JO: The Jerry Orbachs

Infield: First baseman John Olerud (1989-2005) began making headlines before he ever played his first professional game. He had a great collegiate career at Washington State and when the Blue Jays drafted him (1989, third round) they talked about how he could be a star as either a pitcher or a hitter, or maybe even both! He went from the third round of the draft straight to the majors, with no stopover at all in the minors. Oh, and he wore a batting helmet even when he was in the field because he’d had emergency surgery for a brain aneurysm while in college and still had a soft spot on his skull. Well, he never pitched in the majors, but he was an awfully good first baseman – a .295 hitter who drew 80-100 walks, hit lots of doubles and more than a few home runs, plus he won three Gold Gloves. Every so often he would go nuts and bat .350 or .360 for a year, but those seasons were anomalies. Played in the postseason with five different teams and was a key contributor to Toronto’s two World Series titles. Jose Offerman (1990-2005) came up as a shortstop, and he was about as bad a defensive shortstop as it is possible for an ambulatory person to be, but Tommy Lasorda stuck with him there for several years because that’s what Tommy Lasorda did. He was less bad at second base, which is where he will start on this squad. He was a decent enough hitter — he would bat .290-.300 in his good seasons with a lot of walks and plenty of speed —and God love him, he continued to play for whoever wanted him. He played in the minors into his late 30s, until a 2007 game in which he charged the mound with his bat and sent both the pitcher and the catcher to the hospital. That was his last appearance in pro ball in the U.S. He continued to play in Mexico into his 40s, though his impulsive decision to punch out an umpire in a recent Dominican winter league game might mark the end of his career. While Offerman was a terrible shortstop who moved to second out of necessity, Jose Oquendo (1983-95) was a brilliant shortstop who moved to second base because Ozzie Smith was already at short. He’ll stay at shortstop on this team. Oquendo arrived as a slick fielder but a dreadful hitter (.213 in the minors, .217 in his first two years with the Mets. The Cardinals acquired him in a very minor trade, and after spending a year in the minors, Oquendo transformed himself into a great second baseman and a very functional hitter (.280 or so with an on-base percentage in the .370s for the next four years). He became known as “The Secret Weapon” and eventually played every position in the field – his one appearance as a catcher was a gimmick, but during a marathon extra-inning game in 1988 he did pitch four innings while the score was tied, eventually taking the loss (the rare position player to actually register a pitching decision). Currently coaching with the Cardinals as is the presumed successor to Tony LaRussa’s managerial throne. Like Offerman, Jorge Orta (1972-87) was a middle infielder with an iron glove. He bounced around between second base and corner outfield and designated hitter, and along the way he played a few dozen games at third base, enough for him to earn the starting job here. He was a good hitter, a consistent .280 hitter with line drive power and some speed. Oquendo will have to use all of his skills at shortstop with Offerman and Orta flanking him, and Olerud will have to earn his Gold Glove in dealing with their throws.

Outfield: Center fielder Jim O’Rourke (1872-1904) was one of the earliest stars of the sport, and one of the colorful figures (a raconteur known as Orator Jim). He had 2,643 hits and 1,729 runs despite the fact that teams didn’t start playing 100 games a year until he was in his early 30s. He held the career record for runs scored for several years, until Cap Anson appropriated it. Always a popular figure around the game, he was brought back in 1904 at age 54 to play one game (at catcher, no less) for the Giants, going 1-for-4 to become the oldest player ever to get a hit. Right fielder Jimmy Outlaw (1937-49) spent most of his career with the Tigers in the 1940s. You’d like to think that a guy named Jimmy Outlaw would steal bases and take out infielders and start brawls, but he appears to have been a fairly nondescript player. Left fielder Joe Orsulak (1983-97) was never anyone’s idea of a star, but he was a functional player – a .270 hitter who drew a few walks, hit a few doubles, ran reasonably well.

Catcher: Jack O’Brien (1882-90) was a fine hitter in the 1880s, mostly for the Philadelphia A’s.
Rotation: Lefty Jim O’Toole (1958-67) was a key member of the Cincinnati Reds rotation in the early 1960s, going 19-9 for the team that won the National League pennant in 1961. His career ended at age 30 because of shoulder problems. John "Blue Moon" Odom (1964-76) was a .500 pitcher and his ERA wasn't all that great and he walked as many batters as he struck out, but he had the good fortune to pitch for the A's when they were a very good and very colorful team, and he did have a couple of pretty good years for them. And give the man credit, in 10 postseason games (including 4 starts) he had an ERA of 1.13 (that's 0.40 in three ALCS, 2.08 in three World Series, and his teams won all six series). Joe Oeschger (1914-25) won 20 games once, lost 20 games once, and ended up with a career record of 82-116. He earned his place in baseball history one day in 1920 when he and Leon Cadore hooked up in a 26-inning marathon (with no relievers) that finally was called for darkness and ended in a tie. Jack Ogden (1918-32) pitched briefly with the Giants at age 20 then went to the minors for several years before resurfacing. He ultimately won 213 games in the minors (including seasons of 27, 28 and 31 victories), but only a total of 25 in the majors. Lefty Josh Outman (2008- ) is just getting started with the Oakland A’s, and he shows a lot of promise. Let’s see if he delivers.

Bullpen: Closer Jesse Orosco (1979-2003) pitched in 1,252 games, more than anyone else in major-league history. He was a fine pitcher for several years, with a career ERA of 3.16 and 144 saves, and he lasted until he was 46, helping to establish the modern role of the lefty reliever who comes in to get one out at a time. Lefty Joe Ostrowski (1948-52) was called Professor. He never went to college, but he wore glasses, so they assumed he was smart. He was a very good minor-leaguer but because of World War II he didn’t make it to the majors until his 30s. He was part of the Yankees team that won the 1951 World Series. Jim Owens (1955-67) was a decent swingman for the Phillies and later the Astros, with a short stopover in Cincinnati in between. Jim Ollom (1966-67) came from Snohomish, the same little town in Washington that produced Earls Averill and Torgeson. Maybe if Ollom’s parents had named him Earl he would have had a better career, although Earl Ollom doesn’t roll off the tongue very well. Johnny O’Brien (1953-58) pitched some and played middle infield, and he wasn’t very good at either. In fact, for fans of advanced statistical analysis, his OPS+ and his ERA+ are both 68, which must have taken months of planning on his part. Jack O’Connor (1981-87) was a lefty who spent most of his career in the chilly climes of Montreal and Minnesota, which couldn’t have been easy for a guy who hailed from Twentyninepalms, California. John O’Donohughe (1963-71) was picked for the AL all-star team in 1965, when he went 9-18 because, well, somebody had to represent the K.C. Athletics.

Bench: Jose Oliva (1994-95) came from infield factory in San Pedro de Macoris. Jose Ortiz (2000-02) is the same basic model, but from neighboring Santo Domingo. Infielder John O’Brien (1891-99) and outfielder Jack O’Brien (1899-1903) will play bridge with Johnny O’Brien and the catcher Jack O’Brien, just for the hell of it. Backup catcher John Orsino (1961-67) had some pop and will be a key pinch-hitter off of this bench.

Manager: Johnny Oates was a heck of a nice guy, and he had a winning record in four years with the Orioles and seven years with the Rangers.