Matt Kleine

Matt Kleine (1985-) was an outfielder on the DePauw University baseball team. Born in Indianapolis in 1985, Kleine grew up in Fishers, Indiana.

Baseball career

High school

Kleine put together a successful senior season at Hamilton Southeastern High School in the spring of 2004 [2004 Hamilton Southeastern Baseball Archives "Game Summaries" http://www.hse.k12.in.us/PDF/HHS/baseball/priorSeasons/2004/2004GameSummaries.pdf] . He hit .427 on the season, leading his team to a 4A Sectional and Regional Championship. At the conclusion of the 2004 season "The Noblesville Daily Times" named him the Hamilton County Player of the Year, beating out University of Michigan recruit Chris Fetter for the award.

College

After graduating from Hamilton Southeastern High School in 2004, Kleine enrolled at Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina. Here he played baseball for the Paladins in the fall of 2004. Citing a lack of playing time and a desire to be closer to home, Kleine transferred to DePauw University in January 2005. He hit .340 his freshman season, despite missing half of the year with a torn ligament in his right thumb [2005 DePauw University Baseball Season Statistics http://www.depauw.edu/ath/baseball/2005/stats/teamcume.htm] . In spite of the injury, he returned to the Tiger’s lineup on April 21 for the first game of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament [Tigers open SCAC Tournament with loss to Millsapshttp://www.depauw.edu/ath/news.asp?id=15729] .

In 2006 Kleine served as the Tigers starting left-fielder. Rotating primarily between the leadoff and third spots in the batting order, in 42 games he led the team with a .353 batting average, 11 doubles, 4 home runs, 43 runs scored, 76 total bases, 29 base on balls, and 10 steals in 11 attempts [2006 DePauw University Baseball Season Statisticshttp://www.depauw.edu/ath/baseball/2006/stats/teamcume.htm] . At the conclusion of the season he earned team MVP honors as well as a spot on the SCAC All-Conference Team [Five Tigers earn all-SCAC honorshttp://www.depauw.edu/ath/news.asp?id=17622] .

As a junior, Kleine led the 2007 DePauw Baseball squad in almost every statistical category. In 42 games he paced the team with a .390 batting average, 17 extra base hits, 41 runs scored, 57 hits, 39 RBI, 83 total bases, a .568 slugging percentage, 27 base on balls, and a .489 on-base percentage2007 DePauw University Baseball Season Statisticshttp://www.depauw.edu/ath/baseball/2007/stats/teamcume.htm] . For the second consecutive season he earned team MVP and First Team All-Conference Honors [Three Tigers earn All-SCAC honorshttp://www.depauw.edu/ath/baseball/index.asp?id=19549] . Additionally, he was recognized by "ESPN the Magazine" with a spot on the Academic All-District Team [Kleine named to ESPN The Magazine academic all-district teamhttp://www.depauw.edu/ath/baseball/index.asp?id=19480] .

Additional Information

According to his Facebook profile, Kleine also acts as the Coordinating Producer of Baseball Prospectus Radio, and occasionally contributes articles for the company’s website. Additionally, he serves as an associate scout for the Milwaukee Brewers, a travel baseball coach, and a fall 2007 media relations intern for the Houston Astros [Matt Kleine's Facebook Profile. Matt is also looking forward to the 2008 MLB amateur player draft. Kleine projects himself as a late 1st, to early 2nd round pick.http://depauw.facebook.com/profile.php?id=22101785] .

References