Clarence Newton Crum (July 27, 1889July 7, 1945) was a

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

player. In an eight-year career, Crum played in the 1917 and 1918

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

seasons for the

Boston Braves The Atlanta Braves, a current Major League Baseball franchise, originated in Boston, Massachusetts. This article details the history of the Boston Braves, from 1871 to 1952, after which they moved to Milwaukee, and then to Atlanta. During it ...

. Crum was officially listed as standing and weighing .

Early life

Crum was born on either July 27, 1889 or July 27, 1890 in Cooks Mills, Illinois.

Career

Crum began playing professional baseball in 1914, spending the year with two teams: the

Charleston Senators The Charleston Senators were an American minor league baseball team based in Charleston, West Virginia. They were the first professional baseball team to play in Charleston, beginning play in 1910. The team was inactive during a few periods, playin ...

of the

Ohio State League The Ohio State League was a minor league baseball league that operated in numerous seasons between 1887 and 1947, predominantly as a Class D level league. League franchises were based in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia. Histo ...

and the

Portsmouth Cobblers The Portsmouth Cobblers were a minor league baseball team based in Portsmouth, Ohio. From 1908 to 1915, the Cobblers played exclusively as members of the Class D (baseball), Class D level Ohio State League, winning league championships in 1910, 191 ...

of the same league. Combined, Crum recorded a 19–13

win–loss record In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of match ...

over 19 games pitched. Offensively, he batted .271 with 108

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and seven

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s. In 1915, Crum was promoted to the B-level, playing for the

San Antonio Bronchos The San Antonio Bronchos were a minor league baseball team based in San Antonio, Texas, that played in the South Texas League (1903–1906) and Texas League (1907–1919). The team was also known as the Mustangs (1903–04), Warriors (1905), and Ace ...

and the

Shreveport Gassers The Shreveport Gassers were a Texas League baseball team based in Shreveport, Louisiana, United States that played from 1915 to 1924. They were affiliated with the Philadelphia Athletics from 1923 to 1924. Under manager Billy Smith, they won the ...

, both of the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

. Over the 1915 season, Crum pitched 105.2

innings An innings is one of the divisions of a cricket match during which one team takes its turn to bat. Innings also means the period in which an individual player bats (acts as either striker or nonstriker). Innings, in cricket, and rounders, is bot ...

, allowing 64 runs off of 107 hits. He had a

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

of .176 with six

total bases In baseball statistics, total bases is the number of bases a player gains with hits. It is a weighted sum with values of 1 for a single, 2 for a double, 3 for a triple and 4 for a home run. For example, three singles is three total bases, while ...

. In 1916, Crum again played for two teams: the Terre Haute Highlanders of

Terre Haute, Indiana Terre Haute ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Vigo County, Indiana, United States, about 5 miles east of the state's western border with Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 60,785 and its metropolitan area had a ...

, and the

Muskegon Reds The Muskegon Reds was the primary name of the minor league baseball franchise in Muskegon, Michigan that existed on-and-off from 1890 to 1951. History Muskegon played in the Michigan State League (1890–1902, 1911–1914, 1926, 1940–1941), Cen ...

Muskegon, Michigan Muskegon ( ') is a city in Michigan. It is the county seat of Muskegon County. Muskegon is known for fishing, sailing regattas, pleasure boating, and as a commercial and cruise ship port. It is a popular vacation destination because of the expa ...

. For the two teams, Crum posted a win–loss record of 10–11 over 31 games pitched. Crum's

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

(ERA), 2.26, was the second best on the Muskegon Reds (

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recorded an ERA of 1.90 over eight games pitched). Crum made his Major League debut on May 4, 1917, for the Boston Braves. For the year, he pitched one game, allowing a

walk Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an 'inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults ov ...

and a hit over one inning pitched. Crum appeared in one game for the Braves in 1918, recording a loss and a 15.43 ERA, the latter being the worst on the team for the 1918 season. Afterwards, on May 6, 1918, Crum was traded, along with

Tex Covington William Wilkes Covington (March 19, 1887 – December 10, 1931) was a pitcher in Major League Baseball. He played for the Detroit Tigers.Indianapolis Indians The Indianapolis Indians are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They are located in Indianapolis, Indiana, and play their home games at Victory Field, which open ...

for

Dana Fillingim Dana Fillingim (November 6, 1893 – February 3, 1961) was a pitcher in Major League Baseball. He played for the Philadelphia Athletics, Boston Braves, and Philadelphia Phillies. Fillingim's key pitch was the spitball, and he was one of the pit ...

. Over the 1918 season, Crum recorded a 2.50 ERA, and, at age 28, was the second-youngest pitcher on the team. In 1919, Crum continued his stint with the Indians. His 20 wins and 14 losses were second on the team to former Detroit Tiger Pug Cavet. Crum's 1920 season consisted of playing four games for the Indians. After not playing in the 1921 and 1922 seasons, Crum played his final minor-league baseball season with the

Tulsa Oilers The Tulsa Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and play in the ECHL. The Oilers played their home games at the Tulsa Convention Center until 2008 when they moved into the new BOK Center. For many years, the Tuls ...

. Crum played in eight games for the Oilers, recording a team-best

winning percentage In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of match ...

of 1.000.

After baseball

Crum died on either July 7, 1945, or December 7, 1945, in

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with ...

, and was buried in Memorial Park Cemetery in Tulsa.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crum, Cal 1889 births 1945 deaths Major League Baseball pitchers Boston Braves players Baseball players from Coles County, Illinois Charleston Senators players Portsmouth Cobblers players San Antonio Bronchos players Shreveport Gassers players Terre Haute Highlanders players Muskegon Reds players Indianapolis Indians players Tulsa Oilers (baseball) players