Cliff Melton

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1937-1944)

Cliff Melton was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1937 to 1944 for the New York Giants, a span of 8 seasons. Across 272 career appearances, he went 86-80 with a 3.42 ERA and 660 strikeouts. He also batted .164 with 0 home runs. Cliff Melton was an All-Star. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 14570.9.

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

W–L 86–80
ERA 3.42
WHIP 1.29
SO 660
Pitcher PIV 14570.9
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
L / L
Height / Weight
6'5" / 203 lb
Born
1/3/1912 in Brevard, NC, USA
Died
7/28/1986 in Baltimore, MD, USA
MLB Debut
1937-04-25
Last Game
1944-09-29
Awards
All-Star

Full name: Clifford George Melton

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Career Pitching Statistics

Cliff Melton — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
86 80 272 179 65 13 16 1453.2 1,446 552 79 431 660 3.42 14570.9

Career ERA 3.42 vs. league average 3.97 across their career seasons — 13.8% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Cliff Melton Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1937 NY1 NL 20 9 46 27 14 2 7 248.0 216 72 55 142 2.61 4.34 (+40%) 6999.1
1938 NY1 NL 14 14 36 31 10 1 0 243.0 266 105 61 101 3.89 4.35 (+11%) 1944.2
1939 NY1 NL 12 15 41 23 9 2 5 207.1 214 82 65 95 3.56 4.28 (+17%) 3762.4
1940 NY1 NL 10 11 37 21 4 1 2 166.2 185 91 68 91 4.91 4.21 (-17%) 1389.6
1941 NY1 NL 8 11 42 22 9 3 1 194.1 181 65 61 100 3.01 3.94 (+24%) 1273.4
1942 NY1 NL 11 5 23 17 12 2 1 143.2 122 42 33 61 2.63 3.57 (+26%) 1094.2
1943 NY1 NL 9 13 34 28 6 2 0 186.1 184 66 69 55 3.19 3.50 (+9%) -958.6
1944 NY1 NL 2 2 13 10 1 0 0 64.1 78 29 19 15 4.06 3.57 (-13%) -933.3
Career · 8 seasons 86 80 272 179 65 13 16 1,453.2 1,446 552 431 660 3.42 — 14,571

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

Cliff Melton — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
272 469 28 77 4 2 0 32 0 20 108 .164 .198 .181 .380 -3,236

Career AVG .164 vs. league average .265 across their career seasons — 38.2% below league average.

Career OBP .198 vs. league average .334 across their career seasons — 40.5% below league average.

Career SLG .181 vs. league average .375 across their career seasons — 51.6% below league average.

Career OPS .380 vs. league average .708 across their career seasons — 46.4% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Cliff Melton — Season-by-Season Batting
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1937 NY1 NL 46 82 3 10 0 0 0 5 0 1 21 .122 .276 (-56%) .342 (-61%) .398 (-69%) .740 (-66%) -875.3
1938 NY1 NL 36 80 7 14 2 0 0 6 0 2 14 .175 .272 (-36%) .341 (-43%) .392 (-49%) .734 (-46%) -604.4
1939 NY1 NL 41 66 2 12 1 0 0 6 0 1 10 .182 .274 (-34%) .342 (-43%) .393 (-50%) .735 (-47%) -503.3
1940 NY1 NL 37 54 6 12 1 1 0 3 0 2 14 .222 .267 (-17%) .335 (-25%) .387 (-28%) .722 (-27%) -242.4
1941 NY1 NL 42 61 2 7 0 0 0 4 0 2 16 .115 .262 (-56%) .332 (-57%) .373 (-69%) .705 (-63%) -605.8
1942 NY1 NL 23 47 5 11 0 0 0 5 0 4 12 .234 — — — — -141.0
1943 NY1 NL 34 54 3 8 0 1 0 2 0 8 14 .148 .255 (-42%) .324 (-21%) .346 (-47%) .671 (-34%) -263.9
1944 NY1 NL 13 25 0 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 7 .120 — — — — 0.0
Career · 8 seasons 272 469 28 77 4 2 0 32 0 20 108 .164 — — — — -3,236

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

Playoff Career Batting

Cliff Melton — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
3 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 .000

Playoff Batting by Year

Cliff Melton — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1937 WS NY1 3 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

Cliff Melton — Playoff Career Pitching
W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
0 2 3 2 0 11.0 12 6 6 7 4.91

Playoff Pitching by Year

Cliff Melton — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1937 WS NY1 0 2 3 2 0 11.0 12 6 6 7 4.91

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (544 games) →

Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).

Batting — Home / Away

Cliff Melton — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home1312331642016.180
Away1412361235016.148

Pitching — Home / Away

Cliff Melton — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home131760.17242832083553.35
Away141692.27232752233073.57

Last 10 Games — Batting

Cliff Melton — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1944-09-29 NY1STLW 201000000
1944-09-24 NY1PITL 301000001
1944-09-21 NY1CHCL 200000001
1944-09-17 NY1PHIL 200000001
1944-06-24 NY1BSNL 000000000
1944-06-18 NY1BSNW 300000000
1944-06-04 NY1PITL 000000000
1944-05-27 NY1STLL 200000001
1944-05-19 NY1CHCL 300000000
1944-05-07 NY1BSNL 000000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Cliff Melton — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1944-09-29 NY1STL — 7.0722102
1944-09-24 NY1PIT L 10.01333110
1944-09-21 NY1CHC — 4.2200110
1944-09-17 NY1PHI L 5.21044220
1944-06-24 NY1BSN — 0.0222000
1944-06-18 NY1BSN W 7.0611430
1944-06-04 NY1PIT — 0.0211000
1944-05-27 NY1STL — 5.0533402
1944-05-19 NY1CHC — 6.1321220
1944-05-07 NY1BSN — 0.0100000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Cliff Melton — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 272 0 45 397 16 15

Season-by-Season Fielding

Cliff Melton — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1937 NY1 P 46 0 10 68 1 3
1938 NY1 P 36 0 5 64 4 1
1939 NY1 P 41 0 6 49 4 0
1940 NY1 P 37 0 6 38 0 4
1941 NY1 P 42 0 4 58 2 1
1942 NY1 P 23 0 7 44 1 1
1943 NY1 P 34 0 6 57 3 4
1944 NY1 P 13 0 1 19 1 1

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Cliff Melton — Career Games by Position
Position Games
Pitcher 272

Award Voting History

Cliff Melton — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1937 Most Valuable Player NL 11th 17.0 80 0

Most Similar Players

Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.

Career Spans

Cliff Melton (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Bob Moose
    76-71, 3.50 ERA
  2. 96
    Vern Ruhle
    67-88, 3.73 ERA
  3. 94
    John Buzhardt
    71-96, 3.66 ERA
  4. 94
    Frank Sullivan
    97-100, 3.60 ERA
  5. 94
    Roger Wolff
    52-69, 3.41 ERA
  6. 94
    Luke Hamlin
    73-76, 3.77 ERA

Cliff Melton: the record in brief

According to the bio, Cliff Melton debuted on April 25, 1937 and played a final game on September 29, 1944. Melton spent the whole of the career shown here with one club, the New York Giants. Melton played primarily as a pitcher and threw and hit left-handed. The bio adds a birth date on January 3, 1912, in Brevard, NC, USA and a listed size of 6-foot-5 and 203 pounds. Melton died on July 28, 1986, in Baltimore, MD, USA. Cliff Melton was the playing name; the full given name is Clifford George.

Melton pitched in 272 games, starting 179, and finished with a 86-80 record and 3.42 ERA. Also on Melton's record: 660 strikeouts, 65 complete games, 13 shutouts, and 16 saves. The leagues Melton pitched in allowed 3.97 earned runs per nine over those seasons, so the career ERA was 13.8% better than average. 1937 brought Melton a season-high 20 wins.

Frequently Asked Questions about Cliff Melton

What years did Cliff Melton play?
Cliff Melton played in Major League Baseball from 1937 to 1944.
Was Cliff Melton a pitcher?
Yes. Cliff Melton pitched in the major leagues, recording 86 wins and 660 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Cliff Melton hit?
Cliff Melton hit 0 career home runs with 77 hits.
What teams did Cliff Melton play for?
Cliff Melton played for one team, the New York Giants (1937–1944).
What awards did Cliff Melton win?
Cliff Melton was selected to 1 All-Star Game.
What were Cliff Melton's career stats?
In 272 games, Cliff Melton went 86-80 with a 3.42 ERA, 660 strikeouts, 1,453.2 innings pitched, and 16 saves. At the plate he had 77 hits and 0 home runs.
What position did Cliff Melton play?
Cliff Melton played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Cliff Melton and how much did he weigh?
Cliff Melton was listed at 6 feet 5 inches and 203 pounds.
What was Cliff Melton's career ERA?
Cliff Melton finished with a 3.42 career ERA, going 86-80 with 660 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Cliff Melton have?
Cliff Melton recorded 660 career strikeouts.
Is Cliff Melton in the Hall of Fame?
No. Cliff Melton has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
How many All-Star Games did Cliff Melton make?
Cliff Melton was selected to 1 All-Star Game.