Monthly Archives: March 2012
Jamie Moyer and the Oldest Players in Baseball History
Jamie Moyer is Back. The 49-Year Old Has Made the Colorado Rockies Rotation.
Jamie Moyer, 49, sure seemed like he was going to retire following the 2010 season. Most players do long before that age.
He was out all 2011, working the ESPN studio, following – believe it or not – Tommy John surgery.
Well, amazingly, he’s back, and it’s the Colorado Rockies who have him. Moyer has made the Rockies’ starting rotation.
He becomes the sixth oldest player (tied) to hit the diamond. Negro League legend Satchel Paige was the oldest player ever – he was a Kansas City Athletic at the age of 59.
Most of the players on this list, like Moyer and Paige, left the game for a year or more before returning. Check out the years of service in the right column. Some were gone for as many as seven, eight, 10 years or more.
Here are the top 20 oldest players to play in a pro baseball game.
Follow me on Twitter @VinGetz.
| PLAYER | AGE | POS | YRS | |
| 1. | Satchel Paige | 59 | P | 1948,1949, 1951-1953, 1965 |
| 2. | Minnie Minoso | 57 | LF/3B/PH | 1949, 1951-1964, 1976, 1980 |
| 3. | Jim O’Rourke | 54 | OF/C/1B | 1872-1893, 1904 |
| 4. | Charley O’Leary | 51 | SS/2B/3B | 1904-1913, 1934 |
| 5. | Jack Quinn | 50 | P | 1909-1915, 1918-1933 |
| 6. | Jamie Moyer | 49 | P | 1986-1991, 1993-2010, 2012 |
| 6. | Hoyt Wilhelm | 49 | P | 1952-1972 |
| 6. | Julio Franco | 49 | SS/2B/1B/PH | 1982-1994, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2001-2007 |
| 6. | Hughie Jennings | 49 | SS/1B | 1891-1903, 1907, 1909-1910, 1912 |
| 6. | Arlie Latham | 49 | 3B | 1880, 1883-1896, 1899, 1909 |
| 11. | Phil Niekro | 48 | P | 1964-1987 |
| 11. | Gabby Street | 48 | C | 1904, 1905, 1908-1912, 1931 |
| 11. | Deacon McGuire | 48 | C/1B | 1884-1888, 1890-1908, 1910, 1912 |
| 11. | Johnny Evers | 48 | 2B | 1902-1917, 1922, 1929 |
| 15. | Nick Altrock | 47 | P/1B | 1898, 1902-1909, 1912-1915, 1918, 1919, 1924, 1929, 1931, 1933 |
| 16. | Nolan Ryan | 46 | P | 1966, 1968-1993 |
| 16. | Jesse Orosco | 46 | RP | 1979, 1981-2003 |
| 16. | Jimmy Austin | 46 | 3B/SS/2B | 1909-1923, 1925, 1926, 1929 |
| 16. | Sam Thompson | 46 | RF | 1885-1898, 1906 |
| 16. | Charlie Hough | 46 | P | 1970-1994 |
| 16. | Dan Brouthers | 46 | 1B | 1879-1896, 1904 |
| 16. | Tommy John | 46 | P | 1963-1974, 1976-1989 |
| 16. | Hod Lisenbee | 46 | P | 1927-1932, 1936, 1945 |
| 16. | Randy Johnson | 46 | P | 1988-2009 |
Photo: philliesnetwork.com
NBA Finals: Winners by Seed
Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler of the 1995 Houston Rockets
I hate to be the bearer of bad news. You know how you are hoping (or ever have) for that seventh or eighth playoff slot. Well, it doesn’t make a difference. Neither have ever won it all.
The 1995 Houston Rockets, in fact, are the highest (or lowest, depending on how you look at it) seed to win the NBA title. They were a six seed.
Check this, it gets worse. No fifth seed has ever won and only one fourth seed has taken the championship.
That means only two champs in 67 Finals have not been either a one, two or three seed. Wow.
All is not lost though. Making the playoffs and advancing is always fun. I have many fond memories of the Patrick Ewing era, for example.
Still, it really is about winning it all.
Here are the NBA championship winners by seed:
Follow me on Twitter @VinGetz to be in the know.
UPDATED LIST: Through 2013-14. That’s back-to-back now – the San Antonio Spurs and Miami Heat, the last two champions, were both No. 1 seeds. All together, out of 68 NBA championships, the No. 1 seed has won 49 times (72.1 percent), the No. 2 seed 10 times (14.7 percent), the No. 3 seed seven times (10.3 percent) and the Nos. 4 and 6 seeds one time a piece (1.5 percent each). No 5, 7 or 8 seed has ever won the title.
NO. 1 SEED CHAMPIONS
| 1. | 1948 Baltimore Bullets |
| 2. | 1950 Minneapolis Lakers |
| 3. | 1951 Rochester Royals |
| 4. | 1952 Minneapolis Lakers |
| 5. | 1953 Minneapolis Lakers |
| 6. | 1954 Minneapolis Lakers |
| 7. | 1955 Syracuse Nationals |
| 8. | 1956 Philadelphia Warriors |
| 9. | 1957 Boston Celtics |
| 10. | 1958 St. Louis Hawks |
| 11. | 1959 Boston Celtics |
| 12. | 1960 Boston Celtics |
| 13. | 1961 Boston Celtics |
| 14. | 1962 Boston Celtics |
| 15. | 1963 Boston Celtics |
| 16. | 1964 Boston Celtics |
| 17. | 1965 Boston Celtics |
| 18. | 1967 Philadelphia 76ers |
| 19. | 1970 New York Knicks |
| 20. | 1971 Milwaukee Bucks |
| 21. | 1972 Los Angeles Lakers |
| 22, | 1974 Boston Celtics |
| 23. | 1975 Golden State Warriors |
| 24. | 1976 Boston Celtics |
| 25. | 1979 Seattle SuperSonics |
| 26. | 1980 Los Angeles Lakers |
| 27. | 1981 Boston Celtics |
| 28. | 1982 Los Angeles Lakers |
| 29. | 1983 Philadelphia 76ers |
| 30. | 1984 Boston Celtics |
| 31. | 1985 Los Angeles Lakers |
| 32. | 1986 Boston Celtics |
| 33. | 1987 Los Angeles Lakers |
| 34. | 1988 Los Angeles Lakers |
| 35. | 1989 Detroit Pistons |
| 36. | 1990 Detroit Pistons |
| 37. | 1991 Chicago Bulls |
| 38. | 1992 Chicago Bulls |
| 39. | 1996 Chicago Bulls |
| 40. | 1997 Chicago Bulls |
| 41. | 1998 Chicago Bulls |
| 42. | 1999 San Antonio Spurs |
| 43. | 2000 Los Angeles Lakers |
| 44. | 2003 San Antonio Spurs |
| 45. | 2008 Boston Celtics |
| 46. | 2009 Los Angeles Lakers |
| 47. | 2010 Los Angeles Lakers |
| 48. | 2013 Miami Heat |
| 49. | 2014 San Antonio Spurs |
*
NO. 2 SEED CHAMPIONS
| 1. | 1947 Philadelphia Warriors |
| 2. | 1949 Minneapolis Lakers |
| 3. | 1966 Boston Celtics |
| 4. | 1968 Boston Celtics |
| 5. | 1993 Chicago Bulls |
| 6. | 1994 Houston Rockets |
| 7. | 2001 Los Angeles Lakers |
| 8. | 2005 San Antonio Spurs |
| 9. | 2006 Miami Heat |
| 10. | 2012 Miami Heat |
*
NO. 3 SEED CHAMPIONS
| 1. | 1973 New York Knicks |
| 2. | 1977 Portland Trail Blazers |
| 3. | 1978 Washington Bullets |
| 4. | 2002 Los Angeles Lakers |
| 5. | 2004 Detroit Pistons |
| 6. | 2007 San Antonio Spurs |
| 7. | 2011 Dallas Mavericks |
*
NO. 4 SEED CHAMPIONS
| 1. | 1969 Boston Celtics |
*
NO. 5 SEED CHAMPIONS
NONE
*
NO. 6 SEED CHAMPIONS
| 1. | 1995 Houston Rockets |
*
NO. 7 SEED CHAMPIONS
NONE
*
NO. 8 SEED CHAMPIONS
NONE
Photo: orlandosentinel.com
SPORTS LIST OF THE DAY 