| Chet Chadbourne | |
|---|---|
 Chadbourne's 1911 Obak baseball card | |
| Outfielder | |
| Born:(1884-10-28)October 28, 1884 Parkman, Maine, U.S. | |
| Died: June 21, 1943(1943-06-21) (aged 58) Los Angeles, California, U.S. | |
Batted: Left Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 17, 1906, for the Boston Americans | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 2, 1918, for the Boston Braves | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Assists | 109 |
| Fielding percentage | .964 |
| Putouts | 645 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
Chester James (Pop) Chadbourne (October 28, 1884 – June 21, 1943) was an Americanoutfielder inMajor League Baseball, playing mainly as acenter fielder for three teams between1906 and1918. Chadbourne spent portions of five seasons in the major leagues, but his only two complete major league seasons were with theKansas City Packers of theFederal League. He had more success in the minor leagues, collecting more than 3000 hits over 20 years.
Listed at 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m), 170 lb (77 kg), Chadbourne batted left-handed and threw right-handed. After his playing career, Chadbourne managed and umpired in the minor leagues.
Chadbourne was born inParkman, Maine. A fine defensive outfielder, he entered the major leagues in1906 with theBoston Red Sox, playing for them two years before being sold to theIndianapolis Indians of theAmerican Association in November 1908.
After five minor league seasons, he played from1914 to1915 for theKansas City Packers of theFederal League, where he led the league's outfielders inassists (34) in1914 and inouts (475) andfielding percentage (.979) in1915. In 1914, Chadbourne became the first major league player to bat atWrigley Field (then called Weeghman Park), hitting leadoff for the Packers against theChicago Chi-Feds on April 23.
Chadbourne returned to the minors for the 1916 and 1917 seasons, making his last major league appearance with theBoston Braves in1918. In a five-season career, Chadbourne was a .255 hitter (345-for-1353) with twohome runs and 82RBI in 347 games, including 183runs, 41doubles, 18triples, and 78stolen bases.
Following his major league career, Chadbourne returned to the minors to play in thePacific Coast League; he finished with 3,216hits over 21 total minor league seasons. He alsomanaged theSalt Lake City Bees of the 1926 Utah–Idaho League. By January 1927, the press reported that Chadbourne was seeking an umpiring position.[1] He was hired as a PCL umpire after the 1928 season.[2]
Chadbourne was umpiring in the PCL in 1930 when he had a confrontation with star outfielderBuzz Arlett 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 theBrooklyn Dodgers. After CommissionerKenesaw Mountain Landis investigated the incident, Chadbourne was fired.[3]
He umpired in theWestern League in1932.
Chadbourne died in Los Angeles at age 58 by self-inflicted gunshot wound.[4] He was survived by his wife, Gladys.
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