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Ronald Lee Kline
Washington Senators
Pitcher
Born: March 9, 1932, Callery, PA
Signed: Signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates as an amateur free agent before 1950 season
Major League Teams: Pittsburgh Pirates 1952, 1955-1959; St. Louis Cardinals 1960; Los Angeles Angels 1961; Detroit Tigers 1961-1962; Washington Senators 1963-1966; Minnesota Twins 1967; Pittsburgh Pirates 1968-1969; San Francisco Giants 1969; Boston Red Sox 1969; Atlanta Braves 1970
Died: June 22, 2002, Callery, PA (age 70)
A veteran of 17 big league seasons and 736 career appearances, Ron Kline enjoyed a career as a dependable reliever for 10 different teams. His longest stint with any one team came at the beginning of his career with the Pirates, his hometown team, where he pitched for eight seasons primarily as a starting pitcher. Kline missed two seasons early in his career due to military service in 1953 and 1954. Despite his record of 14-18, 1956 was probably his best season as he started 39 games and had an ERA of 3.38. It wasn't tracked at the time, but his WAR for pitchers in 1956 (4.9) was fourth in the N.L. behind Johnny Antonelli, Bob Friend (#392) and Warren Spahn (#205).
As a reliever later in his career, Kline finished in the top ten in saves four times, topping the A.L. leaders list in 1965 with 29 saves for the Senators. After retiring from baseball, Kline returned to his hometown of Callery, PA where he served as the town's mayor for several years.
Building the Set
December 25, 2020 from Marco Island, FL - Card #195
This is one of 32 cards (mostly commons) I received from Jenna and our sons on Christmas morning, as I was asked to do some surrogate shopping on their behalf and I gladly obliged. Hunting specifically for first series cards, this is one of 11 cards I added from eBay seller njlionsfan from Clinton, New Jersey. This Kline card was only $2.
The Card / Senators Team Set
Kline appeared on three Topps flagship cards during his tenure with the Senators and impressively all three photos used seem to come from different sessions. Topps goes all the way back 14 years for the highlight to use on the back of the card, pointing out Kline's successful season for the 1951 Bartlesville Pirates in the Class D Kansas-Oklahoma-Missouri League. Kline is in the harder to find 1965 Topps Transfers insert set, but he's not in the 1965 Topps Embossed insert set.
1965 Season
Kline actually earned some MVP votes as one of the top relievers in the American League. His 29 saves were five better than the two relievers tied for second with 24 - Stu Miller (#499) of the Orioles and Eddie Fisher (#328) of the White Sox. Kline appeared in a career-high 74 games and was 7-6 with a 2.63 ERA over 99 1/3 innings pitched. He actually didn't get all the save opportunities for the Senators, as Steve Ridzik (#211) recorded 8 saves in 1965 with Bennie Daniels (#129), Mike McCormick (#343) and Howie Koplitz recording one save each.
Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card: 1953 Topps #175
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (15): 1953, 1956-1969
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1991 Topps Archives 1953 #175
Kline's last three Topps flagship baseball cards, from 1967, 1968 and 1969, feature almost identical (and hatless) photos with Kline looking in slightly different directions.
59 - Kline non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 1/4/21.
Sources:
1956 Topps Blog
This is one of 32 cards (mostly commons) I received from Jenna and our sons on Christmas morning, as I was asked to do some surrogate shopping on their behalf and I gladly obliged. Hunting specifically for first series cards, this is one of 11 cards I added from eBay seller njlionsfan from Clinton, New Jersey. This Kline card was only $2.
The Card / Senators Team Set
Kline appeared on three Topps flagship cards during his tenure with the Senators and impressively all three photos used seem to come from different sessions. Topps goes all the way back 14 years for the highlight to use on the back of the card, pointing out Kline's successful season for the 1951 Bartlesville Pirates in the Class D Kansas-Oklahoma-Missouri League. Kline is in the harder to find 1965 Topps Transfers insert set, but he's not in the 1965 Topps Embossed insert set.
1965 Season
Kline actually earned some MVP votes as one of the top relievers in the American League. His 29 saves were five better than the two relievers tied for second with 24 - Stu Miller (#499) of the Orioles and Eddie Fisher (#328) of the White Sox. Kline appeared in a career-high 74 games and was 7-6 with a 2.63 ERA over 99 1/3 innings pitched. He actually didn't get all the save opportunities for the Senators, as Steve Ridzik (#211) recorded 8 saves in 1965 with Bennie Daniels (#129), Mike McCormick (#343) and Howie Koplitz recording one save each.
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First Mainstream Card: 1953 Topps #175
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (15): 1953, 1956-1969
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1991 Topps Archives 1953 #175
Kline's last three Topps flagship baseball cards, from 1967, 1968 and 1969, feature almost identical (and hatless) photos with Kline looking in slightly different directions.
59 - Kline non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 1/4/21.
Sources:
1956 Topps Blog
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