Dec. 17, 2008

By Tyler Koonce, Sports Information Assistant

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Going from the Ohio Valley Conference to Major League Baseball requires special talent. Former Southeast outfielder Kerry Robinson was a special player at the college level and used his talent to play parts of seven seasons in the big leagues. On Dec. 5 he was inducted into the Southeast Athletic Hall of Fame during a ceremony at the Show Me Center.

"It's really exciting, any time you're recognized," Robinson said. "It's pretty special that they recognize all the practice, games and performances."

Robinson played at Southeast from 1993-95 and was drafted in the 34th round of the 1995 MLB Draft by his hometown St. Louis Cardinals. After playing five seasons in the minor leagues, he earned late call-ups by the Tampa Bay Rays in 1998 and the Cincinnati Reds in 1999.

Robinson is joined by his family and head coach Mark Hogan at the Southeast basketball game Dec. 6 at the Show Me Center.

He then returned to the Cardinals and saw the most extensive action of his big league career from 2001-03, where he played in at least 114 games and completed at least 181 at-bats in each of the three seasons.

Robinson also played for the San Diego Padres and Kansas City Royals before retiring in 2007. For his career, he played in 463 games and registered a .267 batting average. Defensively, the speedy outfielder notched a .989 career fielding percentage and made only four errors over his seven seasons.

Throughout his three college seasons, Robinson made his mark on the Southeast record book. He set a single-season school record in 1995 with 87 hits. He is also tied for fourth in single-season annals with five triples and 20 stolen bases during his junior season. He ranks third in school history with 46 stolen bases and is tied for seventh with eight triples.

When asked for his best memory in a Southeast uniform, Robinson did not hesitate to answer.

"The day I got my 35th straight game with a base hit," Robinson said. "It set an OVC record and was the 13th longest hitting streak in NCAA history at that time."

Following the 1995 season, Robinson earned All-Ohio Valley Conference honors after batting .385 with 87 hits, 57 runs scored, 17 doubles, five triples, three home runs and 36 RBIs.

Robinson credited Southeast head coach Mark Hogan with preparing him to play at the highest level following his standout career at Southeast.

"He let me know that I had the skills and talent to play professionally," Robinson said. "At that time no one really knew how far I'd go, but he let me know that I had the tools."

Robinson also noted that his time at Southeast prepared him for a professional career because Hogan scheduled some of the top teams in Division I baseball.

"When I went to play pro, I picked up where I left off from college," Robinson said. "We were playing at the highest level of college baseball and the competition we played against prepared me for professional baseball."

Although Hogan coached Robinson for just one season, in 1995, Robinson said that his impact to the program was noticed immediately.

"He made our program more legitimate," Robinson said. "He treated it like a Division I program for the first time, which was really cool."

Robinson graduated from Southeast in 1996 with a degree in Sport Management.

Following his retirement, Robinson returned to St. Louis, where he lives with his wife, Maggie and three daughters. He stayed active and started a career in the business world.

"I'm a financial advisor and I plan on being in this business until I retire," Robinson said. "And I don't plan to retire anytime soon."