MLB History

Many consider the 1927 New York Yankees the greatest MLB team ever assembled.

Most of this credit is given to the heralded “Murderer’s Row” lineup including Hall of Fame inductees Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Tony Lazzeri, and Earle Combs—though having two Hall of Fame pitchers in Herb Pennock and Waite Hoyt certainly didn’t hurt.

Others would argue for the 1961 Yankees—a star-studded roster in its own right with Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, Yogi Berra, Elston Howard, and Whitey Ford.

Each sport has those types of players and personalities whose quirks and oddities just add to their overall lure.

But perhaps no sport embraces it more than baseball, which in it of itself is a game of quirks and oddities. It should only be fitting then that some of the players and people around the game were and are the same way.

Is it possible to say a player is arguably the most overrated athlete ever to play professional sports and yet still believe his accomplishments make him a surefire first-ballot Hall of Famer?  Yes it is, and that player is Yankees legend Derek Jeter.

Last season, Jose Bautista shocked the baseball world by coming out of nowhere to launch 54 home runs as a member of the Blue Jays, setting a franchise record, and leading all of baseball in longballs.

In the process, he registered the 42nd season in which a player has hit at least 50 home runs. It is a feat achieved by only 26 different players, and is one of the most revered clubs in all of professional sports.

Nicknames and baseball go together like peanut butter and jelly. 

There are literally thousands of different nicknames that baseball players have acquired though their careers, and we all have our favorites. 

Making a list of the top 50 nicknames is difficult, because there are some great players and nicknames that have to be left off the list.  So I guess I'm apologizing in advance if I left your favorite off the list.

Here are the top 50 nicknames in MLB history:

Being labeled as overrated is a stamp no player wants associated with his name. It is like a black list that we do not speak about. 

Some players reach greatness, while others fall short of the hype.

Some players have mediocre careers, but are talked about for decades because of their postseason exploits. 

Some players were so gifted in one facet of the game that their shortcomings are overlooked.

Whatever the reason is, all sports have these players—the overrated ones.

As Opening Day weekend in Major League Baseball winds down, we have all had the chance to watch dozens of games, if you're as fanatical as me, that is.

While many of baseball's veterans are very much set in their ways as far as their normal daily routines are concerned, still many of them tinker with either their batting stances or their pitching motions over the offseason, trying to either figure out a mechanical issue or straighten out some sort of a hitch.

March 31 was the start of the 2011 Major League Baseball season. The hot dog and beer vendors were all stocked up and ready to serve. The grass was freshly cut, and the freshly laid lime was a pearly white. Tens of thousands of extremely excited fans were all lined up at the turn-styles waiting to have their tickets scanned. 

But for me, my stomach was the only thing turning that day. 

MLB Opening Day 2011 got off to a grand start on Thursday afternoon, and while there were some fairly impressive pitching performances, there were also some prodigious blasts as well.

In Cincinnati, the Reds and starter Edison Volquez got off to a bit of a shaky start when Milwaukee Brewers hitters Rickie Weeks and Carlos Gomez started the game with back-to-back home runs, the first time that has happened on Opening Day since 1969.

Today the Baseball Hall of Fame celebrates its 73rd birthday.

Personally, nicknames are just as much a part of baseball as beer and hot dogs. For as long as the game has existed, teammates and announcers have provided the fans with colorful names that turn celebrities into part of the family.

Nicknames are part of baseball history, so where better to look than Cooperstown?