Jeffrey William Kunkel (born March 25, 1961) is an American former

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 ...

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 ...

with the Texas Rangers and

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

. The son of the late

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...

pitcher and umpire Bill Kunkel, after receiving All-American honors as a shortstop, he was chosen in the first round (3rd overall) of the

1983 Major League Baseball Draft The 1983 Major League Baseball draft took place in June 1983. The draft saw the Minnesota Twins select Tim Belcher first overall. First round selections The following are the first round picks in the 1983 Major League Baseball draft. ''*'' D ...

out of

Rider University Rider University is a private university in Lawrence Township, New Jersey, United States. It consists of three academic units: the Norm Brodsky College of Business, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, which includes Westminster Choir Coll ...

. Growing up in the Leonardo section of

Middletown Township, New Jersey Middletown Township is a Township (New Jersey), township in northern Monmouth County, New Jersey, Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township was List of municipalities in New Jersey, the ...

, Kunkel was an all-around athlete who participated in soccer, basketball and baseball during his high school years at

Middletown High School South Middletown High School South is a four-year comprehensive public high school located in Middletown Township, Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades as one of the two secondary school ...

in New Jersey. He was selected as #74 of the top 100

Jersey Shore The Jersey Shore, commonly called the Shore by locals, is the coast, coastal region of the U.S. state of New Jersey. The term encompasses about of shore, oceanfront bordering the Atlantic Ocean, from Perth Amboy, New Jersey, Perth Amboy in the n ...

athletes of the millennium by the ''

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'' in 1999. Kunkel reached the big leagues quickly, but never developed into a full-time player. The Rangers gave him the opportunity to win the starting shortstop position, but he was always thwarted by his hitting stats and obstacles such as Curtis Wilkerson, Scott Fletcher,

Fred Manrique Fred Eloy Manrique Reyes an-RE-keh(born November 5, 1961) is a Venezuelan former Major League Baseball second baseman who played for the Toronto Blue Jays (1981, 1984), Montreal Expos (1985), St. Louis Cardinals (1986), Chicago White Sox (1987� ...

, Gary Green, and

Jeff Huson Jeffrey Kent Huson (born August 15, 1964) is an American former professional baseball utility infielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Montreal Expos, Texas Rangers, Baltimore Orioles, Milwaukee Brewers, Seattle Mariners, Ana ...

. Plagued with numerous potential career-ending injuries, Kunkel worked hard to rehabilitate himself to finish an 11-year professional baseball career with 5½ years in the major leagues. A versatile player with the ability to play 8 of the 9 positions on the field, he actually pitched three times in mop-up stints.

1984 debut

Kunkel made his major league debut against the defending world champion

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

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on Monday, July 23, . Against O's ace

Mike Boddicker Michael James Boddicker (born August 23, 1957) is an American right-handed former Major League Baseball pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles (1980–1988), Boston Red Sox (1988–1990), Kansas City Royals (1991–1992), and Milwaukee Brewers (1993) ...

, a 20-game winner that season, Kunkel recorded three hits and stole second base. Nevertheless, the Rangers lost the game, 9-5. Kunkel spent the rest of the season alternating with Curtis Wilkerson, but was never able to duplicate the success of his first game. He concluded 1984 with 3 home runs, 7 runs batted in, and a .204 average in 50 games and 142 at-bats.

Time in the minors

After struggling during spring training in , Kunkel found little playing time with the Rangers over the next four seasons. He spent most of his time with the

Oklahoma City 89ers Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked state in the South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northeast, Arkansas to the east, New Mexico to the west, and Colo ...

of the Triple-A American Association and was recalled to the majors only due to other players being hurt or the rosters expanding in September.

Best year

In Kunkel recorded his best season, and more playing time opened for him due to the trade of Scott Fletcher to the

Chicago 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) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...

. He responded by hitting a career-high .270 with 8 home runs and 29 RBI in 108 games. The success was short-lived, and by he was back to his previous role as a reserve player.

Last seasons

In , the

gave Kunkel his last shot in the majors. He assumed the role as a utility player, receiving very limited playing time behind

Ryne Sandberg Ryne Dee Sandberg (born September 18, 1959), nicknamed "Ryno", is an American former professional baseball player, coach (baseball), coach, and manager (baseball), manager. He played sixteen seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a second bas ...

and

Shawon Dunston Shawon Donnell Dunston (born March 21, 1963) is an American former professional baseball player. A shortstop, Dunston played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1985 through 2002. On January 13, 2023, he was selected as a member of the 2023 class ...

. Jeff concluded his short stay with the Cubs hitting .138 in 29 at-bats and never played in the big leagues again. In , Jeff signed a minor league contract with the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

and played infield and outfield for the AAA

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major ...

Champion

Charlotte Knights The Charlotte Knights are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. They are located in Charlotte, North Carolina, and play their home games at Truist Field ...

. In , Kunkel joined the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...

' AAA team, the

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A baseball team nicknamed the ...

, where he finished his professional baseball career hitting .249 with 11 hrs.

References

* 1987 Texas Rangers media guide * 1989 Texas Rangers media guide * 1990 Texas Rangers media guide

External links