1954
Born May 25, 1954
Akron, OH, USA
Bob Knepper Marquee
Bob Knepper pitched for the San Francisco Giants for his first five seasons before a decade with Houston, and returned to San Francisco for his final two years, retiring in 1990.
He went 146-155 with a 3.68 earned run average over 2,708 innings pitched, completing 78 of his 413 starts and throwing 30 shutouts, striking out 1,473 batters across fifteen seasons.
His two All-Star selections came in 1981 and 1988, seven years apart, spanning nearly his entire career in Houston.
Born in Akron, Ohio on May 25, 1954, Knepper batted and threw left-handed. That left-handed arm was a fixture in the Houston rotation for most of the 1980s, bracketed by two separate stints with the Giants.
Honors
| Award | Times | Years |
|---|---|---|
| All-Star selection | 2 | 1981, 1988 |
| Pitcher of the Month | 1 | 1978 |
| Player of the Week | 1 | 1981 |
| The Sporting News Comeback Player of the Year | 1 | 1981 |
Batting, season by season
| Year | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | SFG | 4 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | .111 |
| 1977 | SFG | 27 | 55 | 4 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 18 | 0 | .182 |
| 1978 | SFG | 36 | 79 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 6 | 35 | 0 | .063 |
| 1979 | SFG | 35 | 66 | 6 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 1 | 24 | 0 | .182 |
| 1980 | SFG | 35 | 66 | 3 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 21 | 1 | .152 |
| 1981 | HOU | 22 | 47 | 3 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 15 | 0 | .149 |
| 1982 | HOU | 33 | 52 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 25 | 0 | .058 |
| 1983 | HOU | 35 | 66 | 5 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 25 | 0 | .182 |
| 1984 | HOU | 35 | 76 | 6 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 7 | 28 | 1 | .171 |
| 1985 | HOU | 38 | 78 | 5 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 38 | 0 | .141 |
| 1986 | HOU | 42 | 91 | 2 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 44 | 0 | .099 |
| 1987 | HOU | 33 | 51 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 24 | 0 | .098 |
| 1988 | HOU | 27 | 48 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 17 | 0 | .125 |
| 1989 | HOU/SFG | 35 | 43 | 5 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 9 | 0 | .186 |
| 1990 | SFG | 12 | 13 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 0 | .231 |
| Career | — | 449 | 840 | 47 | 115 | 28 | 2 | 6 | 59 | 41 | 333 | 2 | .137 |
Pitching, season by season
| Year | Team | W | L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | SFG | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 25.0 | 26 | 9 | 7 | 11 | 3.24 |
| 1977 | SFG | 11 | 9 | 27 | 27 | 0 | 166.0 | 151 | 62 | 72 | 100 | 3.36 |
| 1978 | SFG | 17 | 11 | 36 | 35 | 0 | 260.0 | 218 | 76 | 85 | 147 | 2.63 |
| 1979 | SFG | 9 | 12 | 34 | 34 | 0 | 207.1 | 241 | 107 | 77 | 123 | 4.64 |
| 1980 | SFG | 9 | 16 | 35 | 33 | 0 | 215.1 | 242 | 98 | 61 | 103 | 4.10 |
| 1981 | HOU | 9 | 5 | 22 | 22 | 0 | 156.2 | 128 | 38 | 38 | 75 | 2.18 |
| 1982 | HOU | 5 | 15 | 33 | 29 | 1 | 180.0 | 193 | 89 | 60 | 108 | 4.45 |
| 1983 | HOU | 6 | 13 | 35 | 29 | 0 | 203.0 | 202 | 72 | 71 | 125 | 3.19 |
| 1984 | HOU | 15 | 10 | 35 | 34 | 0 | 233.2 | 223 | 83 | 55 | 140 | 3.20 |
| 1985 | HOU | 15 | 13 | 37 | 37 | 0 | 241.0 | 253 | 95 | 54 | 131 | 3.55 |
| 1986 | HOU | 17 | 12 | 40 | 38 | 0 | 258.0 | 232 | 90 | 62 | 143 | 3.14 |
| 1987 | HOU | 8 | 17 | 33 | 31 | 0 | 177.2 | 226 | 104 | 54 | 76 | 5.27 |
| 1988 | HOU | 14 | 5 | 27 | 27 | 0 | 175.0 | 156 | 61 | 67 | 103 | 3.14 |
| 1989 | HOU/SFG | 7 | 12 | 35 | 26 | 0 | 165.0 | 190 | 94 | 75 | 64 | 5.13 |
| 1990 | SFG | 3 | 3 | 12 | 7 | 0 | 44.1 | 56 | 28 | 19 | 24 | 5.68 |
| Career | — | 146 | 155 | 445 | 413 | 1 | 2708.0 | 2737 | 1106 | 857 | 1473 | 3.68 |
On this day & linked events
1976
Major-league debut: Bob Knepper
Bob Knepper made a major-league debut on September 10, 1976.
1990
Final major-league game: Bob Knepper
Bob Knepper played a final major-league game on June 24, 1990.
Image: Mother's Cookies, public domain