Cliff Chambers
Clifford Day Chambers (January 10, 1922 – January 21, 2012) was a professional baseball pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1948 to 1953. He played for the Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates, and St. Louis Cardinals.
Cliff Chambers | |||
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Pitcher | |||
Born: Portland, Oregon | January 10, 1922|||
Died: January 21, 2012 90) Eagle, Idaho | (aged|||
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MLB debut | |||
April 24, 1948, for the Chicago Cubs | |||
Last MLB appearance | |||
September 22, 1953, for the St. Louis Cardinals | |||
MLB statistics | |||
Win–loss record | 48–53 | ||
Earned run average | 4.29 | ||
Strikeouts | 374 | ||
Teams | |||
Career highlights and awards | |||
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Biography
Chambers was born in Portland, Oregon. He played two seasons of college baseball for the Washington State Cougars in 1941–42.[1] He broke into the major leagues with the Chicago Cubs in 1948, and he was pleasantly surprised to find out that he had been traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates before the 1949 season. Chambers said that he had not been happy with his salary in Chicago, and that he was excited to play with a well-regarded organization like Pittsburgh.[2]
Before the 1950 season, Chambers had threatened not to sign with Pittsburgh unless he made $20,000, a large increase from his $7500 salary the year before. After Pirates general manager Roy Hamey called Chambers at his home in Bellingham, Washington, Chambers agreed to sign an extension worth less than $15,000.[3]
On May 6, 1951, while with the Pirates, Chambers no-hit the Boston Braves 3-0 in the second game of a doubleheader at Braves Field. A month later, on June 15, the Pirates traded Chambers and Wally Westlake to the Cardinals for Dick Cole, Joe Garagiola, Bill Howerton, Howie Pollet and Ted Wilks. Not until Edwin Jackson in 2010 would a pitcher be traded after hurling a no-hitter earlier in the season.
Chambers was an above average hitting pitcher in his six year major league career, posting a .235 batting average (69-for-294) with 24 runs, 3 home runs and 25 RBI in 189 games pitched.
References
- "Washington State University Baseball Players Who Made It to the Major Leagues". Baseball-Almanac.com. Archived from the original on 12 August 2004. Retrieved 16 December 2012.
- "Joining Bucs fulfills dream for burly Cliff Chambers". The Pittsburgh Press. April 12, 1949. Retrieved June 18, 2016.
- "Hamey persuades Chambers to sign". The Pittsburgh Press. February 21, 1950. Retrieved June 18, 2016.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference
- Cliff Chambers at Find a Grave
Preceded by Vern Bickford |
No-hitter pitcher May 6, 1951 |
Succeeded by Bob Feller |