Joseph Fred McClain is a retired American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

 pitcher, who played for the Washington Senators

Texas Rangers (baseball)

The Texas Rangers are a professional baseball team in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, based in Arlington, Texas. The Rangers are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League, and are the reigning A.L. Western Division and A.L. Champions. Since , the Rangers have...

 in 1961–1962. McClain authored the first victory in the history of the expansion franchise, which is now the Texas Rangers.

The right-hander stood 6 feet (1.8 m) tall and weighed 183 pounds (83 kg). After attending the University of Tennessee

University of Tennessee

The University of Tennessee is a public land-grant university headquartered at Knoxville, Tennessee, United States...

, he signed with the St. Louis Cardinals

St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...

 in 1953, spent the 1954–1955 seasons in the military, then bounced around the minor league

Minor league baseball

Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...

 systems of the Cardinals, New York Yankees

New York Yankees

The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...

 and the original Washington

Minnesota Twins

The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The team is named after the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and St. Paul. They played in Metropolitan Stadium from 1961 to 1981 and the...

 franchise. He was drafted by the expansion Senators in the minor league phase of the 1960 expansion draft.

In his MLB debut as a 27-year-old rookie

Rookie

Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of their sport or has little or no professional experience. The term also has the more general meaning of anyone new to a profession, training or activity Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of...

, McClain pitched a complete game

Complete game

In baseball, a complete game is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher.As demonstrated by the charts below, in the early 20th century, it was common for most good Major League Baseball pitchers to pitch a complete game almost every start. Pitchers were...

, seven-hit

Hit (baseball)

In baseball statistics, a hit , also called a base hit, is credited to a batter when the batter safely reaches first base after hitting the ball into fair territory, without the benefit of an error or a fielder's choice....

 victory over the Cleveland Indians

Cleveland Indians

The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...

 at Griffith Stadium

Griffith Stadium

Griffith Stadium was a sports stadium that stood in Washington, D.C. from 1911 to 1965, between Georgia Avenue and 5th Street, and between W Street and Florida Avenue, NW. An earlier wooden baseball park had been built on the same site in 1891...

 on April 14, 1961 — the second regular-season game and the first win in the team's history. He spent the entire 1961 season

1961 Washington Senators season

The Washington Senators season was a season in American baseball. The team was in its inaugural season, having been established as a replacement for the previous franchise of the same name, which relocated to the Twin Cities of Minnesota following the 1960 season, becoming the Minnesota Twins...

 as a starting pitcher

Starting pitcher

In baseball or softball, a starting pitcher is the pitcher who delivers the first pitch to the first batter of a game. A pitcher who enters the game after the first pitch of the game is a relief pitcher....

 for the Senators, leading the team in games started (29), tying for the lead in innings pitched (212) and shutouts

Shutout (baseball)

In Major League Baseball, a shutout refers to the act by which a single pitcher pitches a complete game and does not allow the opposing team to score a run...

 (2), and posted a creditable 3.86 earned run average

Earned run average

In baseball statistics, earned run average is the mean of earned runs given up by a pitcher per nine innings pitched. It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number of innings pitched and multiplying by nine...

. But in , McClain's effectiveness deserted him; he lost all four decisions and pitched only 24 innings before being sent to the Triple-A Syracuse Chiefs. He retired after the 1963 season.

External links

• Joe McClain's stats at the Baseball Almanac