Superstitions, Attachments, and Gimmicks
Oftentimes players grow emotionally attached to a number. When a player switches teams, his number is often already in use. Since the MLB allows number changes at any time, bribes may occur for numbers. Among the most outrageous are when Brian Jordan joined the Atlanta Braves and gave then-third base coach Fredi González a $40,000 motorcycle for #33, and when Rickey Henderson joined the Toronto Blue Jays and paid a player $25,000 for Henderson's long-time career #24. Not every player pays top dollar for his number; when Mitch Williams joined the Philadelphia Phillies, he bought #28 from John Kruk for $10 and two cases of beer.
In 1951, independent ball player Johnny Neves wore the number 7 backwards because "Neves" spelled backwards is "seven". Bill Voiselle, who is from Ninety Six, South Carolina, wore #96 from 1947–1950 to honor his hometown. Carlos May, who was born on May 17, wore number 17, meaning that his jersey read both his name and number and his birthday ("May, 17").
Some players who are unable to acquire the number they had on their previous team will obtain a similar number. For example, Roger Clemens wore #21 during the first 15 years of his career with the Red Sox and Blue Jays, and during his college days at the University of Texas. When he joined the Yankees and the Houston Astros, he switched to #22. Upon Clemens' arrival in New York, he reportedly asked long-time Yankee outfielder Paul O'Neill to surrender his #21, but O'Neill refused. Though he would eventually opt for #22, Clemens initially reversed his beloved #21, and wore #12. Clemens continued to wear #22 upon signing with his hometown Astros in 2004 and, upon re-signing with the Yankees, Robinson Canó, owner of #22 at the beginning of the 2007 season, moved to #24 in anticipation of the Yankees possibly re-signing Clemens, leaving #22 available for Clemens.
Joe Beimel has worn #97 throughout his career because his first child was born in 1997. David Wells wore #3 while with the Red Sox because his favorite player, Babe Ruth, wore #3. In his final season, playing for the Red Sox, J. T. Snow wore #84 to honor his father Jack, a former NFL player.
Eddie Gaedel, the dwarf who made one plate appearance for the St. Louis Browns, wore the number ⅛.
Read more about this topic: Uniform Number (Major League Baseball)