before 1985 are not included, and no salary is recorded for 1988.
What was Steve Kemp's salary?
Steve Kemp's last recorded salary was $1,320,000, in 1987. His highest recorded salary was $1,420,000, in 1985, and his lowest was $1,220,000, in 1986. The Salary History table lists each season from 1985 to 1987.
What position did Steve Kemp play?
Steve Kemp played primarily as an outfielder, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Steve Kemp and how much did he weigh?
Steve Kemp was listed at 6 feet and 195 pounds.
How many home runs did Steve Kemp hit each season?
Steve Kemp's home runs by season: 18 in 1977, 15 in 1978, 26 in 1979, 21 in 1980, 9 in 1981, 19 in 1982, 12 in 1983, 7 in 1984, 2 in 1985, 1 in 1986, and 0 in 1988. His most in one season was 26, in 1979.
What was Steve Kemp's career batting average?
Steve Kemp batted .278 over his career, with 1,128 hits in 4,058 at bats.
How many RBI did Steve Kemp have?
Steve Kemp drove in 634 runs in his career.