Clay Smith

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1938-1940)

Clay Smith was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1938 to 1940 for the Cleveland Guardians and the Detroit Tigers, a span of 3 seasons. Across 18 career appearances, he went 1-1 with a 5.49 ERA and 17 strikeouts.

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 1–1
ERA 5.49
WHIP 1.65
SO 17
Pitcher PIV -447.9
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
6'2" / 190 lb
Born
9/11/1914 in Cambridge, KS, USA
Died
3/5/2002 in Winfield, KS, USA
MLB Debut
1938-09-13
Last Game
1940-09-22

Full name: Clay Jamieson Smith

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Career Pitching Statistics

Clay Smith — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
1 1 18 1 0 0 0 39.1 50 24 4 15 17 5.49 -447.9

Career ERA 5.49 vs. league average 4.28 across their career seasons — 28.3% worse than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Clay Smith — Season-by-Season Pitching
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1938 CLE AL 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 11.0 18 8 2 3 6.55 4.35 (-51%) 20.1
1940 DET AL 1 1 14 1 0 0 0 28.1 32 16 13 14 5.08 4.21 (-21%) -468.0
Career · 2 seasons 1 1 18 1 0 0 0 39.1 50 24 15 17 5.49 — -448

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

Clay Smith — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
18 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 6 .000 .083 .000 .083 0

Career AVG .000 vs. league average .270 across their career seasons — 100.0% below league average.

Career OBP .083 vs. league average .338 across their career seasons — 75.4% below league average.

Career SLG .000 vs. league average .390 across their career seasons — 100.0% below league average.

Career OPS .083 vs. league average .729 across their career seasons — 88.6% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Clay Smith — 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
1938 CLE AL 4 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 .000 — — — — 0.0
1940 DET AL 14 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 .000 — — — — 0.0
Career · 2 seasons 18 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 6 .000 — — — — 0

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

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

Playoff Batting by Year

Clay Smith — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1940 WS DET 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

Clay Smith — Playoff Career Pitching
W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
0 0 1 0 0 4.0 1 1 3 1 2.25

Playoff Pitching by Year

Clay Smith — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1940 WS DET 0 0 1 0 0 4.0 1 1 3 1 2.25

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (36 games) →

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

Batting — Home / Away

Clay Smith — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home1350000.000
Away560000.000

Pitching — Home / Away

Clay Smith — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home1319.22511695.03
Away519.22512985.49

Last 10 Games — Batting

Clay Smith — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1940-09-22 DETCLEL 100000001
1940-09-20 DETCLEW 000000000
1940-09-18 DETPHAL 000000000
1940-09-14 DETNYYL 000000000
1940-09-03 DETCHWL 200000000
1940-08-21 DETNYYL 100000001
1940-08-16 DETCHWL 000000000
1940-08-12 DETCLEL 200000001
1940-08-02 DETBOSL 000000000
1940-07-30 DETNYYL 000000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Clay Smith — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1940-09-22 DETCLE — 0.2233111
1940-09-20 DETCLE — 1.1000100
1940-09-18 DETPHA — 0.1000010
1940-09-14 DETNYY — 2.0100020
1940-09-03 DETCHW — 6.1731320
1940-08-21 DETNYY — 4.0300120
1940-08-16 DETCHW — 1.0211000
1940-08-12 DETCLE — 5.1855131
1940-08-02 DETBOS — 1.0100000
1940-07-30 DETNYY — 0.1000000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Clay Smith — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 18 0 2 12 0 0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Clay Smith — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1938 CLE P 4 0 1 2 0 0
1940 DET P 14 0 1 10 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Clay Smith — Career Games by Position
Position Games
Pitcher 18

College History

Clay Smith — College History
School Name City State Years Attended
Southwestern College Winfield KS 1932, 1933, 1934

Clay Smith: the record in brief

The profile opens with Clay Smith's first major league game on September 13, 1938; the last one listed came on September 22, 1940. Club by club, the record runs the Cleveland Indians (1938) and the Detroit Tigers (1940). Born on September 11, 1914, in Cambridge, KS, USA, Smith is listed as a pitcher and threw and hit right-handed. Smith's listed size is 6'2" and 190 pounds. Smith died on March 5, 2002, in Winfield, KS, USA. Clay Smith was the playing name; the full given name is Clay Jamieson.

The pitching table credits Smith with a 1-1 record and a 5.49 ERA in 18 games. The totals include 17 strikeouts. Against a 4.28 league ERA for the same seasons, the 5.49 mark was 28.3% worse. In 1940, one of the busiest seasons, Smith posted a 5.08 ERA; the league figure that year was 4.21.

Pitching in the playoffs, Smith went 0-0 with a 2.25 ERA in 1 games. Those appearances came in 1940.

Frequently Asked Questions about Clay Smith

What years did Clay Smith play?
Clay Smith played in Major League Baseball from 1938 to 1940.
Was Clay Smith a pitcher?
Yes. Clay Smith pitched in the major leagues, recording 1 wins and 17 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Clay Smith hit?
Clay Smith hit 0 career home runs.
What was Clay Smith's career batting average?
Clay Smith batted .000 over his career, with 0 hits in 11 at bats.
What was Clay Smith's career ERA?
Clay Smith finished with a 5.49 career ERA, going 1-1 with 17 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Clay Smith have?
Clay Smith recorded 17 career strikeouts.