Greatest athletes without a nickname

WillowGrove · #1 11-05-2018, 07:12 AM

Good question Peter.

Frank the first player that came to mind for me was Jose Valdivielso too Frank, so odd.

I once heard that players give their teammates nicknames. It's kinda a right of passage. Now weather those nicknames make it to the general public, is another thing. Like Magic Johnson was called Buck by his teammates (cuz he helped them make bucks), but to the public, he was Magic.

On Koufax, i did recently see an old NY Post newspaper headline call him Koo. Any older NYers or LAers remember that?

frankbmd · #2 11-05-2018, 09:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WillowGrove

Good question Peter.

Frank the first player that came to mind for me was Jose Valdivielso too Frank, so odd.

I once heard that players give their teammates nicknames. It's kinda a right of passage. Now weather those nicknames make it to the general public, is another thing. Like Magic Johnson was called Buck by his teammates (cuz he helped them make bucks), but to the public, he was Magic.

On Koufax, i did recently see an old NY Post newspaper headline call him Koo. Any older NYers or LAers remember that?

Berman would have called him Jose �Can You Say� Valdivielso

Leon · #3 11-05-2018, 09:39 AM

I don't know about sports athletes but way back in the day when I was selling technology Intel Corp. had my name as Lron Luvkry. There was a another sales rep who used to always call me Lron because of that.

and to the original subject, it is surprising Sandy Koufax didn't have a nickname.

Huysmans · #4 11-05-2018, 09:44 AM

I wonder, who was the first baseball player EVER to be given a sobriquet?

WillowGrove · #5 11-05-2018, 09:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Huysmans

I wonder, who was the first baseball player EVER to be given a sobriquet?

Good question. I chose to look up an early name, Jim Mutrie, and according to Wikki he had a nickname circa 1880...

Mutrie, nicknamed "Smilin' Jeems" and "Truthful Jim", was born in Chelsea, Massachusetts, and grew up playing cricket, first playing baseball at age 16. He played in the minor leagues from 1877 to 1879.[1] In 1880 he moved from New England to New York, where he obtained financial backing from August Belmont and John B. Day to start the independent New York Metropolitans. At the end of the 1882 season, Day and Mutrie accepted offers from both the American Association and the National League to enter a New York team; they met their double commitment by entering the Mets in the American Association, and acquiring most of the players from the Troy Trojans to form the New York Gothams for the National League.

Huysmans · #6 11-05-2018, 11:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WillowGrove

Good question. I chose to look up an early name, Jim Mutrie, and according to Wikki he had a nickname circa 1880...

Mutrie, nicknamed "Smilin' Jeems" and "Truthful Jim", was born in Chelsea, Massachusetts, and grew up playing cricket, first playing baseball at age 16. He played in the minor leagues from 1877 to 1879.[1] In 1880 he moved from New England to New York, where he obtained financial backing from August Belmont and John B. Day to start the independent New York Metropolitans. At the end of the 1882 season, Day and Mutrie accepted offers from both the American Association and the National League to enter a New York team; they met their double commitment by entering the Mets in the American Association, and acquiring most of the players from the Troy Trojans to form the New York Gothams for the National League.

Great information Peter.
I've always loved the surviving Troy tickets in the hobby.
What an important genesis item for the Gothams.

gonzo · #7 11-05-2018, 11:27 AM

Bob Ferguson was playing professionally by the early 1870s. His nickname �Death to Flying Things� is at least in the discussion for greatest nickname in baseball history.

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