Bobby Klaus

Who is Bobby Klaus?

Robert Francis Klaus, is a former right-handed Major League Baseball infielder who played from 1964 to 1965 for the Cincinnati Reds and New York Mets. He is the brother of the late MLB infielder Billy Klaus.

Prior to playing professional baseball, Klaus attended University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Klaus was 5 ft 10 in and weighed 170 pounds.

Originally signed as an amateur free agent by the Cincinnati Redlegs in 1959, Klaus made his big league debut on April 21, 1964, against Jimmy Wynn and the rest of the Houston Colt .45s as a pinch hitter for pitcher Jim O'Toole. He did not get an official at-bat in his first game, because a runner on base was caught trying to advance.

Klaus did poorly as a brief replacement for Pete Rose in 1964 with the Reds, batting .183 in 40 games. He was purchased by the Mets on July 19 of that year, and with them he played in 56 games, compiling a .244 batting average. Overall, in 96 games in his rookie season, he batted .225.

1965 would end up being Klaus' final season in the big leagues. In 119 games with the Mets, he collected 55 hits in 288 at-bats for a .191 batting average.