Kenneth Ray Oberkfell (born May 4, 1956) is an
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
former
third baseman
A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...
. He played from 1977 to 1992 for six different teams. Oberkfell primarily played third base but he also played over 400 career games at second base. After retiring as a player, Oberkfell served as a baseball coach. He has primarily coached in the minor leagues, but he spent the part of the 2008 as the
New York Mets
The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...
first base coach and spent the 2011 season as the Mets bench coach.
Playing career
Signed by the
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...
as an amateur free agent in 1975, Oberkfell made his Major League Baseball debut with the St. Louis Cardinals on August 22, 1977, and appeared in his final game on October 4, 1992. Oberkfell was a member of the
1982 World Series
The 1982 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1982 Major League Baseball season, 1982 season. The 79th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the National Leag ...
Champion
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...
, hitting .292 in that series.
Oberkfell was part of the "Bearded Braves" triumvirate along with
Glenn Hubbard Glenn Hubbard may refer to:
*Glenn Hubbard (baseball) (born 1957), American baseball player
*Glenn Hubbard (economist)
Robert Glenn Hubbard (born September 4, 1958) is an American economist and academic. He served as the Dean of the Columbia Univ ...
and
Bruce Sutter
Howard Bruce Sutter (; January 8, 1953 – October 13, 2022) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 1976 and 1988. He was one of the sport's dominant relievers in the late 1970 ...
. He told Neil Holfeld of the ''
Houston Chronicle
The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With it ...
'' in a May 17, 1985 story that, "the beards make us stand out from the clean cut
Dale Murphy
Dale Bryan Murphy (born March 12, 1956) is an American former professional baseball player. During an 18-year career in Major League Baseball (MLB) (–), he played as an outfielder, catcher, and first baseman for the Atlanta Braves, Philadelphi ...
types. Consider us a modern era
House of David team."
Career statistics
In a 16-year major league career covering 1602 games, Oberkfell compiled a .278
batting average
Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic.
Cricket
In cricket, a player's batting average is ...
(1354-for-4874) with 558
runs, 237
doubles, 44
triples, 29
home runs
In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...
, 446
RBI and 546
base 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 ...
. He finished his career with a .973
fielding percentage
In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putouts and assists, div ...
. In 17 postseason games, he batted .245 (12-for-49).
Coaching career
After his retirement as a player in 1992, Oberkfell embarked on a successful managerial career that saw him named Minor League Manager of the Year by ''
Baseball America
''Baseball America'' is a sports enterprise that covers baseball at every level, including MLB, with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in the MiLB, college, high school, and international leagues. It is currently published in the form o ...
'' in 2005. He also served as the manager of the
New Orleans Zephyrs
New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created.
New or NEW may refer to:
Music
* New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz
Albums and EPs
* ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013
* ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...
from January 4, 2007, until June 17, 2008, when he was promoted to the Mets as their first base coach, replacing
Tom Nieto
Thomas Andrew Nieto (born October 27, 1960) is an American former professional baseball catcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals, Montreal Expos, Minnesota Twins, and Philadelphia Phillies. Nieto is formerly t ...
. During 2009 and 2010, Oberkfell managed the Mets' Triple-A farm team, the
Buffalo Bisons
The Buffalo Bisons (known colloquially as the Herd) are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. Located in Buffalo, New York, the team plays their home games at Sahlen Fiel ...
. On January 28, 2010, Oberkfell led the
Leones del Escogido
Leones del Escogido (English: ''Chosen One Lions'' or ''Lions of Chosen One'' or ''Picked Lions'') is a professional baseball team in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Established in , Leones are the third most successful team in the Dominican Wi ...
to their 13th championship in the Dominican Baseball Winter League as their manager.
He was interviewed for the Mets managerial opening in November 2010. He was named the
New York Mets
The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...
bench coach for the
2011 season,
[Wilson, Oberkfell among new Mets coaches](_blank)
/ref> but was not hired back for 2012.[Mets shake up coaching staff for 2012 season](_blank)
/ref> Oberkfell served as the manager of the Newark Bears
The Newark Bears were an American minor league professional baseball team based in Newark, New Jersey. They were a member of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball and, later, the Canadian American Association of Professional Baseball. T ...
of the independent Can-Am League
The Canadian American Association of Professional Baseball, commonly known as the Can-Am League, was a professional, independent baseball league with teams in the Northeast United States and Eastern Canada, founded in 2005 as a reorganization ...
during the 2012 season before stepping down in August.
Oberkfell managed the Leones del Escogido
Leones del Escogido (English: ''Chosen One Lions'' or ''Lions of Chosen One'' or ''Picked Lions'') is a professional baseball team in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Established in , Leones are the third most successful team in the Dominican Wi ...
of the Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares wit ...
to the Caribbean Series
The Caribbean Series (''Spanish'': ''Serie del Caribe''), also called Caribbean World Series, is the highest tournament for professional baseball teams in Latin America. The tournament location is rotated annually among the countries and is norma ...
championship title in 2010
File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
and 2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
.
In 2013, Oberkfell became the manager of the Lincoln Saltdogs in Lincoln, Nebraska. He resigned for family reasons after the 2015 season.
Personal life
Oberkfell was married to his wife Jamie Smith. She passed away in 2020. They lived in Illinois.
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oberkfell, Ken
1956 births
Living people
American expatriate baseball players in Canada
Arkansas Travelers players
Atlanta Braves players
Baseball coaches from Illinois
Baseball players from Illinois
Binghamton Mets managers
Buffalo Bisons (minor league) managers
California Angels players
Caribbean Series managers
Edmonton Trappers players
Houston Astros players
Johnson City Cardinals players
Major League Baseball bench coaches
Major League Baseball third basemen
Major League Baseball second basemen
Norfolk Tides managers
Minor league baseball coaches
New Orleans Pelicans (baseball) players
New York Mets coaches
People from Highland, Illinois
Pittsburgh Pirates players
San Francisco Giants players
Springfield Redbirds players
St. Louis Cardinals players
St. Petersburg Cardinals players
American expatriate baseball people in the Dominican Republic