Early Years
Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Clarkson was one of five sons of a prosperous jeweler. Clakson had two brothers who were also major league pitchers: Dad Clarkson and Walter Clarkson. The three Clarkson brothers rank third in wins by brothers behind the Niekro and Perry brothers. The Clarkson's also had two maternal cousins, Walter Hackett and Mortimer "Mert" Hackett who played professional baseball.
After attending business school and playing semipro ball, Clarkson signed as a free agent with the Worcester Ruby Legs of the National League in 1882. Clarkson played his first major league game at age 20 on May 2, 1882. He played in three games for the Ruby Legs, finishing with a 1-2 record in 24 innings. The Worcester team folded after the 1882 season, and Clarkson pitched in the minors the following two years.
Read more about this topic: John Clarkson
Famous quotes containing the words early and/or years:
“The Americans never use the word peasant, because they have no idea of the class which that term denotes; the ignorance of more remote ages, the simplicity of rural life, and the rusticity of the villager have not been preserved among them; and they are alike unacquainted with the virtues, the vices, the coarse habits, and the simple graces of an early stage of civilization.”
—Alexis de Tocqueville (1805–1859)
“He worked for twenty years to get his contemporaries to believe—and in the end he succeeded. Meanwhile, however, his adversaries also succeeded: he could no longer believe in himself.”
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)