By Paul Casey Gotham
****Remember, try this without research. Make like Wally, and release your inner James Joyce. Show us your stream of consciousness as you try to decipher the answer.
Gold Gloves and singles – that pretty much sums up my career. I’ve racked up some defensive hardware. Is there anyone out there keeping track of guys who earn Gold Gloves with more than one team? Has any other shortstop won a Gold Glove with more than three different teams? In both the American and National? Forget about just shortstops. Has any player won a Gold Glove with three or more teams? Anyway, that’s me. I got that one. I have won Gold Gloves with three different teams in two different leagues. Singles? Currently, nobody does it better than me. Yeah, I have been around for a while, but I am at the top of a heap in that department. Geez, I almost forgot. I’m pretty good at sacrifice hits too. I am at the top of a heap in that category also. You would think with all that going for me, I would have played in plenty of all-star games. So far, I have only been to three. Chances are, I won’t get another chance to go to an all-star game unless I buy a ticket.
Who am I?
A current player? I still don’t think I know it. Many different teams and shortstop who still plays. Made me think of Edgar Renteria. He’s been around, seems to have been on the cusp of being very good but constantly overshadowed by other great offensive shortstops. For some reason I thought he had more power in his bat, so the singles and sac flies make me think he might not be the answer. That’s all I got. Edgar Renteria?
At first glance, my gut tells me that it’s the well-traveled guy playing for the WhiteSox this year, playing shortstop occasionally … Omar Vizquel. He’s been on several teams since leaving Cleveland where he spent his peak years, which seemed to coincide with the Indians rise to the World Series with guys like Ramirez and Thome. Vizquel is probably the most underappreciated slick-fielding infielder to ever play … and offensively, he gets it done. Sure there’s hardly any power, but the guy can rap those singles and do alot of situational hitting. And what a special fielder … he must have double digit GG’s! Anyway, since Vizquel has been around for like 20 years, I gotta think he’s the current leader in total singles for active players.
I was going to guess Tejada, but I can’t remember if he played in the NL.
Definitely Vizquel. I guess I need to get on my computer earlier.
I recently came up with a few trivia questions inspired by the 7 active pitchers in the top 100 in strikeouts question that somebody threw out here. The hardest one was: Name the top four active players in sacrifice hits? Vizquel is #1, but I’ll give a couple hints for nos. 2-4. Two of them played together (and were starting position players) on a team that won a World Series this century, and the other guy is a pitcher.
Boy … this is tough, Chas. How about David Eckstein, Edgar Renteria and Roy Oswalt as the pitcher … gotta be a NL pitcher who’s logged a lot of innings. I’m sure I’m missing something pretty obvious.
I’m embarrassed that I didn’t think of Vizquel. I guess I have it registered in my subconscious that he’s never really left the Indians. He’s the most obvious answer.
Eckstein and Renteria didn’t play together on a World Series champion, Wally. OK, more specific hints: the two guys played together on a team that beat the Yankees in the World Series. The pitcher was also one of the answers to the question about the seven guys (now eight, because Sabathia joined the group) in the top 100 all-time in Ks.
Chas … we give up !!!
I guess this one was too tough. Juan Pierre, Luis Castillo, Livan Hernandez.