This quiz tests your knowledge of the nicknames of some of major league baseball's greatest and most colorful players.
Over the years, major league baseball players have been called many names (especially from the bleacher seats in the late innings of a game after a few beers). At least some of those names were actually terms of endearment and recognition of a player's outstanding performance. Some even stuck as the press picked them up and repeated them until they became forever associated with an outstanding or otherwise colorful player.
The Origins of Nicknames
Some nicknames speak to a player's hometown, or ethnicity, or distinctive skills. Some rhyme quite colorfully. Some have long and complex backstories; others make no sense whatsoever, except that they seem to fit for some unknowable reason. That's baseball!
Baseball trivia buffs may be able to explain the origins of names like Luke "Old Aches and Pains" Appling, Mordecai 'Three Fingers" Brown, Roger "The Duke of Tralee" Bresnahan, Earle "The Kentucky Colonel" Coombs, Johnny "Crab" Evers or Jimmy "The Beast" Foxx.
Serious fans of the game know the nicknames of all the greats: "The Sultan of Swat", "The Yankee Clipper", "Shoeless Joe", "The Iron Horse", "Stan the Man", and many more. The mere mention of that brief nickname triggers a flood of memories about that player's career.
How Well Do You Know Your MLB Players?
Think you could recognize a famous or colorful major league baseball player solely by his nickname? Are you ready to take the quiz? Match the numbered nickname with the lettered player. The answers are listed below the quiz (no peeking!). Good luck!
1. "The Georgia Peach"
2. "The Wizard of Oz"
3. "Hammerin' Hank" (MLB's legitimate home run king)
4. "Oil Can"
5. "Express"
6. "Stan the Man"
7. "Stretch"
8. "The Sultan of Swat"
9. "Pudge" (the old one, not the new one)
10. "The Iron Horse"
11. "Chairman of the Board" (hint: Frank Sinatra never played in this "Show")
12. "Catfish"
13. "The Splendid Splinter"
14. "The Flying Dutchman"
15. "Charlie Hustle" (no editorial comments, please)
16. "The Cyclone"
17. "Mr. October"
18. "Yaz" (you get an extra point if you can spell his real surname correctly from memory)
19. "The Yankee Clipper"
20. "Big Train"
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a. Joe DiMaggio
b. Reggie Jackson
c. Jim Hunter
d. Pete Rose
e. Honus Wagner
f. Henry Aaron
g. Ted Williams
h. Walter Johnson
i. Stan Musial
j. Dennis Boyd
k. Carl Yastrzemski
l. Ty Cobb
m. Willie McCovey
n. Whitey Ford
o. Lou Gherig
p. Ozzie Smith
q. Babe Ruth
r. Carlton Fisk
s. Cy Young
t. Nolan Ryan
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Answers:
1l
2p
3f
4j
5t
6i
7m
8q
9r
10o
11n
12c
13g
14e
15d
16s
17b
18k
19a
20h
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Scoring:
18-20 Expect the call up any day.
15-18 You may be in Triple A a while.
10-14 Sorry, only used baseballs for your batting practice.
5-10 Tired of riding the bus yet?
0-5 Maybe you should consider soccer.
