Other Players
Graham is not the only player to appear in a major league game without getting an at-bat or throwing a pitch. However, due to his introduction to popular culture via Field of Dreams, he is the best-known. Thus, his name is often invoked when discussing similar players, such as Brian Esposito, whose appearance came with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2007, or fellow University of North Carolina graduate Adam Greenberg, whose debut MLB appearance with the Chicago Cubs in 2005 ended with him being hit by the first pitch he faced. Esposito came to bat in a September 18, 2010 game against the Reds and no longer belongs to this group, while Greenberg recorded his first major league at bat with the Miami Marlins on October 2, 2012. Pedro Santana of the Detroit Tigers entered a game as a late-inning defensive replacement in 2001. He played one inning in the field, and did not register a plate appearance in his only major league game.
A pitching equivalent to Graham is Larry Yount, who is credited with an official game pitched in the majors despite never throwing a pitch. Yount, the older brother of future Hall of Famer Robin Yount, was injured while warming up.
Read more about this topic: Moonlight Graham
Famous quotes containing the word players:
“The players have often mentioned it as an honour to Shakespeare, that in his writing, whatsoever he penned, he never blotted out [a] line. My answer hath been, “Would he had blotted a thousand.””
—Ben Jonson (c. 1572–1637)
“The whole idea of image is so confused. On the one hand, Madison Avenue is worried about the image of the players in a tennis tour. On the other hand, sports events are often sponsored by the makers of junk food, beer, and cigarettes. What’s the message when an athlete who works at keeping her body fit is sponsored by a sugar-filled snack that does more harm than good?”
—Martina Navratilova (b. 1956)