#60/#32 GLEN CLARK
Catcher-Outfield
What came before: Clark was supposed be a manger's dream coming of the bench: a switch-hiting catcher who was also comfortable playing thid base or the outfield. Signing late in 1961, he spent his first full pro season providing immediate promise (.304-33-108). In his first pro game that '62 season, he had four hits and five RBIs for Dublin (Ga.) and would end up leading that league in homers despite leaving at midseason. The following year, he delivered further on that promise (.323-30-110).
He drove in only 58 runs with 12 homers in 1964, however, as he remained stuck in the lowest of the low bushes for much of the year. And 1965 was more of the same: he was marooned in Yakima of the Northwest League for a second season. But, there was a promising turnaround: another .300 season (.303, sixth in the league, with 16 homers and 67 RBIs).
That 1966 season: Despite spending spring training in the big league camp and sticking around long enough to be in the team photo, the Braves sent him to his hometown of Austin in the Texas League for the entire season, where he was converted from outfield to catcher. He hit .296, but the power dropoff was alarming, as he hit only eight homers to go with a mere 57 RBIs in 136 games. There would be no September callup – but the hometown fans did give him a Glen Clark Night in Austin.
What happened next: The callup came one year later, midway through a '67 season that saw him again in Austin, again hitting over .300 when he was promoted June 1. Over the next week, he was sent up four times as a pinch-hitter, failed each time, and on June 10 was shipped back to the minors and subsequently dealt to the Phillies for a much more experienced bat off the bench, Tito Francona. Still stuck in the minors, he got off to a fast start, hitting three homers, including a grand slam, in his first 10 days. But would hit only one more that year.
Following the season, Clark was acquired by the Astros, for whom he spent two-plus seasons in the minors, including a 35-game season for Southern League champion Columbus Astros (playing for future Braves coach Jimy Williams). His career ended after three at-bats for Oklahoma City in 1973.
