Coffee Sippers: Those Who Played One Game (Position Players)

Billy Kinloch had had enough — enough of the hot corner in particular and of major league baseball in general. After fielding yet another screamer in a game against the hard-hitting Chicago Colts, the 21-year-old third baseman staggered across the diamond to second baseman Joe Quinn and begged the Browns player-manager to grant him an immediate release. He wanted to catch a train back home to Denver, and he wanted to catch it now.

The date: Aug. 1, 1895. At 27-56, the Browns were hopelessly out of the National League race, and in efforts to prepare for the 1896 season, owner Chris von der Ahe had begun auditioning young players such as Kinloch. Acting on a tip, he had signed him off a Denver amateur team and immediately placed him in the starting lineup against the 48-39 Colts. But as Kinloch had quickly discovered, big league hitters like Big Bill Lange were a whole lot stronger than some pipefitter from Arapahoe County.

On the diamond, Quinn persuaded the jittery Kinloch to complete the game, and he did, finishing 1-for-3 and fielding his five chances flawlessly. Still, those chances had proved far too frightening, and Kinloch, shaken, caught the morning train to Denver, never to play major league ball again.

Kinloch is hardly alone as a one-game major league player, though he might be alone in refusing to play one more. At the beginning of the 2017 season, nearly 1,000 players had sipped a one-game cup o’ coffee in the major leagues. Henceforth, then, we shall call them Sippers. The majority were pitchers; we told you about them last week. But a good many —363 — had served as position players. That is, each had served as something other than a pitcher, pinch hitter or pinch runner for at least one half inning.

Some, like Charlie Tilson, who played four innings in 2016 before suffering an injury, still have a chance to erase their names from the list. Others, like Harry Clarke, are on it to stay. An acclaimed actor and amateur ballplayer, Clarke was sitting in the Polo Ground stands on Aug. 28, 1889, when the visiting Nationals recruited him as an emergency player for the second game of a doubleheader against the host Giants. Already shorthanded, the Nationals had been further handcuffed by two injuries in game one and now needed the 28-year-old thespian to act like a good right fielder. He did, gunning down two runners and making a running catch in foul ground.

Afterward, he acted like an actor by moving to L.A., his major league career complete.

Clarke wasn’t the first grandstand recruit. Eight years earlier, on a rainy day in 1881, Martin Flaherty stepped from the seats to play six innings for the shorthanded Ruby Legs, a National League team he partly owned. By statistical measures, Flaherty played as poorly as a non-player might expect, booting his one defensive chance and whiffing in both at-bats.

More common than playing for one’s own team, of course, was playing for a team of visitors, just as Harry Clarke had done for a rival of his hometown Giants. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, roster rules and player recruitment were about as slapdash as talent evaluation, and in efforts to save money while filling a roster spot for a team hampered by injury or illness, many franchises solicited referrals for local amateur players instead of paying to purchase the contracts of minor leaguers. One such player was Frank Mahar. Laboring in seventh place in the National League, the 1902 Phillies recruited the Massachusetts amateur just prior to a late-August series versus the last-place Giants. As Mahar prepared for his first start, on Aug. 29, a ball struck him in the face during warm-ups and cut his lip and face. After fielding his position in the top of the first inning, Mahar could no longer continue. He headed to the hospital, his major league career kaput.

In 1906, Warren Shanabrook was working as the head of an Ohio hospital laundry department and playing amateur ball when, after an exhibition game, Washington manager Jake Stahl offered him a spot on the Nationals roster. A string of injuries, coupled with the recent death of shortstop Joe Cassidy, had left the seventh-place Nationals with a deficit of infielders. Taking a two-week vacation from the hospital, he got the start at third base in Washington’s Aug. 13 game against the Indians in Cleveland. In it, he handled his one defensive chance cleanly and went 0-for-2, with a walk and a sacrifice, in four plate appearances. Afterward, the Nationals wanted to send him to one of their farm teams, but Shanabrook opted to return to his regular job and to the amateur ranks. For a 25-year-old beginner, a steady gig offered more security than an unsteady one in the sun.

Regardless of the era, Sippers have had one thing in common: opportunity, and the often unique circumstance that produced it. In 1899, amateur Burley Bayer got his chance to play shortstop for the Louisville Colonels because starter Bill Clingman had fallen ill — and because 25-year-old utility man Honus Wagner was still five seasons away from becoming a full-time shortstop. Bayer failed in his audition, going 0-for-3 with two strikeouts and committing two errors in five chances. It would be his only professional game that year.

In 1872, 19-year-old local amateur Martin Mullen got his shot with the Cleveland Forest Citys after right fielder Rynie Wolters swallowed tobacco. Martin made three errors and went hitless in four at-bats. Though he did manage to score a run, it would be his only professional game ever.

In 1945, Detroit catcher Milt Welch got his shot because two catchers on the Tigers’ 1944 roster, Al Unser and Hack Miller, had decided to stay at their war plant jobs. For the first few weeks of the season, the 20-year-old Welch served as the team’s bullpen catcher. Then on June 5, with Detroit trailing the Indians, 8-0, with one out in the sixth inning, Welch got his chance to play. He went 0-for-2 at the plate but made three putouts and one assist.

Such opportunities aren’t confined to yesteryear. In 2015, Daniel Fields got his call-up to Detroit because outfielder Rajai Davis had gone on paternity leave. Fields had received no playing time during his first two days with the team, but on June 4, in a game against the A’s, left fielder Yoenis Cespedes left after two innings due to “flu-like symptoms,” and Fields took the field. He doubled and scored in three at-bats and made one error in three chances. The Tigers returned him to Triple-A after the game, and he has yet to return.

Other opportunities have come from different kinds of roster manipulation. On Sept. 21, 1922, with his Indians 16 games out, manager Tris Speaker used 11 rookies in an eventual 15-5 loss to Boston. Among them were two soon-to-be Sippers: pitcher Doc Hammann, who would accrue an infinite ERA, and Uke Clanton, who went 0-for-1 and committed an error at first base. Clanton would spend eight years in the minors and never return to the majors.

Semi-pros Charles Fisher, Mike Gaule and John Traffley got their opportunity in 1889 when several members of the Louisville Colonels refused to play in protest of owner Mordecai Davidson’s failure to pay them. In a rain-shortened game, Gaule went hitless while Fisher and Traffley collected one hit apiece. In the field, Gaule and Traffley each committed one error. None of the three would ever play professionally again. The Colonels had needed players for one game and had gotten players for one game.

Not to be outdone, the 1912 Tigers introduced eight soon-to-be Sippers when, on May 18, they took the field against the Athletics. In the aftermath of Ty Cobb’s suspension for fighting a fan, the regular Detroit players had gone on strike, and rather than pay a fine for forfeiting, the franchise rustled up eight Philadelphia amateurs and gave them uniforms. The results: a 24-2 loss and a lifetime tale for men who otherwise wouldn’t have had it.

More often, roster emergencies have taken the form of positional need. And though the pitcher position has long been one of scarcity and crisis, the other half of the battery — catcher —has also sported a HELP WANTED sign. Since major league baseball’s advent in 1871, no fewer than 109 Sippers have played their lone games solely behind the plate. For many, if not most, that one game proved to be one too many. As a group, the catchers have been abysmal.

The worst of the offenders — rather, defenders — played in the 19th century.

• Lew Carl, 1874: three errors, one passed ball.
• Terry Connell, 1874: four errors.
• Bob Valentine, 1876: four errors.
• Jim Ward, 1876: two errors, five passed balls.
• Alamazoo Jennings, 1878: four errors, 10 passed balls.
• Fred Gunkle, 1879: three errors, seven passed balls –– in three innings.
• Alex Gardner, 1884: six errors, six passed balls.
• Dick Lowe, 1884: seven errors, four passed balls.
• John O’Donnell, 1884: five errors, seven passed balls.
• Bill Rollinson, 1884: four errors, one passed ball.
• Ed Sixsmith, 1884: five passed balls.
• Walt Waker, 1884: two errors, seven passed balls.
• Floyd Ritter, 1890: two errors, five passed balls.
• Joe Fagin, 1895: four errors, two passed balls, four stolen bases allowed.

Other catchers, like other position players, might have considered themselves fortunate to have put their names in the major league books. In 1900, Henry Stein caught one inning of the Cardinals’ season finale. In 1913, Mark Stewart caught the final inning of Cincinnati’s penultimate game. And in 1914, Earl Tyree got the start for the Cubs in their season finale. He went 0-for-4 but did score a run in Chicago’s 4-3 defeat of the rival Cardinals.

Still others, upon the final out of their only game, might not have realized that their big league careers had ended. Tom Hess, in 1892, and Coonie Blank, in 1909, were just 16 when they debuted in the big leagues, each going 0-for-2 but performing flawlessly behind the plate. Both returned to the minors, but, having made the majors at such a young age, they might have believed they would return in time to the Show. They didn’t. Blank left the sport after his age-18 season, but Hess kept trying, at last giving up at age 35 after a season in Class D.

It is possible, even probable, that despite their early starts, neither Blank nor Hess possessed the talent for a long career in the bigs. In the end, perhaps each looked back in contentment, satisfied that he had gotten his one cup of joe.

For some, though, their time in the majors must have been bittersweet. Coming out of Georgetown University in 1914 as a two-sport star, Billy Martin entered the majors at age 20 as a backup to future Hall of Fame shortstop Rabbit Maranville of the Braves. In the season finale, Martin got his first start. Though he didn’t play particularly well — 0-for-3, one error in two chances — he entered spring training in 1915 with a chance to earn a roster spot with the newly crowned World Series champions. Following a scrimmage against Mercer College, however, Martin joined its players for sliding practice and broke his ankle. He returned to the Braves in July and remained for a month but saw no action. He would play four sporadic seasons in the minors. His major league career had ended, and not with a bang.

As for John Paciorek, well … many fans know his sad story. Promoted to the Colt .45s’ active roster in September 1963 as an 18-year-old outfielder, he joined seven other rookie starters in Houston’s season finale against the Mets. In it, the rookie played like a veteran — like an All-Star — going 3-for-3 (with two walks) and posting three RBI and four runs scored. A back injury then stalled his progress, causing him to miss much of the 1964 season and all of the 1965 season. He would spend four more seasons in the minors, never to return to the bigs.

Like Coonie Blank, Harry Clarke and Alamazoo Jennings, Paciorek had had his one game.

But what a game it was. And what a game it remains.

In Numbers

Fourteen position-playing Sippers have batted 1.000.

Forty-five have batted .500 or better.

Four are tied at a Sipper-high three RBIs.

Eighty-one have scored.

No Sipper has homered.

Three have posted six plate appearances.

Three have struck out four times.

Charlie Lindstrom leads with a 3.000 slugging percentage.

Charlie Miller, in 1912, is the lone Sipper caught stealing twice.

Among the 363 position-playing Sippers, four were named Red, three Doc, two Heinie and one each of Honey, Burley, Coonie, Shorty, Jumbo, Spike, Uke, Toots, Hap, Dutch, Goat, Chick, Moose, Snapper, Reddy, Hunky, Roxy, Bucky, Turkey, Ham, Hezekiah, Icehouse, Moonlight and Alamazoo.

In Words

Cool Trivia

In his lone major league appearance, in 1934, catcher Dutch Fehring tagged out Lou Gehrig at home plate as the future Hall of Famer tried to stretch a triple into an inside-the-park home run. Had Fehring missed the tag, Gehrig would have finished the season with a career-high 50 homers. As it stood, he finished the game with his first major league cycle.

In his only major league game, in 1925, Heinie Odom played in a Yankees lineup that included Lou Gehrig and Wally Pipp, the year The Iron Horse replaced Pipp permanently. On this day, Gehrig played right field, one of the six times he played the position in the big leagues.

The number of spectators at Harry Chozen’s lone game, in 1937: 767.

On Oct. 2, 1915, Ed Forsyth started the second game of a doubleheader for the Baltimore Terrapins. He went 0-for-3 and made an error. Not only was it his only pro game on record, it was the last game the Terrapins would play. It came on the Federal League’s final day.

When Al Cabrera played his one game, on May 16, 1913, he became the first Spanish-born big leaguer.

July 8, 1975: With Hal McRae on first base and George Brett on second, Gary Martz hits a grounder to third baseman Don Money, who throws to second baseman Bob Sheldon to force McRae. But on the relay, Sheldon throws the ball away and Brett scores. Though Martz doesn’t get the RBI, he is responsible for one of the 1,583 runs scored by a future Hall of Famer. Without it, Brett wouldn’t be tied for 50th on MLB’s all-time runs scored list.

Like Gary Martz, Jim McLaughlin drove home a future Hall of Famer without posting a hit. In his case, he did get credit for the RBI, sending Goose Goslin home on a groundout. To whom did he ground out? Detroit’s Charlie Gehringer, also a future Hall member.

Among Sippers were three Civil War vets: Nate Berkenstock, Washington Fulmer and Al Barker. Berkenstock was the earliest-born professional player.

By the end of the 1919 season, the Senators had fielded three Sippers: Jesse Baker, Frank Kelliher and Danny Silva. In Silva’s only game, teammate and future Hall of Famer Sam Rice committed three errors. Teammate and future Hall of Fame pitcher Walter Johnson pinch hit.

Tommy Johns played his lone game for a team that played just six games. The Baltimore Marylands in 1873 went 0-6 in the National Association and promptly folded. Teammate Frederick Ehlen would become a Sipper, too.

Reddy Grey played his one game in 1903, going 1-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored. He was the younger brother of novelist Zane Grey.

On Dec. 10, 1971, the Mets sent catcher Frank Estrada, outfielder Leroy Stanton and pitchers Don Rose and Nolan Ryan to the Angels in exchange for Jim Fregosi. Three months earlier, on Sept. 14, Estrada had become the first Mexican-born catcher in the majors. He would never again play in the majors but would play roughly 4,000 professional games, a record.

In his only game, Joe Hietpas gained a measure of immortality by playing catcher during the final out in Expos history.

Facing Greatness

Monte Pfeffer’s one game? It came against Walter Johnson. He went 0-for-3 as Johnson threw a shutout to go to 36-7 with a 1.09 ERA for the 1913 season. Pfeffer did earn a badge of honor — a bruise, one assumes, courtesy of a hit by pitch.

In his lone at-bat, Pat Duff whiffed against future Hall of Famer Rube Waddell.

Elvio Jimenez faced Cleveland’s Luis Tiant, Tommy John, Sonny Siebert and Sam McDowell across his six at-bats in a 1964 game. In the 13th inning, he grounded out against McDowell to end the game and his major league career.

May 1, 1941, Athletics versus Indians: In the eighth inning, Philadelphia catcher John Leovich gets his first major league at-bat … against Cleveland ace Bob Feller. He hits into a double play. In the ninth, he gets his second and final at-bat, also against Feller. On the last major league pitch he ever sees, he doubles to right field.

Rubbing Elbows

In his only game, in 1926, Honey Barnes witnessed teammate Babe Ruth’s five-hit, six-RBI day, which included his first homer of the season. It came off Walter Johnson.

Jim Boyle never got an offensive or defensive chance in his lone game but did share a dugout with six future Hall of Fame members: Frankie Frisch, Ross Youngs, Freddie Lindstrom, Bill Terry, George Kelly and 17-year-old Mel Ott.

Whitey Ock batted eighth in the Dodgers lineup in his only game, one spot ahead of Rod Dedeaux, future USC head coach and College Baseball Hall of Famer. For Dedeaux, it was the second of his two major league games.

In his only game, on May 3, 1967, Joe Campbell batted seventh in a Cubs lineup that included three straight Hall of Famerss: Billy Williams, Ron Santo and Ernie Banks. What Campbell, Banks and Santo had in common was an 0-for-3 night. What they didn’t have in common was that Santo and Banks each whiffed once while Campbell whiffed in all three at-bats.

In the final game of the Giants’ 1924 season, Buddy Crump batted cleanup — cleanup! — in a lineup that included five future Hall of Famers, a lineup so stacked that a sixth, Billy Southworth, replaced future Hall member Ross Youngs. Outfielder Crump made two errors but wasn’t alone in futility. Future Hall of Fame shortstop Travis Jackson made his 58th error of the year.

Sept. 19, 1981, Yankees versus Red Sox: With Boston leading, 8-5, John Lickert comes in to catch to begin the bottom of the ninth. Leading off, New York’s Larry Milbourne whiffs. By rule, Lickert is credited with the putout. It will remain his only counting stat. Still, he did share a field with Reggie Jackson, Dave Winfield, Craig Nettles, Willie Randolph, Carl Yastrzemski, Jim Rice, Tony Perez and Oscar Gamble’s hair.

Name Games

After entering as a defensive replacement on Sept. 19, 1953, Cardinals first baseman Fred Marolewski shared a field with some of the game’s greatest names —- literally: Solly Hemus, Red Schoendienst, Enos Slaughter, Rip Repulski, Peanuts Lowrey and Vinegar Bend Mizell.

In his only major league game, in 1918, Ty Pickup shared a dugout with Ben Tincup.

When Fletcher Low played his game, in 1915, the Braves infielder shared a field with Iron Davis, Sailor Stroud, Zip Collins and Rabbit Maranville.

Sipper Skipper

In the middle innings of a 1936 Cardinals-Cubs game, umpire Ziggy Sears gave Johnny Mize the ol’ heave-ho. Enter Walter Alston. Taking over at first base, Alston logged two defensive chances and booted one. In his lone at-bat, he whiffed on three pitches. Though he would finish his minor league career with 176 home runs, Alston never returned to the majors — except as a manager, in which capacity he guided the Dodgers to four World Series titles.

Ignominious End

After posting a hit in his only major league at-bat — off Walter Johnson — Heinie Odom was immediately picked off by catcher Muddy Ruel.

Moonlighters

Sam Brenegan entered a game as a late-inning defensive replacement and never got a chance in the field or at the plate. As such, he is what we’ll call a Moonlighter, a man who, like Moonlight Graham, entered a game as something other than a pitcher, pinch hitter or pinch runner but has no statistics to show for it.

In the ninth inning of Kansas City’s Aug. 8, 1985 game against Detroit, Bob Hegman entered at second base while Greg Pryor moved to third. Hegman had no chances in the field as Bret Saberhagen finished the complete-game win. Statistically, Hegman is a ghost. Still, the box score reveals that he replaced a future Hall of Famer — George Brett — in the lineup.

Russ Ennis is all zeroes. On Sept. 19, 1926, the 29-year-old Washington rookie entered for Walter Johnson as part of a double switch. Playing catcher, he never had a chance.

Not Quite a Moonlighter, Barely a Fielder

May 14, 1940, Athletics versus Indians: Philadelphia’s Buddy Hancken enters at catcher in the ninth. Leading off, future Hall of Famers Lou Boudreau strikes out looking. By rule, Hancken is credited with the putout. Today, it remains the lone non-zero mark among his major league stats.

May 21, 1970: Cardinals catcher Bart Zeller debuts in a 3-3 game in the bottom of the ninth and, with one out, is credited with a putout on Billy McCool’s strikeout. The next batter, Tony Taylor, singles to score the game winner. In an instant, Zeller’s big league career is over.

Not Quite a Moonlighter, Not Quite a Batter

Aug. 23, 1922: In the ninth, with his White Sox trailing the Senators, 11-3, Elmer Pence replaces future Hall of Famer Harry Hooper in right field. There he makes a lone putout to save himself from the rank of Moonlighter. He never steps to the plate.

Late in Brooklyn’s 1915 finale, John Karst entered at third base and initiated a double play in his only fielding chance. In the ninth, he waited on-deck for his first major league plate appearance as teammate Red Smyth made the final out.

Jesse Baker got the start at shortstop for the Senators on Sept. 14, 1919 and played long enough to register one assist. For whatever reason, manager Clark Griffith removed him before he could get a plate appearance.

Not Quite a Moonlighter, Not Quite a Fielder

In making defensive contributions that don’t register in traditional numbers, some Sippers occupy a gray area between Moonlighter status and a statistical presence. Late in a Giants-Cubs game in 1916, Duke Kelleher entered at catcher and caught the final three outs of Pol Perritt’s complete-game win for New York. Statistically, however, he didn’t register. He didn’t post a putout or an assist. Nor did he register offensively. In the ninth inning, he was in the hole when Fred Merkle made the final out.

After Cincinnati’s Eddie Hunter entered at third base in the ninth inning of a 1933 game, the Cardinals’ Ernie Orsatti hit a ball that Hunter couldn’t make the play on. It went for a hit. It was Hunter’s lone major league action. He never made a putout or an assist. He never stepped to the plate. But here is today, by name, in the box score.

Connections

Otto Neu, the namesake of FanGraphs’ fantasy league, played one inning of a 17-inning Browns-Yankees game in 1917 and, like Moonlight Graham, never got a chance in the field or at the plate. In the Yankees lineup that day was Angel Aragon, father of Jack Aragon, who, like Neu, would play in one major league game, for the 1941 Giants, without getting an at-bat or a fielding chance. Jack was not quite two years old at the time of Neu’s game.

In 1930, two years after his final pro game, Jim Mahady was sentenced to prison for second-degree manslaughter after killing a woman while driving drunk. While incarcerated, he captained the prison team, which faced a squad that included future Hall of Famer Johnny Evers, whose brother Joe had become a Sipper in 1913.

Larry McClure had just one major league at-bat, in a game that saw Ty Cobb hit an inside-the-park home run. Years later, as a Cleveland scout, McClure would recommend a pitcher named Johnson Fry. Fry, too, would become a Sipper.

Bad Days

Shorty Dee got the start at shortstop on Sept. 14, 1915. He didn’t get the finish. So poorly did he perform that Browns manager Branch Rickey replaced him with Doc Lavan, who would commit 75 errors that season and lead the league in strikeouts. For Dee’s part, he made two errors, went 0-for-3 and, for good measure, got thrown out stealing.

In his lone game, in 1872, John Galvin went 0-for-4 and committed four errors at second base. Lifetime fielding percentage: .200.

Oct. 3, 1999, Boston versus Baltimore: Steve Lomasney enters in the fifth inning for Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek. In his first at-bat, he strikes out swinging. In his second, he strikes out looking. After Boston scores in the top of the 10th, Scott Hatteberg replaces him at catcher. And that’s it for Lomasney’s big league career: four swinging strikes, two called strikes. He never connected, even on a foul ball, and didn’t get to finish the victory on the field.

In his only professional game, in 1877, John Haldeman went 0-for-4 and made three errors.

Sept. 27, 1978: Hank Small enters the bottom of the ninth with a chance to redeem himself. Hitless in three at-bats, he gets his fourth at-bat after Jeff Burroughs and Dale Murphy reach base to keep the Braves inning alive. Small promptly hits into a double play, ending the game and his career in the majors.

In sum, Harvey Grubb played 15 minor league seasons. In his only major league plate appearance, in 1912, he got plunked.

June 10, 1910: Subbing for Tris Speaker, Boston’s Ralph Pond gets the start in center field. In the third, he misjudges a fly ball and it gets past him, allowing the runner to score from first base. Next, shortstop Harry Lord mishandles his throw, allowing a runner to take third base and later score. In the sixth, while chasing a hit, Pond kicks the ball to the wall. In the eighth, he is removed for defensive purposes in favor of a pitcher. Today, Pond is one of 43 major leaguers to have fielded a ball and post a .000 fielding percentage.

In the sixth inning of his only game, Boston shortstop Joe Giannini fielded a double-play grounder but threw wide of second base, loading the sacks. The next batter hit a grounder that Giannini failed to field, and two runners scored. Later in the inning, another grounder went through his legs, allowing two more runs. Giannini got the hook.

On April 14, 2002, in his first big league plate appearance, Seattle’s Ron Wright struck out. Oof. In the fourth inning, with runners on first and second and nobody out, he hit into a triple play. Oof! In the sixth, with runners on first and second and nobody out, he hit into a double play. Oooooooooooooooof. In the seventh, with runners on first and second and one out, manager Lou Piniella sent Mark McLemore to pinch hit for him. In his major league debut — and denouement — Wright had accounted for six outs in three at-bats. Oof.

Making It Count

Nate Berkenstock’s lone game: the 1871 National Association championship game. In it, Berlenstock, a 40-year-old Civil War veteran, went 0-for-3 but recorded three putouts, including the final out to clinch the title for the Athletics.

On the final day of the 1943 season, Cuba native Tony Ordenana went 2-for-4 with three RBI, accounting for all the Pirates’ runs in their 11-3 loss to the Phillies. At shortstop, Ordenana was flawless in seven chances.

June 3, 1990: Pinch-hitting for the Mets, Dave Liddell singles on the first and last major league pitch he sees. Later he scores. At catcher, he is credited with a putout on an eighth-inning whiff. Batting and fielding percentages: 1.000.

Oh, Now I Get It

When Tommy Thevenow grounded into a double play to end his Pirates’ Sept. 29, 1935 game against the Reds, Aubrey Epps was waiting on deck. No matter. Epps, in his debut, had gone 3-for-4 with three RBI and a run. Despite his performance, it would be his last big league game. Why? Perhaps because he had committed two throwing errors, at catcher, that led to four unearned runs in a three-run loss.

In his first pro game on record, Ray Jansen posted four hits in five at-bats for the 1910 Browns. Impressive! So, why did the 21-year-old never play another major league game? The answer lies, perhaps, in the three errors he made at third base.

Exercises in Futility

April 23, 1955, Athletics versus White Sox: Entering in the eighth inning for Philadelphia, Eric Mackenzie grounds out. It doesn’t matter. Trailing 29-6, the Athletics would lose by that score.

July 2, 1925: With his White Sox down to the Browns after four innings, Leo Tankersley enters at catcher and goes 0-for-3. It doesn’t matter. Chicago loses, 18-5.

Lousy Luck

In his lone game, on Sept. 9, 1915, Art Corcoran faced a pitcher at the height of his form. Ernie Shore yielded one hit and two walks in guiding Boston to a 5-0 defeat of the Athletics while putting his ERA at 1.77. Batting leadoff, Corcoran went 0-for-4. It must have made an impression. He wouldn’t play another pro game for five seasons.

April 20, 1982: Kelly Heath replaces Frank White at second base in Kansas City’s game against Detroit. In his lone at-bat, he lines out. Heath isn’t the only Royal to go hitless. Detroit starter Milt Wilcox pitches a one-hitter.

Better Late Than Never

A longtime amateur, George Joyce entered his lone major league game in the late innings for the 1886 Nationals. Playing center field, he never had a defensive chance. He never had an offensive chance. In fact, at age 39, he would never get another chance in pro ball.

Two-Sport Star

After earning Most Outstanding Player honors in the 1955 College World Series, Tom Yewcic signed with the Tigers and played three innings of a 1957 game, going 0-for-1 and committing an error in six chances at catcher. He went on to play for the Boston Patriots, showing his versatility by playing running back, flanker and punter. Using the arm that supplied his one major league assist, he added 12 TDs and 1,374 passing yards in his six AFL seasons.

Brotherly Glove

In 1886, Joe Yingling went 0-for-2 in his only major league game. In 1896, his older brother Charlie went 1-for-4 in his. Today, the Yinglings remain the only brothers to have played just one big league game apiece. But each is not the only Sipper to have had a brother in the big leagues. In fact, excluding the Yinglings, no fewer than 16 Sippers had brothers who played in the majors. In sum, the brothers played 15,123 more games than their Sipper siblings.

John Dillon had his game in 1875 for the Brown Stockings. A shortstop, he played in the same lineup as his brother Packy, a catcher, who would play just three major leagur games. Together, the brothers went 3-for-14 in four combined games, with 13 at-bats and all three hits belonging to Packy.

At the other end of the spectrum are Frank Cross and Tommy Sewell. Cross made his debut at 28 with the Cleveland Blues in 1901. A shortstop, he collected three hits in five at-bats. He then returned to the minors and would remain there through age 34. Conversely, brother Lave would play 21 major league seasons and collect nearly 3,000 hits. Brother Amos played 117 major league games. He’d have played more if not for a bout with tuberculosis. After playing eight games in 1887, Amos died in 1888.

As for Tommy Sewell, well … let’s just say Thanksgiving dinners might have been unpleasant. At 21, in 1927, he went hitless in his one major league at-bat and then returned to the minors, where he would remain until leaving the sport at age 25. Older brother Luke, meantime, was building a 20-year big league career while oldest brother Joe was putting together a 14-year career that would land him in the Hall of Fame. In winning two rings, Joe Sewell would play 10 more World Series games than Tommy would regular season games.

In 1998, Stephen Larkin got the start for the Reds in a game against the Pirates, batting third, directly behind his brother. By this time, Barry Larkin had made nine All-Star teams and won an NL MVP award and a World Series. But on this day, Stephen outperformed his Hall of Fame-bound brother, if barely, by going 1-for-3 to Barry’s 0-for-3. In fact, his sixth-inning single started a three-run rally in the Reds’ eventual 4-1 win. Also notable: With Stephen at first base, Barry at shortstop, Bret Boone at second base and Aaron Boone at third, it marked the only time in major league history that two sets of brothers were on the field at once.

Sad Endings

On April 21, 1914, the Yankees scored two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to tie the Senators and send the game into extra innings. In the top of the 10th, Yankees manager Frank Chance inserted pitcher Tom Burr into center field. The 20-year-old Burr did not get a fielding chance. The Yankees scored in the bottom of the inning to end both the game and Burr’s career in the majors. Four years later, during a training exercise with the Air Force’s 31st Aero Squadron, Burr’s plane collided with that of another U.S. pilot and plummeted into a lake in Cazaux, France. His life had ended just 30 days before the World War I armistice.

Newt Halliday both replaced and faced greatness. Upon entering a Pirates-Robins game in 1916, he replaced Honus Wagner. In his lone plate appearance, he struck out against future Hall of Famer Rube Marquard. A year hence, Halliday joined the Navy after the United States entered World War I. While training, Halliday contracted tuberculosis and died at age 21.

On July 23, 1939, Harry O’Neill made his major league debut as an eighth-inning replacement for Athletics catcher Frankie Hayes. He played one half inning and did not produce a stat. His career had ended. Seven years later, on March 6, 1945, 1st Lt. Harry O’Neill was killed by sniper fire during the 5th Marine Division’s advance on Japanese lines at Iwo Jima.

Happy Ending

Frank Verdi has no statistical presence in big league history. He played 18 seasons in the minors but just one inning in the majors, in a game for the 1953 Yankees, and had no defensive or offensive chances. In 1969 he played for the minor league Red Wings, and while subbing for the third base coach during a game in Cuba, he was struck in the head by a stray bullet. The plastic lining in his ballcap, used in lieu of a helmet, deflected the bullet.

His presence then, however quantifiable, was probably presence enough.