Some HoFers have very unique names – Harmon Killibrew, Rabbit Maranville, Eppa Rixey, Heinie Manush … Others, however, are common as dirt.
And that’s who we’re going to look at here. In particular, we’re going to look at HoFers whose names are so common that there’s another MLB player out there with the exact same name … but nowhere near the same credentials.
Here we go …
Ben Taylor
HOFer: Negro League first baseman, .337 lifetime average over a 20-year career
Other guy:
- Pitched in 2 games for the 1912 Reds, going 5.2 innings & recording a 2.12 WHIP
- Interesting tidbit: Named after former president Benjamin Harrison
Ray Brown
HOFer: Negro League pitcher; won pitching triple crown; led league in wins (8 times), strikeouts (3) & ERA (2); pitched perfect game
Other guy:
- Pitched in 1 game for the 1909 Cubs; started and went all 9 innings, giving up 2 earned runs & notching the win; drove in a run
- Interesting tidbit: Middle name was Percival
Joe Williams
HOFer: Negro League picther, played for 27 years, omce struck out 27 men in 9 innings, 20-7 against white major leaguers in barnstorming games
Other guy:
- Played shortstop for 2 games for the Chicago American Giants in the Negro League, got 1 hit in 6 at bats
- Interesting tidbit: Nothing else known about him
George Davis
HOFer: 19 seasons; not sure he should be here, but he was a fave of Bill James & the Veterans Committew
Other guy:
- Pitched 4 years (191 innings) in the bigs, 3 with the Boston Braves; went 7-10, with a no hitter
- Interesting tidbit: Harvard Law School grad, nicknamed “Iron”
Buck Ewing
HOFer: first catcher elected to the Hall; played for 17 seasons, managed for 6; lifetime average of .303. stole 354 bases
Other guy:
- Played catcher for 2 years in the Negro League, getting 217 ABs
- Interesting tidbit: 17 at debut; may have been named after the HOFer (real first name was William)
George Wright
HOFer: shortstop for first professional team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings; batted .633 with 43 HRs in 57 games, all of which Cincinnati won; first batter in National League history
Other guy:
- Played OF with for 5 years in the 1980s, mostly with Texas
- Interesting tidbit: Played 162 games one year
Joe McCarthy
HOFer: manager, won 9 pennants & 7 World Series, recorded 100 wins 6 times, regular-season & postseason winning percentages are the best of all time
Other guy:
- Outfielder for Giants for 4 games in 2020; got 10 ABs, but no hits
- Interesting tidbit: UVA grad
John McGraw
HOFer: managed for an NL record 31 years, winning 10 pennants & 3 World Series; also played for 15
Other guy:
- Pitcher for the Brooklyn Tip-Tops (in the Federal League) in 1914; went 2 innings, with 2 Ks and no earned runs
- Interesting tidbit: Born in Intercourse PA; went to Carnegie Mellon (one of my alma maters)
Billy Wiillams
HOFer: Rookie of the Year; 6-time All Star; finished with 426 homers, 1,475 RBIs & 2,711 hits
Other guy:
- Outfielder for the Seattle Pilots, going hitless in 10 at bats
- Interesting tidbit: Major league debut at 36
Joe Morgan
HOFer: second baseman for 22 years; 2-time MVP, 10-time All Star, 5-time Gold Glover; finished with 689 stolen bases
Other guy:
- Pitcher who played for 5 teams over 5 years and finished with a record of 59-64; manager with a record of 301-262
- Interesting tidbit: Still around at age 92; All-American in hockey at Boston College
Bob Gibson
HOFer: played 17 yearts for the Cards; 9-time All Star, 2-time Cy Young winner, MVP, 9 Gold Gloves; finished with 251 wins, 3,117 K’s & a 2.91 ERA
Other guy:
- Pitched 5 years in the 1980s, mostly for Milwaukee; finished 12-18
- Interesting tidbit: Baseball-reference.com bio link takes straight to Hall of Famer
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