16+ Seasons Of 140+ Games Played
Posted by Steve L. on March 21st, 2012 · Comments (6)
It’s a small list -
| Rk | Yrs | From | To | Age | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pete Rose | 19 | 1963 | 1983 | 22-42 | Ind. Seasons |
| 2 | Carl Yastrzemski | 17 | 1961 | 1979 | 21-39 | Ind. Seasons |
| 3 | Brooks Robinson | 17 | 1958 | 1975 | 21-38 | Ind. Seasons |
| 4 | Johnny Damon | 16 | 1996 | 2011 | 22-37 | Ind. Seasons |
| 5 | Craig Biggio | 16 | 1990 | 2007 | 24-41 | Ind. Seasons |
| 6 | Rafael Palmeiro | 16 | 1988 | 2004 | 23-39 | Ind. Seasons |
| 7 | Cal Ripken | 16 | 1982 | 1998 | 21-37 | Ind. Seasons |
| 8 | Eddie Murray | 16 | 1977 | 1996 | 21-40 | Ind. Seasons |
| 9 | Dave Winfield | 16 | 1974 | 1993 | 22-41 | Ind. Seasons |
| 10 | Hank Aaron | 16 | 1955 | 1970 | 21-36 | Ind. Seasons |
.
Derek Jeter and Bobby Abreu have an outside shot of making the club. But, that’s about it for a good while.
Pretty distinguished list. DH’ing will possibly add more over time. You have to be pretty good to play that long. But, in looking at the full list, how the heck did Rabbit Maranville make the HOF?
And Johnny Damon isn’t signed foe this year.
@ redbug:
For reasons I can’t quite understand. Nothing wrong with leaving a couple of dollars on the table. You’d think he’d learn by now.
@ #15:
How the heck did Rabbit Maranville make the Hall of Fame? Interesting question. The answer isn’t all that simple. First, you must realize that during his career Maranville was highly valued as a ballplayer by his managers and teammates, as well as by the writers and fans. He finished in the top 10 in MVP balloting 5 times in his career (finishing 3rd in 1913 and 2nd in 1914), and when he was traded from the Braves to the Pirates in 1921 it was in exchange for 3 players AND $15,000. He was a regular NL shortstop until he was nearly 40 years old—and then he played 2 more years at 2B. Even today Maranville holds the Major League record for most career assists (Ozzie Smith is 2nd). Indeed, until Pete Rose came along Maranville held the record for most seasons played in the NL (23).
All that is very nice, of course, but some people suspect that Maranvile’s election had more to do with what he did after his professional baseball career ended. He went to work for The New York Journal-American running their sandlot baseball program—where he tutored the likes of Whitey Ford—and rubbing elbows with and glad-handing sportswriters, regaling them with stories from his time in the Show from the Dead Ball Era to the FDR administration. He also died just a few weeks before he was elected.
@ Jim TreshFan:
Outstanding info.
I just wonder how many guys with similar or better stats, but not quite his longevity, could use him as their standard for consideration for the HOF. Omar V. (a long term decent stick and the best SS I ever saw with a glove. Period. Sorry Ozzie) has to be a slam dunk lock by comparison (I think he’s a slam dunk even without the comparison). Alan Trammell??… Yep, if Rabbit serves as a reasonable yardstick.
I’d picked up on the fact that he’d died shortly before his election. That’s sad in anyone’s book. The post career stuff is an interesting topic, especially as a point/counterpoint when off-field problems are considered or dismissed for a given player.
BTW.. I never mentioned it to you before, and I’m not entirely sure of the reference, but…. I knew Tom Tresh. Great guy. Fun to be around. Loved the Yankees. He was a very, very good ball player for several years. He’s missed.
#15 wrote:
Ozzie was flashier, IMO, but Omar was steadier