Hal Kleine

Harold John Kleine
(Lefty)

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 6' 2", Weight 193 lb.
• Debut April 26, 1944
• Final Game June 1, 1945
• Born June 8, 1923 in St. Louis, MO USA
• Died December 10, 1957 in St. Louis, MO USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Left-hander Hal Kleine spent ten seasons in professional baseball from 1941 to 1950 after signing as an amateur free agent with the Cleveland Indians before the 1941 season. The eighteen year old pitcher was assigned to the Appleton Papermakers of the class D Wisconsin State League and came up with a 14-8 record and a 4.96 ERA his first season on the professional mound.

Hal pitched two more good seasons in the low minors going 15-7 in 1942 and 9-9 in 1943.

Kleine made his major league debut on April 26, 1944 with the Cleveland Indians and appeared in eleven games going 1-2 with a 4.96 ERA. After this short look by the Indians he spent the rest of the year back in the minors and had one more try in the big leagues in 1944 with the Indians and appeared in just three outings with no decisions and his big league career ended here with an overall record of 1-2 in fourteen games and a 5.78 ERA.

Kleine was selected off waivers on May 14, 1946 by the Chicago White Sox from the Cleveland Indians but never made it back to the big leagues, spending the rest of his game time with A, AA and AAA clubs. In Hal's ten year minor league run he had only one losing season when he went 0-1 for the Los Angeles Angels in 1946. His best season's numbers came early on in in 1942 when he went 15-7 for the Wausau Timberjacks of the class C Northern League. He also had three double-digit winning years on his way to a minor league career record of 69-50 while pitching in 241 games.

After baseball he was an adjuster for the Laclede Gas Company. He died from acute renal failure and bronchopneumonia at St. John's Hospital in St. Louis, MO on December 10, 1957. Harold John Kleine was 34 years of age.

Related Sites

• BR Minors page