Clarence Maddern – Baseball Player Biography, Career, Net Worth Information

Clarence Maddern wrapped up his professional baseball career quietly in 1951. That marked the end of a brief but memorable run through Major League Baseball.

The right-handed outfielder played just four seasons in the majors. He appeared in 104 games between the Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians from 1946 to 1951.

Maddern finished with a .248 batting average, 5 home runs, and 29 RBIs, playing his last 11 games with Cleveland before retiring at 29. His story really reflects the experience of so many players who reached the sport’s top level during the post-World War II years, when baseball was changing fast and competition for spots grew fierce.

Maddern’s major league stats might seem modest now, but his journey through professional baseball says a lot about the hurdles players faced back then. Careers were often short, and chances were limited.

His move from the Cubs’ outfield to his last season with the Indians gives us a peek into baseball’s landscape in the late 1940s and early 1950s.

Overview of Clarence Maddern’s MLB Career

Clarence James Maddern played four seasons in Major League Baseball from 1946 to 1951. He appeared in 104 games altogether.

He spent most of his time with the Chicago Cubs before ending up with the Cleveland Indians. He played mainly as an outfielder and posted a career batting average of .248.

Entry Into Major League Baseball

Clarence Maddern broke into the majors on September 19, 1946, with the Chicago Cubs at 24. He was born on September 26, 1921, in Lowell, Arizona.

He made his debut during the last weeks of the 1946 season. That first year was short, with just three games and four plate appearances.

Maddern didn’t pick up a hit in those first at-bats. He went 0-for-3.

He didn’t return to the big leagues until 1948. That season, he finally got real playing time.

In 1948, he played 80 games and racked up 231 plate appearances for the Cubs.

Teams Played For

Maddern spent three seasons with the Chicago Cubs from 1946 to 1949. His best years came in that stretch, especially 1948 when he played 80 games and hit .252.

With the Cubs, Maddern racked up 93 games over three years. He finished with 57 hits, 5 home runs, and 29 RBIs in Chicago.

In 1951, Maddern joined the Cleveland Indians for his final MLB season. That stint was short, just 11 games and 12 plate appearances.

The Indians brought him in, but that was really the end of his major league days. Maddern hit only .167 in his last season, picking up 2 hits in 12 at-bats before hanging up his spikes.

Positions and Playing Style

Maddern mainly played as an outfielder during his MLB career, with most of his time in left field. He also got some action in right field and occasionally elsewhere.

He played 58 games in the outfield and posted a .973 fielding percentage. That’s just a hair under the league average of .978 for his era.

At the plate, Maddern was more of a contact hitter and didn’t offer much power. He hit 5 home runs in four years, with 4 of them coming in 1948.

His career slash line was .248/.301/.370, fitting for a bench player and part-time starter. Maddern drew 12 walks and struck out 26 times in his 104 career games.

Chicago Cubs Tenure

Clarence Maddern spent three seasons with the Chicago Cubs from 1946 to 1949. He played a total of 93 games for the team.

His best year came in 1948 when he played 80 games and settled in as a regular outfielder.

Joining the Chicago Cubs

Maddern made his Major League debut with the Cubs on September 17, 1946, at age 24. He’d worked his way up through the minors before getting that first shot.

He played just three games in 1946. He had four plate appearances and didn’t get a hit, though he did reach base once.

The Cubs saw potential in Maddern and kept him around. After his debut, he went back to the minors to keep working on his game.

Performance and Highlights

Maddern’s breakout season came in 1948. He became a regular part of the Cubs lineup.

He played 80 games that year, picking up 231 plate appearances and 214 at-bats.

1948 Season Statistics:

• Batting Average: .252
• Home Runs: 4
• RBIs: 27
• Hits: 54
• Doubles: 12

Most of his Cubs production came in 1948. He played mainly in left and right field, showing off decent defensive skills with a .981 fielding percentage.

In 1949, Maddern saw very little action. He played just 10 games but made the most of it, batting .333 with a home run and two RBIs.

Notable Games and Moments

Maddern’s best statistical showing came in his short 1949 run. In just 11 plate appearances, he managed a .455 on-base percentage and slugged .667.

He hit a home run in 1949 and ended up with a 1.121 OPS, which is pretty wild for such a small sample. That little burst showed the potential the Cubs had hoped for.

Defensively, Maddern proved steady throughout his Cubs days. In right field during 1948, he posted a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage, handling all 16 chances without an error.

Cubs Career Totals:

• Games: 93
• Batting Average: .252
• Home Runs: 5
• RBIs: 29
• Hits: 57

Maddern’s time with the Cubs ended after the 1949 season. He went from rookie to a solid big league outfielder in those three years.

1951 Season and Retirement

Clarence Maddern’s last MLB season came with the Cleveland Indians in 1951. That year marked the end of his professional baseball career.

He played 11 games during the 1951 regular season. After that, he decided to retire from Major League Baseball.

Final Major League Season

Maddern joined the Cleveland Indians for the 1951 season after his years with the Cubs. His time with Cleveland was short but gave him one last shot at the majors.

He played in 11 games for the Indians. Adjusting to a new team after years in Chicago must have been a challenge.

The 1951 season was his final chance to add to his career stats. He entered the year with a .248 career batting average, 5 home runs, and 29 RBIs from his earlier MLB games.

Key Games in 1951

Baseball Almanac breaks down Maddern’s 1951 stats across those 11 games. Each one gave the veteran outfielder a shot to show his worth to Cleveland.

He didn’t get much regular playing time. His games were scattered through the season.

Game Performance Highlights:

• Total games played: 11
• Role: Outfielder
• Team: Cleveland Indians
• Batting position: Right-handed hitter

Those games ended up being the last entries in Maddern’s MLB career.

Retirement Decision

After the 1951 season, Maddern decided to retire from pro baseball. He was 30 when he chose to walk away from the majors.

His career ended up spanning five years in MLB from 1946 to 1951. He finished after just 11 games with Cleveland that last season.

Maddern’s career stats included 104 MLB games with two teams. He wrapped up with a .248 average, 5 home runs, and 29 RBIs.

His decision to retire matched what a lot of players from his era faced. Maddern stepped away from the game, but his name still sits in baseball’s history.

Career Stats and Records

Clarence Maddern’s four-year MLB career produced modest results in 104 games. He hit .248 and played solid defense in the outfield.

He spent time with two teams and showed steady fielding, even if the offense didn’t really stand out.

Batting Statistics

Maddern logged a .248 batting average over 238 at-bats during his MLB run. He collected 59 hits, including 12 doubles, a triple, and 5 home runs, driving in 29 runs.

His best offensive year was 1948 with the Cubs. That season, he played 80 games and hit .252 with 54 hits in 214 at-bats. He drove in 27 runs and scored 16 times.

Maddern never hit for much power. He hit five home runs, mostly in 1948 and 1949 with Chicago.

He walked 12 times and struck out 26 times, showing decent patience at the plate.

His last season in 1951 with Cleveland was rough. He managed just 2 hits in 12 at-bats, batting .167 before leaving the majors.

Fielding Performance

Maddern showed reliable defensive skills as an outfielder. He mostly played left field but also saw time in right and even a bit at first base.

His overall fielding percentage was .974 across 59 games in the field. That’s a little below the league average of .978 for his time.

He committed three errors, with 106 putouts and 7 assists. Maddern’s range factor of 1.92 per game showed he positioned himself pretty well.

He had his best defensive year in 1948, playing 55 games in the outfield for Chicago.

In left field, he posted a .966 fielding percentage over 49 games. Not exactly gold glove level, but he gave his teams solid defense even when his bat cooled off.

Comparison With Peers

Maddern’s numbers put him among the many utility players of the late 1940s. His .248 batting average matched what bench players typically did back then.

He played only 104 games over four seasons, which just shows how tough it was to stick on a big league roster. The competition was fierce.

Compared to other outfielders of his era, Maddern didn’t hit for much power. Five home runs spread over a few years made offense a challenge.

His glove, though, kept him around longer than his bat might have. Teams seemed to value his steady outfield defense, even when his hitting went cold.

Life Beyond Baseball

Clarence James Maddern’s life after his 1951 baseball retirement stayed pretty private. There’s not much public info about what he did after playing.

He lived for 35 more years after leaving the game. Maddern passed away in 1986 at age 64.

Personal Life and Background

Clarence James Maddern was born on September 26, 1921, in Lowell, Arizona. His hometown of Bisbee played a big role in his baseball story, since he’s still the only native from there to reach the major leagues.

His route to pro baseball wasn’t what you’d expect for his time. Maddern actually played just one high school baseball game.

People mostly knew him as a star softball player out on the Horace Mann field. That’s not the usual path, but hey, it worked for him.

He stood 6 feet 1 inch and weighed 185 pounds. Maddern threw and batted right-handed, which definitely helped him in his career.

Before he got to the majors, Maddern served in World War II with the 76th Infantry Division. That service interrupted his baseball career between 1942 and 1945.

Post-Retirement Activities

Records don’t say much about what Maddern did after he left baseball in 1951. Like a lot of players back then, he probably went back to regular work outside the game.

His minor league career stretched from 1940 through 1957. So, he kept playing at lower levels for about six years after his time in the majors ended.

That was pretty common for players who still had something left in the tank but didn’t have a spot at the top. Transitioning from pro sports to a regular job wasn’t easy for guys from Maddern’s era.

Most ballplayers in the 1950s didn’t make enough to retire for good. It’s a lot different from today, isn’t it?

Legacy and Passing

Clarence Maddern died on August 9, 1986, at 64. That was 35 years after he last played for the Cleveland Indians.

His biggest claim to fame is still being Bisbee’s only major leaguer. That means a lot to his Arizona hometown and the local baseball fans.

Maddern’s major league stats show a .248 batting average, 5 home runs, and 29 RBIs in 104 games. Those numbers might not jump off the page, but for someone from a small Arizona mining town, they’re a pretty big deal.

His story really highlights the dreams and realities of baseball in the mid-1900s. Players like Maddern might’ve had short major league runs, but just getting there stuck with them for life.

Resources and Further Reading

You can find plenty of stats and biographical info about Clarence Maddern’s time in the majors on various online databases. Baseball Almanac has game logs from his 1951 season, and Baseball-Reference keeps his full career stats along with other sources that help keep his memory alive.

Baseball Almanac and Retrosheet Profiles

Baseball Almanac breaks down Maddern’s 1951 season with the Cleveland Indians game by game. You’ll find detailed hitting logs for all 11 games he played in his last major league season.

These logs let you see exactly how he did each day during that final run. If you’re into the details, they show every batting stat for each appearance.

Retrosheet usually has historical game data for players from Maddern’s era, even if it doesn’t pop up in every search. Researchers looking at 1940s and 1950s baseball often use these archives for full stats.

Baseball-Reference and StatsCrew

Baseball-Reference is probably the best place for Maddern’s full career stats. The site tracks all his batting and fielding numbers from his 104-game career between 1946 and 1951.

StatsCrew covers his stats too, listing that .248 career average, 5 home runs, and 29 RBIs. Both sites break things down by season and team, so you can see his time with the Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians.

Baseball-Reference even includes advanced metrics like WAR and OPS, which help put his numbers in context for today’s fans. There’s also splits data, showing how he performed in different situations throughout his career.

Additional Biographical Sources

Find a Grave Memorial shares more than just baseball stats. You’ll find his birth date—September 26, 1921—and the day he passed, August 9, 1986.

They mention he hit right-handed, and you get a sense of how little time he actually spent in the majors across those four seasons.

Wikipedia and The Baseball Cube both put together player profiles that mix career stats with bits of personal info.

These sites lay out his professional timeline, and you can see which teams he joined after World War II.

ESPN’s historical database digs into his 1951 season splits. You get a closer look at how he played against different teams and in all sorts of game situations during his last year in the majors.