#6: Wilbur Murdoch

Wilbur Murdoch

I know, it's been awhile since I posted. This one took awhile, and you'll soon see why...

I) Wilbur Murdoch --> '08 Cardinals --> Ed Konetchy, Slim Sallee

You'll notice I started using Roman numerals. By doing this I can keep track of how far down a chain we're at. Both Konetchy and Sallee ended their careers in 1921, and Konetchy actually played for two team that year. We'll start with him.

II) Konetchy --> '21 Dodgers --> Burleigh Grimes, Zack Taylor
II) Konetchy --> '21 Phillies --> Huck Betts

II) Konetchy --> '21 Dodgers --> Burleigh Grimes
      III) Grimes --> '34 Cardinals --> Dizzy Dean, Joe Medwick
              IV) Dean --> '47 Cardinals --> Ellis Kinder, Les Moss

Both Kinder and Moss ended their careers in the 1950's, and only two degrees left to get to Stairs. That's too big of a gap to bridge, so I'm going to consider this a dead end. Fortunately, I have other paths to take, especially since Grimes played for 3 teams during his final year.

              IV) Medwick --> '48 Cardinals --> Stan Musial, Red Schoendienst

Both Musial and Schoendienst retired after playing for the Cardinals in 1963. This is still a pretty big gap to cross, although not as bad as the Kinder and Moss links.

                     V) Musial/Schoendienst --> '63 Cardinals --> Bob Gibson, Ray Sadecki, Dal Maxvill, Tim McCarver

Four players who played in the 70's. This is very encouraging. If I can connect any of them to my "Big 3", I've got my link:

                     VI) Gibson --> '75 Cardinals
                     VI) Sadecki --> '77 Mets
                     VI) Maxvill --> '75 Athletics
                     VI) McCarver --> '80 Phillies

So close, but with only one degree left, I can't get to Carter, Cerone, or Martinez. If this was 7 Degrees of Matt Stairs, perhaps. This branch is another dead end, but I've gotten far enough that I think I have a chance.

      III) Grimes --> '34 Yankees --> Dixie Walker
              IV) Walker --> '49 Yankees --> Yogi Berra
                     V) Berra --> '65 Mets

Another dead end.

      III) Grimes --> '34 Pirates --> Arky Vaughan
              IV) Vaughan --> '48 Dodgers --> Duke Snider, Gil Hodges
                     V) Snider --> '64 Giants
                     V) Hodges --> '63 Mets

Two more dead ends. That ends Grimes's branch.

II) Konetchy --> '21 Dodgers --> Zack Taylor
      III) Taylor --> '35 Dodgers --> Dutch Leonard
              IV) Leonard --> '53 Cubs --> Ernie Banks
                     V) Banks --> '71 Cubs

I'm sensing a pattern here, are you?

II) Konetchy --> '21 Phillies --> Huck Betts
      III) Betts --> '35 Braves --> Ray Mueller
              IV) Mueller --> '51 Braves --> Lew Burdette
                     V) Burdette --> '67 Angels

That's it for Konetchy. There were lots of opportunities here, it just so happens that none of them panned out. On to Slim Sallee!

II) Sallee --> '21 Giants --> Frankie Frisch
      III) Frisch --> '37 Cardinals --> Mickey Owen, Johnny Mize
              IV) Owen --> '54 Red Sox --> Bill Henry
                     V) Henry --> '69 Astros
              IV) Mize --> '53 Yankees --> Whitey Ford, Mickey Mantle
                     V) Ford --> '67 Yankees
                     V) Mantle --> '68 Yankees

Slim pickings from Slim Sallee. I'm afraid I have suffered my first defeat. Despite numerous branches, I was unable to make my connection to Stairs. This doesn't mean this is an impossible chain, however. It just means that my strategy for crossing multiple generations has failed. There are a wealth of other branches I can explore, and perhaps some day I'll come back and try to rectify this blemish on my record. For now, I can only hang my head and prepare for the next randomly generated name.

Degrees of Matt Stairs: Over 6