GSNHOF Nominee - Stubby Clapp (Merry Christmas Edition)

First off, Merry Christmas to you and yours from the GSNHOF!

2nd off, Merry Christmas to Nicknames - You are now allowed in the GSNHOF! 

(Well not all nicknames, mind you.  This isn't 'Nam after all, there are rules).

The rules go like this: Nicknames are allowable if the person goes by that name IRL (such as in newspaper articles, or on baseball cards).  So a guy like Coco Crisp will finally get his day.   Pacman Jones would be considerable as well, since Adam Jones briefly was known as that before switching back a few years ago.  Same with Catfish Hunter.  Should infuse some nice new blood into the GSNHOF balloting.

I'm starting this change off with one of the all time great nickname/last name pairings - Stubby Clapp:

Richard Keith Clapp was born a Dick, but was always destined to be a Stubby.  His father and grandfather before him both went by Stubby, so it was only a matter of time before Richard did too.  Stubby the Third only played 23 games in the majors (with the Cardinals in 2001) but was well known in all areas he played for his great personality and habit of doing a backflip every time he went onto the field.  He could hit a decent amount too despite his lack of Major League success, and Canadians will forever remember him for his game winning hit against the u.s. in the 1999 Pan Pan American Games.  So the guy was fairly popular for reasons beyond his awesome name.

Since his playing career, Stubby Clapp has coached at various levels in the minors, and is currently the hitting coach for the New Hampshire Fisher Cats.  He also has had several children, including a boy named Cooper who, you guessed it, goes by Stubby.  The tradition continues!

Hopefully no one is too sad to see the nickname restriction leave the GSNHOF.  Personally, the awesomeness of Stubby Clapp's name erases any pangs of guilt I have over abolishing the legal name requirement.  The more the merrier, they say, especially on a day such as this.

To see the best sports names of all time, visit the Truly Great Names page.
To see some good sports names that were voted out, visit the Good Names page.
To see the current voting ballot, visit the Ballot page.