Jim Clancy (baseball)
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James Clancy (born December 18, 1955) is a former starting pitcher in
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
who played for the
Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...
(1977–88), Houston Astros (1989–91) and
Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bos ...
(1991). He batted and threw right-handed.


Texas Rangers

Clancy attended St. Rita of Cascia High School on the south side of Chicago and was drafted by the Texas Rangers in the fourth round of the 1974 MLB Draft. Clancy played rookie level baseball with the Rangers
Gulf Coast League The Florida Complex League (FCL) is a rookie-level Minor League Baseball league that operates in Florida, United States. Before 2021, it was known as the Gulf Coast League (GCL). Together with the Arizona Complex League (ACL), it forms the l ...
team, where he had a record of 3–3 with a 2.72 ERA in nine starts. The Rangers moved Clancy up to the Anderson Rangers of the
Western Carolinas League Portion of plaque displaying likeness of John Henry Moss at Municipal Stadium, Hagerstown, Maryland The Western Carolinas League was a Class D (1948–52; 1960–62) and a low Class A (1963–79) full-season league in American minor league base ...
for the 1975 season, however, despite a respectable ERA of 3.83 in 23 starts, Clancy had a poor 6–13 record. Texas moved Clancy up to the San Antonio Brewers of the
Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...
in 1976, however, he had a rough season, posting a record of 6–8 with a 6.41 in 23 starts. He was left unprotected in the
1976 MLB Expansion Draft The 1976 MLB Expansion Draft was held November 5, 1976. This expansion draft was conducted by Major League Baseball to stock the major league rosters of the Toronto Blue Jays and the Seattle Mariners, new major league expansion franchises establis ...
, and was selected by the
Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...
with the sixth pick.


Toronto Blue Jays

Clancy began his Blue Jays career playing with the
Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...
AA affiliate, the
Jersey City Indians The Jersey Indians were a minor league baseball team based in Jersey City, New Jersey, which played in the Eastern League for the 1977 season in Jersey City, New Jersey. They were an AA affiliate of the Cleveland Indians. The team's home stadium ...
of the Eastern League. Despite having a poor season with the team, where he had a 5–13 record and 4.88 ERA in 20 starts, the Blue Jays called him up to the Major League level. Clancy made his MLB debut on July 26, 1977, against the Texas Rangers at
Exhibition Stadium Canadian National Exhibition Stadium (commonly known as Exhibition Stadium or CNE Stadium) was a multi-purpose stadium that formerly stood on the Exhibition Place grounds, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Originally built for Canadian National E ...
. Clancy started the game, however, he lasted only two innings, allowing five runs as the Rangers routed Toronto 14–0. Clancy earned his first major league victory in his next start, pitching a complete game, allowing seven hits and one earned run as Toronto defeated the Milwaukee Brewers 3–2. Clancy would finish the year with a 4–9 record with a 5.05 ERA. In 1978, Clancy spent his first full season with the Blue Jays, earning a 10–12 record with a 4.09 ERA in 31 games. He had an injury-plagued season in 1979, where he had a 2–7 record and a 5.51 ERA in 12 games. Clancy had a solid season in 1980, as he had a 13–16 record with a 3.30 ERA and 15 complete games, before struggling in the 1981 season, as Clancy had a 6–12 record with a 4.90 ERA. In 1982, Clancy posted his first winning season, as he had a 16–14 record, starting a league high 40 games, and appearing in the
1982 Major League Baseball All-Star Game The 1982 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 53rd midseason exhibition between the all-stars of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL), the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was played on July 13, 198 ...
, where he pitched a perfect fourth inning. Clancy had another solid season in 1983, compiling a record of 15–11 with a 3.91 ERA, as the Blue Jays had their first ever winning season. Clancy struggled in 1984, as he had a losing record for the first time in three seasons, with a 13–15 record, and a 4.64 ERA in a league high 36 starts. He led the league in earned runs allowed with 125. The 1985 season would be injury plagued, however, Clancy pitched effectively, earning a 9–6 record and a 3.78 ERA as Toronto made the post-season for the first time in team history. The injured Clancy pitched in only one inning in the
1985 ALCS The 1985 American League Championship Series was played between the Kansas City Royals and the Toronto Blue Jays from October 8 to 16. Major League Baseball decided to extend the Championship Series in both leagues from its best-of-five (1969–1 ...
as Toronto lost to the Kansas City Royals in seven games. He had a disappointing 1986 season, as Clancy posted a 14–14 record with a 3.94 ERA, followed by a strong year in 1987, in which he had a 15–11 record and a 3.54 ERA as the Blue Jays failed to qualify for the playoffs in both years. Clancy spent his final season with Toronto in 1988, where he struggled with a record of 11-13 and a 4.49 ERA, as the Jays once again missed the playoffs.


Houston Astros

Clancy became a free agent after the 1988 season, and signed a contract with the Houston Astros. He made his Astros debut on April 8, 1989, pitching 8.1 innings and allowing two runs in a 6–2 win over the
San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...
at The Astrodome. He would struggle as the season went along, sporting a record of 7–14 with a 5.08 ERA as the Astros finished in third place in the
National League West The National League West is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. This division was formed for the 1969 season when the National League expanded to 12 teams by adding the San Diego Padres and the Montreal Expos. For purpose of keeping a re ...
. Clancy split time between starting and working out of the bullpen in 1990, where he struggled with a 2–8 record and a 6.51 ERA, and had a stint with the
Tucson Toros The Tucson Toros were a professional baseball team based in Tucson, Arizona, in the United States. The original Toros were a Triple-A minor league baseball team in the Pacific Coast League from 1969 to 1997, where they won the PCL Championship in ...
, the Astros AAA affiliate in the Pacific Coast League. In 1991, Clancy spent the season working out of the bullpen, and despite a 0–3 record, he was effective, as he had a 2.78 ERA in 30 games and earned five saves. On July 31, 1991, Clancy was traded to the
Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bos ...
for Matt Turner.


Atlanta Braves

Clancy appeared in 24 games with the
Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bos ...
, all out of the bullpen, as he posted a 3–2 record with a 5.71 ERA, helping Atlanta win the
National League West The National League West is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. This division was formed for the 1969 season when the National League expanded to 12 teams by adding the San Diego Padres and the Montreal Expos. For purpose of keeping a re ...
division. In the
1991 NLCS The 1991 National League Championship Series was played between the Atlanta Braves (94–68) and the Pittsburgh Pirates (98–64), with the Braves coming out on top in the Series 4–3. It was considered one of the best-pitched seven-game series ...
, Clancy made only one appearance, getting the only batter out that he faced as the Braves defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates to earn a spot in the
World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...
. Clancy pitched in three games during the
1991 World Series The 1991 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) held after the 1991 season. The 88th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League (AL) champion Minnesota Twins ...
, and earned his first ever post-season victory in the third game of the series as Atlanta defeated the Minnesota Twins 5–4 in twelve innings. Clancy finished the series with a 1–0 record with a 4.15 ERA, but the Twins won the series in seven games. Clancy became a free agent after the season, and signed a minor league deal with the Chicago Cubs, but he retired during spring training in 1992.Lefebvre springs Cubs into action
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Clancy, Jim 1955 births Living people Baseball pitchers American expatriate baseball players in Canada American League All-Stars Anderson Rangers players Atlanta Braves players Gulf Coast Rangers players Houston Astros players Jersey City Indians players Knoxville Blue Jays players Major League Baseball pitchers San Antonio Brewers players Toronto Blue Jays players Tucson Toros players