All Time Great Nicknames

Yogi Berra
Catfish Hunter

Paul Howard "Dizzy" Trout (June 29, 1915 Sandcut IN – February 28, 1972 Harvey IL) was a right-handed pitcher from 1939 to 1952, most notably as a member of the Detroit Tigers that won the 1945 World Series. He led the American League in wins in 1943, was the league ERA leader in 1944. His SABR biography says he was quite a character. When he was still a 21-year-old minor leaguer, Trout’s legend had grown so large that The Sporting News invited him to write his life story. “(My birthplace) is not on any map,” he wrote, “due to the fact that the wind keeps blowing the sand over and over and the town never stays in one place for very long at a time.” Trout gave himself the nickname “Dizzy” becuase he wanted to be as famous as Dizzy Dean, who was the biggest name in baseball after Babe Ruth retired. “It ain’t because I’ve got as much stuff as Diz, but they call me Diz because I talk as much as Diz.” He even invented a creation myth: He said he was caught in a storm at the Toledo ballpark and spotted an awning on the center field wall, a good place to duck out of the rain. He ran toward it, but smashed head-on into the bricks because the awning was painted on the wall. For that, he claimed, teammates began calling him Dizzy.

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Jay Hanna "Dizzy" Dean (January 16, 1910 Lucas AR – July 17, 1974 Reno NV), was a right-handed pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago Cubs, and St. Louis Browns from 1930 to 1947. A brash and colorful personality, Dean is the last National League pitcher to win 30 games in one season, and became a popular television sports commentator after his playing days were over. He earned his nickname in 1929 in San Antonio, Texas, while in the U.S. Army. The 19-year-old Dean was on the mound for the Fort Sam Houston baseball team as they took on the Chicago White Sox in an exhibition game. As Dean worked his way through the Sox lineup, an exasperated Chicago manager reportedly yelled "Knock that dizzy kid out the box!" He proceeded to call him "dizzy kid" through the rest of the game, and the moniker stuck.

Clifford Carlton "Gavvy" Cravath (March 23, 1881 Escondido CA – May 23, 1963 Laguna Beach CA) was a right-handed right fielder who played for the Philadelphia Phillies from 1912 to 1920. He led the National League in home runs six times, and was the major-league leader in home runs before Babe Ruth. While playing semi-pro baseball in California, Cravath picked up his nickname of "Gavvy" by hitting a ball so hard that it killed a seagull ("gaviota" in Spanish) in flight. Mexican fans shouted “Gaviota.” The English-speaking fans thought it was a cheer and the name stuck. Reporters spelled the nickname "Gavvy" to emphasize that it rhymes with "savvy", but Cravath himself spelled it "Gavy."

When Cravath retired, sportswriter Robert W. Maxwell wrote, “Gavvy is the greatest home run-clouter in the history of baseball and has piled up a record that might never be equaled.” (Babe Ruth broke it the next year in 1921). After his baseball career, he was elected judge in Laguna Beach, and for the rest of his life enjoyed saying that he claimed the gavel quite by accident. He and two friends didn’t like the sitting judge so they drew straws to determine which of the three would run against him. Gavvy drew the short straw and won the election. Lacking any formal legal training, he claimed that he based his decisions on principles of sportsmanship he’d learned on the diamond.