Cliff Markle

He might not be a household name today, but in 1916 Cliff Markle was called the “Find of the Baseball Season” and touted as one of the best up-and-coming pitchers of his day.1 He was also identified as the first major-league baseball player killed in World War I.2 So, that raises two questions:

• If he was so great, why is he little remembered today?
• Also, if he was killed during the war, how did he play baseball after the Treaty of Versailles?

The life of Cliff Markle is an interesting study of a man who could have been one of the greats but was plagued with a massive ego and a disagreeable personality.

On May 3, 1894, Clifford Monroe Markle was born in Dravosburg, Pennsylvania, a hamlet located on the outskirts of Pittsburgh. His parents were Joseph Markle (1849-1910), a painter of Alsatian descent, and his wife Elizabeth (née Myers: 1856-1945).3 The exact year of the family’s move to what is now the Pittsburgh enclave of Lincoln Place is unknown. However, according to the 1900 census, the family was living in “Mifflin” with Joseph’s occupation listed as “riveter.”4 The 1910 US Census places the family living on Woodlawn Avenue in Lincoln Park.5 Around this time, a young Cliff Markle learned his future trade on the local baseball field.

In a July 2002 article titled “History of Lincoln Place,” Frank V. Allison stated, “Early in the history of the town we had a baseball team. It was the champion team of the district. … One of the players, Cliff Markle, made the big leagues. He played for Cincinnati in the National League and later for the New York Yankees in the American League.”6 (Markle’s time with the Reds was actually sandwiched between two stints as a Yankee.)

From 1909-1912 Cliff played for the Lincoln Place Juniors, a local amateur nine. In 1909 with Markle on the mound, the team won 37 out of 39 games.7 In 1912 he pitched for Homestead High School, helping his team win the high school championship. A year later, in 1913, he helped a club from Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania, capture the pennant in the County League, winning 18 of 20 outings.8 As a result, it didn’t take long for the name Markle to gain attention in the baseball world.

On February 26, 1913, the Pittsburgh Gazette Times reported that Markle was off to pitch for the Galveston Pirates of the Class B minor Texas League.9 He went 0-1 in two appearances there before being let go. Markle then traveled north to play with the Morristown (Tennessee) Jobbers of the Class D Appalachian League. Shortly after arriving, Markle established himself as one of the team’s top pitchers,10 with the Knoxville Sentinel referring to him as Mr. “Christy Mathewson” Markle.11 Over 33 appearances, he posted an excellent 18-10 (.643) log.

On September 15, the Sentinel reported the first of the many strange twists in the Cliff Markle story. The newspaper stated that Markle was sold to the National League’s Cincinnati Reds but failed to show up. No reasons were given – he just decided not to go. At least this is how the story was reported in 1913.12 However, in 1915 it was revealed that Markle reported but was cut from the team during spring training because of his drinking into the wee hours of the morning. Reds manager Buck Herzog stated that Markle would arrive back at the hotel between three and four AM. Ironically, right after Markle was cut, a letter arrived from his mother addressed to Herzog. She asked him to watch over Cliff like a father and to keep him from drinking.13

The following season, Markle performed even better for the Norfolk Tars of the Class C Virginia League, going 31-9 (.775) and leading the circuit’s hurlers in wins, strikeouts (265), and ERA (2.53).14 At the close of the season, another strange episode in the career of Cliff Markle took place when a clerical error determined his next move.

In 1915, Markle was sold to the Waco (Texas) Navigators in the Class B Texas League for $400. Waco wanted Markle but thought that Norfolk wanted too much money for him. Markle was transferred to Waco by minor league secretary John H. Farrell at the draft price of $400, thus undercutting what Norfolk wanted. Regardless of Norfolk’s feelings about the matter, Markle was heading to Texas.15

The 1915 season was a turning point for the young right-handed twirler and hitter. On March 13, Markle, now a member of the Navigators, held the second squad of the New York Giants to one hit over six innings and secured a 6-0 victory.16 On August 2, the Waco Morning News commented that Markle was pitching “big league ball for Waco.”17 Just a few days later, the Virginia Pilot and Norfolk Landmark reported that Markle had been bought by the New York Yankees.18 During his time with the pennant-winning Navigators, Markle went 19-11 (.643) with a Texas League-leading 228 strikeouts.19

On September 18, 1915, Markle made an impressive major-league debut against the Chicago White Sox, throwing five innings of two-hit, one-run relief in a 7-3 New York loss. A week later, Markle notched his first victory, setting down the St. Louis Browns, 5-1, in the second game of a doubleheader.20 Another complete-game victory completed Markle’s New York audition, giving him a 2-0 record with a sparking 0.39 ERA in 23 innings pitched for the Yankees.

Before the 1916 season began, newspapers focused on Markle’s personality rather than his performance. On February 24, the Baltimore Sun reported that Cliff thought too highly of himself, that he didn’t associate with either the rookies or the veteran players, and that he strutted around like a movie star.21 And this wasn’t the only time Markle was accused of being pompous. On April 6, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram wrote, “Several New York scribes have accused Cliff Markle of having the ‘swell head.’’’22 The Telegram reiterated the aloofness charge, stating that while in Waco, Markle did not associate with his teammates – or talk to anyone, for that matter. He also dressed flashy and thought a great deal of himself. The Telegram review, however, was not entirely negative, pointing out that “There have been some pretty cool young propositions in the great American game, but none cooler than Markle, a pitching icicle, if there ever was one.”23

The early part of the 1916 season was filled with similar praise for Markle’s performance on the mound. On April 27, Markle shut out the Red Sox, leading the Yankees to a 9-0 win.24 According to the Daily Times (Tampa) “Since joining the Yankees last September, Markle has taken part in five games, four and one-half to be correct , and during that time he has allowed only two earned runs, or an average of .44 for each nine inning game, a record in itself, that stands above anything achieved by a young pitcher in the history of the national pastime.”25

The streak of good fortune that had begun with 23 innings at the end of 1915 continued through his first 18 innings in 1916. By July, however, his pitching had become unreliable to the point that the Yankees placed Markle on waivers.26 But he remained on the roster until August, when New York traded him to the Toronto Maple Leafs of the AA International League for Urban Shocker. Markle finished out the season there, going 4-6 (.400) in 11 appearances for the Leafs.27 

The 1917 season started out with Markle still Toronto property, but he never reported for spring training. Rather, in May he wrote a letter to club president J. J. McCaffery stating that he was quitting baseball. But if he ever decided to return, he would report to the Leafs.28 Thereafter and for the next two seasons, Markle remained apart from Organized Baseball. This set the stage for one of the most remarkable stories in baseball history – it might be the first recorded instance of a player returning from the dead.

After leaving the game, Markle enlisted in the US Marines and saw action in France during “The Great War.” On May 13, 1918, the Philadelphia Evening Public Ledger reported that Markle was listed as “missing” on military casualty reports.29 Thereafter, various newspapers reported that he was missing, killed, or had fallen into enemy hands.30 The Ottawa Citizen reported that New York fans intended to honor Markle’s memory as the first player to give his life in the cause.31 Yet strangely, in July that year it was also reported that Markle was going to be playing for the Clairton (Pennsylvania) ball club against the Davis A.A. of Southside.32 Nevertheless, it was widely reported that Markle was the first major-league baseball player killed in action.33

For almost two months the fate of Cliff Markle was a hot topic in newspaper sports sections, with his status going from missing to killed in action. Then on July 7, it was reported that he was not dead but in a prisoner of war camp in Limbourg, Belgium.34 The true story finally emerged a month later, when the New York Sun reported that Markle had been wounded at Chateau Thierry helping defend the road to Paris.35. The year 1918 ended with Markle recuperating from his injuries and preparing for a return to baseball.

On March 21, 1919, the Yankees sold Markle’s contract to the Salt Lake City Bees of the AA Pacific Coast League. In 44 games with the team, he posted an 18-15 (.545) record, with a 3.80 ERA over 320 innings.

After his turn in Salt Lake, Markle’s professional affiliation becomes difficult to pin down. But he began the 1920 season pitching for semipro clubs in Western Pennsylvania. In late June, he signed with the Atlanta Crackers of the Class A Southern Association.36 There, Markle revived his major-league prospects, posting 17-6 (1920) and 19-12 (1921) records for Atlanta.

In July 1921, Atlanta’s sale of Markle’s contract to the Cincinnati Reds drew a protest from the Yankees, which also asserted a claim upon Markle.37 The competing claims were ultimately resolved in Cincinnati’s favor by baseball commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis. Markle finished the 1921 season with a 2-6 (.250) record in 10 appearances for the Reds. Used primarily in relief the following year, he posted a 4-5 (.444) log, with a 3.81 ERA over 75 2/3 innings pitched for Cincinnati.

Prior to the start of the 1923 campaign, Markle, outfielder Chick Shorten, and cash were sent to the St. Paul Saints of the American Association in exchange for pitcher  Rube Benton.38 With his new club, Markle resumed pitching with success at the minor-league level, going  25-12 (.676) in 54 appearances for St. Paul.

On March 8, 1924, the Minnesota Morning Tribune reported that Markle had re-signed with St. Paul for the upcoming season.39 He began where left off the previous year, and on May 21, Markle won his fifth straight game for the team.40 However, on June 16 the Minnesota Daily Star informed readers that Markle, “the temperamental St, Paul pitching star,” upon hearing that the Yankees were interested in him, demanded to be sold at once.41 The hurler promptly got his wish, sold to New York for a reported $60,000.42

Markle’s final sojourn in the majors was brief, lasting but seven games. Going 0-3 with a bloated 8.87 ERA over 23 1/3 innings for New York, he was sold back to the Saints in mid-July.43 The remand to St. Paul brought the major-league career of Cliff Markle to a close. In 56 games during parts of five seasons, he posted a 12-17 (.414) record, with a 4.10 ERA in 234 2/3 innings pitched. Over that span, he allowed 235 base hits and 110 walks, while striking out 90.

Once back in St. Paul, Markle returned to form, completing the season with a handsome 19-9 (.690) log in 40 games. He then pitched in the Junior World Series against the Baltimore Orioles and led St. Paul to victory in the 10-game series.44

In 1925, Markle returned to St. Paul, but his record slipped to 13-18 (.418). After the season, he was sold to another erstwhile employer, the Atlanta Crackers. Commenting upon the move, the Minneapolis Daily Star stated that “Cliff is a mighty good pitcher but is so temperamental that he’s a bad customer for any club.”45 Markle stayed with Atlanta for both the 1926 and 1927 seasons, going a combined 26-31 (.456) before being sold to the Dallas Steers of the Texas League. In 1928, he pitched four games for Dallas before being given his walking papers in May.46 He was quickly picked up by the Omaha Crickets of the Class A Western League but was dropped less than a month later.47 That final release concluded Markle’s time in Organized Baseball. Although he had not seen great success in the majors, Markle had been a first-rate minor-league hurler, posting a fine 211-144 (.594) record over 13 seasons.

His skills diminished by age, Markle ended up in the Southern Minnesota League (an independent and senior league) playing for Albert Lea (Minnesota) for a short time before being released.48 He ended the 1928 season on an unnamed semipro team in Omaha, Nebraska.49 The following year there is one mention of Markle playing for the Coatesville (Pennsylvania) baseball team in July but nothing more.50 His career as a professional baseball player was over.

When it came to life off the field, Markle led a very ordinary existence. On January 29, 1918, he married Florence Lichtenstein of Richmond, Virginia, in Washington, D.C.51 The occupation listed on his World War I draft card was “clerk at the American Steel and Wire Company in Braddock Pa.” At the time, the couple lived in Lincoln Place.52 They remained together through various teams and career changes. In the 1930 census, they were living in Atlanta, Georgia, with Markle’s occupation listed as “foreman/construction.”53 However, sometime before 1940, the childless couple divorced.54

Markle got remarried sometime before 1940 to a Nell P. Duffy of Galveston, Texas. The 1940 census has them living in Greensburg, Indiana, with Markle’s occupation listed as “supervisor,” though of what is unclear.55 By the 1950 census the couple were residing in El Monte, California, with Markle’s occupation listed as “foreman building supplies.”56 The Markles spent the rest of their lives in California. Nell passed away on October 25, 1973, with Cliff following on May 24, 1974. They were buried in Resurrection Cemetery in Montebello, California.57

Acknowledgments

This story was reviewed by Gregory H. Wolf, Bill Lamb, and Rory Costello and fact-checked by Terry Bohn.

Photo credit: Cliff Markle, Trading Card Database.

Sources

In addition to the sources shown in the notes, the author used Baseball-Reference.com and the following. Ancestry.com, findagrave.com, Newspapers.com, US Census Bureau, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1930, 1940, 1950.

Historical Research Committee. History of Mifflin Township to West Mifflin Borough (‎Self-published, 1976).

Johnson, Lloyd and Wolff, Miles, Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball. (Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland, 2007).

Notes

1 “Additional Sports,” Lancaster (Pennsylvania) Intelligencer, May 1, 1916: 7.

2 “Sport Deaths Total High Since Last Year,” Los Angeles Record, May 30, 1918: 10.

3 1900 U.S. Census. Joseph Markle (1849-1910) – Find a Grave Memorial, accessed April 21, 2025.  Elizabeth Markle (1856-1945) – Find a Grave Memorial, accessed April 21, 2025.

4 1900 U.S. Census. This is most likely the Mifflin Township which Lincoln Place would be carved out of.

5 1910 U.S. Census. Woodlawn Avenue is a corruption of “Woodland Ave,” now modern-day Keefe Street.

6 Homestead and Mifflin Township Historical Society, Vol. 2, No. 7, July 2002, accessed: April 21, 2025.

7 “Something about Cliff Markle,” Pittsburgh Press, May 8, 1916: 28. “Markle Signed by American Chain,” Pittsburgh Press, March 7, 1920: 25.

8 “Something about Cliff Markle,” Pittsburgh Press, May 8, 1916: 28. “Markle Signed by American Chain,” above.

9 “Magnates—Players,” Pittsburgh Gazette Times, February 26, 1913: 10.

10 “Bingles,” Knoxville Sentinel, July 21, 1913: 12.

11 “No-Hit Twirler Knocked Out in Seventh Inning,” Knoxville Sentinel, August 25, 1913: 12.

12 “Merritt To Go Up,” Knoxville Sentinel, September 15, 1913: 12; “Ashville Club Gobbles Appalachians,” Knoxville Sentinel, December 11, 1913: 16.

13 “Regarding Clifford Markle,” Virginia-Pilot and Norfolk Landmark, March 1, 1915: 5.

14 Johnson, Lloyd and Wolff, Miles, Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball. (Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland, 2007), 253.

15 “Pitcher Clifford Markle Awarded to Waco Club,” Virginia-Pilot and Norfolk Landmark, January 25, 1915: 5.

16 “Markle Helps Beat Giants,” Virginia-Pilot and Norfolk Landmark, March 16, 1915: 11.

17  “Waco Pounds Out Win from Houston,” Waco (Texas) Morning News, August 2, 1915: 6.

18 “Clifford Markle Bought by New York Americans,” Virginia-Pilot and Norfolk Landmark, August 12, 1915: 9. The article gives the club name as the Americans, not Yankees.

19 Johnson, Llyod and Wolff, Miles, Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball. (Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland, 2007), 258. “Following the Ball,” Virginia-Pilot and Norfolk Landmark, September 13, 1915: 5.

20 “Two Games for Yankees,” New York Times, September 24, 1915: 9.

21 “Sunday Will Help Terps,” Baltimore Sun, February 26, 1916: 9.

22 “Kike’s Komment,” Fort Worth Star-Telegram, April 6, 1916: 10.

23 “Additional Sports,” Lancaster Intelligencer, May 1, 1916: 7.

24 “Recruit Beats Red Sox,” Oregon Daily Journal, April 27, 1916: 12.

25 “McGraw Overlooked a Winner When He Passed Cliff Markle By in 1914,” Tampa Daily Times, May 4, 1916: 12.

26 “Baseball Gossip,” Pittsburgh Press, July 15, 1916: 14.

27 “Baseball Gossip,” Brooklyn Daily Eagle, August 5, 1916: 15.

28 “Cliff Markle Loses His Arm and Quits Base Ball,” Omaha Bee, May 24, 1917: 7.

29 “Markle, Former Yank on the Casualty List,” Philadelphia Evening Public Ledger, May 13, 1918: 14.

30 “Cliff Markle in German Hands,” (Lancaster, Pennsylvania) New Era, May 14, 1918: 6.

31 “Cliff Markle Missing,” Ottawa Citizen, May 18, 1918: 8.

32 “Davis Team Practicing,” Pittsburgh Post, July 2, 1918: 11.

33 “Sport Deaths Total High Since Last Year,” Los Angeles Record, May 30, 1918: 10.

34 “Sport Briefs,” Springfield (Ohio) Sunday News, July 7, 1918: 19.

35 “Baseball Men as Officers in Army,” New York Sun, August 18, 1918: 65. The nature of Markle’s injury was not reported.

36 “Crackers Home Stay May Decide Fate in Pennant Race,” Atlanta Constitution, June 29, 1920: 10.

37 “Yankees Kick on Reds Using Cliff Markle,” Nashville Banner, August 2, 1921: 12.

38 “Players for Benton,” Dayton (Ohio) Daily News, March 9, 1923: 38.

39 “Cliff Markle Signs to Hurl for Saints Again,” Minneapolis Morning Tribune, March 8, 1924: 29.

40 “Tagging the Bases,” Minnesota Daily Star, May 21, 1924: 9.

41 “Star Hurler Demands He Be Sold at Once,” Minnesota Daily Star, June 16, 1924: 11.

42 Hubert M. Dustin, “Cliff Markle, Saints’ Leading Hurler, Sold to Yanks,” Minneapolis Morning Tribune, June 17, 1924: 16.

43 Charles Johnson, “The Sports Spyglass,” Minneapolis Daily Star, July 23, 1924: 7.

44 “The 1924 Junior World Series: The St. Paul Saints’ Magnificent Comeback,” The National Pastime (Vol. 28, 2008), accessed April 21, 2025.

45 “Kel Receiver Became Free at the Finish,” Minnesota Daily Star, November 7, 1925: 15.

46 “Hot Shots,” (Waco, Texas) News Tribune, May 1, 1928: 9.

47 “Crickets to Open Against Indians,” Omaha World-Herald, May 5, 1928: 16 and “Omaha Releases Markle,” (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal (Nebraska), June 1, 1928: 13.

48 “Markle Joins Tigers; Will Pitch Against Sherburn,” Evening Tribune (Albert Lea, Minnesota), June 7, 1928: 12.; “Rickard and Champion Near Breaking Point,” Minnesota Star, July 23, 1928: 12.

49; “The Billboard,” Lafayette (Indiana) Journal and Courier, August 30, 1928: 12.

50 “Local’s Eighth Inning Rally Falls Short, 6-4,” Atlantic City (New Jersey) Daily Press, July 1, 1929: 19.

51 U.S., Newspapers.com™ Marriage Index, 1800s-current – Ancestry.com accessed, April 21. 2025. Name spelled Liehteostein.

    Ancestry.com – Virginia, U.S., Birth Records, 1912-2015, Delayed Birth Records, 1721-1920, accessed, April 21, 2025.

52 Clifford M, Markle draft registration card.

53 1930 U.S. Census. 

54 1940 U.S. Census. Florence Lichtenstein Lein Markle (1893-1987) – Find a Grave Memorial accessed, April 21, 2025. Florence wound up moving into her sister’s home in North Carolina, where she passed away in 1987.

55 1940 U.S. Census.

56 1950 U.S. Census.

57 Clifford Monroe “Cliff” Markle (1894-1974) – Find a Grave Memorial accessed, April 21, 2025.  Nell P. Markle (1891-1973) – Find a Grave Memorial accessed, April 21, 2025.