Highlighted Year: Clyde Milan, 1911

Outfielder, Washington Senators

Age: 24

5^th season with Senators

Bats – Left, Throws – Right

Height: 5’9”    Weight: 168 

Prior to 1911:

A native of a small Tennessee village, Milan (pronounced Millin) was an avid hunter while growing up and had limited exposure to baseball until 1905 when he joined up with a semipro team in Blossom, Texas. When the North Texas League disbanded he moved on to the South McAlester Miners who were located in Indian Territory (now part of Oklahoma).Back in Indian Territory with Shawnee of the South Central League in 1906, Milan batted .356 before the team disbanded. Frustrated by the vagaries of professional baseball, Milan considered quitting before the Wichita Jobbers of the Western Association reached out to him. Hitting just .211 in 67 games, he came back to Wichita in 1907 and batted .304 with 38 stolen bases over a full season. The American League Senators purchased his contract from Wichita for $1000 on the same scouring trip that brought future all-time great RHP Walter Johnson, who became his friend, roommate, and hunting companion, to Washington. Quiet and reserved, Milan was nicknamed “Zeb”, which was a common monicker for young players from small towns at the time. Joining the Senators in August, the 20-year-old Milan started in center field and batted .279 over 48 games with 9 RBIs, 8 stolen bases, and a .323 on-base percentage. His batting production dropped off in 1908 to .239 with 10 doubles, 12 triples, 32 RBIs, 29 stolen bases, and a .304 OBP. After his average dropped to .200 in 1909 with 12 doubles, 4 triples, 10 steals, and a .268 OBP, manager Joe Cantillon wanted to send him back to the minors but the cash-deficient club couldn’t afford a replacement. The arrival of new manager Jimmy McAleer in 1910 turned Milan’s career around. Mentored by McAleer, Milan broke out by batting .279 with 17 doubles, 6 triples, 44 stolen bases, and a .379 OBP thanks to drawing 71 walks. With great speed that allowed him to play a shallow center field and become a top base stealer he earned the nickname “Deerfoot”. A selective batter with little power, he proved adept at drawing walks and getting on base.

1911 Season Summary

Appeared in 154 games

CF – 154

[Bracketed numbers indicate AL rank in Top 20]

Batting

Plate Appearances – 709 [1]

At Bats – 616 [1]

Runs – 109 [4, tied with Sam Crawford]

Hits – 194 [5]

Doubles – 24 [16, tied with Steve Yerkes]

Triples – 8

Home Runs – 3 [15, tied with seventeen others]

RBI – 35

Bases on Balls – 74 [2, tied with Doc Gessler]

Int. BB – N/A

Strikeouts – 40

Stolen Bases – 58 [2]

Caught Stealing – N/A

Average - .315 [15, tied with Hal Chase]

OBP - .395 [15]

Slugging Pct. - .394

Total Bases – 243 [9, tied with Harry Lord]

GDP – N/A

Hit by Pitches – 7 [16, tied with Jack Barry, Amby McConnell & Alva Williams]

Sac Hits – 8

Sac Flies – N/A

League-leading plate appearances were +9 ahead of runner-up Donie Bush

League-leading at bats were +24 ahead of runners-up Frank Baker & Ty Cobb

Midseason snapshot: 2B – 11, HR – 2, RBI – 13, SB – 26, AVG - .318, . OBP - .405

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Most hits, game – 4 (in 5 AB) at Detroit 7/8, (in 4 AB) vs. St. Louis Browns 8/9, (in 6 AB) at Detroit 8/25, (in 4 AB) vs. Chi. White Sox 9/19

Longest hitting streak – 16 games

HR at home – 2

HR on road – 1

Most home runs, game – 1 (in 5 AB) at Chi. White Sox 5/11, (in 3 AB) vs. St. Louis Browns 6/15, (in 3 AB) vs. Bos. Red Sox 9/13

Multi-HR games – 0

Most RBIs, game – 2 on five occasions

Pinch-hitting – No appearances

Fielding

Chances – 396

Put Outs – 347

Assists – 33

Errors – 17

DP – 1

Pct. - .957

Awards & Honors:

9^th in AL MVP voting (10 points – 16% share)

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The Senators (aka Nationals) went 64-90 to finish seventh in the AL, 38.5 games behind the pennant-winning Philadelphia Athletics while leading the league in fewest doubles (159), fewest triples (54), and fewest home runs (16). The Senators struggled from the start and an 8-game May losing streak mired them deep in the second division where, despite a good August record, they remained.

Aftermath of 1911:

Durable as well as fleet of foot, Milan set an American League record with 88 stolen bases in 1912 while also batting .306 with 19 doubles, 11 triples, 105 runs scored, 79 RBIs, and a .377 OBP. Defensively he placed second among AL outfielders with 31 assists (after having led the league the previous two seasons) and was third in putouts with 326. In 1913 he again topped the AL in stolen bases with 75 while hitting .301 with 18 doubles, 9 triples, 3 home runs, 54 RBIs, and a .367 OBP. Milan married Margaret Boerts in the offseason, a woman he had met during his brief minor league stint in Texas and had courted ever since. A broken jaw suffered in an outfield collision cost him six weeks during the 1914 season, but he still finished with 38 steals while batting .295 with 19 doubles, 11 triples, 39 RBIs, and a .346 OBP. Detroit’s Ty Cobb eclipsed Milan’s stolen base record in 1915 but he still stole 40 bases while hitting .288 with 13 doubles, 7 triples, 2 home runs, 66 RBIs, and a .353 OBP and he remained a top defensive performer. Milan’s production stayed strong in 1916 at .273 with a .343 OBP and 34 stolen bases. He appeared regularly with the Senators until 1921 with a high batting average of .322 in 1920 and a high OBP of .371 in 1919. His stolen base totals dwindled in his last few seasons but he remained effective in the outfield. In 1922 he was named Washington’s player/manager which significantly reduced his playing time and which also didn’t agree with him as he suffered ulcers and was criticized for being “too easy-going” as the club finished in sixth place. Fired after the season he was a player/manager for minor league teams until 1926 after which he concluded his playing career. For his major league career, which was spent entirely with the Senators, Milan batted .285 with 2100 hits that included 240 doubles, 105 triples, and 17 home runs (with never more than three in a season). He scored 1004 runs and compiled 617 RBIs, 495 stolen bases, and a .353 OBP while drawing 685 walks. He received MVP votes following four seasons. After his playing career, Milan managed in the minor leagues and had two coaching stints with the Senators, where he was known as an outstanding storyteller and source for newspaper interviewers and a lively presence who provided counsel to young ballplayers. He died from a heart attack during spring training in 1953 at age 65. His brother Horace had a long minor league career and was an outfield teammate with the Senators in 1915 and 1917. Another brother, Frank, was a successful Broadway actor.

 

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Highlighted Years feature players who led a major league in one of the following categories: batting average, home runs (with a minimum of 10), runs batted in, or stolen bases (with a minimum of 20); or pitchers who led a major league in wins, strikeouts, earned run average, or saves (with a minimum of 10). Also included are participants in annual All-Star Games between the National and American Leagues since 1933. This category also includes Misc. players who received award votes, were contributors to teams that reached the postseason, or had notable seasons in non-award years.