Welcome to the second edition of Trivia(l) Tidbit Tuesday, a weekly (I hope) presentation of baseball occurrences that for some reason caught The Roundtable’s eye. (I’m particularly fond of unexpected performances or statistical coincidences.) These won’t necessarily be momentous occurrences, just events, statistics or coincidences that caught my eye.
This edition looks at the time the Phillies’ Don Demeter hit two home runs in a game – off of two Mets’ pitchers named Bob Miller, who also happened to be roommates. Then the post moves on to a pair of Bobby Jones, who started on the mound against each other and (as usual with Baseball roundtable when I start looking into something, “one thing led to another”) a look at Hall of Famers whose careers overlapped with another MLB player with the same first and last name. Some of you may want to skip that part of the post. It is a little bit “in the weeds.”
He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother
The first Edition of Trivia(l) Tidbit Tuesday focused on the year the Niekro Brothers – Joe and Phil – tied for the NL lead in victories. It went on to a look MLB’s pitching brothers who were also 20-game winners (the brothers Martinez, Perry, Niekro and Coveleski). For that post, click here.
On August 15, 1962, the Phillies topped the Mets 9-3 in the first game of a doubleheader at the Polo Grounds. No big surprise there, as the Mets’ record going into the game was 30-88. What was more surprising was that Phillies’ outfielder Don Demeter hit his 19th and 20th home runs of the season in the game – off a right-handed and a left-handed “Bob Miller” … given name Robert Miller.
Not only that, the two Bob Millers were road roommates. Southpaw Bob Gerald Miller reported that while he originally roomed (on the Mets) with Joe Pignatano, when calls came into the hotel for Mets’ hurler Bob Miller, confusion as to which room to connect often ensued. So, the two Bob Millers became roomies. (Thanks to centerfieldmaz.com for this portion of this tidbit.) .
Anyway, back to August 15, 1962 game. In the third inning, with the Phillies’ up 2-0, Demeter (who had started the game in left field and in the five-spot in the order) smacked a solo shot off starter (right-hander) Robert Lane Miller. Then in the ninth inning, Demeter – who had moved to center field in the seventh – hit a three-run homer (extending the Phillies’ lead to 9-2) off southpaw reliever Robert Gerald Miller. Two homers, in one game, off two Bob Millers, a right-hander and a port-sider.
Demeter, notably, was on the way to his best-ever major league season. In 1962 (his sixth of eleven MLB seasons), he achieved his career highs for average (.307), home runs (29), RBI (107), runs scored (85), hits (169) and doubles (24). The two Millers? Starter Bob Miller went 1-12, 4.89 in 1962 (69-81, 3.37 with 52 saves in 17 MLB seasons). Reliever Bob Miller went 2-2, 7.08 in 1962, the last of his five MLB seasons (6-8, 4.72).
The Travelin’ Man
Robert Lane Miller played for ten MLB teams in his 17-season MLB career (1957, 1959-74). In two seasons, he played for three teams (1970 – Indians White Sox, Cubs and 1971 – Cubs, Padres, Pirates). He played on five League Champions, which included three World Series Champions.
On May 11, 1999, there was another coincidence involving two Roberts (Jones, this time), who both went by the nickname Bobby. The pair found themselves starting on the mound in the same game. Once again, the Mets were involved – and once again one lefty and one righty were the principals.
The contest was in Colorado and southpaw Bobby Jones (Robert Mitchell Jones) started on the mound for the Rockies, while righty Bobby Jones (Robert Joseph Jones) started for the Mets. If you are looking for an MLB unicorn, it as the first time in the Modern Era (post-1900) that two pitchers with the same first and last name started against each other. The Rockies’ Bobby Jones got the better of the of it that day, giving up two runs in five innings for the win, while the Mets’ Bobby Jones took the loss (eight runs in 5 1/3 frames).
Hey, Let’s Get Together Again
The season after opposing each other on the mound in Colorado, the two Bobby Jones found themselves as teammates on the Mets and. In 2002, they were teammates on the Padres.
The 1999 Rockies’ Bobby Jones pitched in six MLB seasons (1997-2000, 2002, 2004 … Rockies, Mets, Padres, Red Sox), going 14-21, 5.77; while the 1999 Mets’ Bobby Jones pitched in 10 MLB seasons (1993-2002 … Mets, Padres), going 89-83, 4.36.
Now, We Go Into The Weeds
Getting this far, remember – for Baseball Roundtable, one thing always leads to another – I thought about looking further into MLB players with the same name- particularly those with overlapping career years. But, whoa, this looked to be a daunting task. Take the players with the last name Williams. I found at least two Bernies, three Bobs, three Williams, three Davids (first name David, but they went by Dave, Davey and David), two Earls, two Franks, two Freds, three Georges, two Harrys, two Jesses, two Josephs, four Johns (using John, Johnnie or Johnny), two Mathews, two Reginalds, two Thomases, two Roys, two Woodrows. Appropriately, there was only one Ted Williams,
So, I narrowed the search to Hall of Fame players who were not the only players with their first and last names to play in the majors. Still pretty daunting, so I reduced that to Hall of Fame Players who had careers that overlapped with those of other MLB players with the same first and last names. Now, we were getting to a more manageable group. Side note: I did require the given names be the same. For example, there were two Joe Morgans, but the Hall of Fame Joe Morgans’ given name was Joe. The Joe Morgan whose career overlapped that of the Hall of Famer had the given name Joseph. You get the idea.
Let’s start this portion of the post with a trio of father/sone combinations that include a Hall of Famer.
George “Ken” (Kenneth) Griffey, Outfield
Number one on this list has to be a couple of guys named George – George Kenneth Griffey and George Kenneth Griffey, Junior … with, of course, Junior being the Hall of Famer. Their MLB careers overlapped in 1990-91. Note: As we go forward, when it’s father and son combinations, for the sake of simplicity, I’ll used Junior and Senior to separate them.
It went like this. Griffey Junior signed with the Mariners (number one overall), out of high school, in the 1987 MLB Draft. At the time, Griffey Senior was with the Reds and in his 17th MLB season. After two stellar minor-league seasons (.320-27-92, with 49 steals in 129 games), Junior made his debut with the Mariners in 1989. In August of the following year, the 40-year-old Griffey Senior (hitting .206-1-8 for the Reds) was released. Fortunately, for baseball, he was quickly signed by the Mariners – and then the fun began.
On August 31, the Mariners lineup featured Griffey Senior batting second and playing left field and Griffey Junior batting third and playing center. In the bottom of the first inning, the first time they batted in the same lineup, both Griffeys singled (against the Royals’ Storm Davis). The Mariners, by the way, prevailed by a 5-2 score.
Back-to-Back, Jack
As the Mariners took on the Angels in Anaheim. Ken Griffey, Senior was batting second and playing left field, while Ken Griffey, Junior was batting third and playing center. In the first inning, Griffey Senior hit an 0-2 pitch from Kirk McCaskill for a two-run home run and Griffey Junior followed by taking McCaskill deep on a 3-0 pitch – making the Griffeys the first (and still only) MLB father-son combination to go deep back-to-back,
Long story short, Griffey Senior retired in 1990, after playing 19 seasons (1973-91). In 2,097 games, the three-time All Star hit .296-152-859, with 200 stolen bases. His career overlapped, in 1990-91, with Hall of Famer Griffey Junior – who played 22 MLB seasons (1989-2010 … Mariners, Reds, White Sox). In 2,671 games, he hit .284-630-1,836, with 1,662 runs and 184 steals. Junior was a four-time home run leader (seven times hitting 40 or more). Junior was a 13-time All Star, 10-time Gold Glover and 1997 Al MVP.
Willie (James) Wells, Shortstop/Third Base
Hall of famers Willie (James) Wells was the only Willie Wells in MLB for the first 17 of his 21-seasons (1924-39, 1942, 1945-48 … St. Louis Stars, Chicago American Giants, Detroit Wolves, Homestead Grays, Newark Eagles, New York Black Yankees, Baltimore Elite Giants, Cincinnati-Indianapolis Clowns, Memphis Red Sox. Then, in 1944, his son Willie (Brooks) Wells made his MLB debut.
A New First
In 1948, Hall of Famer Willie James Wells’ 21st and final MLB final season, he joined the Memphis Red Sox. Also on the team was his son Willie Brooks Wells, making them the first father and son to play together on a major league team.
Hall of Famer Willie Wells played in 1,039 games, going .330-140-873, with 932 runs and 160 steals. An eight-time All Star, he led his league in runs five times, hits three times, doubles three times, home runs three times, RBI two times and average once.,
The Younger Wells (an infielder like his father) played in five MLB seasons (1944-48 … Memphis Red Sox and Chicago American Giants). The younger Wells went .182-0-19 in 71 career games. games.
Timothy “Tim” Tim Raines, Outfield
Hall of Famer Tim Raines played 23 MLB seasons (1979-99, 2001-02 … Expos, White Sox, Yankees, Orioles, Marlins). His MLB career briefly overlapped that of another player with the same name – his son, Timothy Raines, Junior.
Raines Junior was signed by the Orioles, out of high school, in the sixth round of the 1998 MLB draft. He got his first taste of the major leagues in 2001, debuting on October 1 of that season. At the time, his father, Raines Senior – in his 22nd season – was a member of the Montreal Expos. However, on October 3, the Expos sent Raines Senior to the Orioles in a trade (for future considerations). The pair of Tim Raines first appeared in a game together that day, Junior starting in CF and leading off, Senior appearing as a pinch hitter in the seventh inning. The pair of Tim Raines started in the same lineup for the first time on October 4 (versus the Red Sox in Baltimore), Junior leading off and playing CF, Senior batting sixth and playing LF. Raines Senior was granted free agency after the season and signed with the Marlins for 2002 (and what would be the 42-year-old’s final season). Raines Junior spent 2002 back in the minors – so the overlap in the career of the two Tim Raines was very brief.
Tim Raines Junior played in three ML:B seasons (2001, 2003-04) all for the Orioles., He got in 75 games, hitting .213-0-7, with ten steals. Tim Raines Senior played in 22 MLB seasons (2,502 games), hitting .294-170-980, with 808 steals and 1,571 runs scored. He was a seven-time All Star (consecutively 1981-87) and led the league in runs twice, doubles once, batting average once and steals four ties.
Pedro Martinez, Right-Handed Pitcher
From 1993 through 1997, there were two players named Pedro Martinez pitching in the major leagues. One, of course, was future Hall of Famer Pedro (Jaime) Martinez, whose MLB career went from 1992 through 2009 (Dodgers, Expos, Red Sox, Mets, Phillies). The eight-time All Star and three-time Cy Young Award winner went 219-100, 2.93, led in the league in wins once, winning percentage three times, ERA five times, complete games once, shutouts once and strikeouts three times.
The other Pedro Martinez (no middle name listed, no relation to the Hall of Famer) was also a pitcher (southpaw). He played in the majors from 1993-1997 (Padres, Astros, Mets, Reds). In five seasons, he went 7-4, 3.97, with three saves in 122 appearances (just one start).
John “Jack” Morris, Right-Handed Pitcher
Right-hander and Hall of Famer John “Jack” Morris played in 18 MLB seasons (1973-94 … Tigers, Twins, Blue Jays Indians). The other John Morris, a left-handed outfielder played in seven MLB seasons (1986-92 … Cardinals, Phillies Angels.
Hall of Famer Morris went 254-186, 3.99 over his career. A five-time All Star, he led the league in wins twice (three times winning 20 or more games in a season), complete games once, shutouts once, innings pitched once and strikeouts once.
Outfielder Morris played in 402 MLB games (Cardinals, Phillies, Angels), going .236-8-63.
James “Pud” Galvin. Right-Handed Pitcher
Hall of Fame hurler James “Pud”( Francis) Galvin pitched in 15 MLB seasons (1875, 1879-92 .. St. Louis Brown Stockings, Buffalo Bisons, Allegheny City, Pittsburgh Burghers, St. Louis Browns). He went 365-310, 2.85 in 705 appearances (688 starts/646 complete games). He won 20 or more games in ten seasons and twice won 46 games in a campaign. (It was a different game then – he never led his league in wins).
For one of Galvin’s 15 MLB seasons, there was another James Galvin in the major leagues and like “Pud” he did not go by James or Jim. That was James “Lou” Louis Galvin, who pitched for the Union Association’s St. Paul White Caps briefly in 1884 – going 0-2, 2.88 in three games.
John Ward, Infielder, Right-Handed Pitcher
John (Montgomery) Ward played in 17 MLB seasons (1878-94 … Providence Grays, Giants, Brooklyn in the Players League and Brooklyn in the National League). He hit .275-26-869, scored 1,410 runs and stole more than 500 bases. He also went 164-103, 2.10 in 293 appearances as a pitcher (262 starts/245 complete games).
During HOFer John Ward’s MLB career, two other John Wards played in the major leagues, each with just one MLB game: Outfielder John E. Ward, who played one game for the 1884 Union Association’s Washington Nationals (one single in four at bats) and John T. Ward, who for played for the Providence Grays in 1985, going 0-1, 4.50 in one mound appearance.
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