VIDEO: Space Coast Sports Hall of Fame Inductee Billy Stein Among Best Pinch Hitters In MLB History
By Space Coast Daily // October 3, 2026
COCOA HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATE, AMONG BEST PINCH-HITTERS IN MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL HISTORY
ABOVE VIDEO: Billy Stein, who played 14 seasons with four different clubs in MLB, played in all of the local leagues in Cocoa – Little League, Babe Ruth, Legion Ball, and Connie Mack before going on to play for Cocoa High.
2016 PROFESSIONAL INDUCTEE: Drafted in 1969 by the St. Louis Cardinals, he posted a lifetime batting average of .267, among the American League’s best-ever Pinch Hitters
BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA – From Little League to his second draft in 1969, Billy Stein learned baseball right here on Florida’s Space Coast.
Stein, who played 14 seasons with four different clubs in MLB, played in all of the local leagues in Cocoa – Little League, Babe Ruth, Legion Ball, and Connie Mack before going on to play for Cocoa High.
After graduating from Cocoa in 1965, Stein attended Brevard Community College, where he interrupted his studies and baseball career for one year to serve in the U.S. Army.
When he returned, Stein was drafted in the 33rd round of the 1968 draft by the Baltimore Orioles, but he chose to keep playing college ball for the Southern Illinois University Salukis.
SIU was a perennial Division I baseball powerhouse in those days, participating in the College World Series every year. Waiting exactly 363 days paid off for Stein, as the St. Louis Cardinals selected him 29 rounds higher in 1969 by drafting him in the fourth round.
This time Stein signed the contract, reported to minor league ball, and a little over three years later, on September 6, 1972, made his MLB debut. Batting leadoff, Stein had five at-bats and collected his first hit, a home run off Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Ken Reynolds in the bottom of the ninth.
Stein’s last home run came on August 17, 1985, in the first inning of a 9-2 Rangers win. What happened in between those two long balls was a dream come true for Stein.
During those 13 years, Stein played for the St. Louis Cardinals, Seattle Mariners, Chicago White Sox, and the Texas Rangers.
CLUTCH PINCH-HITTER
Sometimes numbers don’t always tell the story of a player’s value. Stein played double-digit games at every position in the field except shortstop, pitcher, and catcher, and he converted 96.5 percent of the balls hit his way in the field into an out for his team.
His lifetime batting average was .267, but he batted .285 during the final five years of his career playing in Texas.
Clutch pinch-hitting is an art in baseball, and good pinch hitters are hard to find, but if Billy Stein could do anything in baseball, he could pinch-hit. Asked to do it 179 times, he batted .282 and drove in 36 pivotal runs late in games in his career.
Stein coached and managed for a while in several independent leagues and later served as the manager for the New York Mets’ and San Francisco Giants’ Class A affiliates in the late 80s and early 90s. He also spent one season as manager of the Rockledge Raiders in 1987, leading them to a district title.
