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Kris Benson
Ultimate Mets Database popularity ranking: 128 of 1233 players
Kristen James Benson
Born: November 7, 1974 at Superior, Wis.
Throws: Right Bats: Right
Height: 6.04 Weight: 195

Kris Benson has been the most popular Ultimate Mets Database daily lookup 54 times, most recently on November 7, 2020.

First Mets game: July 31, 2004
Last Mets game: September 30, 2005

Share your memories of Kris Benson HERE IS WHAT OTHER METS FANS HAVE TO SAY: VIBaseball August 3, 2004 My clear memory of Benson comes from October 1999. The Mets needed to finish their sweep of the Pirates to have a chance at the playoffs. Benson started and was very tough, but he only lasted about seven innings. Then the Mets got into the Bucs bullpen, and Melvin Mora scored on the wild pitch from Brad Clontz (briefly and terribly a Met) with Piazza at the plate. Mets win 2-1, setting up Al Leiter's gem vs. the Reds in the one-game playoff for the wild card. Bob P August 20, 2004 Kris was the Pirates' starting pitcher and threw a complete game against the "Mercury Mets" on July 27, 1999, the infamous "Turn Ahead the Clock" night at Shea. murphy August 20, 2004 My strongest memory of Benson before he joined the Mets was watching him completely shut down the Mets in 1999 wearing one of the ugliest uniforms in the history of mankind on "Turn Ahead the Clock Night." That was possibly the weirdest, if not dumbest, promotions of my lifetime. No matter how ugly the uniforms were, however, Benson was great that night. Jonathan Stern December 14, 2004 I read in this weeks New York Magazine that Kris Benson's flaky wife stated that if she ever found out that her husband was cheating on her, she'd screw the entire rest of the team. There goes Family Day. murphy May 24, 2005 Benson showed me something the other day. In a relatively pressurized situation, he dominated the Yankees. He was consistently putting 92 mph pitches in spots that couldn't be hit hard and following them up with a sharp slider that had the Yanks shaking their heads. Now if he can only do this on a consistent basis. Joe From Jersey December 3, 2005 I know that Kris has this gorgeous wife yada,yada,yada but he really came around in 2005. I read in one of the local papers today that the Mets might trade Benson to the Orioles. I was with a group of 6 in July when he shutdown Milton "50-Cent" Bradley, Jeff "Git R Done" Kent and the lowly Dodgers at Shea. He really pitched well that day. Why don't they trade Victor Zambrano instead? He couldn't get out Vivian Vance never mind Chipper Jones. Dankind80 January 22, 2006 Just got traded to Baltimore for Jorge Julio and John Maine. That game against the Nat's last year was undoubtedly the deciding factor here. Gave up 6 runs in less than an inning, including a 2 RBI double to Christian... Guzman... who can't, by the way, swing a bat to save his life. That game is the reason he's an Oriole. Well, that and "Mrs. Claus". Mr. Sparkle January 22, 2006 I liked Benson. He wasn't great but he was a good #3 starter who pitched fairly well for the most part in his slightly over a year in NY. Why the Mets were so desparate to trade him I have no idea. I really question Omar's competency as a GM when he continues to trade off starting pitching for setup men. Jonathan Stern February 1, 2006 You can't tell me that Mrs. Claus was not, in any way, a reason why the Mets traded Benson. She was a character, all right, but while Benson was no Tom Seaver, he could, as they say, give you innings. We will need those innings this year, given Glavine's age and Pedro's health issues. I hope the Mets have a plan here. You can have the best bullpen in baseball, but you have to get to it, too. Seriously, isn't it weird that the Mets had this guy play Santa Claus at the last Christmas Dinner, then they traded him? Ho! Ho! Ho? Dave Shaw February 1, 2006 With his arm, Benson should have won more than 10 games last year. The Mets are better off without him and the missus. That's two distractions they don't need. Joe Figliola February 4, 2006 What irks me about this trade is that the Mets were so hot for him back in 2004. I remember most of the media saying, "Oh, the Mets have got to get this guy. He'll be a solid member of the rotation for years to come." Then after they get him, everyone in the media is up in arms saying, "Oh, if the Mets don't sign Benson, then they're gonna be in a lot of trouble." So they do the right thing and sign him to a three-year deal. Then a year later, they trade him for a middle reliever and a Western movie star who won an Oscar for his role in "True Grit." I don't get it. This whole scenario did nothing but waste Benson's time and a lot of money. It's a shame. I thought he did the job and he was a pretty decent hitter, too! Shari February 17, 2006 I really think Kris was dealt because of his wife Anna. We all know Fred Wilpon does not like upstarts-even if the troublemaking comes from the wives. All in all a dumb move considering they traded away Jae Seo, and are now left with an aging Pedro, Glavine who is pushing 40 this season, Trachsel who is also getting up there in age, and then Wild West Zambrano who either hits the batters or walks them. Instead of bolstering the bull pen, they should be getting quality starters to avoid overusing their pen. Not smart, people. Barry March 31, 2006 Say what you will about Anna Benson, but when it came right down to it Kris was just too inconsistent. He would win one then lose two or three in a row. I think it was the combination of that inconsistency plus his idiot wife that got him traded from the Mets. Now it's been announced that they are getting divorced and even Kris thinks she got him traded from this team. Too late now. armando looper May 31, 2006 Say what you want about his wife, Kris just didn't belong in New York. This guy pitches more like an ace in Kansas City than a number three for the Mets. The game that defined him for me was last year when the Mets were playing the Nats and he didn't get out of the first. That killed the Mets and his career in New York. Dalkowski110 December 6, 2006 I don't care what reason he was traded for. I'm just glad he was. If it was Anna Benson, I'm glad she fooled around. As a direct result, we got John Maine (who will probably be the team's number 4 starter in 2007) and as an indirect result, Orlando Hernandez (who will be the team's number three starter in 2007). Damion January 11, 2007 I questioned why the Mets wanted this guy in the first place. Once he got here though he impressed me. A good #3 starter for a team that was rebuilding. The thing is his wife was such a low class media whore who was a blemish on the club. I wish we could have traded her to Baltimore and kept him. Jayson December 6, 2010 Ha, I went to a game back in 06 when he was pitchin for the O's and he hit a Home Run off Pedro. Tony Masters September 29, 2011 I think he was ok, but his wife was HOT!!!!! Paul Zibben July 25, 2013 Well, the Bensons are back in the news. Apparently, they are now separated, and Anna allegedly broke into Kris's place and threatened him with a gun. In retrospect, you gotta figure that Anna was the reason Kris was dealt so hastily. She was trouble with a capital T, and I think Minaya and Co. learned it the hard way. And in the end, Maine and Duque had acceptable Met careers, without the marital baggage. You gotta feel for Kris,though. Alex March 22, 2022 Heading into his tenure with the Mets, Benson -- a former #1 pick -- was a letdown, so it's no surprise he didn't do much with New York. He was perfectly average for them in 2005 (10 wins, 4.13 ERA), so he fit well on that perfectly average, 83-79 club. He was involved in a couple notable Mets trades. He was acquired with Jeff Keppinger (who I always thought they should have given a longer look) in exchange for Ty Wigginton (who I hated to see go) and Jose Bautista (yes, THAT Jose Bautista, who was with the team for only a few hours that first go around). Then they traded him to the Orioles for Jorge Julio (boo!) and John Maine, who was a serviceable hurler from 2006 to 2008. Hot Foot March 23, 2022 Alex, you're omitting the ONE AND ONLY aspect of Kris Benson's life and career worth mentioning: his wife. As far as Mets memories goes, Kris Benson might as well be an ant in Manchuria, but Anna Benson ranks as one of the top 50 all-time Mets in my book. I will never forget when Mrs. Benson came to the Mets' Christmas party dressed as Mrs. Claus. Oooo la la! I was a big Anna Benson fan from that moment on. Sadly, the Mets traded her husband shortly thereafter, but ultimateMets.com has immortalized her with a baseball card. As an aside, if Anna Benson wearing a Mrs. Claus costume was Jay Horwitz's idea, then Jay Horwitz is a genius. Alex September 28, 2023 Benson was underwhelming in New York, but for a stretch he pitched like a Cy Young Award candidate. From May 16 to July 24, 2005, he was 7-2 with a 2.72 ERA in 14 starts; in 92 2/3 innings, he allowed just 75 hits and 23 walks. In one six-start stretch from June to July, he had a 1.98 ERA. Not bad! I've sent him six autograph requests in my day, the first in 2005 through New York and the rest through his home address, most recently in 2022. He hasn't responded to any of them :-(

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