Cliff Bell
Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records
Cliff Bell was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball for 4 teams, including the Kansas City Monarchs. Across 175 career appearances, he went 46-69 with a 4.13 ERA and 388 strikeouts. He also batted .168 with 0 home runs. His totals include Negro Leagues seasons, which MLB recognized as major league in 2020. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 11985.5.
- W (Wins):
- Games credited to a pitcher whose team took a lead it never surrendered while he was the pitcher of record.
- ERA (Earned Run Average):
- Earned runs allowed per nine innings pitched: (ER × 9) ÷ IP. The primary measure of pitching effectiveness.
- SO (Strikeouts):
- For a batter, times retired on a third strike; for a pitcher, batters retired on a third strike.
- WHIP (Walks and Hits per Inning Pitched):
- Baserunners allowed per inning: (BB + H) ÷ IP. Under 1.00 is elite.
Data updated
- Position
- Pitcher
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 5'10" / 180 lb
- Died
- 4/13/1952 in Los Angeles, CA, USA
Full name: Clifford Bell
Season-by-Season Pitching
Click a stat to plot it across every season.
| Year | Team | Lg | W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA | Lg ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1921 | KCM | NNL | 7 | 5 | 21 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 99.2 | 101 | 46 | 28 | 33 | 4.15 | 4.02 (-3%) | 80.5 |
| 1922 | KCM | NNL | 0 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 15.0 | 9 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 3.00 | 4.18 (+28%) | 194.8 |
| 1923 | KCM | NNL | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | — | 0.0 |
| 1924 | KCM | NNL | 4 | 1 | 8 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 41.2 | 39 | 14 | 11 | 7 | 3.02 | 4.13 (+27%) | -390.6 |
| 1925 | KCM | NNL | 4 | 6 | 17 | 13 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 99.2 | 101 | 60 | 28 | 40 | 5.42 | 4.55 (-19%) | 2315.3 |
| 1926 | KCM | NNL | 5 | 4 | 12 | 10 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 76.1 | 94 | 34 | 24 | 16 | 4.01 | 4.11 (+2%) | -544.8 |
| 1927 | MRS | NNL | 7 | 10 | 28 | 14 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 158.0 | 170 | 65 | 36 | 72 | 3.70 | 4.08 (+9%) | 2554.3 |
| 1928 | MRS | NNL | 8 | 7 | 20 | 14 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 144.2 | 157 | 60 | 27 | 48 | 3.73 | 4.13 (+10%) | 1351.5 |
| 1929 | MRS | NNL | 1 | 13 | 22 | 15 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 126.0 | 140 | 55 | 21 | 57 | 3.93 | 4.60 (+15%) | 2729.2 |
| 1930 | MRS | NNL | 7 | 13 | 28 | 19 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 152.1 | 153 | 69 | 48 | 68 | 4.08 | 4.80 (+15%) | 3245.6 |
| 1930 | CAG | NNL | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4.1 | 11 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 12.46 | — | 0.0 |
| 1931 | CCU | NNL | 3 | 5 | 12 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 66.1 | 73 | 39 | 27 | 40 | 5.29 | 4.10 (-29%) | 449.8 |
| Career · 12 seasons | 46 | 69 | 175 | 112 | 68 | 6 | 4 | 986.2 | 1,050 | 453 | 258 | 388 | 4.13 | — | 11,985 | ||
Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 185 | 374 | 30 | 63 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 28 | 3 | 24 | 5 | .168 | .226 | .206 | .432 | -1,281 |
Career AVG .168 vs. league average .285 across their career seasons — 40.8% below league average.
Career OBP .226 vs. league average .346 across their career seasons — 34.6% below league average.
Career SLG .206 vs. league average .399 across their career seasons — 48.4% below league average.
Career OPS .432 vs. league average .746 across their career seasons — 42.0% below league average.
Season-by-Season Batting
Click a stat to plot it across every season.
| Year | Team | Lg | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | Lg AVG | Lg OBP | Lg SLG | Lg OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1921 | KCM | NNL | 21 | 37 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | .189 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1922 | KCM | NNL | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1923 | KCM | NNL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1924 | KCM | NNL | 8 | 16 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | .125 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1925 | KCM | NNL | 17 | 34 | 4 | 9 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 | .265 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1926 | KCM | NNL | 12 | 29 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | .172 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1927 | MRS | NNL | 37 | 84 | 4 | 15 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 2 | 3 | 0 | .179 | .282 (-37%) | .344 (-40%) | .392 (-39%) | .736 (-40%) | -557.4 |
| 1928 | MRS | NNL | 20 | 54 | 6 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | .185 | .280 (-34%) | .342 (-33%) | .395 (-39%) | .737 (-36%) | -326.1 |
| 1929 | MRS | NNL | 22 | 48 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .104 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1930 | MRS | NNL | 29 | 49 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | .163 | — | — | — | — | -397.7 |
| 1930 | CAG | NNL | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | -397.7 |
| 1931 | CCU | NNL | 12 | 18 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | .111 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 12 seasons | 185 | 374 | 30 | 63 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 28 | 3 | 24 | 5 | .168 | — | — | — | — | -1,679 | ||
Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.
Postseason Statistics
Game Log & Splits
Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | .333 |
| Away | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
Pitching — Home / Away
| Split | G | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 2 | 9.2 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0.00 |
| Away | 1 | 8.0 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0.00 |
Last 3 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1927-08-14 | MEM | CAG | L | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1925-08-11 | KCM | SSN | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1921-07-25 | KCM | DT1 | W | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Last 3 Games — Pitching
| Date | Tm | Opp | Dec | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1927-08-14 | MEM | CAG | L | 8.0 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 1925-08-11 | KCM | SSN | — | 2.2 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1921-07-25 | KCM | DT1 | — | 7.0 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OF | 8 | 6 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| P | 175 | 112 | 32 | 271 | 18 | 7 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1921 | KCM | P | 21 | 12 | 4 | 28 | 0 | 0 |
| 1922 | KCM | P | 4 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 0 |
| 1923 | KCM | P | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1924 | KCM | P | 8 | 6 | 2 | 19 | 0 | 1 |
| 1925 | KCM | P | 17 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1926 | KCM | P | 12 | 10 | 1 | 28 | 4 | 1 |
| 1927 | MRS | OF | 8 | 6 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1927 | MRS | P | 28 | 14 | 8 | 41 | 3 | 1 |
| 1928 | MRS | P | 20 | 14 | 4 | 44 | 5 | 1 |
| 1929 | MRS | P | 22 | 15 | 3 | 47 | 5 | 1 |
| 1930 | MRS | P | 28 | 20 | 5 | 38 | 0 | 1 |
| 1930 | CAG | P | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1931 | CCU | P | 12 | 8 | 3 | 14 | 0 | 1 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 175 |
| Left Field | 4 |
| Center Field | 2 |
| Right Field | 2 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Cliff Bell: the record in brief
Cliff Bell's record on this page is drawn from the season tables, which run from 1921 to 1931. By club, Bell's seasons break down as the Kansas City Monarchs (1921 through 1926), the Memphis Red Sox (1927 to 1930), the Chicago American Giants (1930), and the Cleveland Cubs (1931). Bell played primarily as a pitcher and both batted and threw right-handed. Born on July 2, 1896, in Kildare, TX, USA, Bell was listed at 5 feet, 10 inches and 180 pounds. Bell's death is recorded on April 13, 1952, in Los Angeles, CA, USA. Bell's full given name, per the bio, is Clifford Bell.
The pitching table credits Bell with a 46-69 record and a 4.13 ERA in 175 games. Bell had 388 strikeouts, 68 complete games, and 6 shutouts. Bell's 4.13 ERA was close to the 4.25 league figure for those seasons. No season topped the 8 wins of 1928. 1927 produced Bell's most strikeouts, 72.
Frequently Asked Questions about Cliff Bell
- Was Cliff Bell a pitcher?
- Yes. Cliff Bell pitched in the major leagues, recording 46 wins and 388 strikeouts.
- How many home runs did Cliff Bell hit?
- Cliff Bell hit 0 career home runs with 63 hits.
- What teams did Cliff Bell play for?
- Cliff Bell played for 4 teams: the Kansas City Monarchs (1921–1926), the Memphis Red Sox (1927–1930), the Chicago American Giants (1930), and the Cleveland Cubs (1931).
- What were Cliff Bell's career stats?
- In 175 games, Cliff Bell went 46-69 with a 4.13 ERA, 388 strikeouts, 986.2 innings pitched, and 4 saves. At the plate he had 63 hits and 0 home runs.
- What position did Cliff Bell play?
- Cliff Bell played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Cliff Bell and how much did he weigh?
- Cliff Bell was listed at 5 feet 10 inches and 180 pounds.
- What was Cliff Bell's career ERA?
- Cliff Bell finished with a 4.13 career ERA, going 46-69 with 388 strikeouts.
- How many strikeouts did Cliff Bell have?
- Cliff Bell recorded 388 career strikeouts.
- Is Cliff Bell in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Cliff Bell has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.