#264: Mel Almada

Mel Amada

I) Mel Almada --> '39 St. Louis Browns
I) Mel Almada --> '39 Brooklyn Dodgers

We'll go with the Browns and see what we can come up with.

I) Mel Almada --> '39 St. Louis Browns --> Bobo Newsom, Johnny Berardino

II) Berardino --> '52 Indians, '52 Pirates
II) Newsom --> '53 Philadelphia Athletics

Bobo Newsom is a Connected player. I was about to completely dismiss him and move on to Berardino, but then I noticed something. The '53 Philadelphia Athletics were not one of my connected teams. The '53 Philadelphia Phillies however, were. Uh-oh. I think I made a boo-boo. Which means I'm going to have to go back and fix a few entries here. That won't be fun.

Until then, I have a chain to complete. I'm taking the least represented team, the Pirates.

II) Berardino --> '52 Pirates --> Ron Kline, Dick Hall
      III) Hall --> '71 Orioles
      III) Kline --> '70 Braves

Well, I know if I take the Orioles I can use Brooks Robinson, so I'll stop here.

1. Mel Almada played for the 1939 St. Louis Browns with Johnny Berardino.
2. Johnny Berardino played for the 1952 Pittsburgh Pirates with Dick Hall.
3. Dick Hall played for the 1971 Baltimore Orioles with Brooks Robinson.
4. Brooks Robinson played for the 1977 Baltimore Orioles with Dennis Martinez.
5. Dennis Martinez played for the 1993 Montreal Expos with Matt Stairs!

Degrees of Matt Stairs: 5

#233: George Elder

George Elder

I) George Elder --> '49 St. Louis Browns --> Roy Sievers

After a string of unconnected players, I've now had two easy connections. I added Roy Sievers here.

1. George Elder played for the 1949 St. Louis Browns with Roy Sievers.
2. Roy Sievers played for the 1965 Washington Senators with Joe Coleman.
3. Joe Coleman played for the 1978 Toronto Blue Jays with Rick Cerone.
4. Rick Cerone played for the 1992 Montreal Expos with Matt Stairs!

Degrees of Matt Stairs: 4

#198: Joe DeBerry

Joe DeBerry

I) Joe DeBerry --> '21 St. Louis Browns --> Ray Kolp, Marty McManus

II) Kolp --> '34 Reds
II) McManus --> '34 Boston Braves

I'll give the Reds team a go here.

II) Kolp --> '34 Reds --> Si Johnson, Frank McCormick, Ernie Lombardi
      III) Johnson --> '47 Boston Braves
      III) Lombardi --> '47 New York Giants
      III) McCormick --> '48 Boston Braves

The only team I don't have yet is the '48 Braves.

      III) McCormick --> '48 Boston Braves --> Warren Spahn

The rest is done.

1. Joe DeBerry played for the 1921 St. Louis Browns with Ray Kolp.
2. Ray Kolp played for the 1934 Cincinati Reds with Frank McCormick.
3. Frank McCormick played for the 1948 Boston Braves with Warren Spahn.
4. Warren Spahn played for the 1965 New York Mets with Ron Hunt.
5. Ron Hunt played for the 1974 Montreal Expos with Gary Carter.
6. Gary Carter played for the 1992 Montreal Expos with Matt Stairs!

Degrees of Matt Stairs: 6

#186: Miller Huggins

Miller Huggins

Hooray! A Hall of Famer! My first randomly generated Hall member since Frank Chance.

I) Miller Huggins --> '16 St. Louis Browns --> Rogers Hornsby

From one Hall of Famer to another, Hornsby has been connected before.

1. Miller Huggins played for the 1916 St. Louis Browns with Rogers Hornsby.
2. Rogers Hornsby played for the 1937 St. Louis Browns with Bob Muncrief.
3. Bob Muncrief played for the 1951 New York Yankees with Mickey Mantle.
4. Mickey Mantle played for the 1968 New York Yankees with Stan Bahnsen.
5. Stan Bahnsen played for the 1981 Montreal Expos with Gary Carter.
6. Gary Carter played for 1992 Montreal Expos with Matt Stairs!

Degrees of Matt Stairs: 6

#183: Rollin Cook

Rollin Cook

I) Rollin Cook --> '15 St. Louis Browns

This is a connected team. Done!

1. Rollin Cook played for the 1915 St. Louis Browns with Muddy Ruel.
2. Muddy Ruel played for the 1934 Chicago White Sox with Luke Appling.
3. Luke Appling played for the 1950 Chicago White Sox with Nellie Fox.
4. Nellie Fox played for the 1965 Houston Astros with Mike Cueller.
5. Mike Cueller played for the 1976 Baltimore Orioles with Denny Martinez.
6. Denny Martinez played for the 1992 Montreal Expos with Matt Stairs!

Degrees of Matt Stairs: 6

#182: Cuddles Marshall

Cuddles Marshall

Just my luck! This guy would have been a great Valentine's Day Special. Oh well. It's not like I would have ever thought there would be a ballplayer by the name of Cuddles anyway...

I) Cuddles Marshall --> '50 St. Louis Browns --> Roy Sievers

II) Sievers --> '65 Washington Senators --> Joe Coleman
      III) Coleman --> '78 Blue Jays

Done.

1. Cuddles Marshall played for the 1950 St. Louis Browns with Roy Sievers.
2. Roy Sievers played for the 1965 Washington Senators with Joe Coleman.
3. Joe Coleman played for the 1978 Toronto Blue Jays with Rick Cerone.
4. Rick Cerone played for the 1992 Montreal Expos with Matt Stairs!

Degrees of Matt Stairs: 4

#171: Pat Burke

Pat Burke

I) Pat Burke --> '24 St. Louis Browns --> Boom-Boom Beck

Boom-Boom Beck! I recall trying to use that name in a chain once before. It took some digging, but I was able to find him here. That saves a lot of work for me.

What I'm going to do is essentially copy what I had before and revisit it.

----------
      III) Beck --> '45 Reds --> Herm Wehmeier, Hank Sauer
              IV) Wehmeier --> '58 Cardinals
              IV) Wehmeier --> '58 Tigers
              IV) Sauer --> '59 Giants

      III) Beck --> '45 Pirates --> Bob Elliott, Preacher Roe
              IV) Elliott --> '53 Browns
              IV) Elliott --> '53 White Sox
              IV) Roe --> '54 Dodgers
----------

Since this post, I've only added the '53 White Sox team.

----------
Lots of choices here, but I'm going to ignore the '45 Pirates branch, since the '45 Reds give me an extra 5 years.

              IV) Sauer --> '59 Giants --> Willie MCCovey
                     V) McCovey --> '80 Giants
              IV) Wehmeier --> '58 Cardinals --> Lindy McDaniel
                     V) McDaniel --> '75 Royals
              IV) Wehmeier --> '58 Tigers --> Al Kaline
                     V) Kaline --> '74 Tigers
----------

I've also added the '74 Tigers and '75 Royals. That makes the '80 Giants a logical choice. My path so far:

II) Beck --> '45 Reds --> Hank Sauer
      III) Sauer --> '59 Giants --> Willie McCovey
              IV) McCovey --> '80 Giants

Two degrees to get to Stairs. I think I can do it.

              IV) McCovey --> '80 Giants --> Ed Whitson, Max Venable, Jack Clark
                     V) Clark --> '92 Red Sox
                     V) Venable --> '91 Angels
                     V) Whitson --> '91 Padres

Red Sox for the win!

1. Pat Burke played for the 1924 St. Louis Browns with Boom-Boom Beck.
2. Boom-Boom Beck played for the 1945 Cincinati Reds with Hank Sauer.
3. Hank Sauer played for the 1959 San Francisco Giants with Willie McCovey.
4. Williw McCovey played for the 1980 San Francisco Giants with Jack Clark.
5. Jack Clark played for the 1992 Boston Red Sox with Mike Greenwell.
6. Mike Greenwell played for the 1995 Boston Red Sox with Matt Stairs!

Degrees of Matt Stairs: 6

#165: John Leary

John Leary

I) John Leary --> '15 St. Louis Browns --> Muddy Ruel

Ruel is a connected player. All I have to do is retrace the path.

1. John Leary played for the 1915 St. Louis Browns with Muddy Ruel.
2. Muddy Ruel played for the 1934 Chicago White Sox with Luke Appling.
3. Luke Appling played for the 1950 Chicago White Sox with Nellie Fox.
4. Nellie Fox played for the 1965 Houston Astros with Mike Cueller.
5. Mike Cueller played for the 1976 Baltimore Orioles with Denny Martinez.
6. Denny Martinez played for the 1992 Montreal Expos with Matt Stairs!

Degrees of Matt Stairs: 6

#160: Rankin Johnson

Rankin Johnson

I) Rankin Johnson --> '18 Cardinals --> Charlie Grimm, Rogers Hornby

II) Grimm --> '36 Cubs
II) Hornsby --> '37 St. Louis Browns

Going with the Hall of Famer here.

II) Hornsby --> '37 St. Louis Browns --> Bob Muncrief
      III) Muncrief --> '51 Yankees --> Mickey Mantle

I am by no means a Yankee fan, but Mantle has a special place in my childhood because I got to meet him once.

              IV) Mantle --> '68 Yankees --> Stan Bahnsen, Tony Solaita, Bill Robinson
                     V) Bahnsen --> '81 Expos
                     V) Robinson --> '83 Phillies
                     V) Solaita --> '79 Expo
                     V) Solaita --> '79 Blue Jay

Looking at my connected teams list, I'm surprised I haven't used the '81 Expos yet.

1. Rankin Johnson played for the 1918 St. Louis Cardinals with Rogers Hornsby.
2. Rogers Hornsby played for the 1937 St. Louis Browns with Bob Muncrief.
3. Bob Muncrief played for the 1951 New York Yankees with Mickey Mantle.
4. Mickey Mantle played for the 1968 New York Yankees with Stan Bahnsen.
5. Stan Bahnsen played for the 1981 Montreal Expos with Gary Carter.
6. Gary Carter played for 1992 Montreal Expos with Matt Stairs!

Degrees of Matt Stairs: 6

#125: George Schmees

George Schmees

I) George Schmees --> '52 St. Louis Browns
I) George Schmees --> '52 Red Sox

One year, two teams - neither of which I've connected yet. I'll try both, with my bias towards the Red Sox going first.

I) George Schmees --> '52 Red Sox --> Jim Piersall

Piersall has been connected. I have a link here, but will test out the Browns team too.

I) George Schmees --> '52 St. Louis Browns --> Roy Sievers, Satchel Paige

II) Sievers --> '65 Washington Senators
II) Paige --> '65 Kansas City Athletics

How can I pass up the opportunity to incorporate the legendary Satchel Paige? (Who, by the way played his last season at the ripe old age of 58!)

II) Paige --> '65 Kansas City Athletics --> Bert Campaneris
      III) Campaneris --> '83 Yankees

Yeah, I'm good.

1. George Schmees played for the 1952 St. Louis Browns with Satchel Paige.
2. Satchel Paige played for the 1965 Kansas City Athletics with Bert Campaneris.
3. Bert Campaneris played for the 1983 New York Yankees with Rick Cerone.
4. Rick Cerone played for the 1992 Montreal Expos with Matt Stairs!

Degrees of Matt Stairs: 4

#96: Gus Getz

Gus Getz

I) Gus Getz --> '18 Indians
I) Gus Getz --> '18 Pirates

Two teams to go with here. I'll try both and see where I get the farthest.

I) Gus Getz --> '18 Indians --> Steve O'Neill, Tris Speaker, Stan Coveleski, Eddie Onslow

II) O'Neill --> '28 St. Louis Browns
II) Speaker --> '28 Philadelphia Athletics
II) Coveleski --> '28 Yankees
II) Onslow --> '27 Washington Senators

O'Neill and Speaker have appeared on this blog before, so I know I have a complete chain. I'll try the Pirates group just to see if anyone pops up that I may want to try.

I) Gus Getz --> '18 Pirates --> Carmen Hill, Hal Carlson, Billy Southworth, Max Carey

II) Hill --> '30 Cardinals
II) Carlson --> '30 Cubs
II) Southworth --> '29 Cardinals
II) Carey --> '29 Brooklyn Robins

Carey and the '29 Robins are also returning links. For the sake of fun and expanding my list of teams, I'll go with Carlson and those lovable Cubs.

II) Carlson --> '30 Cubs --> Guy Bush, Lon Warneke
      III) Bush --> '45 Reds
      III) Warneke --> '45 Cubs

Two more branches here. I guess I'll just have to see who takes me the farthest.

      III) Bush --> '45 Reds --> Herm Wehmeier, Hank Sauer
              IV) Wehmeier --> '58 Cardinals
              IV) Wehmeier --> '58 Tigers
              IV) Sauer --> '59 Giants

      III) Warneke --> '45 Cubs --> Andy Pafko
              IV) Pafko --> '59 Milwaukee Braves

Still no clear-cut choices. Let's just keep going...

      III) Warneke --> '45 Cubs --> Andy Pafko
              IV) Pafko --> '59 Milwaukee Braves --> Hank Aaron
                     V) Aaron - '76 Brewers

Nope.

      III) Bush --> '45 Reds --> Hank Sauer
              IV) Sauer --> '59 Giants --> Willie MCovey, Orlando Cepeda, Felipe Alou
                     V) McCovey --> '80 Giants
                     V) Cepeda --> '74 Royals
                     V) Alou --> '73 Expos
                     V) Alou --> '74 Brewers

Very close here. If Alou had played for the Expos the following year, I could have made a connection.

      III) Bush --> '45 Reds --> Herm Wehmeier
              IV) Wehmeier --> '58 Cardinals --> Lindy McDaniel
                     V) McDaniel --> '75 Royals

Nada.

      III) Bush --> '45 Reds --> Herm Wehmeier
              IV) Wehmeier --> '58 Tigers --> Al Kaline

Another dead end. Kaline helped us before, but we're too far down the chain to squeeze into 6 degrees. Fortunately, I established a couple links early on in the posts, so I can still make it to 6.

1. Gus Getz played for the 1918 Cleveland Indians with Steve O'Neill.
2. Steve O'Neill played for the 1928 St. Louis Browns with Red Kress.
3. Red Kress played for the 1946 New York Giants with Bobby Thompson.
4. Bobby Thompson played for the 1960 Baltimore Orioles with Brooks Robinson.
5. Brooks Robinson played for the 1976 Baltimore Orioles with Dennis Martinez.
6. Dennis Martinez played for the 1992 Montreal Expos with Matt Stairs.

Degrees of Matt Stairs: 6

#38: Spec Harkness

Spec Harkness

I) Spec Harkness --> '11 Naps --> Steve O'Neill

I had never heard of the Naps before, but the roster featured two huge names from our baseball lore - Shoeless Joe Jackson and Cy Young (plus Hall of Famer Nap Lajoie). Pretty cool.

II) O'Neill --> '28 Browns

I had already connected the '29 Browns, however Rick Ferrell isn't on the '28 team, so onward I push...

II) O'Neill --> '28 Browns --> Dick Coffman, Boom-Boom Beck, Red Kress
      III) Coffman --> '45 Phillies
      III) Beck --> '45 Reds
      III) Beck --> '45 Pirates
      III) Kress --> '46 Giants

I've connected the '45 Phillies and the '46 Giants before, so I know I can complete the chain with either Coffman or Kress. However, I cannot pass up the opportunity to include a guy nicknamed Boom-Boom, so I'm going to see where he takes me.

      III) Beck --> '45 Reds --> Herm Wehmeier, Hank Sauer
              IV) Wehmeier --> '58 Cardinals
              IV) Wehmeier --> '58 Tigers
              IV) Sauer --> '59 Giants

      III) Beck --> '45 Pirates --> Bob Elliott, Preacher Roe
              IV) Elliott --> '53 Browns
              IV) Elliott --> '53 White Sox
              IV) Roe --> '54 Dodgers

Lots of choices here, but I'm going to ignore the '45 Pirates branch, since the '45 Reds give me an extra 5 years.

              IV) Sauer --> '59 Giants --> Willie MCCovey
                     V) McCovey --> '80 Giants
              IV) Wehmeier --> '58 Cardinals --> Lindy McDaniel
                     V) McDaniel --> '75 Royals
              IV) Wehmeier --> '58 Tigers --> Al Kaline
                     V) Kaline --> '74 Tigers

By now, I should have at least been able to get to one of my "Big 3". A lot of work for naught I'm afraid. Fortunately, I already knew I could complete my chain. I'm going with the '46 Giants over the '45 Phillies, for no reason other than to give Granny Hamner a break.

1. Spec Harkness played for the 1911 Cleveland Naps with Steve O'Neill.
2. Steve O'Neill played for the 1928 St. Louis Browns with Red Kress.
3. Red Kress played for the 1946 New York Giants with Bobby Thompson.
4. Bobby Thompson played for the 1960 Baltimore Orioles with Brooks Robinson.
5. Brooks Robinson played for the 1976 Baltimore Orioles with Dennis Martinez.
6. Dennis Martinez played for the 1992 Montreal Expos with Matt Stairs.

Degrees of Matt Stairs: 6

#18: Grover Baichley

Grover Baichley

Another guy who played one season in the early 1900's.

I) Grover Baichley --> '14 Browns --> Del Pratt

We've already connected Pratt, and I can easily complete my chain by going this route. However, I want to see if I can go a different route.

I) Grover Baichley --> '14 Browns --> Jimmy Austin

II) Austin --> '29 Browns --> Rick Ferrell, Red Kress
      III) Farrell --> '47 Senators
      III) Kress --> '46 Giants

The '46 Giants are on my table, so I know I can complete the chain here too. If I want to tread new ground, I'll have to take the Senators.

      III) Farrell --> '47 Senators --> Bobo Newsome

Bobo again! Unfortunately, we're too far down the chain to use him.

      III) Farrell --> '47 Senators --> Early Wynn, Eddie Yost
              IV) Wynn --> '63 Indians
              IV) Yost --> '62 Angels

Once again, I find myself leaning towards that Indians team, if only because I'm so close to a possible link to Rick Cerone.

              IV) Wynn --> '63 Indians --> Jim Perry
                      V) Perry --> '75 Indians --> Rick Cerone

Awesome. "Big 3" Cerone comes through for me again! During the course of this one, I could have completed this chain twice using previous links found. Because I bypassed known routes, I can now add more teams to my table. Technically, I could have even bypassed the "Big 3" link, as the '63 Indians also featured Tommy John, who pitched until '89. Anyway, I have my chain:

1. Grover Baichley played for the 1914 St. Louis Browns with Jimmy Austin.
2. Jimmy Austin played for the 1929 St. Louis Browns with Rick Ferrell.
3. Rick Ferrell played for the 1947 Washington Senators with Early Wynn.
4. Early Wynn played for the 1963 Cleveland Indians with Jim Perry.
5. Jim Perry played for the 1975 Cleveland Indians with Rick Cerone.
6. Rick Cerone played for the 1992 Montreal Expos with Matt Stairs!

Degrees of Matt Stairs: 6

#5: John Merritt

John Merritt


Dear Lord, I've stumbled upon Archie Graham! OK, so he's not really Archibald "Moonlight" Graham, but look at this guy's page! This guy got into 1 game with the Giants at the ripe age of 18 on September 27, 1913. No at bats, no fielding chances. That's it. Done. If I can do this, I don't think there's a player I can't do this with!

John Merritt --> '13 Giants --> Grover Hartley
--> Hartley --> '34 Browns --> Bobo Newsom
----> Newsom --> '53 Athletics --> Bobby Shantz
------> Shantz --> '64 Cardinals
------> Shantz --> '64 Cubs
------> Shantz --> '64 Phillies

I may have caught a break here. Three teams in one year gives me a lot of options.

------> Shantz --> '64 Phillies --> Tony Taylor

Tony Taylor helped me get the Ty Tyson completed. I know for certain I can connect the chain to Stairs:

Merritt --> '13 Giants --> Hartley
Hartley --> '34 Browns --> Newsom
Newsom --> '53 Athletics --> Shantz
Shantz --> '64 Phillies --> Taylor
Taylor --> '76 Phillies --> Cash
Cash --> '77 Expos --> Carter
Carter --> '92 Expos --> Stairs

OK, so worst case scenario, I can link Merritt to Stairs in 7 degrees. However, since the goal is to get 6 or less, I'll go back to Shantz and the three teams he played with.

------> Shantz --> '64 Phillies --> Rick Wise
--------> Wise --> '82 Padres

------> Shantz --> '64 Cubs --> Fred Norman, Don Kessinger
--------> Kessinger --> '79 White Sox
--------> Norman --> '80 Expos

------> Shantz --> '64 Cardinals --> Lou Brock, Tim McCarver, Mike Cueller
--------> Brock --> '79 Cardinals
--------> Cuellar --> '77 Angels
--------> McCarver --> '80 Phillies

I have two potential links to my "Big 3" - Fred Norman most definitely played with Carter on that Expos team, and Mike Cuellar was an Oriole with Denny Martinez. Since I used Carter last time, let's go with Martinez today.

1. John Merritt played for the 1913 New York Giants with Grover Hartley
2. Grover Hartley played for the 1934 St. Louis Browns with Bobo Newsom
3. Bobo Newsom played for the 1953 Philadelphia Athletics with Bobby Shantz
4. Bobby Shantz played for the 1964 St. Louis Cardinals with Mike Cuellar
5. Mike Cuellar played for the 1976 Baltimore Orioles with Dennis Martinez
6. Dennis Martinez played for the 1992 Montreal Expos with Matt Stairs!

Degrees of Matt Stairs: 6

Seriously, can this get any more difficult? Abner Doubleday doesn't have a page, does he? (I checked, he only has a bio.)