Jeff Kaplan

Jeffrey George Kaplan

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 195 lb.

• School Cal State-Fullerton, Irvine Valley College
• High School Dana Point High School

• Born July 9, 1985 in San Diego, CA USA

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Jeff Kaplan pitched in the minor leagues from 2008 to 2013. He peaked at Double-A.

Amateur Career

Kaplan hit .375 with 7 HR and 34 RBI (tying the school record) to make All-League in high school. In junior college, he played during 2004 then missed 2005 with an arm injury. He was 5-5 with a 2.56 ERA in 2006, placing second in his conference in strikeouts (100) and 4th in ERA. In 2007, he transferred to Cal State Fullerton and went 11-3 with a 3.30 ERA. He tied for third in the Big West Conference and tied for 16th in NCAA Division I in victories. He was 11-3 again in 2008 though his ERA rose to 4.43. He was third in the Big West in wins again and split Big West Pitcher of the Year with Scott Gorgen and Andrew Liebel. The New York Mets selected him in the 11th round of the 2008 amateur draft; the scout was Fred Mazuca.

Minor Leagues

Kaplan made his pro debut with the Brooklyn Cyclones, going 3-2 with two saves and a 3.45 ERA. In 2009, he was with the Savannah Sand Gnats (4-2, 1.46) and St. Lucie Mets (3-5, 3.39). He was injured for most of 2010, only pitching one inning for the GCL Mets. In 2011, he was with the St. Lucie (2-5, 12 Sv, 3.45) club and with the Binghamton Mets (2 R in 4 IP). During 2012, he fared poorly for St. Lucie (2-0, 2 Sv, 4.50 in 6 G) and Binghamton (3-0, Sv, 3.12), allowing an average over .300.

Jeff was with the Israeli national team for the 2013 World Baseball Classic Qualifiers. He pitched in two games. In his first contest, he replaced Shlomo Lipetz in the 9th with the bases loaded, one out and a 7-0 lead. He walked Karl Weitz to force in a run then a Jake Lemmerman error let in another before he retired Richard Holgate and Gift Ngoepe to end it. In the finale with a spot in the 2013 World Baseball Classic at stake, he replaced Richard Bleier with a 6-5 lead, two on and no out against Spain in the 6th. He retired former Cuban national team player Bárbaro Cañizares on a double play grounder then got Yunesky Sanchez on a grounder. In the 7th, he was not as sharp. Adrian Nieto and Gabe Suarez hit back-to-back singles and Yasser Gómez bunted them over. David Kopp relieved and allowed Nieto to score the tying run. Israel wound up losing in extra innings, with Josh Zeid taking the defeat.

Sources

• Fullerton bio
• Baseball Cube
• World Baseball Classic Qualifiers for 2013