Often referred to as America’s national pastime, baseball is a family sport. There are some amazing fathers and sons who have played in the MLB. Most of them have accomplished many great things throughout their major league careers. Here are some of the most notable father-son duos in MLB history.
Bobby Bonds and Barry Bonds
Bobby Bonds made his major league debut in 1968 with the San Francisco Giants and played there for seven years. After that, he played for seven teams including the Chicago Cubs, who he ended his career with. Barry Bonds started out playing for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1986 and ended with the San Francisco Giants in 2007. He then went on to be a coach for the Miami Marlins in 2016. Barry Bonds is a 14-time National League all-star. He also won countless Silver Slugger Awards and many other awards. The father-son duo almost joined the 40-40 club, but Bobby Bonds missed it by one home run. Both Bonds put their all into all the teams they played for.
Vladimir Guerrero and Vladimir Guerreo Jr.
Vladimir Guerrero started out playing for the Montreal Expos in 1996 and ended his career with the Baltimore Orioles in 2011. During this time, he also played for the Los Angeles Angels and the Texas Rangers. In 2007, Guerrero won the home run derby. He got inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2018. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. currently plays for the Toronto Blue Jays. He wears the number 27 just as his dad did. In 2023, Guerrero Jr. won the home run derby. This made Vladimir Guerrero and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. the first father-son duo to win a derby. Guerrero and Guerrero Jr. both had seasons where they hit at least 40 home runs. They are one of the only father-son duos to accomplish this. Guerrero’s younger son, Vlad Guerrero is 16 years old and just signed with the New York Mets this year. He is expected to do great things.
Bob Boone and Aaron Boone
Bob Boone started with the Phillies in 1972 and was there for most of his major league career. Five years after Boone left the league, he started his career as manager. He worked for the Kansas City Royals and Cincinnati Reds. Bob Boone’s son, Aaron Boone started his major league career in 1997 with the Cincinnati Reds. He played there for six years, which was the longest he stayed with a team. He then went on to play for five more teams, including the New York Yankees, where he’d later become a manager. Boone started as the Yankees’ manager in 2018 and is still the current manager.
Tom Gordon and Dee Strange-Gordon
Tom Gordon made his MLB debut in 1988 with the Kansas City Royals as a pitcher. He then continued to play for seven teams. He played the longest with the Royals. While in the majors, he made the all-star team three times. Once in the National League with the Phillies and twice in the American League with the Yankees and the Red Sox. Tom Gordon’s son, Dee Strange-Gordon, started playing in the majors in 2011. He started with the Dodgers then went on to play for the Marlins and Mariners. He ended his career in 2022 with the Nationals. Gordon played in the all-star game twice for the American League. He also went on to win many awards and was an extremely accomplished player.
Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr.
Ken Griffey Sr. started in the majors in 1973 as an outfielder with the Cincinnati Reds. He ended his career with the Seattle Mariners in 1991. Griffey Sr. was a three-time National League all-star for the Reds. While he played for the Reds, they won two back-to-back world series. Griffey Sr.’s son, Ken Griffey Jr., made his MLB debut in 1989 with the Seattle Mariners. He also played for the Cincinnati Reds, the Chicago White Sox, and went back to the Mariners for the last year of his career. Griffey Jr. certainly made his mark in the baseball world when he became a 13 time all-star. While with the Mariners, he was an American League all-star 10 times and a National League all-star three times with the Reds. The Griffey’s both had amazing careers that were back to back with each other. In the 1990 and 1991 season, the Griffeys were teammates. They were the first and only father-son duo to be teammates.
Edited by Shaniya Scales
Social Media Content Created by Alley Ruthenberg
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