Not a big post here. Just letting you know I've updated the following pages in light of this year's award winners being announced:
Rookie of the Year Facts
The Second Place Award Winners
Friday, November 15, 2019
Thursday, October 31, 2019
Congrats Nats! plus some Updates
2019 has been a year for franchises' first championships: The NHL's St. Louis Blues won their first Stanley Cup, the NBA's Toronto Raptors won their first NBA title, and now the Washington Nationals have won their first World Series!
I've always had a place in my heart for the Nationals, as I live in an area where their games are broadcast, so they're semi-local. I also was a fan of the Expos, and seeing the franchise finally win it all was pretty exciting to me. From the beginning of the playoffs, they were the team I was hoping would take home the World Series trophy, and they did it. They got one for Mr. National, Ryan Zimmerman, who's nearing the end of his career, and a long list of veterans got their first as well. Really glad this happened. The Astros were a tough opponent, but the Nats stepped up when it counted most and got the job done. I can't think of a better ending to the 2019 baseball season.
Now that it's over, I've updated a few of my lists. You can check them out here:
The Run That Clinched It
Back-to-Back World Series With Different Franchises
One At-Bat, One Home Run
I've always had a place in my heart for the Nationals, as I live in an area where their games are broadcast, so they're semi-local. I also was a fan of the Expos, and seeing the franchise finally win it all was pretty exciting to me. From the beginning of the playoffs, they were the team I was hoping would take home the World Series trophy, and they did it. They got one for Mr. National, Ryan Zimmerman, who's nearing the end of his career, and a long list of veterans got their first as well. Really glad this happened. The Astros were a tough opponent, but the Nats stepped up when it counted most and got the job done. I can't think of a better ending to the 2019 baseball season.
Now that it's over, I've updated a few of my lists. You can check them out here:
The Run That Clinched It
Back-to-Back World Series With Different Franchises
One At-Bat, One Home Run
Tuesday, October 22, 2019
A List Updated After Nine Years: First World Series Homer in Franchise History
Some of you longtime readers may remember a list I made when the Rangers were in their first World Series back in 2010. Mitch Moreland was the first Ranger to homer in World Series play, and I thought it'd be fun to look back on who held the distinction for other franchises.
Now that the Nationals have played their first World Series game, it's time to update it. Instead of editing that old post with my outdated Google Sheet embed method, I'll put a table here:
If you go back and read that original post, you can see I classified each of these guys based on how fitting they were for the distinction, and I think Ryan Zimmerman definitely falls into the "Franchise Stars" category. Congrats, Mr. National, and let's go Nats!
Now that the Nationals have played their first World Series game, it's time to update it. Instead of editing that old post with my outdated Google Sheet embed method, I'll put a table here:
| Franchise | Batter | Pitcher | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pirates | Jimmy Sebring | Cy Young | 10/1/1903 |
| Red Sox | Patsy Dougherty | Sam Leever | 10/2/1903 |
| Cubs | Joe Tinker | Bill Donovan | 10/11/1908 |
| Tigers | Davy Jones | Babe Adams | 10/13/1909 |
| Athletics | Danny Murphy | Harry McIntire | 10/20/1910 |
| Giants | Larry Doyle | Charley Hall | 10/15/1912 |
| Braves | Hank Gowdy | Joe Bush | 10/12/1914 |
| Phillies | Fred Luderus | Rube Foster | 10/13/1915 |
| Dodgers | Hi Myers | Babe Ruth | 10/9/1916 |
| White Sox | Happy Felsch | Slim Sallee | 10/6/1917 |
| Indians | Elmer Smith | Burleigh Grimes | 10/10/1920 |
| Yankees | Babe Ruth | Phil Douglas | 10/9/1921 |
| Twins | Goose Goslin | Jack Bentley | 10/5/1924 |
| Cardinals | Billy Southworth | Urban Shocker | 10/3/1926 |
| Reds | Jimmy Ripple | Schoolboy Rowe | 10/3/1940 |
| Orioles | George McQuinn | Mort Cooper | 10/4/1944 |
| Mets | Donn Clendenon | Dave McNally | 10/12/1969 |
| Royals | Amos Otis | Bob Walk | 10/14/1980 |
| Brewers | Ted Simmons | Bob Forsch | 10/12/1982 |
| Padres | Kurt Bevacqua | Dan Petry | 10/10/1984 |
| Blue Jays | Joe Carter | Tom Glavine | 10/17/1992 |
| Marlins | Moises Alou | Orel Hershiser | 10/18/1997 |
| Diamondbacks | Craig Counsell | Mike Mussina | 10/27/2001 |
| Angels | Troy Glaus | Jason Schmidt | 10/19/2002 |
| Astros | Mike Lamb | Jose Contreras | 10/22/2005 |
| Rockies | Matt Holliday | Hideki Okajima | 10/27/2007 |
| Rays | Carl Crawford | Cole Hamels | 10/22/2008 |
| Rangers | Mitch Moreland | Jonathan Sanchez | 10/30/2010 |
| Nationals | Ryan Zimmerman | Gerrit Cole | 10/22/2019 |
| Mariners | ??? | ??? | ??? |
If you go back and read that original post, you can see I classified each of these guys based on how fitting they were for the distinction, and I think Ryan Zimmerman definitely falls into the "Franchise Stars" category. Congrats, Mr. National, and let's go Nats!
Tuesday, October 1, 2019
Oldest Ringless Players and Playoff Predicitons: 2019 Edition
Yes, folks, I'm still alive. I decided to take a break from compulsively updating this blog because it was getting to be too much of a distraction. But I'm back for playoff time, the part we all look forward to each season.
To start out, here's the annual Oldest Ringless Players list:
Atlanta Braves: Darren O'Day (b. October 22, 1982)
Houston Astros: Zack Greinke (b. October 21, 1983)
Los Angeles Dodgers: Rich Hill (b. March 11, 1980)
Milwaukee Brewers: Matt Albers (b. January 20, 1983)
Minnesota Twins: Nelson Cruz (b. July 1, 1980)
New York Yankees: Edwin Encarnacion (b. January 7, 1983)
Oakland Athletics: Joakim Soria (b. May 18, 1984)
St. Louis Cardinals: Matt Wieters (b. May 21, 1986)
Tampa Bay Rays: Eric Sogard (b. May 22, 1986)
Washington Nationals: Fernando Rodney (b. March 18, 1977)
I can still remember when it was rare for any players on this list to have been born in the 1980s. I've been doing this for a long time. Wouldn't it be great if Fernando Rodney, who seems to frequently show up on this blog around this time of year, finally got that ring? Hey, it could happen. The NHL's St. Louis Blues and the NBA's Toronto Raptors both won their first championships this season, so maybe 2019 is the year of franchises' first titles. The Nats would be perfect for that in baseball, and it'd be funny if it happened right after Bryce Harper left town. I can dream.
My preseason predictions actually weren't terribly far off, though obviously I didn't get everything right. For my predictions now that we have the real thing, here we go:
Stupid Wild Card Games That Nobody Wanted
Washington over Milwaukee
Tampa Bay over Oakland
Trying to predict a one-game playoff is a fool's errand, since it's basically a coin flip, but what the heck.
I think Washington is a better team than Milwaukee in terms of actual talent, and they don't have the injury problems the Brewers are facing. Throw in the fact that they're at home and Milwaukee's probably out of gas after going on a late-season tear to clinch a postseason spot, and I give the Nats the edge here. Personally, I'm rooting for them as well.
I pick Tampa Bay to beat Oakland because that's what my gut says. I'm rooting for Oakland, but I get a feeling that Charlie Morton's going to pitch a gem to put the Rays in the real playoffs.
National League Division Series
St. Louis over Atlanta
Los Angeles over Washington
I pick the Cardinals to beat the Braves because they're the Cardinals. Old school readers know how much I hate them and believe them to be evil. Mentally, I always give them the upper hand until they lose. The Dodgers have been too much of a powerhouse this year for me to think they'll be upset in the first round. You gotta go with them here.
American League Division Series
Houston over Tampa Bay
New York over Minnesota
While New York's starting rotation is a question mark and I'd love to see the Twins beat them, I just can't bring myself to pick against the Evil Empire in this matchup. The Twins seem jinxed against the Yankees in the playoffs, and until they beat them, I'm going to be pessimistic about their chances. I pick Houston over Tampa Bay because the Astros are simply the best team in baseball this year.
National League Championship Series
Los Angeles over St. Louis
The Cardinals might be evil, but the Dodgers are so good that I think it would be a huge upset for the Cardinals to beat them. Nothing's impossible in a short series, of course, but I'm still not convinced that the Cardinals haven't played above their heads this year. I pick L.A. to win its third straight pennant.
American League Championship Series
New York over Houston
Yes, Houston is the better team and they'll have home field advantage, but as I said at the beginning of the season, do you really think we're going to get out of this decade without seeing the Yankees win a pennant? Just when you think they're down, they come back to break your heart. That's the kind of franchise they are. Besides that, they're out for revenge after the Astros beat them in 2017, so this would seem the time to exact it.
World Series
New York over Los Angeles
Oh wow, look at this classic matchup. Why, it harkens back to the good old days of the 1950s when no one outside of New York ever won anything in October. It's also reminiscent of the battles between Lasorda's men and the Bronx Zoo pinstripers from the '70s and '80s. It doesn't get any better for baseball than this big-market matchup, does it? So who wins? Eh, let's go with the Yankees, because what could be more fitting? It would be terribly wrong if CC Sabathia couldn't close out his career with one more World Series ring and Brett Gardner retired hitless in World Series play. It's gotta happen. It's just gotta.
To start out, here's the annual Oldest Ringless Players list:
Atlanta Braves: Darren O'Day (b. October 22, 1982)
Houston Astros: Zack Greinke (b. October 21, 1983)
Los Angeles Dodgers: Rich Hill (b. March 11, 1980)
Milwaukee Brewers: Matt Albers (b. January 20, 1983)
Minnesota Twins: Nelson Cruz (b. July 1, 1980)
New York Yankees: Edwin Encarnacion (b. January 7, 1983)
Oakland Athletics: Joakim Soria (b. May 18, 1984)
St. Louis Cardinals: Matt Wieters (b. May 21, 1986)
Tampa Bay Rays: Eric Sogard (b. May 22, 1986)
Washington Nationals: Fernando Rodney (b. March 18, 1977)
I can still remember when it was rare for any players on this list to have been born in the 1980s. I've been doing this for a long time. Wouldn't it be great if Fernando Rodney, who seems to frequently show up on this blog around this time of year, finally got that ring? Hey, it could happen. The NHL's St. Louis Blues and the NBA's Toronto Raptors both won their first championships this season, so maybe 2019 is the year of franchises' first titles. The Nats would be perfect for that in baseball, and it'd be funny if it happened right after Bryce Harper left town. I can dream.
My preseason predictions actually weren't terribly far off, though obviously I didn't get everything right. For my predictions now that we have the real thing, here we go:
Stupid Wild Card Games That Nobody Wanted
Washington over Milwaukee
Tampa Bay over Oakland
Trying to predict a one-game playoff is a fool's errand, since it's basically a coin flip, but what the heck.
I think Washington is a better team than Milwaukee in terms of actual talent, and they don't have the injury problems the Brewers are facing. Throw in the fact that they're at home and Milwaukee's probably out of gas after going on a late-season tear to clinch a postseason spot, and I give the Nats the edge here. Personally, I'm rooting for them as well.
I pick Tampa Bay to beat Oakland because that's what my gut says. I'm rooting for Oakland, but I get a feeling that Charlie Morton's going to pitch a gem to put the Rays in the real playoffs.
National League Division Series
St. Louis over Atlanta
Los Angeles over Washington
I pick the Cardinals to beat the Braves because they're the Cardinals. Old school readers know how much I hate them and believe them to be evil. Mentally, I always give them the upper hand until they lose. The Dodgers have been too much of a powerhouse this year for me to think they'll be upset in the first round. You gotta go with them here.
American League Division Series
Houston over Tampa Bay
New York over Minnesota
While New York's starting rotation is a question mark and I'd love to see the Twins beat them, I just can't bring myself to pick against the Evil Empire in this matchup. The Twins seem jinxed against the Yankees in the playoffs, and until they beat them, I'm going to be pessimistic about their chances. I pick Houston over Tampa Bay because the Astros are simply the best team in baseball this year.
National League Championship Series
Los Angeles over St. Louis
The Cardinals might be evil, but the Dodgers are so good that I think it would be a huge upset for the Cardinals to beat them. Nothing's impossible in a short series, of course, but I'm still not convinced that the Cardinals haven't played above their heads this year. I pick L.A. to win its third straight pennant.
American League Championship Series
New York over Houston
Yes, Houston is the better team and they'll have home field advantage, but as I said at the beginning of the season, do you really think we're going to get out of this decade without seeing the Yankees win a pennant? Just when you think they're down, they come back to break your heart. That's the kind of franchise they are. Besides that, they're out for revenge after the Astros beat them in 2017, so this would seem the time to exact it.
World Series
New York over Los Angeles
Oh wow, look at this classic matchup. Why, it harkens back to the good old days of the 1950s when no one outside of New York ever won anything in October. It's also reminiscent of the battles between Lasorda's men and the Bronx Zoo pinstripers from the '70s and '80s. It doesn't get any better for baseball than this big-market matchup, does it? So who wins? Eh, let's go with the Yankees, because what could be more fitting? It would be terribly wrong if CC Sabathia couldn't close out his career with one more World Series ring and Brett Gardner retired hitless in World Series play. It's gotta happen. It's just gotta.
Sunday, May 26, 2019
The Old Home Boys
As a follow-up to this post, I thought it'd be fun to look at who played the most games for each of today's current franchises when they played under different polity names. In this case, there are two that were so short-lived they had none. Let's see who they were:
Would've been cool if the Pilots or Anaheim Angels could've participated, but no such luck.
It's amazing that the Milwaukee teams have had so few players born in the city. If you recall the other list, the Brewers' leader is Paul Wagner with 15. It looks like there's a good reason Bob Uecker has such a long-standing relationship with the Brewers: He's Milwaukee's all-time leading native son to play in the majors with a Milwaukee team. 46 whole games!
| Franchise | Player | Games |
|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia Athletics | Jimmy Dykes | 1702 |
| California Angels | Brian Downing | 1661 |
| Boston Braves | John Morrill | 1219 |
| St. Louis Browns | Jack Tobin | 1133 |
| New York Giants | Frankie Frisch | 1000 |
| Florida Marlins | Charles Johnson | 587 |
| Brooklyn Dodgers | Willie Keeler | 566 |
| Washington Senators (I) | Charles Moran | 160 |
| Baltimore Orioles (I) | Bill Keister | 115 |
| Kansas City Athletics | John O'Donoghue | 80 |
| Milwaukee Braves | Bob Uecker | 46 |
| Washington Senators (II) | Johnny Klippstein | 42 |
| Montreal Expos | Denis Boucher | 15 |
| Milwaukee Brewers (I) | George McBride | 3 |
| Anaheim Angels | none | 0 |
| Seattle Pilots | none | 0 |
Would've been cool if the Pilots or Anaheim Angels could've participated, but no such luck.
It's amazing that the Milwaukee teams have had so few players born in the city. If you recall the other list, the Brewers' leader is Paul Wagner with 15. It looks like there's a good reason Bob Uecker has such a long-standing relationship with the Brewers: He's Milwaukee's all-time leading native son to play in the majors with a Milwaukee team. 46 whole games!
Wednesday, April 17, 2019
2019 Predictions
It's a little late, I know, but I thought I'd chime in with my 2019 predictions, which I guarantee will be wrong. But what's baseball without some speculation? I'm going with my gut on these, so these predictions will be a testament to my gut's value.
Regular Season Standings:
AL West
Houston Astros
Los Angeles Angels
Oakland Athletics
Texas Rangers
Seattle Mariners
AL Central
Cleveland Indians
Minnesota Twins
Chicago White Sox
Detroit Tigers
Kansas City Royals
AL East
New York Yankees
Boston Red Sox*
Tampa Bay Rays*
Toronto Blue Jays
Baltimore Orioles
NL West
Los Angeles Dodgers
San Diego Padres
Colorado Rockies
Arizona Diamondbacks
San Francisco Giants
NL Central
St. Louis Cardinals
Chicago Cubs*
Milwaukee Brewers
Pittsburgh Pirates
Cincinnati Reds
NL East
Atlanta Braves
Washington Nationals*
Philadelphia Phillies
New York Mets
Miami Marlins
Playoffs:
Wild Card games:
Nationals over Cubs
Red Sox over Rays
Division Series:
Dodgers over Nationals
Cardinals over Braves
Astros over Red Sox
Yankees over Indians
League Championship Series:
Cardinals over Dodgers
Yankees over Astros
World Series:
Yankees over Cardinals
Come on, you really think we're going to get out of this decade without getting stuck seeing the Yankees in the World Series? It's been 100 years since the Yankees completed a calendar decade without a World Series appearance, so the odds are good that this is the year the current crew finally gets their coronation. Borderline Hall of Famer CC Sabathia will get to ride into the sunset a champion, former small-market star Troy Tulowitzki will show the world that that the big city is where it's really at if you want a ring, and hot young stars like Aaron Judge, Gary Sanchez, Luis Severino, Miguel Andujar, and Gleyber Torres will be seen as the building blocks of a new Yankee dynasty, all of whom are destined to have their numbers retired. And losing with class will be the National League's grandest franchise, the St. Louis Cardinals, who do everything the right way, including applauding their opponents as they lose to them. The media will talk about how baseball richly deserved such a beautiful ending to the 2010s. Oh, it'll be sickening.
Regular Season Standings:
AL West
Houston Astros
Los Angeles Angels
Oakland Athletics
Texas Rangers
Seattle Mariners
AL Central
Cleveland Indians
Minnesota Twins
Chicago White Sox
Detroit Tigers
Kansas City Royals
AL East
New York Yankees
Boston Red Sox*
Tampa Bay Rays*
Toronto Blue Jays
Baltimore Orioles
NL West
Los Angeles Dodgers
San Diego Padres
Colorado Rockies
Arizona Diamondbacks
San Francisco Giants
NL Central
St. Louis Cardinals
Chicago Cubs*
Milwaukee Brewers
Pittsburgh Pirates
Cincinnati Reds
NL East
Atlanta Braves
Washington Nationals*
Philadelphia Phillies
New York Mets
Miami Marlins
Playoffs:
Wild Card games:
Nationals over Cubs
Red Sox over Rays
Division Series:
Dodgers over Nationals
Cardinals over Braves
Astros over Red Sox
Yankees over Indians
League Championship Series:
Cardinals over Dodgers
Yankees over Astros
World Series:
Yankees over Cardinals
Come on, you really think we're going to get out of this decade without getting stuck seeing the Yankees in the World Series? It's been 100 years since the Yankees completed a calendar decade without a World Series appearance, so the odds are good that this is the year the current crew finally gets their coronation. Borderline Hall of Famer CC Sabathia will get to ride into the sunset a champion, former small-market star Troy Tulowitzki will show the world that that the big city is where it's really at if you want a ring, and hot young stars like Aaron Judge, Gary Sanchez, Luis Severino, Miguel Andujar, and Gleyber Torres will be seen as the building blocks of a new Yankee dynasty, all of whom are destined to have their numbers retired. And losing with class will be the National League's grandest franchise, the St. Louis Cardinals, who do everything the right way, including applauding their opponents as they lose to them. The media will talk about how baseball richly deserved such a beautiful ending to the 2010s. Oh, it'll be sickening.
Monday, March 11, 2019
The Home Boys
Sometimes a player is simply a perfect fit for the team he plays for. Sometimes it's because he embodies the city's personality, sometimes his skill set fits the team's plan to a a T, and sometimes he was born in the very city where he now wears the uniform. As always, I started wondering. Of the current 30 MLB franchises, who is each one's all-time leader in games played having been born in the polity they represent?
Most of the rules should be straightforward. For a team that represents a city, such as the St. Louis Cardinals, we're looking for the player born in St. Louis who played the most games as a Cardinal. For a team that represents, a state, such the Minnesota Twins, the player only has to have been born in Minnesota, not necessarily the city the Twins play in.
For franchises that have changed polity names, we only count games played under the current polity name. The Los Angeles Angels, for example, were inaugurated under that name, before changing to the California Angels, then to the Anaheim Angels, then back to Los Angeles again. We're looking for an Angeleno player who played with the franchise during the years 1961-65 and 2005-present. Any games played for the Angels under the California or Anaheim names don't count.
For New York, I only went by New York City, since I don't believe either the Yankees or Mets franchise is supposed to represent the state as a whole. I counted the various boroughs, although the leaders for both franchises have their birthplaces listed as "New York, NY" in the records.
The only one that was tricky was the Rays, since Tampa Bay is a geographical feature, not a political entity. I decided to count anyone born in the Tampa Bay metro area, mainly the cities of Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Clearwater, plus whatever smaller towns in the area I could find.
So with that said, let's take a look at the list:
Some of these records are very impressive. For the guys at the top of the list, it's easy to see why they're so beloved by the hometown fans.
The bottom of the list is much more curious. I'm surprised that San Francisco, Boston, Baltimore, and Milwaukee have all been around for so long without more impressive representatives than the ones they have. Perhaps the city proper doesn't have a lot of little league activity in their cases.
For Rockie fans, they're blessed that after only two seasons in the bigs, Kyle Freeland is already their all-time leader in games among players born in the Centennial State. May he have many more, and not fall prey to Coors Field.
A shame that Emmanuel Burriss is the best National born in the capital city. If we were doing this by franchise, Maury Wills, Clay Kirby, and Curtis Pride are all guys who'd have him beat.
Most of the rules should be straightforward. For a team that represents a city, such as the St. Louis Cardinals, we're looking for the player born in St. Louis who played the most games as a Cardinal. For a team that represents, a state, such the Minnesota Twins, the player only has to have been born in Minnesota, not necessarily the city the Twins play in.
For franchises that have changed polity names, we only count games played under the current polity name. The Los Angeles Angels, for example, were inaugurated under that name, before changing to the California Angels, then to the Anaheim Angels, then back to Los Angeles again. We're looking for an Angeleno player who played with the franchise during the years 1961-65 and 2005-present. Any games played for the Angels under the California or Anaheim names don't count.
For New York, I only went by New York City, since I don't believe either the Yankees or Mets franchise is supposed to represent the state as a whole. I counted the various boroughs, although the leaders for both franchises have their birthplaces listed as "New York, NY" in the records.
The only one that was tricky was the Rays, since Tampa Bay is a geographical feature, not a political entity. I decided to count anyone born in the Tampa Bay metro area, mainly the cities of Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Clearwater, plus whatever smaller towns in the area I could find.
So with that said, let's take a look at the list:
| Franchise | Player | Games |
|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati Reds | Pete Rose | 2722 |
| New York Yankees | Lou Gehrig | 2164 |
| Chicago Cubs | Phil Cavarretta | 1953 |
| Minnesota Twins | Joe Mauer | 1858 |
| New York Mets | Ed Kranepool | 1853 |
| Detroit Tigers | Bill Freehan | 1774 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | Del Ennis | 1630 |
| Cleveland Indians | Bill Bradley | 1231 |
| Houston Astros | Craig Reynolds | 1170 |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | Willie Crawford | 989 |
| Chicago White Sox | Johnny Mostil | 972 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | Frank Thomas | 925 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | Mike Shannon | 882 |
| Texas Rangers | David Murphy | 826 |
| San Diego Padres | Adrian Gonzalez | 799 |
| Atlanta Braves | Jeff Francoeur | 730 |
| Seattle Mariners | John Olerud | 702 |
| Tampa Bay Rays | Matthew Joyce | 633 |
| Los Angeles Angels | Garret Anderson | 536 |
| Oakland Athletics | Dennis Eckersley | 525 |
| San Francisco Giants | Willie McGee | 444 |
| Boston Red Sox | Manny Delcarmen | 289 |
| Kansas City Royals | Steve Mingori | 264 |
| Arizona Diamondbacks | Shea Hillenbrand | 233 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | Rob Ducey | 188 |
| Baltimore Orioles | Tom Phoebus | 134 |
| Colorado Rockies | Kyle Freeland | 68 |
| Miami Marlins | Gaby Sanchez | 55 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | Paul Wagner | 15 |
| Washington Nationals | Emmanuel Burriss | 5 |
Some of these records are very impressive. For the guys at the top of the list, it's easy to see why they're so beloved by the hometown fans.
The bottom of the list is much more curious. I'm surprised that San Francisco, Boston, Baltimore, and Milwaukee have all been around for so long without more impressive representatives than the ones they have. Perhaps the city proper doesn't have a lot of little league activity in their cases.
For Rockie fans, they're blessed that after only two seasons in the bigs, Kyle Freeland is already their all-time leader in games among players born in the Centennial State. May he have many more, and not fall prey to Coors Field.
A shame that Emmanuel Burriss is the best National born in the capital city. If we were doing this by franchise, Maury Wills, Clay Kirby, and Curtis Pride are all guys who'd have him beat.
Wednesday, February 27, 2019
The First of His First Name
Baby names see their popularity come and go. Some names at this point are only associated with people of a certain generation, and no doubt many of today's popular names will go down in history the same way.
Being the kind of thinker I am, I started to wonder who the first Major League ballplayers were who had certain names. After all, many names common among today's young men were rare in the old days. Since it often takes a while for a name to become seen as "common," I thought I'd look at the most popular boy's baby names for 1984. Boys born in 1984 are turning 35 this year, and it means their names have probably been a part of the MLB landscape long enough to feel commonplace.
The Social Security database for baby names allows you to sort by sex, by number of births, by year, and even view the change in popularity over time. For 1984, the Top 25 were:
Some of these names have a long history, while others wouldn't have been heard of in decades past. I decided to look at the names which at some point between 1900 and 1984 were not in the Top 100 boys' names, and use Baseball-Reference to determine the first MLBer with that first name. Let's see who pioneered these monikers.
Christopher
This name didn't crack the Top 100 until 1949, and it really picked up popularity in the 1960s. However, it wasn't so uncommon that no one in the old days had it. The first Christopher in MLB was Chris McFarland, who played three games for the Union Association's Baltimore Monumentals, debuting on April 19, 1884.
Matthew
While this name didn't crack the Top 100 until 1956, it's still a good Biblical name that was usually in the Top 200. The first guy in MLB to use this name was another three-gamer in the Union Association, Matthew Porter. Porter played for the Kansas City Cowboys and made his debut on June 27, 1884. Interestingly enough, Porter apparently went by both his given name and his middle name "Sheldon" throughout his life, so it's possible he didn't play under the name "Matthew" during his brief baseball career. If you want to read about the mysterious Matthew Porter, the SABR Biographical Research Committee has a nice article about him in the December 2011 newsletter.
Porter, incidentally, beat out a more noteworthy Matthew by a couple of years: Matt Kilroy.
Joshua
It wasn't a terribly uncommon name in the old days, as there were five Joshuas who played in the 19th Century. The first among them was Josh Snyder, who debuted on May 18, 1872 for the National Association's Brooklyn Eckfords. As for the name itself, it's possible it was more common during the 19th Century, as in the early 20th Century, it dips pretty low on the popularity list, and doesn't start picking up again until the 1960s.
Jason
Here's one that didn't appear until the 1970s, and it came in the form of three-time All-Star first baseman Jason Thompson, who debuted on April 23, 1976. Thompson was born in 1954, when the name "Jason" was the 411th most popular boy's name in America. Going to guess he didn't know many other Jasons growing up, as this is another name that didn't start gaining significant popularity until the 1960s. There wasn't a second Jason until Jason Grimsley came along in 1989.
Ryan
This name was almost unheard of as a given name for many years. As a family name, sure, especially in baseball with its significant Irish contingent. In America, it didn't crack the Top 200 until 1966, possibly due to the popularity of Ryan O'Neal on Peyton Place. MLB's first boy named "Ryan" was the Hawaiian pitcher Ryan Kurosaki, who debuted on May 20, 1975, and whose brief career consisted of seven games with the Cardinals.
Justin
This is another name that makes me wonder, as it's extremely low in popularity until the late 1960s, yet there are a few Major Leaguers from the old days who have it as a given or middle name. I'd like to see some 19th Century records. The first to have it as a given name was Pug Bennett, who debuted on April 12, 1906 and played two seasons with the Cardinals, although he apparently went by a nickname. The earliest player who BBRef has using it as his playing name is Justin Stein, who played in 1938.
Brandon
This one didn't crack the Top 100 until 1971, and it's also got the latest debut date on the list. The first Brandon in the big leagues was Brandon Kolb, who debuted on May 12, 2000. He narrowly beat out Brandon Villafuerte, who came along less than two weeks later.
A footnote should be given to an outfielder who played for the Pirates in 1952 and '53 named Brandy Davis. His full name was Robert Brandon Davis, and the "Brandy" is presumably derived from his middle name. You coulda been a pioneer, but instead, you chose to play under a girl's name!
Brian
I sort of assumed this name was more popular over the years due to people like Brian Dennehy (born 1938), Brian Wilson (born 1942), and so on. It appears that the name was gaining popularity when those guys were born, but still outside the Top 100, which it didn't reach until 1947, and it didn't reach the Top 50 until 1954. Believe it or not, the first Brian to reach the majors was the Incredible Hulk, Brian Downing, who debuted on May 31, 1973.
However, I know what some of you are thinking: What about "Bryan," with a Y? There actually is a Bryan who played earlier, that being pitcher Bryan Stephens, who played in 1947 and 1948. This less common spelling of the name ascended in popularity alongside its "I" counterpart, but always trailed behind it.
Adam
This one didn't reach the Top 100 until 1970, but there actually is an Adam from the olden days. We're going all the way back to the National Association and the Philadelphia Athletics, where Adam Rocap began his 16-game career on May 5, 1875.
Jonathan
This one didn't reach the Top 100 until 1962, which is surprising, given that it seems to have been a not-uncommon name in early America, and there were famous people like Jonathan Winters. There seemed to be about one Jonathan per decade for a while, and the earliest was Jon Morrison, who debuted on August 1, 1884. The first Major League player who went by the name "Jonathan" as opposed to "Jon" or a nickname was Jonathan Hurst, who debuted in 1992.
Nicholas
This name stayed in the 100-200 range during the 20th Century, until it reached #99 in 1972 and continued to rise. No ballplayer has ever gone by the full name "Nicholas," but there have been plenty who went by "Nick." The first was Nick Wise, a one-game wonder from June 20, 1888.
Eric
This one didn't find its way to the Top 100 until 1950, but there was a Swedish-born pitcher named Eric Erickson who debuted on October 6, 1914. Figures that it took an actual Scandinavian to get this name into the Majors.
The alternate spelling "Erik" is less common, and the first to have it was Ollie Sax, who played in 1928 under his middle name. The first to use it as his regular playing name was Erik Hanson in 1988.
Steven
Perhaps I should start by noting that the spelling "Stephen" used to be the more popular one, hovering around the lower reaches of the Top 100 in the early part of the 20th Century. I guess that makes sense, given that that's the Biblical spelling. There were two guys named "Steve" (both Stephens) who debuted on May 9, 1871, those being Steve Bellan and Steve King.
The first Steven, however, was Steve Sundra, who debuted on April 17, 1936, five years before the name with that spelling reached the Top 100.
Kevin
The first man with the first name "Kevin" was none other than "the Rifleman," Chuck Connors, whose real name was Kevin Joseph Aloysius Connors. He made his Major League debut on May 1, 1949. The first player to go by the name "Kevin" was Kevin Collins, who came along in 1965.
Just as these guys were mostly outliers in terms of their name's popularity at the time of their birth, with the current crop of popular baby names, we'll be looking back at some of today's players as the first of their kind. The top boy's name for 2017 was "Liam," and as of right now, the only Liam in MLB history is Liam Hendriks, who was born in Australia. Give it a few decades or so, and ballplayers named "Liam" will be as commonplace as ones named "Brandon" are now.
Being the kind of thinker I am, I started to wonder who the first Major League ballplayers were who had certain names. After all, many names common among today's young men were rare in the old days. Since it often takes a while for a name to become seen as "common," I thought I'd look at the most popular boy's baby names for 1984. Boys born in 1984 are turning 35 this year, and it means their names have probably been a part of the MLB landscape long enough to feel commonplace.
The Social Security database for baby names allows you to sort by sex, by number of births, by year, and even view the change in popularity over time. For 1984, the Top 25 were:
| 1984 Boys | |
|---|---|
| 1 | Michael |
| 2 | Christopher |
| 3 | Matthew |
| 4 | Joshua |
| 5 | David |
| 6 | Daniel |
| 7 | James |
| 8 | John |
| 9 | Robert |
| 10 | Joseph |
| 11 | Jason |
| 12 | Ryan |
| 13 | Justin |
| 14 | Andrew |
| 15 | Brandon |
| 16 | William |
| 17 | Brian |
| 18 | Adam |
| 19 | Jonathan |
| 20 | Nicholas |
| 21 | Anthony |
| 22 | Eric |
| 23 | Steven |
| 24 | Kevin |
| 25 | Thomas |
Some of these names have a long history, while others wouldn't have been heard of in decades past. I decided to look at the names which at some point between 1900 and 1984 were not in the Top 100 boys' names, and use Baseball-Reference to determine the first MLBer with that first name. Let's see who pioneered these monikers.
Christopher
This name didn't crack the Top 100 until 1949, and it really picked up popularity in the 1960s. However, it wasn't so uncommon that no one in the old days had it. The first Christopher in MLB was Chris McFarland, who played three games for the Union Association's Baltimore Monumentals, debuting on April 19, 1884.
Matthew
While this name didn't crack the Top 100 until 1956, it's still a good Biblical name that was usually in the Top 200. The first guy in MLB to use this name was another three-gamer in the Union Association, Matthew Porter. Porter played for the Kansas City Cowboys and made his debut on June 27, 1884. Interestingly enough, Porter apparently went by both his given name and his middle name "Sheldon" throughout his life, so it's possible he didn't play under the name "Matthew" during his brief baseball career. If you want to read about the mysterious Matthew Porter, the SABR Biographical Research Committee has a nice article about him in the December 2011 newsletter.
Porter, incidentally, beat out a more noteworthy Matthew by a couple of years: Matt Kilroy.
Joshua
It wasn't a terribly uncommon name in the old days, as there were five Joshuas who played in the 19th Century. The first among them was Josh Snyder, who debuted on May 18, 1872 for the National Association's Brooklyn Eckfords. As for the name itself, it's possible it was more common during the 19th Century, as in the early 20th Century, it dips pretty low on the popularity list, and doesn't start picking up again until the 1960s.
Jason
Here's one that didn't appear until the 1970s, and it came in the form of three-time All-Star first baseman Jason Thompson, who debuted on April 23, 1976. Thompson was born in 1954, when the name "Jason" was the 411th most popular boy's name in America. Going to guess he didn't know many other Jasons growing up, as this is another name that didn't start gaining significant popularity until the 1960s. There wasn't a second Jason until Jason Grimsley came along in 1989.
Ryan
This name was almost unheard of as a given name for many years. As a family name, sure, especially in baseball with its significant Irish contingent. In America, it didn't crack the Top 200 until 1966, possibly due to the popularity of Ryan O'Neal on Peyton Place. MLB's first boy named "Ryan" was the Hawaiian pitcher Ryan Kurosaki, who debuted on May 20, 1975, and whose brief career consisted of seven games with the Cardinals.
Justin
This is another name that makes me wonder, as it's extremely low in popularity until the late 1960s, yet there are a few Major Leaguers from the old days who have it as a given or middle name. I'd like to see some 19th Century records. The first to have it as a given name was Pug Bennett, who debuted on April 12, 1906 and played two seasons with the Cardinals, although he apparently went by a nickname. The earliest player who BBRef has using it as his playing name is Justin Stein, who played in 1938.
Brandon
This one didn't crack the Top 100 until 1971, and it's also got the latest debut date on the list. The first Brandon in the big leagues was Brandon Kolb, who debuted on May 12, 2000. He narrowly beat out Brandon Villafuerte, who came along less than two weeks later.
A footnote should be given to an outfielder who played for the Pirates in 1952 and '53 named Brandy Davis. His full name was Robert Brandon Davis, and the "Brandy" is presumably derived from his middle name. You coulda been a pioneer, but instead, you chose to play under a girl's name!
Brian
I sort of assumed this name was more popular over the years due to people like Brian Dennehy (born 1938), Brian Wilson (born 1942), and so on. It appears that the name was gaining popularity when those guys were born, but still outside the Top 100, which it didn't reach until 1947, and it didn't reach the Top 50 until 1954. Believe it or not, the first Brian to reach the majors was the Incredible Hulk, Brian Downing, who debuted on May 31, 1973.
However, I know what some of you are thinking: What about "Bryan," with a Y? There actually is a Bryan who played earlier, that being pitcher Bryan Stephens, who played in 1947 and 1948. This less common spelling of the name ascended in popularity alongside its "I" counterpart, but always trailed behind it.
Adam
This one didn't reach the Top 100 until 1970, but there actually is an Adam from the olden days. We're going all the way back to the National Association and the Philadelphia Athletics, where Adam Rocap began his 16-game career on May 5, 1875.
Jonathan
This one didn't reach the Top 100 until 1962, which is surprising, given that it seems to have been a not-uncommon name in early America, and there were famous people like Jonathan Winters. There seemed to be about one Jonathan per decade for a while, and the earliest was Jon Morrison, who debuted on August 1, 1884. The first Major League player who went by the name "Jonathan" as opposed to "Jon" or a nickname was Jonathan Hurst, who debuted in 1992.
Nicholas
This name stayed in the 100-200 range during the 20th Century, until it reached #99 in 1972 and continued to rise. No ballplayer has ever gone by the full name "Nicholas," but there have been plenty who went by "Nick." The first was Nick Wise, a one-game wonder from June 20, 1888.
Eric
This one didn't find its way to the Top 100 until 1950, but there was a Swedish-born pitcher named Eric Erickson who debuted on October 6, 1914. Figures that it took an actual Scandinavian to get this name into the Majors.
The alternate spelling "Erik" is less common, and the first to have it was Ollie Sax, who played in 1928 under his middle name. The first to use it as his regular playing name was Erik Hanson in 1988.
Steven
Perhaps I should start by noting that the spelling "Stephen" used to be the more popular one, hovering around the lower reaches of the Top 100 in the early part of the 20th Century. I guess that makes sense, given that that's the Biblical spelling. There were two guys named "Steve" (both Stephens) who debuted on May 9, 1871, those being Steve Bellan and Steve King.
The first Steven, however, was Steve Sundra, who debuted on April 17, 1936, five years before the name with that spelling reached the Top 100.
Kevin
The first man with the first name "Kevin" was none other than "the Rifleman," Chuck Connors, whose real name was Kevin Joseph Aloysius Connors. He made his Major League debut on May 1, 1949. The first player to go by the name "Kevin" was Kevin Collins, who came along in 1965.
Just as these guys were mostly outliers in terms of their name's popularity at the time of their birth, with the current crop of popular baby names, we'll be looking back at some of today's players as the first of their kind. The top boy's name for 2017 was "Liam," and as of right now, the only Liam in MLB history is Liam Hendriks, who was born in Australia. Give it a few decades or so, and ballplayers named "Liam" will be as commonplace as ones named "Brandon" are now.
Wednesday, January 23, 2019
Thoughts on the 2019 Hall of Fame class
This year's inductees to Cooperstown are a tale of two electoral bodies. While I hate the media, I'll give the BBWAA credit for getting this year's election right: Mariano Rivera, Edgar Martinez, Mike Mussina, and Roy Halladay are all, in my mind, worthy of induction, so congratulations to them. It was well deserved.
The Veterans Committee, on the other hand, laid a giant egg. Harold Baines and Lee Smith were both fine players, but neither one reached the heights I would expect from a legitimate Hall of Famer.
I suppose you could make the argument that Lee Smith was one of the most dominant relievers in the game in the '80s, but once the '90s came around, he became a consistent-but-not-dominant one-inning closer. To me, that makes him nothing but a guy who had a good career. By the time I started following baseball in the '90s, I don't recall anyone talking about him as though he were a legend. He was most notable for being the all-time saves leader for a while, but then, so was Jeff Reardon. Granted, it's not as though a great player can't slip below the radar, but in this case, I think the general perception is about right.
Baines is another guy who got a lot of talk but ultimately no induction from the writers. He was a beloved player on Chicago's South Side during the '80s, and in the '90s he made a good career out of being a veteran bat for potential contenders to round out their lineup with. Like the word "feared" with Jim Rice, the label Baines acquired was "professional hitter." It suited him well, as he was primarily a DH from 1987 on, and he was pretty consistent year after year. He was never, however, a serious MVP candidate, nor did he ever hit more than 29 homers in a season. According to Baseball Reference, his 162 Game Average is 22 homers, 93 RBI, and a .289/.356/.465 batting line. Not bad, but when the only reason you have a job is to wield the lumber, you need to do much better than that if you want to be considered an immortal. Really disappointed in this choice, even more so than Smith.
The Hall of Fame voters have made a lot of blunders over the years, and the more they make in this era of better data, it gets harder for me to take induction all that seriously. Still, it's nice to see the truly great players get recognized, so my hat is off to them.
The Hall of Famers' First Major League Home Runs post has been appropriately updated.
The Veterans Committee, on the other hand, laid a giant egg. Harold Baines and Lee Smith were both fine players, but neither one reached the heights I would expect from a legitimate Hall of Famer.
I suppose you could make the argument that Lee Smith was one of the most dominant relievers in the game in the '80s, but once the '90s came around, he became a consistent-but-not-dominant one-inning closer. To me, that makes him nothing but a guy who had a good career. By the time I started following baseball in the '90s, I don't recall anyone talking about him as though he were a legend. He was most notable for being the all-time saves leader for a while, but then, so was Jeff Reardon. Granted, it's not as though a great player can't slip below the radar, but in this case, I think the general perception is about right.
Baines is another guy who got a lot of talk but ultimately no induction from the writers. He was a beloved player on Chicago's South Side during the '80s, and in the '90s he made a good career out of being a veteran bat for potential contenders to round out their lineup with. Like the word "feared" with Jim Rice, the label Baines acquired was "professional hitter." It suited him well, as he was primarily a DH from 1987 on, and he was pretty consistent year after year. He was never, however, a serious MVP candidate, nor did he ever hit more than 29 homers in a season. According to Baseball Reference, his 162 Game Average is 22 homers, 93 RBI, and a .289/.356/.465 batting line. Not bad, but when the only reason you have a job is to wield the lumber, you need to do much better than that if you want to be considered an immortal. Really disappointed in this choice, even more so than Smith.
The Hall of Fame voters have made a lot of blunders over the years, and the more they make in this era of better data, it gets harder for me to take induction all that seriously. Still, it's nice to see the truly great players get recognized, so my hat is off to them.
The Hall of Famers' First Major League Home Runs post has been appropriately updated.
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