| Lou Clinton | |
|---|---|
 Clinton with the Red Sox, c. 1962 | |
| Right fielder | |
| Born:(1937-10-13)October 13, 1937 Ponca City, Oklahoma, U.S. | |
| Died: December 6, 1997(1997-12-06) (aged 60) Wichita, Kansas, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 22, 1960, for the Boston Red Sox | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| April 30, 1967, for the New York Yankees | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .247 |
| Home runs | 65 |
| Runs batted in | 269 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
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Luciean Louis Clinton (October 13, 1937 – December 6, 1997), nicknamedLu orLou, was an AmericanMajor League Baseballoutfielder who batted and threw right-handed. His major league career spanned eight seasons (1960–1967), during which he played for fiveAmerican League teams; theBoston Red Sox,Los Angeles/California Angels,Kansas City Athletics,Cleveland Indians andNew York Yankees.
Clinton was born inPonca City, Oklahoma. He was signed by the Red Sox as an amateurfree agent before the 1955 season.
Clinton made his major league debut in 1960, and spent five seasons with the Red Sox, batting .252 with 49 home runs and 198 RBIs. Clinton was involved in an odd play on August 9, 1960. In the bottom of the fifth inning with a Cleveland runner on base,Vic Power of the Indians hit a line drive that bounced off of the right field fence in Cleveland; the ball hit Clinton's foot and flew over the fence.UmpireAl Smith ruled that the ball never touched the ground and was a home run. The odd play was also scored as a home run with no error being assigned to Clinton.[1][2] Clinton was playing right field for Boston on the final day of the 1961 season, whenRoger Maris hit his 61st home run; Clinton ran back to the right field wall, but the ball went over him into the stands atYankee Stadium.[3][4][5] Clintonhit for the cycle on July 13, 1962,[6] in a 15-inning Red Sox win in Kansas City; he batted 5-for-7 and had the game winning RBI.[7]
On June 4, 1964, Clinton was traded to the Angels forLee Thomas. After a season and a half with the Angels, Clinton was selected off waivers by the Athletics on September 7, 1965. After appearing in a single game for the Athletics, the waiver claim was voided; Clinton was then claimed by the Indians.[8] He finished the season with Cleveland, and on January 14, 1966, he was traded to the Yankees forDoc Edwards. Clinton played for the Yankees until May 1967, his last major league appearances. In his eight major league seasons, he batted .247 in 691 games played, with 65 home runs and 269 RBIs.
On May 11, 1967, Clinton's contract was purchased by thePhiladelphia Phillies and he was assigned to theirTriple-APacific Coast League team, theSan Diego Padres. He played 110 games for the Padres through the remainder of the season, batting .250, and then retired.
After his retirement, Clinton entered the oil business inWichita, Kansas, with his uncle. Clinton died of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease at age 60 in Wichita, and is buried at Lakeview Cemetery there.
· Baseball Almanac, orBaseball Almanac, orRetrosheet| Achievements | ||
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| Preceded by | Hitting for the cycle July 13, 1962 | Succeeded by |