Kevin Henthorne

Kevin Donald Henthorne

• Bats Both, Throws Right
• Height 6' 2", Weight 195 lb.

• School Saint Mary's College
• High School La Crosse Central High School
• Born December 9, 1969 in Phoenix, AZ USA

BR Minors page

Biographical information

Kevin Henthorne spent 11 years as a professional baseball pitcher, going 102-42 for an amazing .708 career winning percentage. He won two ERA titles.

College

Henthorne was a two-time All-Conference pick in college (NCAA Division III) and was named team MVP in 1992. Kevin was undrafted out of school but was saved by the formation of the independent leagues at that time.

Texas-Louisiana League

In 1994, Kevin went 9-4 with a 4.09 ERA for the San Antonio Tejanos. He was 8th in the Texas-Louisiana League in ERA. He split 1995 between the Corpus Christi Barracudas (7-2, 3.04) and Laredo Apaches (5-2, 2.89). For the year, he had a 12-4, 2.96 record. He was third in the Texas-Lousiaian league in ERA and made the All-Star team as one of the top three starting pitchers in the circuit.

Yankees chain

Henthorne was then signed by the New York Yankees. He split 1996 between the Tampa Yankees (7-4, 2.60, 82 K:12 BB in 93 1/3 IP) and the Norwich Navigators (5-3, 2.26). Had he qualified, he would have been 4th in the Florida State League in ERA (.13 ahead of Roy Halladay) and would have led the Eastern League (.37 over Carl Pavano).

In 1997, Kevin moved to relief and was 2-1 with 2 saves and a 3.31 ERA in 33 games for Norwich. Despite his two successful seasons in the Yankee chain, he was cut loose.

Taiwan

Henthorne came to Taiwan in 1998 and immediately became a star. He was 12-3 with a save and a 2.09 ERA for the China Trust Whales, He led the Chinese Professional Baseball League in ERA, .41 ahead over the runner-up. In '99, he continued to dominate, going 15-3 with a save and a 2.48 ERA. He led the league in wins (tied with Chien-Fu Kuo Lee) and was named to the All-Star team. He also tied Chun-Yang Tsao for 5th in ERA. He was named to the Best Nine at pitcher, making him the top pitcher in the CPBL; Mark Kiefer was the only prior foreigner to take home that honor.

Mexico

Kevin's next stop on his baseball journey was Mexico. He was 11-4 with a 4.34 ERA for the 2000 Puebla Parrots and Mexico City Tigers, helping Mexico City win the pennant. In 2001, Henthorne was 8-2 with a 3.82 ERA for the Tigers, who again won it all. He had the second-best ERA among their starting pitchers.

2002: Four different stops

While Henthorne had moved around often, he had never seen a whirlwind year like 2002. That season, he pitched for Mexico's Puebla (2-3, 4.95) and the independent Bridgeport Bluefish (3-1, 2.08). He also spent time in the Arizona Diamondbacks chain, with the Lancaster Jethawks (0-1, 3.72 in 2 G) and El Paso Diablos (1-1, 11.32, .416 average allowed in 5 G). It was his last look at Organized Baseball.

2003-2005: Independent leagues once again

Henthorne briefly returned to Taiwan in 2003 but was not his former self, going 0-3 with a 5.95 ERA for the Macoto Cobras. He spent the remainder of the year with Bridgeport, going 4-2 with a 2.52 ERA.

2004 was an excellent year for Kevin. He went 13-2 with a 2.69 ERA for Bridgeport, with only 19 walks in 150 1/3 innings. He led the Atlantic League in ERA by .32 over Linc Mikkelsen, another veteran globetrotter. He was named the circuit's Pitcher of the Year that season.

Then in the winter, Kevin continued to shine in Venezuela. He was 2-0 with 10 saves and a 2.17 ERA in 30 games for the Caracas Lions, with a WHIP under 1. He tied for the Venezuelan League lead in saves and was named the Reliever of the Year.

After his brilliant 2004, Henthorne's career ended quickly. He only pitched 3 games for the 2005 Surprise Fightin' Falcons, going 1-1 with a 5.21 ERA to wrap it all up.

Sources

• Chinese Wiki Baseball
• Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
• 1995-2006 Baseball Almanacs
• Pat Doyle's Professional Baseball Player Database