That’s a picture of Roland “Champ” Bailey. You probably didn’t know his real name was Roland; and here’s the crazy thing: if he went by Roland Bailey, instead of Champ Bailey, we firmly believe he would be 40 percent less productive and might have, in fact, never have played a down in the NFL. Roland Bailey is a dimeback’s name. Champ Bailey is, well, a champ’s name. What are we getting at? Something as simple as a name can greatly influence public perception of an athlete. We have thought many times — reasonably or not, you be the judge — that a player would never make it big solely because of his name. (The first specific example we can recall was a mid-1980s infielder for the Braves named Paul Zuvella, who improbably managed 20 RBI in 491 career at bats, including four in 190 ABs for the 1985 Braves. That just wasn’t a ballplayer’s name, and it showed). We were reminded of the value of a good name when MC Creme Fraiche remarked over the weekend that Francisco Liriano “has a great name.” We’re not saying Liriano can be dominant because of his great name, but it sure doesn’t hurt.
So we ask: what are the all-time best and worst names in sports, both as entities to themselves and as predictors of success?

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