Clarence Otto Kraft (June 9, 1887 – March 26, 1958) was an American

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), ...

player. He played in three games 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 ...

in , but only appeared once in the field (at first base). He went 1-for-3 at the plate with one strikeout. His greater claims to fame came later, in the minor leagues. The first came immediately after his Major League career ended. The Braves had acquired Kraft from the

Brooklyn Robins The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the club moved to Los Angeles, Californi ...

, and returned Kraft to them in July. Brooklyn tried to send Kraft to the minor leagues, but Kraft sought the protection of the newly formed Fraternity of Professional Baseball Players of America, which under the terms of a new agreement with the Major League teams would allow Kraft to tender his services to higher-classed minor league teams. Under this clause, Kraft signed with the Class AA

Newark Indians The Newark Sailors, later known as the Newark Indians, were a minor league baseball team in the early twentieth century. The team played its games at Wiedenmayer's Park in Newark, New Jersey. Newark played in the Eastern League between 1908 and 1 ...

. However, the National Commission ruled that the rule could not be applied retroactively, and that Kraft's rights belonged to the Class A

Nashville Volunteers The Nashville Vols were a Minor League Baseball team that played in Nashville, Tennessee, from 1901 to 1963. Known only as the Nashville Baseball Club during their first seven seasons, they were officially named the Nashville Volunteers (often sh ...

. Kraft refused to report to the Volunteers, however, and the dispute was only settled when Robins owner

Charles Ebbets Charles Hercules Ebbets, Sr. (October 29, 1859 – April 18, 1925) was an American sports executive who served as co-owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1897 to 1902 before becoming majority owner of the team, doing so until his death in 1925. He ...

paid Nashville $2,500 to rescind their claim on Kraft.Minor League Baseball Top 100 Teams: #4, 1924 Fort Worth Panthers
/ref> Later, playing for the

Fort Worth Panthers A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

, Kraft led 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 ...

in home runs three straight times (–). In 1924, he hit 55 home runs and drove in 196 runs for the Panthers while batting .349. That season, he set several league records that stand to this day, including most runs scored (150), extra base hits (96), total bases (414) and runs batted in. Following the season, he announced his retirement and opened an auto dealership. He later served as a judge for

Tarrant County Tarrant County is located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of 2020, it had a population of 2,110,640. It is Texas' third-most populous county and the 15th-most populous in the United States. Its county seat is Fort Worth. Tarrant County, one of 2 ...

before his death in 1958.

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Kraft, Clarence 1887 births 1958 deaths Major League Baseball first basemen Boston Braves players McLeansboro Billikens players McLeansboro Merchants players Evansville River Rats players Flint Vehicles players Clarksdale Swamp Angels players New Orleans Pelicans (baseball) players Newark Indians players Harrisburg Senators players Milwaukee Brewers (minor league) players Louisville Colonels (minor league) players Wilkes-Barre Barons (baseball) players Fort Worth Panthers players Baseball players from Evansville, Indiana County judges in Texas