Jesse Clyde Milan (MILL-in;[1] March 25, 1887 – March 3, 1953) was an American professional baseball player who spent his entire career as an outfielder with the Washington Senators (1907–1922). He was not a powerful batter, but was adept at getting on base and was fleet of foot, receiving the nickname "Deerfoot" for his speed. He set a modern-rules record for stolen bases in a season with 88 in 1912, a mark surpassed three years later by Ty Cobb. Milan was mostly a center fielder.
| Clyde Milan | |
|---|---|
Milan with the Washington Senators in 1913.
| |
| Outfielder / Manager | |
| Born: (1887-03-25)March 25, 1887 Linden, Tennessee, U.S. | |
| Died: March 3, 1953(1953-03-03) (aged 65) Orlando, Florida, U.S. | |
Batted: Left Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| August 19, 1907, for the Washington Senators | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 22, 1922, for the Washington Senators | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .285 |
| Hits | 2,100 |
| Home runs | 17 |
| Runs batted in | 617 |
| Stolen bases | 495 |
| Managerial record | 69–85 |
| Winning % | .448 |
| Teams | |
| As player
As manager | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
He was born in Linden, Tennessee and was listed as 5 feet 9 inches (1.75 m) tall and 168 pounds (76 kg). Like Cobb, Milan batted left-handed and threw right-handed. In 16 seasons with Washington, he batted .285 with 17 home runs and 617 runs batted in over 1982 games. He accumulated 495 stolen bases (tied for 37th all-time with Willie Keeler) and 1004 runs scored. Milan had 2100 hits in 7359 career at bats. He ended with a .353 all-time on-base percentage. Defensively, he recorded a .953 fielding percentage at all three outfield positions.
As a player-manager (1922 only), with the Senators, he was 69–85, a .448 lifetime winning percentage, after which he managed minor league teams and spent 17 seasons (1928–29 and 1938 until his death) as a coach with Washington. His brother, Horace Milan, was briefly his teammate with the Senators.
Milan suffered a fatal heart attack in Orlando, Florida on March 3, 1953, during the Senators' spring training camp, where Milan was beginning what would have been his 18th season as a Washington coach.
