“There is nothing ignoble in feeling superior to other players; but true nobility consists in making yourself superior to what you are”…Bobby Cox.
The best bigleaguer in history?
We must mention more than one…: Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Cy Young, Willie Mays, Joe DiMaggio, Roberto Clemente, Mickey Mantle, Álex Rodríguez, Martín Dihigo, Ted Williams.
But when it comes to the worst player, there is only one, John Gochnaur.
He was shortstop for the Cleveland team in 1902 and 1903, after appearing, at age 28, in three games with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1901.
At that time, those in Cleveland were not called Indians, but Bluebirds (Bluebirds).
In those final two seasons for John Gochnaur in the majors, he made 146 errors in 254 games, including five in a doubleheader, on July 19, 1903. He batted 187, zero home runs, 87 RBIs. He was paid $600 a year.
The Indians finished fifth in the group of eight American League teams in 1902, with a record of 69-67, and third in 1903, 77-63.
During an interview late in the 1903 season, Cleveland manager Billy Armaur was asked for his opinion on Gochnaur and his game. He answered…:
“It's a brilliant demonstration that baseball is hard to play. Of course, it has caused me a lot of headaches and has given me thousands of gray hairs”.
Armaur was also asked…: “Do you think he has been the worst player in the 32 years that have been in the Major Leagues?”
"I don't dare to say for sure, but I can stress that it's not the best."
As expected, in 1904 the Blue Jays already had another shortstop, Terry Turner, because Gochnaur had been told, "Thank you very much for your services, but we need to reform the roster."
Being released from the Major Leagues, Gochnaur tried to play in some semi-professional teams, but he couldn't either, so he became umpire, a job in which he was acceptable. But they paid him so little, that to make ends meet, he had to become a bartender and a police officer in his hometown of Altoona, Pennsylvania.
Among his records, the most errors in a season, 90, are still valid; most at-bats if a home run, 908; and the fewest RBIs in a career, 87.
And there are still those who speak of “the Mendoza Line”.
Gochnaur died on September 27, 1929, in his native Altoona, aged 54, of pneumonia. But it is unforgettable.
Thanks to the life that has given me so much, even a reader like you.
