MLB: The Cuban Missile and the 10 Best Nicknames in Baseball

With Aroldis Chapman’s call up to Cincinnati and the big leagues, I loved seeing the “Cuban Missile” take the mound Tuesday night and blow 102 mph fastballs past Brewer hitters. I am also excited that baseball has another great nickname to replace recently retired players Frank Thomas “Big Hurt”, Julio Franco “Father Time”, Orlando Hernandez “El Duque” and Randy Johnson “The Big Unit”.

These are great nicknames that you can only find in the sport of baseball. These are real nicknames. Not just a play on an athlete’s name such as “A-Rod” (Alex Rodriguez), Miggy (Miguel Tejada), or my favorite “B-Weezy” (Brian Wilson).

Aroldis Chapman has only pitched one inning so far in his brief career, but that didn’t stop the Cuban Missile from cracking CTS’ most recent Top 10 Countdown. Enjoy.

1. Jayson "Rated R Super Star" Werth

Originally a nickname for the wrestler Edge, Werth’s resemblance of the WWE star has earned him this gnarly nickname. Much better than Werth’s other nickname, “Werewolf”.

2. Pablo "Kung Fu Panda" Sandoval

Nicknamed after the movie, Sandoval could not have a more appropriate nickname with his round body and extreme athleticism. Also nicknamed “Fat Ichiro”.

3 Adam "Big Donkey" Dunn

Dunn received this nickname after teammates made jokes about the 290 pounder’s speed. Better to be Big Donkey than “Number One Dunner”.

4. Lance "Big Puma" Berkman

Berkman was upset with his original nickname “Fat Elvis” telling a reporter “I’m more like a puma so I’m not sure why people call me Fat Elvis”. Ever since, Lance has been Big Puma.

5. Jason "The Jay Hey Kid" Heyward

Pretty self explanatory if you happen to know who a guy by the name of Willie Mays is.

6. Carlos "El Caballo" Lee

At the start of his career with the White Sox, broadcaster Ken Harrelson nicknamed the husky Panamanian “El Caballo” or “The Horse”.

7. Hideki "Godzilla" Matsui

Originally a nickname given to him by the Japanese because of skin problems at the beginning of his career, now a suitable nickname for the Japanese sluggers’ monster bat.

8. Shane "The Flyin’ Hawaiian" Victorino

He’s from Hawaii and he’s fast. Go figure.

9. Ryan "The Hebrew Hammer" Braun

Named after Adam Goldberg’s character in “The Hebrew Hammer”, Braun acquired this nickname because of his Jewish heritage and his powerful stick at the plate.

10. Aroldis "The Cuban Missile" Chapman

Such as Victorino’s nickname, Chapman hails from Cuba and the radar gun says he throws fast. 105 miles per hour fast. Now, Chapman will try to retain this nickname as he tries to help the Reds win the NL pennant for the first time in 20 years.

Honorable Mention—Pudge (Ivan Rodriguez), The Machine & Phat Albert (Albert Pujols), The Freak (Tim Lincecum), O-Dog (Orlando Hudson), Big Papi (David Ortiz)

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