Baseball | 10/25/2017 5:15:00 PM
Wayne State Hall of Famer Robert Kloss (1967-70) passed away on Monday after a long fight with Leukemia. Below is information on the visitation and funeral plus his Hall of Fame bio.
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Thursday, Oct. 26: Visitation (5 to 9 PM)
Friday, Oct. 27: Visitation (12 to 9 PM)
Saturday, Oct. 28: Funeral (11 AM)
Molnar Funeral Homes - Brownstown Chapel
23700 West Road
Brownstown, Mich.
Beloved husband of Elizabeth Kloss. Loving father of Erica (Ryan) Nunnally, Holly Brown, and Ashley Lynch. Dearest grandfather of Kyle, Tyler, Caleb, Aiden, and Olivia. Dear brother of John (Linda) Kloss, Karen (Ted) Vander Putten, Dennis (Lynn) Kloss and the late Joann Powers. Also survived by many nieces, nephews, extended family and friends.
FAMILY TRIBUTE
Bob was the hardest working person that I have ever met. He worked hard at his career, but also worked very hard at being a good father, grandfather, husband, and friend. Bob was very intelligent, thoughtful and compassionate. He instantly became friends with everyone he met. His positive attitude for life and outgoing personality made him loved by many.
Bob cared a lot about his career and baseball and he worked very hard at it. Bob was a Physical Education Teacher for 46 years and the Woodhaven Baseball Coach for 43 years. He cared deeply for his students and his players.
He had many accomplishments through-out his life and in 2000 Bob was inducted into the Wayne State University Athletic Hall Of Fame, Bob was also selected in 2013 to coach in the All-star Baseball Classic at Comerica Park.
We will all miss Bob more than words can say. Bob will never be forgotten and his memory will live on in all of us forever.
HALL OF FAME BIO
Drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the 11th round (214th overall) of the 1966 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft, Kloss a Detroit native lettered in 1967, 1968, 1969 and 1970 in baseball and in the 1967-68 season on the varsity basketball team at Wayne State University.
Kloss finished his college baseball career ranked second in complete games with a total of 16 and in strikeouts with a total of 165. He also ranked second in victories with a total of 10. Kloss finished second with six complete games and 61 strikeouts in a single season. In addition, Kloss pitched 194.2 innings in four seasons. In his junior season (1969), Kloss broke Wayne State's single season record in hits with 28. Kloss finished his career at Wayne State with a .274 batting average. In the current Wayne State baseball record book, Kloss's career ERA of 2.26 is still second on the list, and his single season ERA of 1.48 is still third. During his four years on the baseball team Kloss played in every inning of every game.
In 1969, Kloss was named Wayne State's "Most Versatile Athlete". In 1970, he received Wayne State's "Most Valuable Player" award and the most "Outstanding College Athlete" in America award after co-captaining the baseball team his senior year.
During and after Kloss' college career he played on some of the state's premier amateur baseball teams such as A&B Brokers in 1966-67 (Adray League/Free Press), Harper Sport and ITM from 1968-70 (United Baseball League), Midwest in 1971 and Jet Box in 1972 (Federal League).
Prior to his college career at Wayne State University, Kloss attended powerhouse Hamtramck St. Ladislaus High School from 1962-66. Kloss lettered all four years in baseball and three years in basketball. Kloss played in the Catholic League title game all four years and beat Birmingham Brother Rice at Tiger Stadium for the title in 1966. During his senior season at St. Ladislaus, Kloss captained both the baseball and basketball teams while receiving "All Catholic" honors in baseball and basketball, "Michigan Catholic-All Catholic" team honors in basketball; and "All-State" honorable mention in basketball.
In between high school seasons, Kloss played American Legion for Hamtramck where he was chosen to play in an All-Star game at Tiger Stadium and his 1966 A&B Broker team captured the NABF World Class D Championship played in Detroit.
Kloss graduated from Wayne State with a major in Physical Education and a minor in Social Studies in 1970. He also earned master's degree credits at Wayne State. While in his senior year, Kloss substitute taught in the Detroit Public School system and coached basketball and baseball at his high school alma mater, Hamtramck St. Ladislaus. Kloss then accepted a teaching position in the Woodhaven Public School System. Kloss just completed 44 years of teaching and was the only head varsity baseball coach for 42 years beginning in 1973 and ending upon his retirement from coaching in 2014. Kloss has also been a basketball official for 31 years.
In 2013, Kloss was selected by the Michigan High School Baseball Coaches Association (MHSBCA) Executive Board to be one of the coaches for the East team All-Star Showcase baseball game played at Comerica Park in Detroit and later was elected to the MHSBCA's Hall of Fame in the summer of 2015.
