I asked a lot of you today, and I’d like to thank you for your invaluable assistance. When I asked you to help me to determine the Most Forgotten Baseball Player of All Time, your response was overwhelming.
EARLY RESULTS: Who Is The Most Forgotten Baseball Player?
Of course, as I explained earlier, we cannot answer this question -- at least, not directly. The moment we remember a player, he is no longer forgotten. With every player we named this afternoon -- and we named dozens -- we inch closer toward a truth we will never know.
Here are some of your best suggestions:
Mike Boddicker (suggested by Jeff Sparks on Facebook). This eponymous fellow lies smack in the middle of the Boddicker Corridor, which is also populated with Mike Morgan and Mike Bielecki. This area of baseball lore is reserved for pitchers named Mike who seem as though they were probably a Donruss Diamond King at some point. Despite Boddicker's tenure as a Royal, and the fact that I was a Royals fan while he was in Kansas City, I think I had forgotten him for a good two or three years. Remarkable.
Felix Fermin (suggested by @AntsinIN). All I can say about Felix Fermin is that at one point I knew something about him.
Jeff Innis (suggested by @domifanotherkid). Check out this jerk comin' all the way out Nick Esasky-land. Time for an experiment.
BEFORE I GOOGLE JEFF INNIS: I think he played for the Mets. He was a skinny-ass first basemen who managed to hit .300 for half a season. Retired when he was like 30.
A GOOGLING OF JEFF INNIS TELLS US: Okay, I was right about him being on the Mets. But he was a pitcher. But he did retire when I was 30! I was kind of right!
The Carreon/Candeleria/Cangelosi/Candaele Cabal. Compriseed of Mark Carreon, John Candeleria, John Cangelosi, and Casey Candaele. I bet that three of these guys were pitchers, and one was a squatty catcher, a sort of poor man’s Jim Leyritz. Why, no, I’m not going to look it up.
Omar Daal (suggested by Jeff Sullivan). This guy really could have been the Most Forgotten Player if we hadn't just remembered him. When we bronze this trophy, perhaps we should do so in the image of Daal. Perhaps he is as close as we will ever come to the truth.
Other terrific names suggested, and therefore remembered: Andres Thomas, Jeff Treadway, Mike Morgan, Denny Neagle, Dave Burba, Mike Blowers, Sean Berry, Kirk McCaskill, Ben McDonald, Ivan Calderon, Rico Brogna, Eli Marrero, Jim Bullinger, Rance Mulliniks, Midre Cummings, Hensley Meulens.
So that’s, what, 24 guys? Out of the thousands who have played baseball over the last 30 years? We are not done, you and I. We have plenty of work to do, and I hope you don’t leave me to dig this ditch all by myself. Tweet other suggestions to me at @jon_bois whenever it strikes your fancy, and perhaps at some point, we will revisit this question.
Thank you.
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