Tuesday, April 17, 2018

Interregnum Players

Not every player gets to be a part of the championship teams. Some lucky (or unlucky) few do, however, get to join the roster in the aftermath of a championship and skip out just before the next one. In so doing, they become icons of the years in between.

The term I have coined for such a man is an "Interregnum Player." What are the exact criteria?

1. He must not have played for the franchise in question the season they won a World Series (though I do make a slight exception for one player).

2. He must have played for the franchise in question in at least 80% of the seasons between two championships. The Eighty-Percenters are marked with an asterisk below.

Here's the full list, in alphabetical order:

NameYears With Team
Mike Adamson1967-1969 BAL
Doug Baker1988-1990 MIN
Dave Berg*1998-2001 FLA
Michael Bowden2008-2012 BOS
Greg Brock*1982-1986 LAD
Gino Cimoli1956-1958 BRO/LAD
Donn Clendenon*1961-1968 PIT
Wilbur Cooper*1912-1924 PIT
Vic Darensbourg1998-2002 FLA
Ryan Dempster1998-2002 FLA
Larry Doyle*1907-16, 1918-1920 NYG
Bill Drescher1944-1946 NYY
Jim Dwyer1988-1990 MIN
Art Fletcher*1909-1920 NYG
Fred Frankhouse1927-1930 STL
Jason Giambi*2002-2008 NYY
Rick Honeycutt*1983-1987 LAD
Randy Jackson1956-1958 BRO/LAD
Freddie Lindstrom*1924-1932 NYG
Jed Lowrie*2008-2011 BOS
Ryan Ludwick2007-2010 STL
Don Mattingly*1982-1995 NYY
Al McBean*1961-68, 1970 PIT
Bill McGee1935-1941 STL
Kevin Millar1998-2002 FLA
Johnny Mize*1936-1941 STL
John Moses1988-1990 MIN
Manny Mota*1969-1980 LAD
Mike Mussina2001-2008 NYY
Steve Roser1944-1946 NYY
Brendan Ryan2007-2010 STL
Jesus Sanchez*1998-2001 FLA
Roy Sherid1929-1931 NYY
Ted Simmons*1968-1980 STL
Mario Soto*1977-1988 CIN
Don Sutton1966-1980 LAD
Russ Van Atta1933-1935 NYY
Preston Wilson1998-2002 FLA

Some of you are now rightfully pointing out that Don Sutton rejoined the Dodgers for the 1988 season, when they won the World Series, so he technically shouldn't qualify for this list based on the original criteria. However, I decided to make an exception for him, because A. there was a significant gap between his rejoining the Dodgers and his original stint, B. he was released before the end of the 1988 season and didn't get to participate in the World Series, and C. how often do you get a chance to include a guy who fits a 15-year championship gap so precisely? He had to be in here. He might be the most perfect example of the Interregnum Player if not for that technicality.