Category Archives: demographics

Baseball is a Melting Pot

Posted on 12 October, 2012 by Diane

In honor of the official Columbus Day today, here are the earliest appearances of a player from each US State/territory, Canadian province and many foreign countries.  This covers 1871-2011: Birthplace / Name / Debut Afghanistan Jeff Bronkey 5/2/1993 American Samoa Tony Solaita 9/16/1968 Aruba Gene Kingsale 9/3/1996 Australia Joe … Continue reading →

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Most Popular First Names in Baseball History – by Birth Decade

Posted on 7 July, 2012 by Diane

I went to Target Field last week as part of the SABR annual convention, and got to see a fellow named Liam Hendriks pitch for the Twins.  Liam, while a relatively popular name in the UK, is an uncommon name … Continue reading →

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A Weighty New Metric

Posted on 25 January, 2012 by Diane

So, Prince Fielder is now the “The Round Mound of Motown” (copyright pending).  Those debating the wisdom of his new contract are focused on his weight, and pointing out that heavier players don’t age as well as their skinnier counterparts.  … Continue reading →

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Little Altuve Tall in the Saddle

Posted on 19 July, 2011 by

Baseball has long been a sport for persons of slightly above average height.  Through the decades, the average height of a player has increased from about 5’10″ (in the 1900s) to just under 6’2″ (in the 2000s). So when a … Continue reading →

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Its Your Birthday . . . Go Directly to the Big Leagues

Posted on 4 June, 2011 by

So you are thinking of having a child, and hoping that if its a boy, he’ll grow up to be a major leaguer.  Is there any more likelihood of that happening based on his birthday? The indispensable Lahman Baseball Database … Continue reading →

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Baseball and the BMI

Posted on 26 April, 2011 by

Baseball has had all sort of body types take the field in its history.  There have been very tall players, rather short players,  hefty hefty hefty players and wimpy wimpy wimpy ones too. Over at Beyond the Boxscore, Bill Petti … Continue reading →

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