Wednesday, December 5, 2012

A Tale of Two Rabbits



Somehow, the annals of history include two "Rabbit" Robinsons: William Clyde Robinson, an early 20th Century utility infielder, and Paul Robinson, a sexxy Australian fiddler.

Let's compare the famous Robinsons of the family Leporidae.



Rabbit Robinson, Infielder Rabbit Robinson, Sexxy fiddler
Years in the big leagues 1903-1904, 1910 2008-Present
Born in West Virginia, haven for American hillbillies Australia, haven for the Southern Hemisphere's hillbillies
Career Highlights Fourth-best player on the wretched 1904 Detroit Tigers1. Subsequently released. Played "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" while already well south of Georgia.
Appearance Meek and reserved Sexy virtuoso (The "Steve Vai")
Career home runs 1, hit off one-year garbage pitcher John Deering in 1903 Many, with the fine fiddle-fan ladies Down Under
Positions Played Third base, shortstop, outfield, second base Duh...Fiddlers only play lead. There's no such thing as a rhythm violinist.
Nickname origin A diminutive player (5'6") who was also fleet afoot Humps a lot.
Used electricity to... ...improve his empty-bottle throwing accuracy in saloons, via the lightbulb. To amplify his hot fiddlin'.
Weapons of choice A battered leather glove and a belly full of grit2 A golden fiddle strung with the hopes and dreams of the Ute-driving masses




1 Robinson was a regular fill-in on the 1903 Washington Senators, perennial cellar dwellers who, at the time, struggled to win one-fourth of their games. Rabbit moved up to the next-to-last-place Tigers in '04. While he played more than 100 games for Detroit, he filled i at several different positions. 

2 As he was from West Virginia, Rabbit was also keen on a belly full of grits.

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