The Sports section of the Weekend Wall Street Journal plays the name game in this Michael Salfino piece:
A Long Gap in Between ‘Zoilo’ At-Bats
Zoilo Almonte has created quite a splash since making his major-league debut in late June, hitting .314 and earning a starting spot in the New York Yankees outfield.
It’s been awhile since a “Zoilo” last played in the majors. Zoilo Versalles, the 1965 American League MVP, retired in 1971, beginning a drought that ended when the Yankees promoted Almonte (pictured). But the 42-year wait for another Zoilo is hardly a long one.
It’s just the 124th longest gap between proper first names in history, according to Stats, LLC. The time between players named Levi is nearly three times longer—123 years from Levi Meyerle’s 1884 retirement from the Philadelphia Keystones to Levi Burton’s promotion to the 2007 Reds.
Then comes this helpful chart:
The hardwondering staff is not sure who else does this kind of reporting, but we’re pretty sure it’s nobody.
And now you know the rest of the story.