Sunday Double Header: Brad Pounders & Jerald Clark

Double the talent. Double the fun.

Why we like them: There are are some exciting little known facts about these two forgettable and laughably bad excuses for major league "prospects." See how you do on this little quiz:

1. Which one of these guys is actually albino?
2. Every time one of these guys got into his batting stance, he'd experience a slight fannyburp, and he'd always smell it. Which one is it?
3. Which one of these guys was a lousy major leaguer?
4. Which one of these guys was a lousy minor leaguer?
5. Which one of these guys always had dumb all over their face?
6. Which one of these guys' mothers misspelled "Gerald" on his birth certificate?

Answers: 1. It doesn't matter. 2. It doesn't matter. 3. It doesn't matter. 4. It doesn't matter. 5. It doesn't matter. 6. It doesn't matter.

Ladies and gentlemen, Brad Pounders and Jerald Clark, ballplayers. Sort of.

Bill Pecota

I guess this was the best photo Fleer could find in 1991. What is he looking at?

Why we like him: Bill Pecota defined what it means to be a Kansas City Royal (as you can clearly see in the photo above). He couldn't hit. He couldn't hit for power. He couldn't play defense. He couldn't settle in a single position. He couldn't even be photographed doing anything successful. He was even included as an afterthought with Bret Saberhagen that brought the great Gregg Jefferies to KC from the Mets.

No, but seriously. He was a career .249 hitter with 22 home runs who pocketed almost $800,000 for his 1992 performance in New York that saw him bat .227 and slug .297. Shrewd bit of business by the Mets.

Ladies and gentlemen, Bill Pecota, ballplayer.

Throwback Thursday: Mike Garcia

The Indians logo is even staring at this dreamy stud muffin.

Why we like him: Mike Garcia was a three-time All Star, and he won 20 games twice in his career. That coupled with his 142-97 career record over 14 years tells me he had a pretty decent go at it in the big league. However, the best part about Garcia is that his nickname was "The Big Bear." He was a hard-throwing righty who was named one of the Top 100 Greatest Indians in 2001 (which is an honor, I guess), and was even voted into the team's hall of fame in 2007. Good for you, Big Bear.

Ladies and gentlemen, Mike Garcia, ballplayer.

Preston Wilson

I bet the ball is in that catcher's mitt.

Why we like him: Preston Wilson was actually one of the leagues top centerfielders for a stretch in the 2000s. He had pretty good power and played great defense, but he also had a hilarious propensity for hacking. His 187 strikeouts in 2000 were good enough for a tie for the second-highest single-season total of all time at that point (before the last 10 years happened and messed up that list). It even earned him the simple yet effective unofficial nickname of "Preston K. Wilson" from me and my friends.

It had to be a gut-wrenching, nerve-wracking experience trying to set that record on the final day of the 2000 season. Heading into the contest against Amaury Telemaco and the Phillies, Wilson needed just three Ks to catch Bobby Bond's 1970 total of 189 strikeouts and cement his immortal legacy as the all-time single-season strikeout champ. Against a guy like Telemaco, Wilson knew he'd get at least four shots at it. Ultimately, however, Wilson choked, striking out just once in a 3-for-4 performance that featured a double and a triple. So much for his shot at baseball immortality.

In his first season with the Rockies in 2003, Wilson managed to lead the league in RBI somehow with 141, proving the age old adage, "If you're decent in Florida, you'll be Mickey Mantle in Colorado." His play that season was even good enough for his only All Star Game selection and a few MVP votes for some reason.

Ladies and gentlemen, Preston Wilson, ballplayer.

Steve Farr

Bringing the thunder.

Why we like him: In retrospect, by 1993, Steve Farr looked a lot like Kenny Powers, and with good reason too. In the three seasons prior to that, he was a bulletproof tiger out of the bullpen. When you look at the guy's career in hindsight, he actually put together a very sneakily impressive 11-year résumé. He didn't even crack a major-league roster until he was 27, and he pitched mainly as a reliever during an era when what we now know as the closer role was still in its intermediate development stages. His final line for his career : 11 seasons, 4 teams, 48-45 record, 3.25 ERA, 132 saves, 668 strikeouts, 1.32 WHIP. I'll take that.

Sunday Double Header: Luis De Los Santos & Jim Campbell

De Los Santos is perplexed by something whilst Campbell rocks the classic Mulletstache combo.

Why we like them: Luis De Los Santos, for me, was always "that guy with a four-word name on the baseball card." Other than his fantastic '80s jheri-curl, De Los Santos was basically good for nothing. He was a Royal in every sense of the word. The Royals plucked him in the second round of the '84 draft (they suavely chose Scott Bankhead in the first round). He made his debut in 1988 and thanked the organization by posting a teenie-weenie .091 average in 11 games. Things were better the following season when he batted .253 in 28 games. He disappeared for a couple of seasons before being claimed off waivers by the Tigers. He batted .167 for them in 16 games during the 1991 season. That was it for his career. He finished with a career .209 average, 0 homers, 0 stolen bases. At 6'5/205, it's amazing he never managed to generate any power whatsoever.

As for Jim Campbell, he has one of the most interesting careers ever, and it only spans two games worth of action during the 1990 season. He made two starts. His career record is actually an unblemished 1-0. Take that, Cy Young! His career ERA, however, is a rather toasty 8.38. Through 9.2 career innings of work, Campbell amassed a hilarious pair of strikeouts, and he walked a guy. At least he'll be able to tell everyone he was an undefeated major league pitcher.

Ladies and gentlemen, Luis De Los Santos and Jim Campbell, ballplayers.

Kevin Maas

Falling down holding a splintery shard of a bat with a goofy look on his face. Yeah, that pretty much sums it up for Maas and his career.

Why we like him: Kevin Maas always seemed like one of those guys who just had a tough start to his career, but would one day show up somewhere and put together a few decent years and help a team find some success. He was the "heir apparent" to Don Mattingly's aching body in the Bronx. He was left handed and built like a Greek god, and fans and scouts just knew he would be peppering the right field bleachers in Yankee Stadium with season after season of ridiculous home run totals.

In his first 79 games in the majors, Maas cranked out an impressive 21 homers and 41 RBI, which by1990 standards, seemed like the second coming of Lou Gehrig, and he garnered enough votes to finish behind only Sandy Alomar Jr. in AL Rookie of the Year voting. The following season, which was Maas's only true full season in the bigs, the league figured him out, holding him to 23 homers and 63 almost harmless RBI in 143 games while posting a measly .220 batting average. Yuck. Definitely not what the world's most passionate baseball fans were wanting. The Yankees gave Maas two more years to figure things out, and it just never happened. He was released prior to the 1994 season and bounced between minor league assignments with the Padres and Reds before given another chance at the majors with the Twins after the 1994 season. He didn't exactly make the most of it, batting a sad .193 in 22 games in 1995. He was released on June 30. He signed with the Yankees July 1 and never appeared in the majors again. At least I have his rookie card. I'm holding onto it too. He's the next Donnie Baseball.

Ladies and gentlemen, Kevin Maas, baallplaayer.