In honor of MLB's planned trip to London, meet the All-England Team
Major League Baseball recently announced that the Yankees and Red Sox will travel to uncharted waters, as they will play the first regular-season games in Europe. London's Olympic Stadium will host the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry on June 29 and June 30, 2019.
So, to commemorate this occasion, it's only fitting that we unveil our All-England Team.
C: Welington Castillo
Considering that Castillo donned a jersey on Player's Weekend in 2017 with the nickname "Beef," he is all-in on this nickname. Back in 2015 with the D-backs, he even sampled some beef wellington, much to his pleasure.
1B: Prince Fielder
Much like the princes of England, Fielder has an impressive family history, too.
2B: Jeff Kent
The man with more home runs than any second baseman in baseball history has a last name shared by not only Superman, but also the historic English county that is the home of the Canterbury Cathedral.
3B: Gary Sheffield
Sheffield FC is one of the world's oldest soccer clubs, and while "Sheff" was mostly known as an outfielder, he made his first two All-Star teams in 1992-93 as a third baseman.
SS: Tim Beckham
On the subject of soccer, Tim might not be able to bend it like David, but we bet that David can't crush 'em like Tim.
LF: Marcus Thames
While Eric Thames would be a good nominee as well, Marcus gets the edge since his last name is actually pronounced the same as the river.
CF: Tuffy Rhodes
Six seasons in the Majors and 13 more in Japan might not have made Rhodes a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford, but it was certainly a rewarding global education of sorts.
RF: King Kelly
One of the great heroes of 19th century baseball, Kelly was a pioneer of the game and true baseball royalty.
P: Mel Queen
Another royal name, Queen played right field for the Reds for three years before transitioning to the mound for seven more MLB seasons. He later became a pitching guru in the Blue Jays organization, where his most famous act came when he turned Roy Halladay from a flamed-out prospect to an annual Cy Young Award contender.
Manager: Dave Bristol
Bristol had only just turned 33 when he was named the Reds' manager in July 1966, and he deserves credit for helping in the early construction of the Big Red Machine. We can only speculate if Bristol ever made it to the popular destination itself.