Kim Andrew

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Kim Darrell Andrew

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Biographical Information[edit]

Kim Andrew's only career hit came on April 21, 1975, playing for the Boston Red Sox, off Pat Dobson of the New York Yankees. It was one of only two career at-bats for him.

He was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 31st round of the 1971 amateur draft out of a local high school, but did not sign and went on to play at Los Angeles Valley Junior College. In high school, he was a teammate of future major leaguers Craig Cacek and John Flinn. He then signed with the Baltimore Orioles as an undrafted free agent after one season there, during which he hit .470. His professional career lasted from 1972 to 1977, split between the organizations of the Orioles and the Red Sox. He hit over .300 in each of his first three seasons in the Orioles' system, reaching AA with the Asheville Orioles of the AA Southern League in 1974, where he hit .317 in 117 games, although with very limited power (his slugging percentage was .381).

Following the 1974 season, the Red Sox took him in the 1974 Rule V Draft - one of only three players to be drafted by a major league team that year. He would normally have had to spend the 1975 season in the majors for Boston to retain his rights, but the Sox worked out a deal with Baltimore and he was able to play in the minor leagues that year, splitting his time between the AA Bristol Red Sox and AAA Pawtucket Red Sox. In 96 combined games, he hit .318/.368/.382 after starting the year in Boston, where he appeared in just two games, as noted above. The Red Sox made it to the World Series that year, but he was long gone from Fenway Park by the time pennant fever swept New England.

In 1976, he fell below .300 for the first time, as he hit .287 in 189 games for the Rhode Island Red Sox (as the Pawtucket team was called for a short period). Again, his lack of power was an issue as his OBP of .399 was well above his slugging percentage of .356. During all that time in the minors, he was almost exclusively a second baseman, but his defence was mediocre, as he would regularly commit over 20 errors per season with unimpressive all-around numbers. He returned to Pawtucket in 1977 but lasted only 12 games before the Orioles reacquired him. He played another 27 games withe the Rochester Red Wings, staying in the International League, but that was the end of his playing career. He still managed to hit .317 in that partial season (20 for 63), but he was no longer considered a prospect. After he was released by the O's, the Chicago White Sox approached him to sign him as a free agent, but he declined and decided to go play in Italy instead the following year, with Bollate. Returning to the U.S. after the season, he accepted a tentative offer from the Pittsburgh Pirates to go to spring training, but sprained his ankle during the off-season and decided to call it a career. He then went to work first for a sporting goods company, and later for Federal Express. He married and had two sons.

Further Reading[edit]

  • Bill Nowlin: "Kim Andrew", in Bill Nowlin and Cecilia Tan, ed.: '75:The Red Sox Team that Saved Baseball, SABR, Phoenix, AZ, 2015, pp. 135-139. ISBN 978-1-933599-97-7

Related Sites[edit]

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