Adam Kloffenstein (born August 25, 2000) is an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

in the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Since 1989, the team has p ...

organization. He has previously played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) for

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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...

. He made his MLB debut in 2024.

Career

Kloffenstein attended Magnolia High School in

Magnolia, Texas Magnolia is a city in southwestern Montgomery County, Texas, United States within the Houston metropolitan area. It is named for the magnolia trees that grow in the area.2018 Major League Baseball draft The 2018 Major League Baseball draft began on June 4, 2018. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order was determined based on the reverse order of the 2017 MLB season final standings. In addition, compensation pi ...

by the

, and signed on June 12 for a $2.45 million signing bonus. Kloffenstein was assigned to the

Rookie-level Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National L ...

Gulf Coast League Blue Jays The Florida Complex League Blue Jays are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. Prior to 2021, the team was known as the Gulf Coast League Blue Jays. The team plays its ...

with former Magnolia teammate

Jordan Groshans Jordan Groshans (born November 10, 1999) is an American professional baseball infielder in the Kansas City Royals organization. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Miami Marlins. The Toronto Blue Jays selected Groshans ...

. He made his professional debut on August 20 and pitched one scoreless inning. In total for his 2018 season, Kloffenstein pitched two scoreless innings. In 2019, he was promoted to the Low–A

Vancouver Canadians The Vancouver Canadians are a Minor League Baseball (MiLB) team located in Vancouver, British Columbia. They are members of the Northwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. The Canadians play their home games at Nat Bail ...

where he started 13 games, going 4–4 and recording a 2.24 ERA. Kloffenstein did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. He returned to Vancouver in 2021, making 23 starts and struggling to a 7–7 record and 6.22 ERA with 107 strikeouts across innings pitched. Kloffenstein split the 2022 campaign between Vancouver and the Double–A

New Hampshire Fisher Cats The New Hampshire Fisher Cats are a Minor League Baseball team based in Manchester, New Hampshire. The team, which plays in the Eastern League (1938–present), Eastern League, is the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Ja ...

, accumulating a 5.54 ERA with 118 strikeouts across 25 total games (24 starts). He made 17 starts for New Hampshire to begin the 2023 season, compiling a 5–5 record and 3.24 ERA with 105 strikeouts across 89 innings.

St. Louis Cardinals

On July 30, 2023, the Blue Jays traded Kloffenstein and Sem Robberse to the

in exchange for pitcher Jordan Hicks. In 9 games (8 starts) for the Triple–A

Memphis Redbirds The Memphis Redbirds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. They are located in Memphis, Tennessee, and are named for their Major League Baseball affiliate. The Redbird ...

, he recorded a 3.00 ERA with 35 strikeouts across 39 innings. On November 14, the Cardinals added Kloffenstein to their

40-man roster A Major League Baseball roster is a list of players who are allowed, by league agreement, to play for a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. Each MLB team maintains two rosters: an active roster of players eligible to participate in an MLB game, an ...

to protect him from the

Rule 5 draft The Rule 5 draft is a Major League Baseball (MLB) player draft that occurs each year in December, at the annual Winter Meeting of general managers. The Rule 5 draft aims to prevent teams from stockpiling too many young players on their minor lea ...

. Kloffenstein was optioned to the Triple–A

to begin the 2024 season. In 14 starts prior to his call–up, he compiled a 4–4 record and 3.97 ERA with 68 strikeouts. On June 20, 2024, Kloffenstein was promoted to the major leagues for the first time. He made his debut that day, throwing a perfect inning against the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

as part of the MLB at Rickwood Field game. On November 22, the Cardinals non–tendered Kloffenstein, making him a free agent.

Toronto Blue Jays (second stint)

On January 28, 2025, Kloffenstein signed a minor league contract with the

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kloffenstein, Adam 2000 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Canada Baseball players from Texas Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Dunedin Blue Jays players Florida Complex League Blue Jays players Gulf Coast Blue Jays players Major League Baseball pitchers Memphis Redbirds players New Hampshire Fisher Cats players People from Magnolia, Texas St. Louis Cardinals players Sugar Land Skeeters players Team Texas players Vancouver Canadians players