The Most Common Last Names in Baseball

 A few years ago I downloaded Sean Lahman's baseball statistics database.  If you enjoy working with data I recommend checking it out - seanlahman.com.  I was working with a student researcher this week and I showed her the database.  

The student is new to databases, so I started showing her how to grab information from the almost 20,000 names on the database.  We decided to find out the most common last names in baseball history.

Of the most popular names, #5 on the list (Miller), #10 on the list (Anderson) and #11 on the list(Moore) all had more than 50 players with that name.  What did they have in common?  None had a player appear on a Kellogg's baseball card.  I did find Donny Anderson (1970 Football), Kenny Anderson (1992 Basketball) and Cheryl Miller (1990s poster).

Here are the top last names found on the database - 

#10 - Anderson

No baseball players on the Kellogg's list named Anderson.  

Mike played nine years without amassing 100 hits in any season.  There were not any other choices from this era.  

#09 - Taylor

Tony represented the family name.

I didn't find any other Taylors in the 1970s other than Chuck, who pitched in 305 games, mostly in relief, over eight years.  

#08 - Davis

Willie and Tommy appeared in Kellogg's sets.

Chili (4th in Rookie of the Year voting in 1982) and Jody (MVP votes in 1983 and 1984) missed out.

#07 - Wilson

Don and Willie showed up in Kellogg's sets.

Earl (solid pitcher in the 1960s whose career ended in 1970), Mookie (became a starter in 1981 and had a solid career) and Glenn (a rookie in 1982) never got selected for a Kellogg's set.

#06 - Williams

Billy represented the family name alone.  That's okay, his 1974 card is among my favorites.

Walt (.270 career average), Earl didn't make the cut.  He was the 1971 Rookie of the Year who added good seasons in 1972 and 1973; he was a Brave and Kellogg's and the Braves didn't work out so well for some reason.

#05 - Miller

No Kellogg's cards.

Guys who played from 1970 - 1983 who could have gotten a card - Norm or Dyer.  Both found their way onto Topps cards, but neither were regulars on the field for their teams.  

#04 - Brown

Only Ollie ended up on a Kellogg's card.

Gates seemed to have a Topps card annually, but he didn't see full-time action enough to probably warrant a Kellogg's card.

#03 - Jones

Cleon and Randy had cards.

Others who didn't find their way onto a Kellogg's card - Mack (my Canadian friend tells me he was the first baseball star in Montreal; he hit the first homer in a regular-season game in Canada) or Doug (pitched four games in 1982 but didn't return to MLB until 1986)

#02 - Johnson

Cards were made for Alex, Dave, Tom, John Henry and Walter (All-Time Greats)

No such luck - Deron (got MVP votes in 1970 and 1973), Cliff (played a long time), Howard (showed up in 1982 but he wasn't a regular for a few years)

#01 - Smith 

Cards were made for Ozzie, Lonnie and Reggie.  

No cards were made for Bryn (not a regular starter until 1984), Lee (first big year was 1983) or Dave (first big year was 1985).

In Kellogg's sets Johnsons win if counting Walter because that gives them four.  Smith and May (Carlos, Dave, Lee) have three players.