#27 TY CLINE
Outfield
What came before: An all-America at Clemson, Cline was the proverbial good-field, no-hit player. His glove kept him in the big leagues for 12 seasons, but his bat prevented him from ever holding down a regular job. He broke in with the Indians in 1961, but logged time with the Milwaukee Braves and the Cubs before returning to the Braves for a second tour of duty.
He was originally a Brave as the player to be named later in the deal that shockingly saw them deal Joe Adcock. In 1964, he hit .360 as a pinch-hitter for the highest PH average in the NL that season. But he was dropped from their roster and was selected by the Cubs in the Rule 5 draft before the 1966 season.
That 1966 season: Cline began the year in a huge manner, going 5-for-5 on Opening Day in Leo Durocher's Chicago debut. But he only played in seven games and had only one more hit before being sold to the Braves on July 26. He provided some valuable glove work and an occasional clutch hit as the Braves turned around their season under new manager Billy Hitchcock. But in addition to going .271-2-21 for Triple-A Richmond, he batted 71 times in 42 games (.254) but all 18 of his hits were singles.
What came next: Cline began the '67 season as the Braves' spare outfielder, but an 0-for-8 start over 10 games meant a quick exit. But the Giants like that slick glove and purchased his conract. He perked up to enjoy a .270 season. He was a glove-for-hire for the rest of his career, with the Giants (67-68), Expos (69-70) and Reds (70-71). In the 1970 NLCS, Cline twice had a ninth-inning pinch-hit and went on to score the winning run.
He hit .238 for his career with just six homers in 892 MLB games, but had 60 pinch hits over his career.
In 1974, he became part-owner of the the Charleston (S.C.) franchise in the Western Carolinas League, making him the first modern-era player to become an owner of a minor league franchise. Charleston went on to finish second in the rookie league.
