The Pecan Park Eagle

The 1927 New York Yankees
“Murderers’ Row”
They weren’t all murderers’, but they had enough baseball-killing hitters to get the job done as advertised.

Like all living things, whether it shows in the moment or not, the culture of baseball nicknames is in a constant state of change.

For example, the 2005 National League Champion Houston Astros were known as “The Killer Bees” mainly, as we still know, for the bats of Bagwell, Biggio, and Berkman.

The 2017 World Series Champion Houston Astros, on the other hand, don’t have a catchy club nickname. – Have you noticed? And, if so, have you wondered, why not?

Can you think of any MLB club from any franchise since the 2005 Killer Bees that has enjoyed a lights out, everybody-knows-their-name metaphorical reference?

How about the 2016 Chicago Cubs? If the Wrigley Field gang didn’t deserve a shot at “The Redemption,” we are lost as to who did. The 2017 Houston Astros didn’t need the accolade, but they didn’t even get a whisper for “The Deliverance.” a title they most deserved above all others.

Please help jog my sometimes AWOL memory for what I may have forgotten.

Here’s a short list of the big team nicknames and identities for special clubs that occur to me from memory of 20th and 21st century winning teams. It’s brief and clear enough to summarize here in table form:

Major Modern Era Team Nicknames ….

(That Come to Memory. Who’s Missing?)

We never presume or feel the need to be right about everything. You don’t learn anything from that affliction.

If you remember any other famous club nicknames from any baseball MLB-equivalent era – even from the 19th century, we would love to include them in an expanded list, if any such clubs surface and merit the inclusion. Just let me know and we will see how much support they get from others keeping up with us here too.

It’s still cool on this Sunday morning in Houston. So please join us in a little warm research fun.

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ADDENDUM

12/10/17: Six Hours Past Time of Original Publication

How The Famous Club Nickname List Now Looks …..

With a Little Help from Our Friends:

(All Added in Bold Type)

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New Submissions, Contributors, Their Reasoning:

#1) 1906 Hitless Wonders / Contributor Tom Hunter wrote: “The 1906 Chicago White Sox, dubbed the “Hitless Wonders” with a .230 team batting average for the season, beat the Chicago Cubs in six games to win the World Series batting only .198 in the series.”

#2) 1914 Miracle Braves / Contributor Mike Vance wrote: “The 1914 Miracle Braves because of their resurgence from the depths of the NL.”

#8) 1959 Go-Go Sox / Contributor Darrell Pittman wrote: “The 1959 Chicago White Sox were known as the ‘Go-Go Sox’.”

#10 1970sh Swingin’ As / Contributor David Munger wrote: “The Swinging As of the 70s because of their activities on and off the field.”

#13 2004 Idiots / Contributor Bill Hickman wrote: “The 2004 champion Red Sox were known as ‘The Idiots’ for their devil-may-care attitude.”

#15 Senators, #16 Daffiness Boys, #17 Bums, #18 The Impossible Dream Team / Contributor Cliff Blau wrote of these four additional examples later this same day:

“The Washington Nationals, 1905-1956, were often known as the Senators, due to playing in a capital city.

“The Brooklyn club of the 1920s were known as the Daffiness Boys, and later they were called The Bums.

“The 1967 Boston Red Sox are known as the Impossible Dream team.”

The contributions of our latest contributor, Cliff Blau, are now included in the second update from our original list, as follows:

2nd Team Nickname Update

It’s possible that “Hitless No-Wonders” might also have worked for the old AL Nationals by the time they shifted politically to “Senators” as their largely informal, but mistakenly considered by the faraway public as official nickname, but no one apparently thought of it.

No Wonder wins again.

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Tags: The Culture of Baseball Club Nicknames

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