At 37 years old Klopp is coming off of his worst season as a professional ballplayer when he had a 6.62 ERA over 70+ innings. Klopp started his professional career in 1996 when he was a 20 year old starting pitcher in the Phoenix farm system. He enjoyed success during 7+ seasons with Phoenix and was selected to the 2002 all star game when he had a 17-5 record with a 3.65 ERA. In 2003 he was traded by Phoenix to Montreal where he played 4+ seasons. He was selected to the 2004 all star game as a blazer when he went 22-5 with a 3.02 ERA. In 2007 he was traded by Montreal back to Phoenix (amazingly with Cleo Blanco again going to the opposite team!). He has been pitching in Phoenix since and also made the all star team in 2009 when he went 15-12 with a 3.71 ERA.
Now, at the age of 37, he has a new GM to deal with and questions will need to be answered. Is his 2013 performance as a reliever an indication of dropping talent levels? Does Klopp have another comeback in his arsenal? Will the new GM allow this future Hall of Famer to finish out his career for the team that made him a star?
