Top 50 Cal Pros: No. 9 - Jeff Kent, Power-Hitting Second Baseman

We are counting down Cal’s top 50 athletes based on their careers as post-collegiate professionals. Their performance as Golden Bears is not factored into the rankings.

9. JEFF KENT

Years at Cal: 1986 to 1989

Sport: Baseball

Pro teams: Toronto Blue Jays, New York Mets, Cleveland Indiana, San Francisco Giants, Houston Astros, Los Angeles Dodgers

Age: 57

Hometown: Bellflower, Calif.

Why we ranked him here: Kent was drafted in the 20th round — 523rd overall — in 1989 by the Toronto Blue Jays and it’s safe to say he far exceeded those modest expectations. He became one of the most productive second basemen in MLB history. Kent was a five-time All-Star and was National League MVP in 2000 when he had 33 home runs, a career-best 125 RBIs and batted a career-best .344 for the Giants. His peak six-year stretch (1997-2002) came with the Giants, when he averaged 41 doubles, 29 homers and 115 RBIs. In his only World Series, in 2002 with the Giants against the Anaheim Angels, Kent hit three home runs, two of them in Game 5. He played 17 MLB seasons for six teams: Blue Jays, Mets, Indians, Giants, Astros and Dodgers, and was a four-time Silver Slugger award winner between 2000 and 2005 as the best-hitting second baseman. In addition to his 2000 MVP, Kent was Top-10 in MVP voting four times. His 377 home runs are the most by a second baseman. He homered 20 times or more in 12 seasons. He drove in 1,518 runs — more than Hall of Fame sluggers including Mickey Mantle, Johnny Bench or Roberto Clemente — and had 90 or more RBIs in nine consecutive seasons. Kent also batted .290, scored 1,320 runs, hit 560 doubles and finished 16 extra-base hits shy of 1,000 for his career. Somehow, despite all those achievements, Kent fell short in 2023 in his 10th and final bid for entry into the Hall of Fame.

Jeff Kent at Cal | Photo courtesy of Cal Athletics

At Cal: Kent was a three-year starter at shortstop, setting a school record with 25 doubles during the 1987 season, a mark that stood for 11 years. He was named second-team All-Pac-10 on Cal’s 1988 team that won the NCAA Central Regional and advanced to the College World Series. Kent was inducted into the Cal Athletic Hall of Fame in 2009.

Other: In 2011, when Cal’s baseball program was put on the chopping block due to athletic department budget issues, Kent donated $100,000 as supporters raised $9 million to save the sport. Three years later, he donated $531,000 to create the Jeff Kent Women Driven Scholarship Endowment. The preference was that the scholarship would go to a non-recruited athlete with a minimum of 2.8 grade-point average from soccer, softball, tennis, track or cross country. . . . Kent's son, Kaeden Kent, a shortstop from Texas A&M, was taken in the third round by the New York Yankees in the 2025 MLB draft on Sunday.

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