Kenneth Peter Kravec (born July 29, 1951) is an American

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement **Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom **Scouts BSA, sectio ...

and a former Major League

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

and front office official. The , left-hander appeared in 160

games pitched In baseball statistics, games pitched (denoted by Games G in tables of only pitching statistics) is the number of games in which a player appears as a pitcher; a player who is announced as the pitcher must face at least one batter, although except ...

, 128 as a starter, exclusively for the

White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

(1975–80) and the Cubs (1981–82). Kravec graduated from Midpark High School,

Middleburg Heights, Ohio Middleburg Heights is a city and a suburb of Cleveland in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. The population held steady at approximately sixteen thousand throughout the first two decades of the twenty-first century. Government Middleburg Heig ...

, played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...

Ashland University Ashland University is a private university in Ashland, Ohio. The university consists of a main campus and several off-campus centers throughout central and northern Ohio. Ashland was founded in 1878 as Ashland College. It is affiliated with The ...

, and was selected by the White Sox in the third round (69th overall) of the 1973 Major League Baseball draft. He was promoted to the White Sox in September 1975 after posting a record of 14–7 and an

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

of 2.41 and was named to the Double-A Southern League's all-star team. In his Major League debut on September 4, he started against the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

but lasted only 2

inning In baseball, softball, and similar games, an inning is the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves or frames, the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other team ...

s, giving up only one

hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...

but allowing seven

bases on balls A base on balls (BB), also known as a walk, occurs in baseball when a batter receives four pitches that the umpire calls '' balls'', and is in turn awarded first base without the possibility of being called out. The base on balls is defined in Se ...

and three

earned run In baseball, an earned run is any run that was fully enabled by the offensive team's production in the face of competent play from the defensive team. Conversely, an unearned run is a run that would not have been scored without the aid of an err ...

s, taking the

loss Loss may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * ''Loss'' (Bass Communion album) (2006) * ''Loss'' (Mull Historical Society album) (2001) *"Loss", a song by God Is an Astronaut from their self-titled album (2008) * Losses "(Lil Tjay son ...

in a 7–1 Kansas City win. Kravec led all White Sox pitchers in

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

s from 1977–79, and topped the ChiSox in wins in with 15. He led the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

hit batsmen In baseball, hit by pitch (HBP) is an event in which a batter or his clothing or equipment (other than his bat) is struck directly by a pitch from the pitcher; the batter is called a hit batsman (HB). A hit batsman is awarded first base, provided ...

in (with ten) and tied for the lead in 1979 (14), and finished second in the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

in that category (4) in strike-shortened . After the White Sox signed

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

catcher Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and recei ...

Carlton Fisk Carlton Ernest Fisk (born December 26, 1947), nicknamed "Pudge" and "The Commander", is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from 1969 to 1993 for the Boston Red Sox (1969, 1971–1980) a ...

during the 1980–81 offseason, Fisk found that Kravec was sporting the No. 27 uniform the future

Hall of Famer A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actual halls or muse ...

had previously worn with the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

. As a result, Fisk reversed the digits and would wear No. 72 during his 13-year career with Chicago. Both numbers have been retired by their respective teams. Ironically, Kravec was traded to the Cubs (the crosstown rivals of the White Sox) for right-hander

Dennis Lamp Dennis Patrick Lamp (born September 23, 1952) is a former professional baseball pitcher in Major League Baseball. From 1977 through 1992, the breaking ball specialist played for the Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, Oakland Athle ...

on March 28, 1981, just a few weeks into Fisk's tenure with the club. All told, Kravec allowed 814 hits and 404 bases on balls in 858 Major League

innings pitched In baseball, innings pitched (IP) are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher is on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one innin ...

, with 557 strikeouts, six

shutouts In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usuall ...

, 24

complete game In baseball, a complete game (CG) is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher. A pitcher who meets this criterion will be credited with a complete game regardless of the number of innings played—pitche ...

s, and one save. His one save came on May 9, 1979, when he recorded the final out of the game to nail down a 5-4 victory over the Tigers. He remained in baseball after his active career ended as a scout for the Royals,

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The franc ...

, Cubs and

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. Since its inception ...

References

External links

, o
Retrosheet
o
Venezuelan Professional Baseball League statistics
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kravec, Ken 1951 births Albany A's players Ashland Eagles baseball players Baseball players from Cleveland Bradenton Explorers players Chicago Cubs executives Chicago Cubs players Chicago Cubs scouts Chicago White Sox players Fort Myers Royals players Fort Myers Sun Sox players Iowa Cubs players Iowa Oaks players Kansas City Royals scouts Knoxville Sox players Living people Llaneros de Portuguesa players Major League Baseball pitchers Miami Marlins scouts Tampa Bay Rays scouts Tiburones de La Guaira players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela