| Clint Courtney | |
|---|---|
 circa 1953 | |
| Catcher | |
| Born: March 16, 1927 Hall Summit, Louisiana, U.S. | |
| Died: June 16, 1975 (aged 48) Rochester, New York, U.S. | |
Batted: Left Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 29, 1951, for the New York Yankees | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| June 24, 1961, for the Baltimore Orioles | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .268 |
| Home runs | 38 |
| Runs batted in | 313 |
| Teams | |
Clinton Dawson Courtney (March 16, 1927 – June 16, 1975), nicknamed "Scrap Iron", was an American professional baseball catcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees (1951), St. Louis Browns / Baltimore Orioles (1952–1954, 1960, 1961), Chicago White Sox (1955), Washington Senators (1955–1959) and Kansas City Athletics (1961). He batted left-handed and threw right-handed.
Courtney was born in Louisiana, growing up there and in Arkansas. After serving in the United States Army during World War II, he was signed as a catcher by the New York Yankees. Playing minor league baseball for them for the next few seasons, he was involved in several fights. After one game with the Yankees in 1951, he was traded to the Browns in 1952 at the urging of Rogers Hornsby, St. Louis's manager. Courtney won The Sporting News American League Rookie of the Year, batting .286. Both that season and the next, he was involved in on-the-field fights with Billy Martin, whom he had battled in the minor leagues several seasons before. Courtney remained the starting catcher for the Browns when they moved to Baltimore in 1954 and became the Orioles. Then, he was traded to the White Sox.
Used as the backup to Sherm Lollar by Chicago, Courtney only lasted half a season with the White Sox before he was traded to the Senators. He finished out the 1955 season with Washington and spent the next four years there, appearing in a career-high 134 games for the ballclub in 1958. Injuries afflicted him in 1959, and he was traded back to Baltimore for the 1960 season, where he became the first catcher to wear an oversized mitt while catching knuckleball pitcher Hoyt Wilhelm. Traded to Kansas City for 1961, he was returned to Baltimore after playing one game for the Athletics. Accepting an assignment to the minor leagues halfway through the 1961 season, he played minor league ball for the next few seasons, following Oriole manager Paul Richards into the Houston Colt .45's organization.
Once his playing career ended, Courtney managed in the minor leagues, first in Houston's organization, and then for affiliates of the Atlanta Braves. He hoped to be a major league manager one day and came close to being named Atlanta's manager in 1974, though the team settled on Clyde King instead. However, while serving as the manager of the Richmond Braves in 1975, Courtney died of a heart attack while on a road trip with the team.