Major League Olympians

America's national pastime, baseball grew in popularity around the world throughout the 20th century. As a result of its growing popularity, baseball was intermittently included in the Olympics, not as a medal sport, but instead as a demonstration sport. The first time baseball was played at the Olympics was at the 1912 Stockholm Games. The game was demonstrated again in 1936, 1956, 1964, 1984, and 1988. After being demonstrated more than any other sport, baseball was finally added to the Olympics as a medal sport starting in 1992. Unfortunately, after less than two decades, the International Olympic Committee judged baseball no longer worthy of being part of the Olympic Games because of, among other reasons, the lack of major league players leaving their teams in the middle of the season and the relatively small number of nations that competed internationally. At this moment, baseball is no longer an Olympic sport and the South Korean team received the last gold medals awarded.

Though baseball was part of only five Olympic Games, a surprising number of major league players participated for their countries. Many of these players appeared in the Olympics prior to appearing in the majors, but a few appeared after the end of their major league career. A couple even appeared between stints in the major leagues. All told, 140 major leaguers also competed for medals at the Olympics. More players will join the list as 2008 Olympians make their way into the majors. I realize it's staggering, but I've listed all 140 MLB Olympians below.

MLB Players Who Played Olympic Baseball

Count	Name	Olympic Team	MLB Career	Teams
1	Brent Abernathy	2000 USA	2001-2005	TBD, KCR, MIN
2	Willie Adams	1992 USA	1996-1997	OAK
3	Kurt Ainsworth	2000 USA	2001-2004	SFG, BAL
4	Chad Allen	1996 USA	1999-2005	MIN, CLE, FLA, TEX
5	Rolando Arrojo	1992 Cuba	1998-2002	TBD, COL, BOS
6	Wladimir Balentien	2004 Netherlands	2007-2008	SEA
7	Grant Balfour	2000 Australia	2001-2008	MIN, MIL, TBD
8	Brian Barden	2008 USA	2007-2008	ARI, STL
9	Cley Bellinger	2004 Greece	1999-2002	NYY, ANA
10	Shayne Bennett	2000 Australia	1997-1999	MON
11	Kris Benson	1996 USA	1999-2006	PIT, NYM, BAL
12	Jung Bong	2008 South Korea	2002-2004	ATL, CIN
13	Pat Borders	2000 USA	1988-2005	TOR, KCR, HOU STL, CAL, CHW CLE, SEA, MIN
14	Matthew Brown	2008 USA	2007-2008	LAA
15	Sean Burroughs	2000 USA	2002-2006	SDP, TBD
16	Chin-Feng Chen	2004/2008 Taiwan	2002-2005	LAD
17	Stubby Clapp	2004/2008 Canada	2001	STL
18	Ivanon Coffie	2004 Netherlands	2000	BAL
19	Jose Contreras	1996/2000 Cuba	2003-2008	NYY, CHW
20	Rheal Cormier	2008 Canada	1991-2007	STL, BOS, MON PHI, CIN
21	Eric Cyr	2004 Canada	2002	SDP
22	David Davidson	2008 Canada	2007	PIT
23	Gookie Dawkins	2000 USA	1999-2003	CIN, KCR
24	Yurendell DeCaster	2004/2008 Netherlands	2006	PIT
25	R.A. Dickey	1996 USA	2001-2008	TEX, SEA
26	Jason Dickson	2004 Canada	1996-2000	CAL/ANA
27	Darren Dreifort	1992 USA	1994-2004	LAD
28	Rob Ducey	2004 Canada	1987-2001	TOR, CAL, TEX, SEA PHI, TOR, MON
29	Robert Eenhoorn	2000 Netherlands	1994-1997	NYY, CAL
30	Mark Ettles	2000 Australia	1993	SDP
31	Adam Everett	2000 USA	2001-2008	HOU, MIN
32	Rikkert Faneyte	2000 Netherlands	1993-1996	SFG, TEX
33	Oswaldo Fernandez	1992 Cuba	1996-2001	SFG, CIN
34	Dexter Fowler	2008 USA	2008	COL
35	Ryan Franklin	2000 USA	1999-2008	SEA, PHI, CIN, STL
36	Kosuke Fukudome	1996/2004 Japan	2008	CHC
37	John Gall	2008 USA	2005-2007	STL, FLA
38	Nomar Garciaparra	1992 USA	1996-2008	BOS, CHC, LAD
39	Chris George	2000 USA	2001-2004	KCR
40	Jason Giambi	1992 USA	1995-2008	OAK, NYY
41	Troy Glaus	1996 USA	1998-2008	ANA, ARI, TOR, STL
42	Steve Green	2008 Canada	2001	ANA
43	Rick Greene	1992 USA	1999	CIN
44	Seth Greisinger	1996 USA	1998-2005	DET, MIN, ATL
45	Jeffrey Hammonds	1992 USA	1993-2005	BAL, CIN, COL MIL, SFG, WSN
46	Rick Helling	1992 USA	1994-2006	TEX, FLA, ARI BAL, MIL
47	Orlando Hernandez	1992 Cuba	1998-2007	NYY, CHW, ARI, NYM
48	Mike Hessman	2008 USA	2003-2008	ATL, DET
49	Shawn Hill	2004 Canada	2004-2008	MON/WSN
50	A.J. Hinch	1996 USA	1998-2004	OAK, KCR, DET, PHI
51	Mark Hutton	2000 Australia	1993-1998	NYY, FLA, COL, CIN
52	Tadahito Iguchi	1996 Japan	2005-2008	CHW, PHI, SDP
53	Marcus Jensen	2000 USA	1996-2002	SFG, DET, MIL, STL MIN, BOS, TEX
54	Kevin Jepsen	2008 USA	2008	LAA
55	Kenji Johjima	2004 Japan	2006-2008	SEA
56	Charles Johnson	1992 USA	1994-2005	FLA, LAD, BAL CHW, COL, TBD
57	Mike Johnson	2004/2008 Canada	1997-2001	BAL, MON
58	Jacque Jones	1996 USA	1999-2008	MIN, CHC, DET, FLA
59	Gene Kingsale	2004/2008 Netherlands	1996-2003	BAL, SEA, SDP, DET
60	Mike Kinkade	2000 USA	1998-2003	NYM, BAL, LAD
61	Danny Klassen	2004 Canada	1998-2003	ARI, DET
62	Brandon Knight	2008 USA	2001-2008	NYY, NYM
63	Masahide Kobayashi	2004 Japan	2008	CLE
64	Billy Koch	1996 USA	1999-2004	TOR, OAK, CHW, FLA
65	Mike Koplove	2008 USA	2001-2007	ARI, CLE
66	Mark Kotsay	1996 USA	1997-2008	FLA, SDP, OAK ATL, BOS
67	George Kottaras	2004 Greece	2008	BOS
68	Rick Krivda	2000 USA	1995-1998	BAL, CLE, CIN
69	Hiroki Kuroda	2004 Japan	2008	LAD
70	Pete LaForest	2004 Canada	2003-2007	TBD, SDP, PHI
71	Matt LeCroy	1996 USA	2000-2007	MIN, WSN
72	Travis Lee	1996 USA	1998-2006	ARI, PHI, TBD, NYY
73	Graeme Lloyd	2004 Australia	1993-2003	MIL, NYY, TOR, MON FLA, NYM, KCR
74	Braden Looper	1996 USA	1998-2008	STL, FLA, NYM
75	Calvin Maduro	2004 Netherlands	1996-2002	PHI, BAL
76	Oswaldo Mairena	1996 Nicaragua	2000-2002	CHC, FLA
77	Nick Markakis	2004 Greece	2006-2008	BAL
78	Lou Marson	2008 USA	2008	PHI
79	Shairon Martis	2008 Netherlands	2008	WSN
80	Daisuke Matsuzaka	2000/2004 Japan	2007-2008	BOS
81	Chris Mears	2004 Canada	2003	DET
82	Hensley Meulens	2000 Netherlands	1989-1998	NYY, MON, ARI
83	Doug Mientkiewicz	2000 USA	1998-2008	MIN, BOS, NYM KCR, NYY, PIT
84	Ralph Milliard	2000/2004 Netherlands	1996-1998	FLA, NYM
85	Warren Morris	1996 USA	1999-2003	PIT, MIN, DET
86	Calvin Murray	1992 USA	1999-2004	SFG, TEX, CHC
87	Aaron Myette	2004 Canada	1999-2004	CHW, TEX, CLE, CIN
88	Micheal Nakamura	1996/2000 Australia	2003-2004	MIN, TOR
89	Norihiro Nakamura	2000/2004 Japan	2005	LAD
90	Blaine Neal	2008 USA	2001-2005	FLA, SDP, BOS, COL
91	Mike Neill	2000 USA	1998	OAK
92	Phil Nevin	1992 USA	1995-2006	HOU, DET, ANA, SDP TEX, CHC, MIN
93	Kevin Nicholson	2004 Canada	2000	SDP
94	Dave Nilsson	2000/2004 Australia	1992-1999	MIL
95	Jayson Nix	2008 USA	2008	COL
96	Augie Ojeda	1996 USA	2000-2008	CHC, MIN, ARI
97	Pete Orr	2004 Canada	2005-2008	ATL, WSN
98	Roy Oswalt	2000 USA	2001-2008	HOU
99	Chris Oxspring	2004 Australia	2005	SDP
100	Erik Pappas	2004 Greece	1991-1994	CHC, STL
101	Jim Parque	1996 USA	1998-2003	CHW, TBD
102	Simon Pond	2004 Canada	2004	TOR
103	Ryan Radmanovich	2004/2008 Canada	1998	SEA
104	Alexei Ramirez	2004 Cuba	2008	CHW
105	Jon Rauch	2000 USA	2002-2008	CHW, MON/WSN, ARI
106	Chris Reitsma	2008 Canada	2001-2007	CIN, ATL, SEA
107	Ryan Rowland-Smith	2004 Australia	2007-2008	SEA
108	Anthony Sanders	2000 USA	1999-2001	TOR, SEA
109	Nate Schierholtz	2008 USA	2007-2008	SFG
110	Bobby Seay	2000 USA	2001-2008	TBD, COL, DET
111	Ben Sheets	2000 USA	2001-2008	MIL
112	Jason Simontacchi	2000 Italy	2002-2007	STL, WSN
113	Chris Snelling	2000 Australia	2002-2008	SEA, WSN, OAK, PHI
114	Sean Spencer	2004 Greece	1999-2000	SEA, MON
115	Paul Spoljaric	2004 Canada	1994-2000	TOR, SEA, PHI, KCR
116	John Stephens	2004 Australia	2002	BAL
117	Adam Stern	2004/2008 Canada	2005-2007	BOS, BAL
118	Andy Stewart	2004 Canada	1997	KCR
119	Phil Stockman	2004 Australia	2006-2008	ATL
120	R.J. Swindle	2008 Canada	2008	PHI
121	So Taguchi	2000 Japan	2002-2008	STL, PHI
122	Taylor Teagarden	2008 USA	2008	TEX
123	Brad Thomas	2000 Australia	2001-2004	MIN
124	Rich Thompson	2004 Australia	2007-2008	LAA
125	Scott Thorman	2008 Canada	2006-2007	ATL
126	Terry Tiffee	2008 USA	2004-2008	MIN, LAD
127	Chin-Hui Tsao	2004/2008 Taiwan	2003-2007	COL, LAD
128	Michael Tucker	1992 USA	1995-2006	KCR, ATL, CIN, CHC SFG, PHI, NYM
129	Jason Varitek	1992 USA	1997-2008	BOS
130	Ron Villone	1992 USA	1995-2008	SEA, SDP, MIL, CLE CIN, COL, HOU, PIT FLA, NYY, STL
131	Chien-Ming Wang	2004 Taiwan	2005-2008	NYY
132	Jeff Weaver	1996 USA	1999-2007	DET, NYY, LAD LAA, STL, SEA
133	Brad Wilkerson	2000 USA	2001-2008	MON, TEX, SEA, TOR
134	Glenn Williams	2000/2004 Australia	2005	MIN
135	Jeff Williams	1996/2004 Australia	1999-2002	LAD
136	Todd Williams	2000 USA	1995-2007	LAD, CIN, SEA NYY, BAL
137	Craig Wilson	1992 USA	1998-2000	CHW
138	Ernie Young	2000 USA	1994-2004	OAK, KCR, ARI DET, CLE
139	Tim Young	2000 USA	1998-2000	MON, BOS
140	Clint Zavaras	2004 Greece	1989	SEA

It's a really long list. The 2004 Greek team, only in the Olympics by virtue of the Games being held in Athens, was made up mainly of Greek-Americans (and at least one Greek-Canadian, Mr. Kottaras). That circumstance gave the last man on the list, Clint Zavaras, a chance to play on the world stage fifteen years after his cup of coffee in the majors.

As expected, the USA laps the field in the number of major league Olympians. Sixty-six of the 140 men listed above played for the United States. The full breakdown looks like this:

1. USA - 66
2. Canada - 23
3. Australia - 16
4. Japan - 8
5. Greece - 6
6. Cuba - 5
7. Taiwan - 3
8. Italy - 1
9. Nicaragua - 1
10. South Korea - 1

As mentioned, Greece's contingent was made up of players from North America. Italy's sole major leaguer, Jason Simontacchi, was born in California. Oswaldo Mairena is one of only nine major league players born in Nicaragua. South Korea's representative is former Brave and Red Jung Bong.

It's possible I missed someone while going through the rosters for all forty squads to play in the Olympics. If you know of someone who should be on the list but isn't, email me or comment below.

More Strikeouts Than Times on Base

In a comment on my post of last Sunday, Mitchell Marshall suggested I look at players whose career strikeout percentage was greater than their career on base percentage. It's an interesting idea and I wish it didn't take me a week to get to it, but so it goes. I'm sure most readers are aware of the formula for on base percentage:



Thanks Wikipedia. The numerator of that fraction is sometimes shortened to times on base (TOB). There's other ways to reach base (errors, fielder's choice, etc.), but the three used in calculating OBP are the most common. So in order to compare strikeouts to on base percentage, I think it would be simplest to compare strikeouts to times on base. Thus in this post strikeout percentage is that same fraction but with only strikeouts in the numerator.

Tossing out pitchers, twenty-one players had 20 or more strikeouts than times on base in their careers. Most of them had a single season's worth or fewer plate appearances. Obviously, they all struggled to get on base: the highest OBP on the list is .328. Only five hitters were over .300.

Players With 20+ More Strikeouts Than Times on Base in Career

Name	Career	PA	SO	TOB	SO-TOB	SO%	OBP
Tom Egan	1965-1975	1084	336	285	51	.313	.266
Jim Fuller	1973-1977	341	130	84	46	.385	.249
J.R. Phillips	1993-1999	545	180	134	46	.331	.247
Melvin Nieves	1992-1998	1392	483	437	46	.347	.314
Dave Nicholson	1960-1967	1661	573	527	46	.346	.318
Russell Branyan	1998-2008	2319	797	759	38	.344	.328
Chad Hermansen	1999-2004	541	168	136	32	.315	.255
Ed Gastfield	1884-1885	90	37	8	29	.411	.089
Brad Eldred	2005-2007	255	93	64	29	.365	.251
Bo Jackson	1986-1994	2626	841	812	29	.321	.309
Jared Sandberg	2001-2003	706	236	208	28	.337	.297
Cliff Cook	1959-1963	435	136	109	27	.317	.254
Billy Ashley	1992-1998	688	236	211	25	.343	.307
Kevin Cash	2002-2008	557	161	137	24	.292	.248
Mike Hubbard	1995-2001	198	60	37	23	.303	.187
Jason Smith	2001-2008	591	172	150	22	.297	.259
Frank Cox	1884	104	36	15	21	.346	.144
Paul Ratliff	1963-1972	336	119	98	21	.355	.293
Phil Hiatt	1993-2001	463	149	128	21	.323	.278
Jackie Warner	1966	133	55	35	20	.414	.263
Ray Busse	1971-1974	168	54	34	20	.325	.205

My favorite player listed above is Ed Gastfield. The youngest player in the 1884 National League, Gastfield backed up Detroit catcher Charlie Bennett. While Bennett was a hitting star (OPS+ of 129 or higher in 7 of 8 seasons in Detroit), Gastfield was hapless at the plate. It's possible he was overmatched because of how young he was, but his awful .073/.095/.085 (6-82, 1 2B, 2 BB, 34 K in 84 PA) batting line in 23 games didn't make it likely he'd get a chance when he was older. Neither did his 20 passed balls and 35 errors in 19 games. Gastfield did suit up one time for Detroit in 1885, going 0-3 with 2 strikeouts. Somehow he made his way to Chicago, appearing in one game and going 0-3 with 1 strikeout and 3 passed balls. That game ended his major league career.

Gastfield's career batting line works out to .068/.089/.080, good for a .169 OPS. I know it's comparing dissimilar things but I think it's interesting his SO% was more than double his OPS. He's one of only four players in all of major league history to have a higher SO% than OPS in 50 or more plate appearances:

• Ed Gastfield, .411 SO%, .168 OPS in 90 PA
  
• Enrique Cruz, .390 SO%, .240 OPS in 77 PA
• John Roskos, .358 SO%, .294 OPS in 53 PA
• Frank Cox, .346 SO%, .321 OPS in 104 PA

Fred Wood, the second-youngest player in the 1884 NL and Ed Gastfield's teammate, had a .367 SO% and .188 OPS in 49 plate appearances. Frank Cox also played on the 1884 Detroit Wolverines, helping to explain why they went 28-84, though at 26 he was an old man on the club. If 1884 is currently known as the year Chicago tinkered with their outfield fences and skewed home run totals, it should also be known as the year Detroit had a really, really, really bad offense. It's skewed because of the aforementioned Chicago shenanigans, but the team's OPS+ was 74. The team hit .208/.247/.284. Blech.

What of Cruz and Roskos? Well, Cruz was a rule 5 draft pick who spent all of 2003 in the majors with Milwaukee and resurfaced for one at bat with Cincinnati in 2007. Roskos was a C/1B/OF type who was drafted in the second round by Florida in 1993 and worked his way up the Marlins' minor league system but never really got a shot in the majors.

More Strikeouts than Hits, Total Bases

Individual batting strikeouts have been recorded all through major league history except for 1897-1909 in the National League, 1901-1912 in the American League, and all except two seasons of the 1880's American Association. Keeping those gaps in mind, there have only been thirty-four non-pitchers who have had over 100 more strikeouts than hits in their playing career.

Non-Pitchers with 100+ More Strikeouts than Hits in Career

Name	Years	SO	H	SO-H
Rob Deer	1984-1996	1409	853	556
Russell Branyan	1998-2008	797	460	337
Adam Dunn	2001-2008	1256	955	301
Gorman Thomas	1973-1986	1339	1051	288
Dave Nicholson	1960-1967	573	301	272
Bo Jackson	1986-1994	841	598	243
Mark Bellhorn	1997-2007	723	484	239
Pete Incaviglia	1986-1998	1277	1043	234
Jose Hernandez	1991-2006	1391	1166	225
Melvin Nieves	1992-1998	483	284	199
Jack Cust	2001-2008	420	244	176
Ron Karkovice	1986-1997	749	574	175
Mickey Tettleton	1984-1997	1307	1132	175
Mike Cameron	1995-2008	1642	1474	168
Ruben Rivera	1995-2003	510	343	167
Brad Wilkerson	2001-2008	947	788	159
Steve Balboni	1981-1993	856	714	142
Jim Thome	1991-2008	2190	2048	142
Carlos Pena	2001-2008	810	669	141
Tom Egan	1965-1975	336	196	140
Shane Andrews	1995-2002	515	375	140
Jason LaRue	1999-2008	731	592	139
Ray Oyler	1965-1970	359	221	138
Don Lock	1962-1969	776	642	134
Jay Buhner	1987-2001	1406	1273	133
Wily Mo Pena	2002-2008	520	402	118
Jonny Gomes	2003-2008	413	297	116
Craig Wilson	2001-2007	643	527	116
Ryan Howard	2004-2008	692	578	114
Pat Burrell	2000-2008	1273	1166	107
Todd Hundley	1990-2003	988	883	105
Gary Pettis	1982-1992	958	855	103
Dean Palmer	1989-2003	1332	1229	103
Mark Reynolds	2007-2008	333	231	102

In addition to the guys with more strikeouts than hits, there have also been some players with more strikeouts than total bases. It's a list mostly made up of players with short careers and very little power. Ten guys have wound up with 20 more strikeouts than total bases:

Non-Pitchers with 20+ More Strikeouts than Total Bases in Career

Name	Years	SO	TB	SO-TB
Tom Egan	1965-1975	336	293	43
Ray Oyler	1965-1970	359	317	42
Dave Nicholson	1960-1967	573	540	33
Ed Gastfield	1884-1885	37	7	30
Dave Adlesh	1963-1968	80	51	29
Chris Latham	1997-2003	85	59	26
Rob Nelson	1986-1990	66	43	23
Enrique Cruz	2003-2007	30	7	23
Moe Thacker	1958-1963	81	59	22
Tom Brown	1963	45	24	21

P.S. I would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge that the idea for this post came from an article about Mike Cameron posted on BrewCrewBall.com.

Sean Casey: So Close Yet So Far

If you've been following baseball transactions recently, you've seen that three-time All-Star first baseman Sean Casey retired earlier this week. He's not leaving baseball behind, however, since he's got a gig lined up with the new MLB Network.

I was looking up his career stats and noticed something interesting. In 1999, Casey had a career high in RBI with 99. He matched that total during the 2004 campaign. This makes him one of only five players in all of major league history to put up two seasons of exactly 99 RBI. The others were Kirby Puckett, Lee May, Bibb Falk, and Ty Cobb. If you don't feel like clicking all those links, he's the only player of the five who didn't ever reach 100 RBI in a season during his career.

Here are the other players whose career high in RBI was 99:

• Troy Tulowitzki (active)
• Raul Mondesi
• Kevin Elster
• Reggie Sanders
• Mark Whiten
• Kevin McReynolds
• Joe Rudi
• Davey Johnson
• Dusty Baker
• Bob Oliver
• Jim Ray Hart
• Chet Laabs
• Arky Vaughan
• George Grantham
• Billy Southworth
• Eddie Brown
• Charlie Grimm
• Ray Grimes
• Carson Bigbee
• Fred Luderus
• John Anderson
• Joe Werrick

I know that RBI isn't a very good way to measure a player's ability. It's more a reflection of lineup spot, teammates, blah blah blah. Still, 100 RBI is a benchmark season in a player's career. If you drive in 100 runs, you get the important run-producer label. It's got to be tough to get so close to that mark and never clear the barrier.

A- Errors By Position

It's time for another installment of minor league error leaders. I've already done similar posts for higher levels of minor league baseball: AAA errors by position, AA errors by position posts, A+ errors by position, and A errors by position. Today’s post is about Low A (or Short-Season A) baseball. There are only two leagues at this level: the Northwest League and the New York-Penn League. The Northwest League plays a 76-game schedule and the New York-Penn League plays a similar number of games. These leagues are intended to allow teams to break in college draftees judged too experienced for rookie level leagues while also providing a place for players stuck in between rookie ball and regular A ball. Not every major league organization has a team in Low A ball as the two leagues combined have only 22 teams. The organizations not represented are Atlanta, Chicago (AL), Cincinnati, Kansas City, Los Angeles (AL & NL), Milwaukee, and Minnesota.

A- Pitchers

A- Pitchers Sorted By Most Errors
Name	Team	Org.	TC	E	FPct.
David Stokes	Oneonta	DET	24	4	.833
Jarred Holloway	Tri-City (NYP)	HOU	22	4	.818
Wilber Bucardo	Salem-Keizer	SFG	21	4	.810
Stephen Procner	Aberdeen	BAL	16	4	.750
Martin Perez	Spokane	TEX	14	4	.714
Israel Camacaro	Boise	CHC	12	4	.667
Christopher Schwinden	Brooklyn	NYM	11	4	.636
Eduin Ciriaco	Tri-City (NYP)	HOU	7	4	.429
8 tied with				3

A- Pitchers Sorted By Lowest FPct. (minimum 10 total chances)
Name	Team	Org.	TC	E	FPct.
Christopher Schwinden	Brooklyn	NYM	11	4	.636
Israel Camacaro	Boise	CHC	12	4	.667
Martin Perez	Spokane	TEX	14	4	.714
Stephen Procner	Aberdeen	BAL	16	4	.750
Joel Carreno	Auburn	TOR	13	3	.769
Simon Castro	Eugene	SDP	13	3	.769
Matthew Nevarez	Spokane	TEX	13	3	.769
Aaron Odom	Aberdeen	BAL	15	3	.800
George Brown	Batavia	STL	10	2	.800
Marquis Fleming	Hudson Valley	TBR	10	2	.800
NWL Pitchers			1316	93	.929
NYP Pitchers			1893	140	.926
A- Pitchers			3209	233	.927

Since these leagues play only about half as many games as the other levels covered so far, I've adjusted the minimum chances needed for the fielding percentage list. It's hard to tell with pitchers since their threshold was set so low anyway, but it'll become more apparent at other positions. It's a little strange that no pitcher stood out as worse than the rest, though Eduin Ciriaco didn't have a great year with the glove.

A- Catchers

A- Catchers Sorted By Most Errors
Name	Team	Org.	TC	E	FPct.
Derek Norris	Vermont	WSN	422	10	.976
Travis Howell	Everett	SEA	425	8	.981
Jordan Pacheco	Tri-City (NWL)	COL	404	8	.980
Miguel Fermin	Jamestown	FLA	513	6	.988
Mitch Abeita	Staten Island	NYY	452	6	.987
Caleb Joseph	Aberdeen	BAL	434	6	.986
Carlos Perez	Boise	CHC	368	6	.984
Travis D'Arnaud	Williamsport	PHI	367	6	.984
Logan Gelbrich	Eugene	SDP	229	6	.974
3 tied with				5

A- Catchers Sorted By Lowest FPct. (minimum 200 total chances)
Name	Team	Org.	TC	E	FPct.
Logan Gelbrich	Eugene	SDP	229	6	.974
Derek Norris	Vermont	WSN	422	10	.976
Julio Rivera	Vancouver	OAK	227	5	.978
Jordan Pacheco	Tri-City (NWL)	COL	404	8	.980
Robert Alcombrack	Mahoning Valley	CLE	265	5	.981
Travis Howell	Everett	SEA	425	8	.981
Jason Castro	Tri-City (NYP)	HOU	224	4	.982
Michael Brenly	Boise	CHC	233	4	.983
Travis D'Arnaud	Williamsport	PHI	367	6	.984
Carlos Perez	Boise	CHC	368	6	.984
NWL Catchers			5485	74	.987
NYP Catchers			9618	129	.987
A- Catchers			15103	203	.987

Now you can probably tell about the total chances minimum being adjusted downward. Both leagues have the same fielding percentage at catcher. I don't think that's happened at any other level so far. Note that there are two different Tri-Citys. I've noted their league in parentheses.

A- First Basemen

A- 1B Sorted By Most Errors
Name	Team	Org.	TC	E	FPct.
Phil Disher	Tri-City (NYP)	HOU	601	16	.973
Xavier Scruggs	Batavia	STL	535	12	.978
Anthony Smith	Yakima	ARI	518	10	.981
Michael McDade	Auburn	TOR	339	10	.971
Matthew Clark	Eugene	SDP	326	10	.969
Tyler Moore	Vermont	WSN	591	9	.985
Dusty Napoleon	Vancouver	OAK	549	9	.984
Dennis Guinn	Spokane	TEX	496	8	.984
Brock Simpson	Mahoning Valley	CLE	393	8	.980
4 tied with				7

A- 1B Sorted By Lowest FPct. (minimum 200 total chances)
Name	Team	Org.	TC	E	FPct.
Matthew Clark	Eugene	SDP	326	10	.969
Michael McDade	Auburn	TOR	339	10	.971
Jahdiel Santamaria	Staten Island	NYY	254	7	.972
Phil Disher	Tri-City (NYP)	HOU	601	16	.973
Tom Baxter	Aberdeen	BAL	232	6	.974
Xavier Scruggs	Batavia	STL	535	12	.978
Brock Simpson	Mahoning Valley	CLE	393	8	.980
Jared Bolden	Spokane	TEX	204	4	.980
Anthony Smith	Yakima	ARI	518	10	.981
Robert Blauer	Eugene	SDP	320	6	.981
NWL 1B			5697	85	.985
NYP 1B			9299	139	.985
A- 1B			14996	224	.985

Phil Disher (nice name) has a comfortable lead atop the errors leaderboard. I also like Xavier Scruggs' and Dusty Napoleon's names. The two leagues have had identical fielding percentages at catcher and at first base. I wonder if they'll stay close at the rest of the positions.

A- Second Basemen

A- 2B Sorted By Most Errors
Name	Team	Org.	TC	E	FPct.
Luis Nunez	Everett	SEA	241	14	.942
Jason Ogata	Spokane	TEX	238	13	.945
Mike Gosse	Oneonta	DET	268	12	.955
Carlos Vazquez	Auburn	TOR	114	11	.904
Michael Diaz	Tri-City (NYP)	HOU	135	11	.919
Isaias Velasquez	Mahoning Valley	CLE	218	11	.950
Tom Edwards	Aberdeen	BAL	91	9	.901
Jonathan Del Campo	Auburn	TOR	194	9	.954
Michael Ross	Hudson Valley	TBR	255	9	.965
David Adams	Staten Island	NYY	315	8	.975

A- 2B Sorted By Lowest FPct. (minimum 100 total chances)
Name	Team	Org.	TC	E	FPct.
Carlos Vazquez	Auburn	TOR	114	11	.904
Michael Diaz	Tri-City (NYP)	HOU	135	11	.919
Luis Nunez	Everett	SEA	241	14	.942
Jason Ogata	Spokane	TEX	238	13	.945
Isaias Velasquez	Mahoning Valley	CLE	218	11	.950
Jonathan Del Campo	Auburn	TOR	194	9	.954
Robert Phelps	Mahoning Valley	CLE	110	5	.955
Mike Gosse	Oneonta	DET	268	12	.955
Jake Smolinski	Vermont	WSN	117	5	.957
Zach Gentile	Lowell	BOS	127	5	.961
NWL 2B			2901	106	.963
NYP 2B			4864	176	.964
A- 2B			7765	282	.964

This really underscores how out there Ryan Adam's 46 errors in A ball are. Nunez's 14 errors in A- ball came in only half the number of chances it took Ryan Adams to reach 46 errors. I expected error rates to get worse as levels descended, but Adams' terrible season broke up the pattern. Also worth noting is that playing time seems spread out more among players - not many players spend an overwhelming majority of their teams' games at one position. Whether that's because teams are encouraging versatility or want to get a better look at their roster, I'm not sure, but it's how more than one player on a team can show up on the list at the same position.

A- Third Basemen

A- 3B Sorted By Most Errors
Name	Team	Org.	TC	E	FPct.
Bryan Pounds	Oneonta	DET	180	24	.867
Andrew Fie	Yakima	ARI	235	24	.898
Steven Souza	Vermont	WSN	139	22	.842
Jeremie Tice	Mahoning Valley	CLE	128	19	.852
Matthew West	Spokane	TEX	179	19	.894
David Flores	Tri-City (NYP)	HOU	142	18	.873
Tyler Kolodny	Aberdeen	BAL	189	18	.905
Nate Tenbrink	Everett	SEA	137	17	.876
Cody Overbeck	Williamsport	PHI	169	17	.899
Rodney Rutherford	Vancouver	OAK	87	16	.816

A- 3B Sorted By Lowest FPct. (minimum 60 total chances)
Name	Team	Org.	TC	E	FPct.
Rodney Rutherford	Vancouver	OAK	87	16	.816
Francisco Tirado	Vancouver	OAK	79	14	.823
Steven Souza	Vermont	WSN	139	22	.842
Matthew Payne	State College	PIT	98	15	.847
Patrick Rose	Tri-City (NWL)	COL	74	11	.851
Jeremie Tice	Mahoning Valley	CLE	128	19	.852
Derek Shunk	Eugene	SDP	66	9	.864
Bryan Pounds	Oneonta	DET	180	24	.867
Leance Soto	Auburn	TOR	102	13	.873
David Flores	Tri-City (NYP)	HOU	142	18	.873
NWL 3B			1729	194	.888
NYP 3B			2901	326	.888
A- 3B			4630	520	.888

Those are some ugly fielding percentages. Both leagues are the same once again, but I don't think they'll be bragging anytime soon. Rodney Rutherford, half of Vancouver's duo of disaster at the hot corner, just missed becoming the first position player to make the list with a fielding percentage below .800.

A- Shortstops

A- SS Sorted By Most Errors
Name	Team	Org.	TC	E	FPct.
Joel Staples	Jamestown	FLA	307	23	.925
Brandon Douglas	Oneonta	DET	218	21	.904
Jeff Hulett	Tri-City (NYP)	HOU	109	18	.835
Colt Sedbrook	Batavia	STL	191	18	.906
Jason Christian	Vancouver	OAK	257	18	.930
Robi Estrada	Hudson Valley	TBR	272	17	.938
Dani Arias	Vermont	WSN	135	16	.881
Ronald Ramirez	Tri-City (NYP)	HOU	217	16	.926
Lonnie Chisenhall	Mahoning Valley	CLE	224	16	.929
Ryan Flaherty	Boise	CHC	248	16	.935

A- SS Sorted By Lowest FPct. (minimum 100 total chances)
Name	Team	Org.	TC	E	FPct.
Jeff Hulett	Tri-City (NYP)	HOU	109	18	.835
Dani Arias	Vermont	WSN	135	16	.881
Brandon Douglas	Oneonta	DET	218	21	.904
Colt Sedbrook	Batavia	STL	191	18	.906
Domnit Bolivar	Batavia	STL	112	10	.911
Chase D'Arnaud	State College	PIT	151	12	.921
Anthony Phillips	Everett	SEA	198	15	.924
Thomas Field	Tri-City (NWL)	COL	199	15	.925
Justin Parker	Yakima	ARI	120	9	.925
Joel Staples	Jamestown	FLA	307	23	.925
NWL SS			2952	182	.938
NYP SS			4824	330	.932
A- SS			7776	512	.934

Shortstops in the two short-season leagues had an easier time of it than did their brethren at the hot corner. Obviously they managed to cumulatively field in the .900's. You might recognize Domnit Bolivar's name from the third baseman list in the A ball post. He committed 23 errors at the hot corner for Quad Cities in the Midwest League. His 10 errors for Batavia took place in only 25 games.

A- Outfielders

A- OF Sorted By Most Errors
Name	Team	Org.	TC	E	FPct.
Brian Van Kirk	Auburn	TOR	69	8	.884
Kevin Mattison	Jamestown	FLA	163	8	.951
Frederick Parejo	Batavia	STL	115	7	.939
Bartolo Nicolas	Auburn	TOR	111	6	.946
Quincy Latimore	State College	PIT	117	6	.949
Ryan Blair	Mahoning Valley	CLE	128	6	.953
9 tied with				5

A- OF Sorted By Lowest FPct. (minimum 200 total chances)
Name	Team	Org.	TC	E	FPct.
Frederick Parejo	Batavia	STL	115	7	.939
Bartolo Nicolas	Auburn	TOR	111	6	.946
Quincy Latimore	State College	PIT	117	6	.949
Raymond Kruml	Staten Island	NYY	100	5	.950
Kevin Mattison	Jamestown	FLA	163	8	.951
Ryan Blair	Mahoning Valley	CLE	128	6	.953
Jeremy Barfield	Vancouver	OAK	112	5	.955
Tyson Gillies	Everett	SEA	129	5	.961
Ciro Rosero	State College	PIT	133	5	.962
Welington Dotel	Everett	SEA	108	4	.963
NWL OF			3431	98	.971
NYP OF			5932	187	.968
A- OF			9363	285	.970

Thanks to the abbreviated season, the outfielder with the most errors didn't even crack double digits. Brian Van Kirk did his part in making sure the Auburn outfield was a treat for Toronto pitching prospects to pitch in front of. Overall, though, outfielders did about as well in A- ball as their comrades a level up in A ball.

Baseball's Most (and Least) Common Initials

I've put together a list of major league players since 1876 and determined that 16,856 different men have worn the uniform of a major league baseball team and appeared in at least one game. Most, but not all, of those players have first and last names on their player pages. The unlucky ones include guys like Budd, McCaffery, McRemer, and Wiley.

With my list, it's possible to figure out which initials have been shared by the most major league players throughout history. It's not perfect, since players known by nicknames appear by those names in the list and not their given names. An example: Vinegar Bend Mizell has the initials "VM" rather than "WM" for Wilmer Mizell. I figure if the player was known by those nicknames more than their given names, it's okay.

With that in mind, here are the most common initials in major league history. Thirty sets of initials have been shared by 100 or more major league players:

1. JM - 281 players
2. JB - 275
3. JS - 235
4. BB - 200
5. JC - 196
6. JH - 189
7. BS - 186
8. BM - 182
9. BH - 172
10. JD - 152
11. JG - 150
12. JR - 148
13. DM - 147
14. JW - 144
15. JP - 141
16. BC - 135
17. RM - 133
18. RS - 131
19. DS - 130
20. MM - 122
21. JL - 111
22. RB - 111
23. CS - 110
24. DB - 109
25. CB - 108
26. CM - 107
27. JK - 107
28. CC - 102
29. JF - 102
30. DC - 101

It would appear first names beginning with J or B are the most common among baseball players. The initials MB (98), BW (96), and MS (96) are on the cusp of joining the above list.

In addition to the common initials, there have been 57 players who have unique initials in baseball history. Some of them are from so long ago they've been forgotten, but more than a few are from recent years. Here's the full list:

Art Quirk	Dan Quisenberry	Ed Irvin
Eddie Quick	Frank Isbell	Floyd Youmans
Heinie Zimmerman	Ike Eichrodt	Ira Flagstead
Irv Jeffries	Izzy Leon	Irv Noren
Irv Young	Ken Vining	Nick Dumovich
Nate Oliver	Ned Yost	Norm Zauchin
Omar Quintanilla	Oscar Zamora	Pete Incaviglia
Pat Underwood	Queenie O'Rourke	Quincy Trouppe
Quilvio Veras	Scotty Ingerton	Uke Clanton
Uel Eubanks	Ubaldo Heredia	Ubaldo Jimenez
Urbano Lugo	Urbane Pickering	Urban Shocker
Ugueth Urbina	U.L. Washington	Vladimir Nunez
Vern Olsen	Victor Zambrano	Walt Irwin
Wimpy Quinn	Walter Young	Xavier Hernandez
Xavier Nady	Xavier Rescigno	Yunel Escobar
Yovani Gallardo	Youngy Johnson	Yovanny Lara
Yank Robinson	Yohanny Valera	Yats Wuestling
Zeb Eaton	Zack Greinke	Zach Jackson
Zeke Rosebraugh	Zoilo Versalles	Zip Zabel