Brian Wayne Koelling (born June 11, 1969) is a former

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 ...

player who played seven games for the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. The Reds compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Divisi ...

in 1993. He was drafted by the Reds in the 14th round of the 1991 amateur draft.

Early life and amateur career

Koelling was initially raised in Delhi, Ohio. His mother was a teacher and his father was a

pipefitter A pipefitter or steamfitter is a tradesman who installs, assembles, fabricates, maintains, and repairs mechanical piping systems. Pipefitters usually begin as helpers or apprentices. Journeyman pipefitters deal with industrial/commercial/marine ...

. As a child, he moved to

Miami Heights, Ohio Miami Heights is a census-designated place (CDP) in Miami Township, Hamilton County, Ohio, United States. The population was 5,166 at the 2020 census. Geography Miami Heights is located northwest of downtown Cincinnati. Ohio State Route 264 ...

. He attended Taylor High School where he played baseball and

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

as a

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

. After high school, he first enrolled at

Ohio State The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one of the largest universities by enrollme ...

where he planned to walk on to the football team. He had gone so far as making a tuition payment and being assigned a dorm room before choosing instead to play

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

as a

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball positions, baseball or softball fielding position between second base, second and third base, which is considered to be among the Defensive spectrum, most demanding defensive positions. Historically, the ...

Bowling Green A bowling green is a finely laid, close-mown and rolled stretch of turf for playing the game of bowls. Before 1830, when Edwin Beard Budding of Thrupp, near Stroud, UK, invented the lawnmower, lawns were often kept cropped by grazing sheep ...

Professional career

Koelling was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the 14th round of the

1991 Major League Baseball draft The 1991 Major League Baseball draft began 3 June 1991 to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order is the reverse order of the 1990 MLB season standings. In addition, compensation picks will be distributed for players who did ...

. He began his professional career with the

Billings Mustangs The Billings Mustangs are an independent baseball team of the Pioneer League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball (MLB) but is an MLB Partner League. They are located in Billings, Montana, and have played their home games at Deh ...

where he

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 i ...

.353 before being promoted to

Cedar Rapids Cedar Rapids is a city in Linn County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in u ...

. As a minor leaguer, Koelling had to transition from shortstop to

second base In baseball and softball, second baseman, abbreviated 2B, is a fielding position in the infield, between second and first base. The second baseman often possesses quick hands and feet, needs the ability to get rid of the ball quickly, and must ...

because he was blocked at shortstop by both

Barry Larkin Barry Louis Larkin (born April 28, 1964) is an American former professional baseball shortstop. As a player he spent his entire 19-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the Cincinnati Reds from 1986 to 2004. He briefly played in the mi ...

and

Pokey Reese Calvin "Pokey" Reese Jr. (born June 10, 1973) is an American former Major League Baseball infielder. Reese played with the Cincinnati Reds, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Boston Red Sox from 1997 to 2004. With the Red Sox, he won the 2004 World Series o ...

. Koelling made his Major League debut on August 21, 1993 against the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos () were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in the National League (baseball), National League ...

Riverfront Stadium Riverfront Stadium, also known as Cinergy Field from 1996 to 2002, was a multi-purpose stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was the home of the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1970 Cincinnati Reds season, 1970 through 2002 Cincinna ...

; he started at second base and led off but was hitless in three

at bats In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens upon completion of his turn at bat, b ...

against

Butch Henry Floyd Bluford "Butch" Henry III (born October 7, 1968) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher who played for five MLB teams from 1992 to 1999. Listed at and , he pitched and batted left-handed. Henry has also been a coach in ...

. On August 23,

Dwight Gooden Dwight Eugene Gooden (born November 16, 1964), nicknamed "Dr. K" and "Doc", is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Gooden pitched from 1984 to 1994 and from 1996 to 2000 for the ...

of the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

hit Koelling in the back with a pitch. Koelling would eventually come around to score the first of only two runs of his Major League career. Gooden was later suspended three games for the

beanball "Beanball" is a colloquialism used in baseball, for a ball thrown at an opposing player with the intention of striking them such as to cause harm, often connoting a throw at the player's head (or "bean" in old-fashioned slang). A pitcher who thro ...

. Koelling next played two days later against the Mets at

Shea Stadium William A. Shea Municipal Stadium ( ), typically shortened to Shea Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York City.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 i ...

of his Major League career, a second inning

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

off of

Eric Hillman John Eric Hillman (born April 27, 1966) is an American former Major League Baseball and Nippon Professional Baseball pitcher. Hillman played high school ball at Homewood-Flossmoor in suburban Chicago, and then collegiately at Eastern Illinois U ...

. His final Major League game came on September 3, 1993 against the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...

in Cincinnati. He

pinch hit In baseball, a pinch hitter (PH) is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead (not in active play); the manager may use any player who has not yet entered the game as a substitute. Unlike basketball, Am ...

for

Kevin Wickander Kevin Dean Wickander (born January 4, 1965) is a former Major League Baseball player. A pitcher, Wickander played for the Cleveland Indians, Cincinnati Reds, Milwaukee Brewers, and Detroit Tigers from to . Wickander attended Cortez High School ...

in the fifth inning but was retired on three pitches by Tommy Greene. On September 5, he was returned to the minor leagues. Prior to the 1994 season, the Reds signed Koelling to a one-year contract. Although Koelling was called up to the Major League roster in September, he did not appear in a game. On August 8, 1995, Koelling was traded to the

for

Mariano Duncan Mariano Duncan Nalasco (born March 13, 1963) is a Dominican former second baseman and shortstop who played for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Cincinnati Reds, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Yankees, and Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball and ...

. His final season in professional baseball came in 1997 with the

Chattanooga Lookouts The Chattanooga Lookouts are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are based in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and are named for nearby Lookout Mountain. The team plays its home g ...

in the Double-A Southern League.

Personal life

Koelling earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

from

Northern Kentucky University Northern Kentucky University is a public university in Highland Heights, Kentucky, United States. Established in 1968, it is the youngest of Kentucky's eight public universities. The university has seven constituent colleges in arts and science ...

. He has two sons, Kyle and Tyler, with his wife, Jenny. In 2018, Koelling was as an assistant baseball coach at East Central High School in

St. Leon, Indiana St. Leon or Saint Leon is a town in Kelso Township, Dearborn County, Indiana, United States. The population was 678 at the 2010 census. History A post office was established at St. Leon in 1852, and remained in operation until it was discontin ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Koelling, Brian 1969 births Living people Baseball players from Ohio Billings Mustangs players Bowling Green Falcons baseball players Cedar Rapids Reds players Chattanooga Lookouts players Cincinnati Reds players Indianapolis Indians players Major League Baseball second basemen Major League Baseball shortstops Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons players Northern Kentucky University alumni 20th-century American sportsmen