I got to thinking last week about players named Elmer.

I went to the game at Cincinnati between the Reds and the Rockies last Sunday. Elmer Dessens was pitching for the Reds (and was the losing pitcher), and as I was watching the game it occurred to me that there haven't been very many major league players named Elmer.

You could make a great all-time team of guys named Joe (DiMaggio, Jackson, Morgan, Torre, and many others) or Jim (Rice, Thome, Wynn, Hunter, Foxx, etc.) However, the all-Elmer team, I figured, would be pretty small.

So, I went into my database to see how many Elmers there are in major league history.

I found out that 37 men named Elmer have played major league baseball, as opposed to 349 Joes and nearly 500 Jims, Jimmys, and Jimmies. Oddly enough, Elmer Dessens is the first man named Elmer to play in the majors since Elmer Valo hung up his spikes in 1961. Before Dessens came along in 1995, we went for 34 seasons without any Elmers.

Most of these 37 Elmers are guys I never heard of, but there are a few prominent ones in the bunch:

Elmer Flick. This turn-of-the-century outfielder is the only Elmer in the Hall of Fame. Flick began his career with the Phillies in 1898, batted .367 in 1900, and joined Cleveland of the American League in 1902. He won the 1905 batting title with a .308 average, and illness forced his retirement after the 1910 season. Flick was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1963 and died in 1971 at the age of 94.

Elmer Smith. He joined the Cincinnati Reds in 1886 as an 18-year-old pitcher, and at age 19 he won 34 games for the Reds. His arm wore out and he dropped out of the majors, only to return as an outfielder and play for several teams from 1892 to 1901. Smith won 75 and lost 58 as a pitcher, and batted .313 as a hitter. He isn't a Hall of Famer, but he was a pretty good player nonetheless.

The other Elmer Smith. This Elmer Smith, no relation to the first, joined the Cleveland team in 1914. The Indians moved Shoeless Joe Jackson to first base in 1915 to make a spot for Smith in the outfield, an experiment that ended after 27 games when Jackson came up with a sore arm. Smith was a good hitter, who belted the first grand slam homer in World Series history on October 10, 1920.

Elmer Valo. Valo, born in Czechoslovakia, joined the Philadelphia A's as an outfielder in 1940 and stayed with them until they moved to Kansas City in 1955. Valo batted .282 in 1,806 games, and spent the last few years of his career as a successful pinch-hitting specialist. He hit .364 as a part-timer for the A's in 1955.

Elmer Riddle. He pitched for the Reds and Pirates from 1939 to 1949, with a 19-4 mark in 1941 and a 22-11 log in 1943 for the Reds. He won 65 and lost 52 in 190 games.

Elmer Myers. Myers was one of only two decent pitchers on the horrible 1916 Philadelphia A's, one of the worst teams of the 20th century. Myers went 14-23 that year, while Joe Bush had a 15-24 record. The other 18 pitchers on the club combined to win 7 games while losing 70.

That's about it as far as Elmers are concerned. Elmer Flick is one of the weaker Hall of Fame selections, and the first Elmer Smith is almost certainly the most accomplished hitter, as well as the winningest pitcher, of all the 37 Elmers. Perhaps Smith should be in the Hall of Fame instead of Flick.

One other thing. The all-Elmer team would operate under a serious handicap, because the team wouldn't have a manager. No one named Elmer has ever managed in the major leagues.