“He [Ray Winder] hit .267 according to the official averages, but Winder claims his hitting is a bigger hits in the ‘clutch’ with men in a position to score and drives hard to either field.” Joplin Globe, March 19, 1922, p10 (Also appeared in other papers)
Previous earliest use (Dickson Baseball Dictionary, 3rd edition, 2009):
1ST USE. 1925. “Twice thereafter he delivered in the clutch and finally [Tris] Speaker put him in right field” (The Sporting News, May 14; Benjamin Zimmer).
