OT: Connections

Submitted for your consideration -

Two men.
One named Wally Pipp.
The other named Pete Best.

Separated by four decades, an ocean and totally different lives, they nonetheless share something that has made them footnotes in history.

What is their “Connection”?

JoJoHawk wrote: Each missed day and subsequently got permanently replaced by their replacements.
Gehrig and Starr!

Correct!
Wally Pipp was purchased by the Yankees from Detroit before the start of the 1915 season. As the Yankees’ starting first baseman, Pipp and 3B John “Home Run” Baker led an improved Yankee lineup that led the league in home runs. Pipp led the American League in home runs in 1916 and 1917. With Babe Ruth, Bob Meusel, Joe Dugan, and Waite Hoyt, the Yankees won three consecutive American League pennants from 1921 through 1923, and won the 1923 World Series. In 1925, Pipp lost his starting role to Lou Gehrig after he sat out a game with a headache. This began Gehrig's streak of 2,130 consecutive games played, which stood as an MLB record for 56 years.

Pipp finished his major league career with Cincinnati. And although he is considered to be one of the best power hitters of the dead ball era, Pipp is now best remembered as the man who lost his starting role as the Yankees' first baseman to Gehrig on June 2, 1925.

In a similar sense, in August 1960 Pete Best became the drummer for a group called The Quarrymen. They subsequently changed their name to The Beatles and went on their first Hamburg season that August.

While in Hamburg, The Beatles came to know the members of Rory and The Hurricanes, a fellow British band. They particularly came to like and appreciate the musical and showmanship talents of a fellow Liverpudlian, one Richard Starkey, better known ever since as Ringo Starr. There came a time when Best was ill and could not play, and the group asked Ringo if he would cover for Pete, which Ringo was happy to do. According to Paul McCartney, it was an eye opening session for The Beatles. Paul, John and George immediately appreciated the difference in the band with Ringo backing them. Plus they just liked Ringo better, feeling his personality as well as his talent were a better fit with the trio compared to Pete. Consequently, just after their very first recording session on 16 August 1962 - and just before they broke upon the world like a mammoth tsunami, starting the new musical British Invasion of America - they fired Pete Best and brought Ringo into the group.

So that is what Pipp and Best share in common. Both men saw a “sick day” absence lead to them losing their jobs to someone who took their place and subsequently went on to the heights of stardom in their respective careers.

Rock Chalk, JoJoHawk!