Kris Benson

Kristin James Benson (born November 7, 1974) is an American former Major League Baseball starting pitcher who played for several teams between 1999 and 2010.

(Ultimately, the U.S. settled for a bronze medal in the sport it had invented, though this represented an improvement over the squad's failure to medal in 1992.)

Benson attended Clemson University from 1993 to 1996.

(Koch reported teammates referred to Benson as "The Messiah".) In 1994, he played collegiate summer baseball for the Hyannis Mets of the Cape Cod Baseball League.

Benson went undefeated during the regular season of his junior year (14–0 with a 1.40 ERA) with 178 strikeouts in 142 innings pitched.

Following this strong regular season, Benson led the Tigers to the NCAA postseason.

Though he pitched only one game in the Atlantic regional playoffs, the Tigers' ace earned all-tournament recognition with an outing in which he allowed only one hit, struck out eight, and walked but one batter.

A highly touted prospect, Benson was drafted first overall by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1996.

His teammates included fellow future major-leaguers Billy Koch and Matthew LeCroy both of whom played with him in the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

The victorious Tigers, starring Benson, Koch, outfielder and Regional MVP Jerome Robinson, and all-tournament outfielder Gary Burnham, entered the 1996 College World Series on a three-year streak of number-one regional seeds.

The presence of Benson, the expected number one selection in the 1996 MLB amateur draft (held that year on the same week as the CWS) helped draw additional attention to the spring series, transforming it into what one then-Clemson sports information official remembered as the "Media World Series."

(Benson was, in fact, drafted by the Pirates during the team's trip to Omaha. ) Despite his stellar regular season, Benson subsequently dropped two postseason decisions as the Tigers stumbled to a 2-2 CWS record.

Nonetheless, the team's two victories ended an eight-game CWS losing streak for Clemson and included a win over top-ranked Alabama.

Subsequently, Benson was named College Baseball's Player of the Year, only the second (after fellow future major leaguer and Olympian Ben McDonald) to be so honored on the strength of his pitching alone.

As a Tiger, he won the Baseball America Player of the Year, and ACC Player of the Year.

The pitcher also became only the second baseball player and first Clemson athlete in any sport to be named the ACC Male Athlete of the Year.

Other awards for his collegiate career include the Rotary Smith Award and ABCA Player of the Year, and recognition as unanimous consensus first-team All-American.

He was also the recipient of the Dick Howser Trophy for his "performance, character, leadership, and courage".

In the 1996 Olympics, Benson had 17 strikeouts in as many innings and a 2–1 record, but with a 5.82 ERA.

Benson beat Nicaragua to open up the games and then Japan, but it was his single loss (11–2 to eventual silver medalist Japan) which proved costly.

Benson lasted only four innings and surrendered five runs, and the bullpen gave up another six, en route to an 11–2 bludgeoning that kept the Americans from advancing to the gold medal game.

Benson was the first pick of the 1996 Major League Baseball Draft.

After being signed for what was a then-record signing bonus, he spent two years in the minor leagues with the Lynchburg Hillcats and Carolina Mudcats in 1997, and the Nashville Sounds in 1998.

He followed a strong rookie season in 1999 with an even stronger season in 2000, but those would prove to be the two best seasons of his career, as he underwent Tommy John surgery after the 2000 season.

Benson made his first major league start on April 9, 1999.

He became just the second number one overall pick to win his big league debut.

His first strikeout was Sammy Sosa.

Benson came in fourth place in the NL Rookie of the Year voting.

He came up just shy of breaking the record for most strikeouts in team history by a rookie hurler.

His best season came in 2000 with Pittsburgh when he posted career-highs in earned run average, strikeouts, innings pitched, and games pitched as well as his only double-digit strikeout games and his career-best three-hit complete game despite the fact that he is a groundball pitcher.

That year, Benson broke the record for most strikeouts in Pirates history for a right-handed pitcher.

After 2000, he needed Tommy John surgery and missed the entire 2001 season.

He started the last game at Three Rivers Stadium and the first game ever at Great American Ballpark.

In 2003, he was named to the ACC's 50-Year Anniversary baseball team.

A marketing student, Benson left Clemson prior to receiving his degree.

He posted three more good seasons from 2004 to 2006 with the Pirates, the New York Mets, and the Baltimore Orioles, but then underwent rotator cuff surgery, after which he was never again an effective Major League pitcher.

Benson was born in Superior, Wisconsin.

His parents were baseball fans who chose names for each of their children that began with "K," a nod to the letter used as the scorecard designation for a strikeout.

Benson attended Sprayberry High School in Marietta, Georgia with future MLB All-Star Marlon Byrd.

He has also been inducted into the Clemson Hall of Fame in 2005 and the South Carolina Amateur Hall of Fame.