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Shoeless
Joe Jackson Jackson was a poor, uneducated man from rural South Carolina, thus the nickname. He also was widely regarded as baseball's best hitter, batting .408 and .395 with Cleveland (1911-1912). Jackson's lifetime average was .356, third highest in major league history. Oddly, he never won a league battle title. Unfortunately, he is best known as a member of infamous Chicago White Sox team that threw the 1919 World Series. Jackson was one of the eight players suspended for life after the 1920 season when the so-called Black Sox scandal finally broke. He was the target of the young boy's plaintive cry, "Say it ain't so, Joe!", a line that might have been crafted by a sportswriter. Many may recall Jackson as a character in Kevin Costner's movie, 'Field of Dreams', though unlike the film character (played by Ray Liotta), Jackson hit from the left side of the plate. |
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Spook
Jacobs Rookies don't start out any better than Jacobs, who in 1954 became the first player to have four hits in his first major league game. By the end of the season, the Philadelphia Athletics' rookie second baseman had come down to earth – with a batting average of .258. He'd play only 56 games the next two seasons before his big league stay ended. In 1957 he was with the Hollywood Stars of the Pacific Coast League where his most memorable game was against the team's most bitter rivals, the Los Angeles Angels. Angels pitcher Tommy Lasorda, later the Los Angeles Dodgers manager, threw an inside pitch that sent Jacobs to the ground to avoid being hit. Jacobs bunted the next pitch, correctly anticipating Lasorda would cover the play at first base. A collision followed, which touched off the inevitable brawl. Reportedly Jacobs challenged the entire Angels infield before order was restored. Jacobs is a charter member of the Philadelphia Athletics Historical Society. In 1991 he was inducted into the Delaware Hall of Fame. |
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Baby
Doll Jacobson According to baseball lore, Bill Jacobson's life was changed forever in 1912 when he hit a home run that won an opening day game for Mobile (AL) of the Southern League. As Jacobson circled the bases, the band that had been hired for the occasion serenaded the crowd with 'Oh, You Beautiful Doll.' A day later, a newspaper photograph of Jacobson was captioned 'Baby Doll!' Like it or not, the outfielder had a new nickname that stuck to him the rest of his life. That nickname may be one reason Jacobson doesn't get the respect he deserves for his fine 11-year major league career, most of it spent with the St. Louis Browns. Despite his size (six-foot-three), Jacobson was not a power hitter, though he did have a career-high 19 home runs in 1924, third best in the American League, but far behind Babe Ruth's 46. His lifetime batting average was .311; three times he hit over .340. He also was a remarkable defensive player, at one time holding 13 American League fielding records. Cold statistics says Jacobson was one of baseball's best hitters. This annoys several people who have spent a lot of time in recent years adjusting figures in efforts to prove that one player's .345 batting average in 1925 was actually worse than another player's .275 average in 1965 or someone's .305 average in 2005. Trouble is, there are too many intangibles. While it may seem logical to assume today's players are bigger, faster and better than those who played 80 years ago, it may be just as logical to picture the difficulties today's major leaguers would have playing under yesterday's conditions. ("Whad'ya mean I can't have a hairdryer?! Bad enough our dressing room isn't air-conditioned. Another thing, these baggy uniforms are itchy and uncomfortable. I can't concentrate when I'm at the plate. And they make me look like a geek. And what's the deal with playing all of our games in the afternoon? Hey, man, I need my sleep. And enough of this train travel crap! Oh, yeah, this glove ... how do you expect me to catch anything with it? I can't even find the pocket!") I admit it was the nickname that got me interested in Jacobson, but the more I read about him, the more I was convinced he was the real deal. This guy belongs in the Hall of Fame. |
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Sig
Jakucki In 1936 the pitcher was 0-3 with the St. Louis Browns and dropped out of baseball a couple of years later. But World War II created an incredible player shortage, so Jakucki came out of a five-year retirement in 1944 and won 13 games for the Browns, helping them to their only American League pennant. He was the losing pitcher in his only World Series start. He returned in 1945 and won 12 more games, but then the war ended and – finally – so did Jakucki's big league career. this time for good, though he certainly was glad his first retirement didn't take. |
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Alamazoo
Jennings Jennings' nickname is unique and so far I haven't found an explanation. Sounds like Kalamazoo, but Jennings was born in Newport, KY, not in Michigan. He was a catcher who played just one major league game, in 1878, with the Milwaukee Cream Citys of the National League. Based on that game it's easy to see why Jennings didn't stick around. He made four errors, which was bad even by the standards of 1878 when the worst fielders averaged one error per game. But four? Alamazoo! |
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Stan
Jok Jok's entire big league career included just 12 games with Philadelphia Phillies and Chicago White Sox (1954-55) in which he had three hits in 19 at bats. He was a third baseman with a name that invited jokes. As a player, he made much more of an impression on me during his years in the International League, such as 1953 when he hit 20 home runs and had 91 runs batted in for the Baltimore Orioles. Both Jok and Baltimore moved up to the major leagues a year later. The Basebal Encyclopedia lists his nickname as Tucker, which I suspect involves one of those jokes. |
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Smead
Jolley Picking up on my Baby Doll Jacobson rant, baseball revisionists could have a field day with Smead Jolley. Imagine, if you will, that the dreaded designated hitter rule was put in effect, say, in 1920. Would we then have statistics that indicate Jolley was the greatest hitter who ever lived? Unlike other minor league wonders, Jolley proved he could hit major league pitching. He posted a .305 average in 473 games with the Chicago White Sox and Boston Red Sox (1930-33). That average probably would have been much higher if Jolley had been freed from his greatest worry: playing the outfield. He is regarded by many as the worst fielder who ever played big league baseball. Research Jolley and you'll find frequent mention of a time he committed three errors on one play, a ball that rolled through his legs on the way to the fence, back through his legs again when it bounced off the fence, and a poor throw he made after he finally picked up the ball. Trouble is, no one can document the play, which might never have happened. But it's significant that in Jolley's case, people believe such a play was possible. Like Lefty O'Doul, another terrific hitter, Jolley started his career as a pitcher. Which seems very strange, considering that Jolley would go on to lead his league in hitting six times. Didn't matter where he played. In 1928, with San Francisco of the Pacific Coast League, where seasons were long, Jolley hit .404 in 191 games, getting an incredible 309 hits in 765 at bats. That season he had 52 doubles, 45 home runs, 143 runs scored and 188 runs batted in. The year before he hit .397, a year later he had 315 hits. In 1925, playing just 38 games with San Francisco, he batted .447. He had started that season as a pitcher-outfielder with Corsicana of the Texas Association. He won 18 games, batted .352 and hit a league high 26 home runs. It goes on and on and on. Anyway, Jolley had 3,037 hits in the minors with a batting average of .366. As a designated hitter he might have put up similar figures in the major leagues. |
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Puddin'
Head Jones He got the nickname as a boy, thanks to a Rudy Vallee recording of a song called 'Puddin' Head Jones' about a class clown. Jones played third base for the Philadelphia Phillies Whiz Kids in 1950, with a career high 25 home runs and 100 runs scored. In 1959 he was traded to Cleveland, but within weeks the Indians dispatched him to Cincinnati where his playing career ended in 1961. His lifetime batting average was .258. He had 190 home runs. And unlike almost all of today's players, Jones walked more than he struck out. |
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Bubber
Jonnard Jonnard was a catcher whose six-season major league career was stretched over 16 years (1920-35). He played with the Chicago White Sox, Pittsburgh Pirates, Philadelphia Phillies and St. Louis Cardinals. The Phillies were the only team that kept Jonnard two seasons in a row (1926-27), and it was in '27 that he played most of his big league games – 53 of them that season; he batted .294. He had a twin brother, Claude Jonnard, a relief pitcher who had a similar major league experience – six seasons over nine years with three teams – the New York Giants, Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Browns. Claude Jonnard led the National League in pitching appearances in 1923, with 45. He twice led the league in saves, with five, but that category was created retroactively and was not particularly significant at the time. The Jonnard brothers played together for parts of the 1920 and '21 seasons in Nashville, attracting attention because, being twins, they formed a unique battery. In 1944 Bubber Jonnard managed the Minneapolis Millerettes of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Later he was a coach and scout for several major league teams.  |
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Joe
Just This would have been a great name for an umpire. Catcher Just played briefly for Cincinnati (1944-45), hitting .156 in 25 games. I remember him for his years with the Syracuse Chiefs of the International League. Later he managed in the minor leagues. |
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