Corey Kluber

At 38 years old, Corey Kluber has this physical status:

Corey Scott Kluber (born April 10, 1986), nicknamed Klubot, is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball (MLB).

He made his MLB debut in 2011, as a member of the Cleveland Indians.

A power pitcher, Kluber achieves high strikeout rates through a two-seam sinker and a breaking ball that variously resembles a slider and a curveball. A three-time MLB All-Star, Kluber is a two-time winner of the Cy Young Award in the American League (AL) including in 2014, his second full season in the major leagues, and in 2017.

In 2016, he was named the Sporting News AL Starting Pitcher of the Year.

He led the major leagues in earned run average (ERA) in 2017, and has twice led the AL in wins.

On May 13, 2015, Kluber became one of 20 pitchers in major league history to strike out at least 18 batters in a nine-inning game, doing so versus the St. Louis Cardinals.

In 2018, Kluber notched his first 20-win season. A native of Birmingham, Alabama, Kluber played high school baseball for Coppell High School in Coppell, Texas.

He then attended Stetson University in DeLand, Florida, where he was named Atlantic Sun Conference Pitcher of the Year in 2007, and was inducted into the Stetson Athletics Hall of Fame in 2014.

The San Diego Padres selected Kluber in fourth round of the 2007 draft, and traded him to the Indians in 2010 as part of a three-team transaction.

Kluber established himself in the Indians' starting rotation in 2013.

He is signed through 2020, with a club option for 2021, after agreeing to a five-year, $38.5 million contract extension with the Indians in April 2015.

The Indians traded Kluber to the Rangers in December 2019.

Personal life

Kluber and his wife, Amanda, have three children. They reside in her hometown of Winchester, Massachusetts.

In November 2014, Kluber was inducted into the Stetson Athletics Hall of Fame, and into the Atlantic Sun Conference Hall of Fame the following year.

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Amateur career

Kluber attended Coppell High School in Coppell, Texas. Kluber's elbow injury while coaching for the school's baseball team resulted in surgery and the introduction of two screws. In the 2004 Major League Baseball (MLB) Draft, he was undrafted.

Kluber began to attract attention from Stetson University's coaches when he pitched at the World Wood Bat Championships in Jupiter, Florida. He enrolled at Stetson, Alabama, where he played college baseball for the Stetson Hatters baseball team in the Atlantic Sun Conference.

Kluber played as a freshman in 2005, compiling a 2–2 win-loss record with a 7.82 earned run average (ERA) in 25 innings pitched. In 17 games, 14 of which were starts as a sophomore, he set a 6–5 win-loss record and a 3.61 ERA, including 14 starts. Kluber had a 12–2 win-loss record and a 2.05 ERA with 117 strikeouts in 2007. He was named the Atlantic Sun Conference Pitcher of the Year, his second team member of the 2007 Ping! In 2007, the All-American Team and a member of the American Baseball Coaches Association made their second trip to the All-Atlantic Region in the second team.

Professional career

In the fourth round of the 2007 MLB draft, the San Diego Padres selected Kluber. Kluber joined the Padres, earning a $200,000 signing bonus. In 2008, Kluber joined the Fort Wayne Wizards of the Class A Midwest League. He was named Midwest League Pitcher of the Week on August 25, 2008.

In 2009, Kluber joined the Lake Elsinore Storm of the Class A-Advanced California League. He was named Week Pitcher of the Week on June 1, 2009. In 2009, he was promoted to the San Antonio Missions of the Class AA Texas League, ending the year with an 11–13 win-loss record and a 4.55 ERA. Kluber was named Texas League Pitcher of the Week on July 26, 2010. With the Missions, he set a record of 345 wins and lost, while the Texas League was a leader in strikeouts.

In a three-team trade involving the St. Louis Cardinals, the Padres traded Kluber to the Cleveland Indians on July 31, 2010. Jake Westbrook and Ryan Ludwick were sent by Cleveland to the Cardinals and Ryan Ludwick to the Padres. Nick Greenwood was sent by the Cardinals to the Cardinals, and the Indians paid $2.7 million in Westbrook's remaining salary. Kluber's minor league record was 18–24, and he wasn't ranked among the top 30 players in the Padres' farm system at the time of the trade, and he wasn't ranked among the top 30 prospects in the Padres' farm system. Kluber was assigned by the Indians to the Akron Aeros of the Class AA Eastern League. He was enrolled in the Indians' Winter Development Program after the 2010 season. After the season, he was added to the Indians' 40-man roster.

Kluber was a member of the Columbus Clippers of the Class AAA International League in 2011, pitching to a 7–11 win-loss record and a 5.56 ERA. He was called up on September 1, 2011, and he made his major league debut that day. Kluber threw his two-seam fastball during a rain-induced bullpen session in May 2012, at the behest of Columbus pitching coach Ruben Niebla's suggestion. Kluber was recalled from Columbus in August 2012 to replace starting pitcher Josh Tomlin in the Indians' rotation. Tomlin was moved to the bullpen.

Kluber joined Columbus in the 2013 season, but after Brett Myers sustained an elbow injury, he was promoted to Atlanta. Kluber won 2–0 over the Washington Nationals on June 16, 2013 after throwing eight shutout innings. For the week ending June 16, 2013, he co-won the American League Player of the Week Award, as well as teammate Jason Kipnis. Kluber became the first pitcher to strike out 14 batters in a row since Randy Johnson in 2004. He ended the season with an 11-53 record and a 3.85 ERA.

On September 21, 2014, Kluber was voted the American League Player of the Week and the Pitcher of the Month for September 2014. As Cleveland stayed in contention late in the season for a wild card spot, he recorded back-to-back 14 strikeout games. On the month, his strikeouts stood at 5–1, a record, 2.09 ERA, and 56 strikeouts. He ended the 2014 season with an 18-9 win-loss record and a 2.44 ERA. His 18 victories were tied for the most in the American League (AL), with Max Scherzer and Jered Weaver, and his ERA was the third-best in the league. In addition, Kluber led the AL in fielding-independence pitching. He also hit out 269 batters in 235+2/3 innings, good for second-best in the major leagues behind David Price's 271.

Despite the fact that the Indians did not qualify for the playoffs, Kluber's season came to an end with his second full season, winning the AL Cy Young Award for his second season, defeating Félix Hernández in a close contest. Kluber received 17 of the 30 first-place votes, with Hernandez receiving the remaining 13. Following Gaylord Perry, CC Sabathia, and Cliff Lee, Kluber became the fourth Indian player to win the award. In addition, he was the youngest-drafted player (134th overall) since Bret Saberhagen (1989) to win an AL Cy Young Award.

Kluber signed a two-year contract extension as a result of a team-friendly $38.5 million on April 5th. "I wanted to be here," he said on signing. "I wanted to be in Cleveland," says the author. Kluber won his first game of the 2015 season on May 13, 2015, despite a career-high 18 batters over eight shutout innings against the St. Louis Cardinals. In a single game, Kluber tied Bob Feller for the 77th consecutive strikeouts, the first in a single game. Feller did so on October 2, 1938. Kluber suffered from poor run support for the majority of the 2015 season, winning only nine runs and a record-leading 16 losses despite posting a 3.49 ERA and striking out 245 batters in 222 innings.

Kluber was chosen as a replacement for an injured Marco Estrada on July 7, 2016, his first pick. In the All-Star Game, Kluber was the winning pitcher. He had an 18–9 record, 3.14 ERA, an AL-leading 149 ERA+, and 227 strikeouts in 215 innings in the 2016 regular season.

Kluber earned his first two appearances of the 2016 postseason by defeating the Boston Red Sox and the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 2 of the American League Championship Series (ALDS). Kluber struck out nine batters in six-plus shutout innings against the Chicago Cubs in Game 1 of the World Series. He won both Games 1 and 4, and he started Game 7. Despite the fact that the Cubs won Game 7 and clinched the Series, Kluber's efforts helped the Browns win Game 7: he posted a 1.83 ERA in six postseason starts.

Kluber, along with Justin Verlander and Rick Porchero, were named finalists for the 2016 American League Cy Young Award by the BBWAA on November 7. Kluber came in third in the election, behind Poro (137) and Verlander (132). He was, on the other hand, selected as the AL Sporting News Starting Pitcher of the Year.

Kluber was inserted on the 10-day disabled list by the Indians on May 3, 2017, after six subpar starts, due to a lower back strain. In 37-13 innings, he had a 3–2 record, 5.06 ERA, 41 strikeouts, and 13 walks. Kluber's results after recovering from injury, and he's since returned from injury. Kluber was named AL Pitcher of the Month for June on July 3, 2017, after he set a 4–0 record, 43 IP, 1.26 ERA, 64 SO, 0.67 WHIP, and 13.4 K/9 in six starts. For the third time in his career, he received the award for the third time in his life. He was drafted to the American League team in the 2017 All-Star Game but did not participate. Kluber won by 11 batters and gave up three hits in a 5–1 complete game victory over the New York Yankees on August 3, making him the fourth pitcher to have eight or more strikeouts in 12 straight starts. Nolan Ryan, Pedro Martez, and Randy Johnson were among the three leading figures in the preceding three decades. In August, he won his second AL Pitcher of the Month Award of the season, totaling a 5–1 record and a 1.96 ERA. The Indians were 19–9.

Kluber hit the Detroit Tigers with 12 strikeouts on September 12, 2017, bringing them their 20th straight victory of the season. The 2002 Oakland Athletics dominated the American League for the first time. While allowing no walks and striking out eight, Kluber had a five-hit streak. After becoming the third Indians pitcher with multiple 250-strike out seasons, he earned another AL Player of the Week Award for September 17. He started in 22 runs from June 1 to the penultimate in 18 years. His ERA was 1.62. Kluber's third award of the season was named as the AL Pitcher of the Month for September. His career included a 5–0 WIL, 0.84 ERA, 50 strikeouts, and 43 innings pitched. The Indians' monthly record was 25–4, the majority of a 22-game win streak that tied the American League record, with Kluber assisting Cleveland to three of those victories in September. The club won an AL-best 102 games.

Kluber's most dominant season to date, with wins (18), complete games (three), and WAR for pitchers (7.36). In H/9 (6.2) and BB/9 (1.6), he was also the AL's leader. His ERA was the lowest for an Indians pitcher to qualify for the ERA title since Gaylord Perry in 1972 (1.92).

In the ALDS, Cleveland defeated New York, and Kluber started two games. In 6+2/3 innings, he allowed nine runs and four home runs. Kluber denied rumors that he had resurgent his back, but Kluber denied such allegations.

Kluber's second Cy Young Award and pick as a starting pitcher on Baseball America's All-Member Team were among his awards for the second season.

Kluber was selected to his third All-Star Game in July (though he did not pitch in the game), and the Indians defeated the Chicago White Sox 4–0, his third game of the season, and the first time in his career he had reached that milestone. He started Game 1 of the American League Division Series but was the losing pitcher after giving up three home runs in 42 innings against the Houston Astros.

Kluber broke his right arm after being struck by a line drive during a game against the Miami Marlins on May 1, 2019. He was recalled from the team's injured list without having a concrete timetable for his return. Kluber was approved for a minor league rehab assignment after pitching a simulated game on August 3, 2019. Kluber pitched for the Columbus Clippers on August 7, 2019, allowing two runs in three innings for his first rehab appearance. He pitched four innings for the Akron RubberDucks on August 13, 2019. He was still recovering from his injury process. However, abdominal tightness slowed his third recovery attempt on August 18, 2019. Before leaving Columbus, Kluber had thrown 20 pitches in a single inning. Despite Kluber's decision not to play for the Indians again in 2019, the Indians reported on October 31, 2019 that they had exercised their $17.5 million club option on Kluber for the 2020 season.

In exchange for Delino DeShields Jr. and Emmanuel Clase, Cleveland traded Kluber and cash considerations to the Texas Rangers on December 15, 2019. Kluber made his Rangers debut on July 26, 2020, but he only lasted 1 inning after suffering shoulder pains. He was then diagnosed with a torn teres major muscle, bringing him to the Rangers' injured list.

Kluber agreed to a one-year, $11 million deal with the New York Yankees on January 27, 2021. On April 27, 2021, he won for the Yankees for the first time against the Baltimore Orioles. On May 2, he won his 100th game as a member of the Detroit Tigers after pitching eight scoreless innings.

Kluber pitched the 12th no-hitter in Yankee history against his team, the Texas Rangers, on May 19, 2021. In a 2–0 victory, he threw 71 of 101 pitches for strikes and struck out nine batters, with Charlie Culberson being the only blemish in a otherwise flawless game. It was the Yankees' first no-hitter since David Cone's outstanding game in 1999. In addition, the no-hitter was thrown by Spencer Turnbull of the Detroit Tigers one day after another no-hitter had been fired by him, marking his sixth no-hitter since the 2021 MLB season. Kluber's homestanding Rangers gave out promotional bobbleheads before the game, as Kluber had paid for them in 2020, when all of their fan promotions were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Kluber left a game against the Toronto Blue Jays on May 25, after suffering a shoulder injury. He had suffered a strain to his right shoulder's subscapularis muscle, and was expected to miss two months of the 2021 season, according to an MRI. On June 5, he was released on the 60-day wounded list. On August 30, 2021, he made his return to Los Angeles Angels. Kluber went 5-3 with a 3.83 ERA and 82 strikeouts in 16 games. He became a free agent after the season.

Kluber signed a one-year deal with the Tampa Bay Rays on December 1, 2021, earning $8 million in guaranteed salary and $5 million in achievable incentives.

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