Eric King

Eric Steven King (born April 10, 1964) is an American former pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). He may be best known for giving up Ken Griffey Jr.'s first career Major League home run. King played for three teams during a career that included parts of seven seasons. Those teams are the Detroit Tigers (1986–1988 and 1992), Chicago White Sox (1989–1990) and Cleveland Indians.

Minor league King attended Moorpark College near Los Angeles, intending to play baseball in 1983, but his attitude butted heads with the coach, and he was dismissed from the team. He left Moorpark and played two seasons in the minor leagues for the San Francisco Giants before being traded to the Detroit Tigers.

Career On May 15, 1986, King played in his first MLB game. For the season, King appeared in 33 games and innings. He started 16, but he also finished 9, recording three saves and three complete games, including one shutout. He tallied an 11–4 record and a 3.51 ERA while striking out 79 opponents and walking 63.

King was back with the Tigers in 1987 and he pitched in a career–high 55 games, making only four starts. He saved nine games and finished a total of 26. King's win–loss record was 6–9 and his ERA jumped by a whole run to 4.89. His strikeout total climbed slightly to 89 and he walked 60 in 116 innings.

King's second and final season with the White Sox was 1990. He had a 12–4 win–loss record and posted a career–low ERA of 3.28, as he made 25 starts for the second consecutive year. In 151 innings, King's walk total dropped to 40 and he struck 70 opponents. On December 4, 1990, Chicago sent King along with Shawn Hillegas to the Cleveland Indians. The White Sox received Cory Snyder and Lindsay Foster (who never made it to the MLB) in the deal.