Chester James (Pop) Chadbourne (October 28, 1884 – June 21, 1943) was an

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...

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), ...

, playing mainly as a

center fielder A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the c ...

for three teams between and . Chadbourne spent portions of five seasons in the major leagues, but his only two complete major league seasons were with the

Kansas City Packers The Kansas City Packers were a Federal League baseball club in Kansas City from 1914 to 1915. They finished sixth in 1914 with a 67–84 record, and fourth in 1915 with an 81–72 record. The Packers moved to Kansas City in July 1913 from Covin ...

of the

Federal League The Federal League of Base Ball Clubs, known simply as the Federal League, was an American professional baseball league that played its first season as a minor league in 1913 and operated as a "third major league", in competition with the e ...

. He had more success in the minor leagues, collecting more than 3000 hits over 20 years. Listed at , , Chadbourne batted left-handed and threw right-handed. After his playing career, Chadbourne managed and umpired in the minor leagues.

Early life and career

Chadbourne was born in

Parkman, Maine Parkman is a New England town, town in Piscataquis County, Maine, Piscataquis County, Maine, United States. The population was 747 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. History First known as Plantation Number Five, Sixth Range, it was p ...

. A fine defensive outfielder, he entered the major leagues in with the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

, playing for them two years before being sold to the

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 ...

of the

American Association American Association may refer to: Baseball * American Association (1882–1891), a major league active from 1882 to 1891 * American Association (1902–1997), a minor league active from 1902 to 1962 and 1969 to 1997 * American Association of Profe ...

in November 1908. After five minor league seasons, he played from to for the

of the

, where he led the league's outfielders in assists (34) in and in

outs In baseball, an out occurs when the umpire rules a batter or baserunner out. When a batter or runner is out, they lose their ability to score a run and must return to the dugout until their next turn at bat. When three outs are recorded in a ha ...

(475) and

fielding percentage In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putouts and assists, div ...

(.979) in . In 1914, Chadbourne became the first major league player to bat at

Wrigley Field Wrigley Field is a Major League Baseball (MLB) stadium on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. It is the home of the Chicago Cubs, one of the city's two MLB franchises. It first opened in 1914 as Weeghman Park for Charles Weeghman's Chicago Wh ...

(then called Weeghman Park), hitting leadoff for the Packers against the

Chicago Chi-Feds The Chicago Whales were a professional baseball team based in Chicago. They played in the Federal League, a short-lived "third Major League", in 1914 and 1915. They originally lacked a formal nickname, and were known simply as the "Chicago Feder ...

on April 23. Chadbourne returned to the minors for the 1916 and 1917 seasons, making his last major league appearance with the

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in . In a five-season career, Chadbourne was a .255 hitter (345-for-1353) with two

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 and 82 RBI in 347 games, including 183 runs, 41 doubles, 18

triples TripleS (stylized as tripleS; Help:IPA/English, /ˈtɹɪpəl:ɛs/; ) is a South Korean girl group formed by MODHAUS. They aim to be the world's first decentralized K-pop idol group. The members will rotate between the group, sub-unit, and solo ac ...

, and 78

stolen base In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a runner advances to a base to which they are not entitled and the official scorer rules that the advance should be credited to the action of the runner. The umpires determine whether the runner is safe or ...

Later life

Following his major league career, Chadbourne returned to the minors to play in the

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

; he finished with 3,216

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over 21 total minor league seasons. He also managed the

Salt Lake City Bees The Salt Lake City Bees was a primary moniker of the minor league baseball teams, based in Salt Lake City, Utah between 1911 and 1970 under various names. After minor league baseball first began in Salt Lake City in 1900, the Bees were long-time ...

of the 1926 Utah–Idaho League. By January 1927, the press reported that Chadbourne was seeking an umpiring position. He was hired as a PCL umpire after the 1928 season. Chadbourne was umpiring in the PCL in 1930 when he had a confrontation with star outfielder

Buzz Arlett Russell Loris Arlett (January 3, 1899 – May 16, 1964), also known as Buzz Arlett, was an American baseball player, sometimes called "the Babe Ruth of the minor leagues." Like Ruth, Arlett was a large man, and , who began his career as a pitch ...

after a game and struck Arlett in the face with his umpire mask. Arlett required twelve stitches to his face and the injury may have cost him an opportunity to sign with the

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association (19th century), American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the ...

. After Commissioner

Kenesaw Mountain Landis Kenesaw Mountain Landis (; November 20, 1866 – November 25, 1944) was an American jurist who served as a United States federal judge from 1905 to 1922 and the first Commissioner of Baseball from 1920 until his death. He is remembered for his h ...

investigated the incident, Chadbourne was fired. He umpired in the Western League in . Chadbourne died in Los Angeles at age 58 by self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was survived by his wife, Gladys.

References

External links

Retrosheet
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chadbourne, Chet 1884 births 1943 suicides 1943 deaths Baseball players from Maine Major League Baseball outfielders Boston Red Sox players Boston Braves players Minor league baseball managers Suicides by firearm in California People from Parkman, Maine Worcester Busters players Providence Grays (minor league) players Indianapolis Indians players Portland Beavers players Kansas City Packers players Memphis Chickasaws players Oakland Oaks (baseball) players Vernon Tigers players Wichita Izzies players Salt Lake City Bees players Oklahoma City Indians players Baseball coaches from Maine