The sports industry has lots of great athletes. Athletes that can jump high, run fast, hit a 100 mile an hour fastball or stop a puck at some amazing speed. The question is who are your favorite brothers in sports?
Here are a few that come to mind quickly:
Football :
Eli and Peyton Manning
Tiki and Ronde Barber
Hockey:
Phil and Tony Esposito
Basketball:
Dominique and Gerald Wilkins
Horace and Harvey Grant
Baseball
Greg and Mike Maddux
Phil and Joe Neikro
We also have a few more in other sports with John and Patrick McEnroe and Jay and Jerry Haas in golf. Growing up in Boston I really liked Phil Esposito and the big bad Boston Bruins. His brother Tony played for the Chicago Blackhawks and since we lived there I also liked them so for me they would probably be my favorite brothers in sports.
- Who are your favorite brother combinations in sports?
- Who am I missing off the list?
- Who is the best brother combination in sports?
I look forward to reading your comments and building a comprehensive list of brothers in sports.
P.S. I wonder if I had a brother, would that have given me a better chance to be a professional athlete? Probably not…but a guy can dream!
Robert Harrell says:
One of my favorite brother combos is baseball’s Mathewson brothers. They combined for 373 wins…Christy had 373 and Henry had 0.
Also, the Hebert brothers (Lionel and Jay) in golf. Both won majors.
These came to mind first. I’m sure I’ll think of some others.
Stephenie Gordon says:
Brothers in sports takes me directly to Lacrosse!
The Gait brothers (not only brothers, but Identical Twins) were a forced to be reckoned with at Syracuse in the late 80′s / early 90′s and basically put lacrosse on the map. Syracuse won 3 national titles during the Gait’s reign. They had crazy trick moves and shattered all sorts of records. Following the Gait boys are the Powell brothers. Ryan and Casey won a title for Syracuse in 1998 when Ryan was a senior and Casey was a freshman.
Now we have new twins ruling the fastest game on two feet, the Bratton brothers. These 6 ft tall freshman are the new faces of the UVA squad. Hopefully the Bratton’s can upstage the other famous twins that took over the UVA campus, Tiki and Ronde Barber.
Merrill Dubrow says:
Stephenie,
I didn’t realize you were such a fan of Lacrosse. I actually went to the NCAA Lacrosse championship game when I was in college and watch Johns Hopkins take the trophy.
Thanks for your contribution.
Merrill
Adam Jolley says:
Great topic today!
I’ve always thought about what it would be like to be the less-famous brother. I wonder what life was like to be Chris Gwynn, Wilton Guerrero, or Ozzie Canseco. Can you imagine being one of the best 800 baseball players in the country and being #2 in your own home? And how about being Vince DiMaggio?!
I would say that my favorite brotherly combo are Martinez brothers (Pedro and Ramon).
As for least favorite…it was always the Giambi’s. But after this last October, the Upton’s are closing fast!
Howard Fienberg says:
How can you neglect the Sutter brothers in the National Hockey League? Brian, Darryl, Duane, Brent, Rich and Ron all had good to great careers playing hockey, and four of them went on to become coaches or general managers. A truly dominant sporting hamily. Tough competitors day in, day out.
Merrill Dubrow says:
Adam,
Great comments. It would be amazing to be a great athlete and be number 2 in your house.
Even though I am not a Giants fan – happy that Eli and Peyton both made the pro bowl.
Merrill
Merrill Dubrow says:
How excited is the manning household today!
Eli Manning and Peyton have been selected to his first Pro Bowl.
Over Matt Ryan? We’re dubious of that choice. Has Eli really been as important to the Giants as Ryan has been to the Falcons? With Peyton Manning also making his ninth Pro Bowl in 11 seasons, the Mannings will become the first quarterback brothers to play in the game.
Fee Sepahi says:
Not that they were my favorite, as I thought one really set a bad precedence for the other, but we shan’t forget about the McEnroe brothers (John and Patrick).
Gary Shuman says:
Hey Sports Fans,
I may be dating myself because my two favorite combos go back to the late ’60s. How about Tony and Billy Conigliaro who played together for the Red Sox in 1969?
Even better, there were the THREE Plager brothers — Barcley, Bob and Bill — who played ferociously for the St. Louis Blues against my Bruins!
Will Morris says:
Probably going back in time, my personal favorites were Ken and Clete Boyer, primarily because I was a Cardinal fan and had a Ken Boyer glove as a kid. I got to know Clete Boyer a little bit when he spent a year at the end of his career with the Hawaii Islanders.
Because baseball is my favorite sport, I can think of more brother combinations. Dizzy and Daffy Dean – Joe and Dom Dimaggio – Cal and Billy Ripken – Hank and Tommie Aaron – and the Alou brothers, just to name a few more. There are other swirling around in my head, but I can’t seem to retrieve them right now.
Usually, there was a big disparity in ability, or at least fame among brothers. Poor Ozzie Canseco.
Adam Tomanelli says:
Hi Merrill,
In my view, the title of best brother combination in sports belongs to the Molina brothers. Yadier, Benjie and Jose Molina are all professional catchers in MLB. I am not aware of another trio of brothers in any professional sport – which in my view makes them the best. (and they are all excellent players to boot).
Other mentions not on the list:
Orlando and Livan Hernandez (mlb pitchers)
The Lopez brothers in the NBA
Aaron and Brett Boone (MLB) – - I know you Boston fans try not to think about one of them.
Jered and Jeff Weaver (MLB)
Leon and Michael Spinks (Boxing)
And don’t forget about the Hansen brothers in Slapshot (the best of ALL TIME).
Merrill Dubrow says:
Gary,
Can’t believe I left out Billy and Tony C – never heard of the Plager brothers. I need to go look them up.
Merrill
Merrill Dubrow says:
Will,
Good point about the difference in talent (maybe another blog) Ozzie wasn’t that good at all. How about Walter Payton’s brother! How do you think he feels?
Enjoy the holiday’s.
Merrill
Lisa S says:
What about sister combos? Like Venus & Serena Williams? Unlike some of those mentioned who either played together or faced each other as opponents every now and then, these girls have had to battle each other one-on-one on numerous occasions. They seem to get along well but there has to be a lot of competitiveness between them even off the court.
Peter B says:
Two of the great basketball coaches are brothers Hubie and Larry Brown. They are ‘in sports’ so I’d say that counts.
In the emerging sport called MMA (often called UFC) two of the top figthers are identical twins, plus they almost have the same name: Antonio Rodrigo Noguera and Antonio Rogerio Noguera. And the guy in that sport most people worldwide consider the best, Fedor Emilianenko, has a brother, Aleksander, who is top 10 in his division.
There’s two sets of identical twins currently in the NBA. And all four guys are 7 feet tall: Brook and Robin Lopez and Jason and Jarron Collins. None are super-distingiushed players but the Lopez’s are rookies and Brook in particular could be a star.
Jeff Goldman says:
Hey Merrill,
Hope you’re doing well.
At first, I thought of the Alous, then some of the good/bad combinations like the Aarons, etc. (Cal and Billy Ripken)
What about Pedro and Ramon Martinez? (surprised you left that one out)
How about the Hamm brothers or the Bryan brothers?
I think they are my favorites (the Bryans).
And talk about brothers, don’t forget the Sutters in hockey, there are a gazillion of them.
Hope you have a great holiday season.
My best to you and your family.
Jeff
Bob Graham says:
Dizzy and Daffy Dean were the first brother team that came to mind (probably because I live in St Louis now)
Phil and Tony Esposito are also up there, as are Joe and Dom Dimaggio.
But for my favorite brother team, I’m going to go with Edgar and Giddell Padilla who played for the great Calipari-coached UMASS Basketball teams of the 90′s!
Merrill dubrow says:
Lisa,
Sorry I forgot about the Williams sisters. And i just thought of another one in tennis – Chris and Jeannie Evert – I used to play tennis with Jeannie I think I recall she played Chris in two tournaments.
Merrill
Merrill dubrow says:
peter,
I never knew Hubie and Larry were brothers. Thanks for educating me.
Merrill
Bob Graham says:
Opps, how could I leave out Joe and Gary DiSarcina, both members of the UMASS Athletic Hall of Fame.
Merrill dubrow says:
Bob,
I never heard of Joe DiSarcina – did he play baseball? I know gary did. And was pretty good.
Merrill
Michael Halberstam says:
What about cousin’s Derek (baseball) and Gary Jeter (football) Or, Uncle Dwight Gooden and nephew Gary Sheffield.
Chris DeAngelis says:
Dating myself here…but the three brother combination of Felipe, Matty and Jesus Alou deserves mention all three played pro ball and all three had solid careers. Felipe played for San Fran as did Jesus, Matty played for the Pirates. OK it goes way back but are there any other three brother combo’s that played pro ball? I can’t think of any.
Chris
Steve Schlesinger says:
you have to add Vince DiMaggio to the brothers mentioned above – can you imagine having an entire outfield covered with one family unfortunately they all didn’t play together. i would also add John and Pat McEnroe to the mix. And then you can start thinking about the great father/son pairs – lots there. My vote for sure goes to the Williams sisters – no one has accomplished what they have in terms of both being at the top of their game.
matt steinhaus says:
growing up a Golden State Warriors fan, two of my all time favorite players both just happened to have brothers who also played pro hoops, so they make my favorites list by default, even though there was such a huge dropoff with the respective bros.
Bernard King – in my opinion the best player not in the basketball hall of fame – and his brother Albert.
Purvis Short and his brother Eugene.
and one of my all time favorite baseball players, Eddie Murray, had at least one brother in the pros, Rich.
another in a favorite category baseball category, still unmentioned, Joe Torre and his bro Frank.
just a few unmentioned, although not favorites:
hockey – Mario and Alain Lemeiux.
bro/sis combo of Tony and Tammi Granato (if that counts)
football – the Rocket and Qadry Ismail.
the Detmer brothers (who cant be anyones favorites).
across sports – Matt Cassel of the Pats has a bro in MLB.
Henry (basketball) and Jim (baseball) Bibby. throw in a son there, and they are like the Alou’s.
and on the cross sports, bro/sis combo – Billy Jean King and Randy Moffett (baseball)
Barry Packer says:
Merrill,
Knowing that I am a student of sports, and especially those from the 60′s, 70′s and 80′s when we were growing up in Boston, athletes coming out of the same family seemed to be quite popular; so coming up with brothers was an enjoyable activity.
First of all, my favorites include some of my favorite athletes who I got the pleasure to watch locally with the Conigliaros—Tony and Billy, and the Espositos—Phil and Tony, at the top of the list. And, staying in Boston there is J.D. and Stephen Drew, Joey and Alex Cora, Tony and Bo Eason, Sam and Randall Cunningham, John and Charley Hannah
For more hockey, how about Bobby and Dennis Hull, Frank and Pete Mahovlich, Ken and Dave Dryden, Mickey and Dick Redmond, Pierre and Sylvain Turgeon, Peter, Anton and Marian Statstny; and of course, the small family tree of Brian, Brent, Duane, Rich, Ron and Darryl Sutter.
In baseball, it seems that many times one brother was at the top of the game, and the other(s) may not have been a multiple time All-Star.
How would it have been to grow up in the neighborhood with the three Dimaggio brothers or Felipe, Matty and Jesus Alou?
How about, a couple of my favorite players of all-time–Dick Allen and his brothers Hank and Ron, and Carlos May (who is the only player to wear his birthday on his uniform—when he was with the White Sox he was number 17 and his birthday is 5/17). And then there is Hank and Tommie Aaron, Cal Ripken and Billy Ripken, Jr., Graig and Jim Nettles, George and Ken Brett (also Boston), Greg and Mike Maddux (also Boston), Bob and Ken Forsch, Gaylord and Jim Perry, and Joe and Frank Torre.
I could probably go on and on, but let me give someone else a chance.
Barry
Bob Graham says:
from umassathletics.com:
“Joe DiSarcina
A two-sport standout athlete, DiSarcina competed for both the UMass basketball and baseball teams from 1966-69. An All-America selection at shortstop in 1969, DiSarcina was also a three-time All-Yankee Conference selection and two-time All-Northeast and All-New England selection. In 1969, DiSarcina was a key member of the UMass team that captured the Yankee Conference championship and upset No. 1 Southern Illinois, 2-0, in the College World Series. As a guard on the basketball team, DiSarcina set set several school records, including assists in a game (15), a season (167) and career (431). His single-game mark still stands in the UMass record books. A captain of both sports his senior year, DiSarcina was the Samuel Grossman Two Sport Athlete Award winner in 1969. Currently, DiSarcina resides in Burlington, Mass. His nephews Glenn and Gary both played baseball at UMass, and Gary still plays in the Major Leagues. DiSarcina was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1997. “
Jon Last says:
Chris mentioned the three Alou brothers, who may have been my favorites. We currently have another threesome in MLB with the catching Molina brothers. Others that I don’t believe were mentioned:
The Reuschels (Rick and Paul–MLB)
Danny and David Edwards (PGA TOUR)
Lanny and Bobby Wadkins (PGA TOUR)
The Andrettis and Unsers in open wheel racing
The Jensen brothers in pro tennis
Merrill dubrow says:
Bob,
Thanks for more information – great athlete for sure.
Merrill
Merrill dubrow says:
Matt,
I can’t believe I forgot about Bernard King and his brother Albert – I am 99% sure he played at Hofstra.
The Bibby’s are great ones as well.
Thanks for your contribution.
Merrill
Merrill dubrow says:
Barry,
I forgot about a bunch you mentioned. Sam and Randall Cunningham – both great football players.
I still have a Dick Allen autograph.
Barry – great additions!
Merrill
matt steinhaus says:
thanks MD. its a fun topic.
actually, Albert played at Maryland with Buck Williams.
btw, Candice Parker has a brother in NBA too.
Merrill dubrow says:
Matt,
Your right. I think it was his son.
Thanks.
Merrill
Robert Harrell says:
More golf…
Don and Rik Massengale…both multiple winners on the PGA tour.
Merrill…I saw Jeannie Evert play Yvonne Goolagong back in the late 70s in tournament here in Dallas.
Bette Anne Champion says:
OK, how about the Von Ericks of WWF fame. I will never forget going to a match the arena in San Antonio (can’t remember the name of it). The lights went down and two spotlights came up…one on a giant silver spinning disco ball and one following each of the 3 Von Ericks who entered the arena on white horses.
So very hokey but very cool!
Peter B says:
How about the brother/sister duo of Reggie and Cheryl Miller? Both are legends in basketball.
How about the Hanson brothers from ‘Slapshot’ or am I thinking of “Rollerball?’ I’ve always confused those two.
Merrill dubrow says:
Peter,
It was Slapshot – very funny movie. I forgot about Reggie and Cheryl Miller probably the BEST brother/sister team in the history of basketball.
Nice additions.
Merrill
Willie Martin says:
Happy Holidays everyone:
Has anyone mentioned Hank and Tommie Aaron?
Or Terry and Morris Bradshaw?
Or the brothers Sedin with the Vancouver Canucks?
May I also add Matty, Felipe, and Jesus Alou?
Take care Merrill. See you in April!
Will
Peter B says:
Since Mike H. is cheating and pointing out cousins
I’ll add cuzzes Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady.
Chuck Miller says:
I’m joining this conversation very late… so if we’ve moved on to cousins one pair that always intrigued me growing up was Jose Cardenal and Bert Campaneris.
And yes, it would be tough being Tommie Aaron or Ozzie Canseco. But I’ve always thought is would be horrible being the son of a great… Jarrett Payton, or one of MJ’s boys.
Will Morris says:
I had forgotten about the Boone brothers, but the Boone’s may have the biggest dynasty — their father was Bob Boone and their grandfather was Ray Boone. That is over 57 years of MLB. Almost as good as the Kennedy’s.
Merrill Dubrow says:
Will,
Thats a great addition for sure – 3 generations and pretty good players. I still don’t like Aaron Boone for the hitting the home run in game 7 against the Redsox to send us home and the Yankees onto the World Series.
Merrill
Bob T says:
Hey Merrill-
Has anyone mentioned the Richard brothers- Maurice “the Rocket” and Henri “the Pocket Rocket”? They might be the best hockey brother pair of all time. (Sorry Tony and Phil…)
Also- in the NFL, has anyone mentioned Tiki and Ronde Barber?
Merrill Dubrow says:
Bob,
I don’t think anyone has mentioned the Richard Brothers. If they aren’t the best brother hockey pair they are in the top two. Yes I mentioned the Barber’s but I just thought of another one as I am watching the Celtics/Hawks game. Is Mike Bibby Henry Bibby’s son? I need to check that one out.
Thanks Bob.
Merrill
Joe Baldi says:
Merrill, GREAT topic. The problem is weighing in late. Before I read the postings I thought of many that were mentioned. I think the best were the Sutter bros. and the Boone. family.
In BB you can add the Giles bros. and Randy Wolf and his bro who is an ump.
There are the Jones Bros in football, one plays for the Jets the other played for the Cowboys.
There are a set of bros who are pitchers one for the Angels and the other for the Cardinals. It will come to me.
I don’t believe that Derek Jeter has a bro playing pro sports.
In the 60′s there was the Van Arsdale twins, one played for the Knicks and the other for Phoenix.
How about the catcher for the Marlins whose wife won the Volleyball gold medal in the Olympics and she was also on dancing With The Stars. ( The Trainors ). I also don’t think that Hubie and Larry Brown are brothers. Larry does have a brother who is a long time Asst. in the NBA.
Bobby and Dennis Hull in the NHL.
In the 50′s the O’brien twins. One played for the Pirates.Mort and Walker Cooper
Harry and Dixie Walker
I’m sure many more will come to mind. A real fun exercise.
Joe
Merrill Dubrow says:
I just looked and yes Mike Bibby is the son of of former NBA and UCLA player and former USC basketball coach and current Philadelphia 76ers assistant coach Henry Bibby.
I a sure most of us also don’t know that Mike is the nephew of former Major League Baseball player Jim Bibby. Bibby attended Shadow Mountain High School in Phoenix, Arizona.
Merrill
Merrill Dubrow says:
Joe,
Great additions – yes Hubie and Larry Brown are brothers and someone said that Derek Jeter’s cousin I think played football think his name is Gary Jeter and he played for the Giants. The Gillies that you mentioned is that Clark from the Stanley Cup NY Islanders? What is his brothers name?
Van Arnsdale is a great addition I forgot about that one.
Nice job.
Merrill
Joe Baldi says:
Merrill, that was Marcus and Brian Giles, baseball players.
Joe
Chuck Miller says:
Interesting fact for the hardcore baseball fans I found last night… Dizzy and Daffy combined to win 96 games for the Cards in their best two seasons together (’34 and ’35). Wow!
Ed Sugar says:
Hey they have brother combinations in other countries too!
If you did a world wide poll no doubt Jack & Bobby Charlton would be in the Top 5 all time brother combos. Both had stellar professional careers and were key to England’s 1966 World Cup
Other notables from over there:
Gary & Phil Neville
Danny, Ray and Rod Wallace
Frank and Ronald De Boer
Rene and Willy Van De Kerkhof
Diego and Hugo Maradona (Hugo was the Tommie Aaron of this pair)
Merrill dubrow says:
Ed,
Great additions – I love the global twist.
Have a nice vacation.
Merrill
Merrill dubrow says:
Future stars in the making!
Wisconsin brothers bowl perfect games together
Dec. 17, 2008 10:22 AM
SHEBOYGAN, Wis. – Brothers Ed and Tom Shircel have combined for 10 perfect games in their bowling careers, and now they’ve reached another milestone: rolling perfect games while bowling together.
Each rolled a 300 while bowling Monday night at Lakeshore Lanes for the same team and in the same game. “Oh boy, to get two brothers on the same team, then do that? Maybe a one in a million thing, I’m sure,” he said.
Tom, 52, finished first with his 300 and Ed quickly followed.
After the final pin fell over, Ed realized the rest of the Al & Al’s Brotherhood League bowlers had been zeroed in on the action.
“I couldn’t believe all the yelling,” he said. “Everyone was paying attention.”
Tom said the pair rarely gets big scores together.
“We always talked about hitting good on the same nights,” Tom said. “We’ve had 700s together, but nothing like this.”
On Monday night, Tom had a 752 series and Ed finished up at 777 after tacking on six more strikes to start the second game.
Auggie says:
Ken & Clete Boyer, mentioned previously, were my favorites also.
There was a third Boyer brother , Cloyd a pitcher, who preceded them both in MLB.
Randy Carson says:
Growing up in Pittsburgh, I used to hear the tales of Big Poison and Little Poison, Lloyd and Paul Waner..back in the day.
If B.J. and Justin Upton can keep their heads on straight, they have a chance to become one of the best baseball duos ever..As a Rays fan, I am more a fan of B.J. of course.
Tom Mularz says:
Great topic.
Here is a very obscure pair:
- Bobby Duckworth
- Ken Norman
It’s a long story!
- Tom
John Heakin says:
I’ll take the guys from “Slapshot”, so don’t mess with me.
Merrill Dubrow says:
Tom,
Interesting pair – I think I need to know the story! I guess I will need to do some research.
Merrill
Tom Mularz says:
Ah, Yes!
The Hanson Brothers!
(Two of the three who actually were brothers named Carlson in real life!)
Tom Mularz says:
Merrill,
….. and Ken Norman was actually named Ken Collier when he played HS Hoops in the Chicago Public League!
Salaner says:
Hubie and Larry Brown are NOT brothers. Hubie’s less well-known brother is Herb Brown – also an NBA assistant coach.
Todd Hansen says:
Two of the most unathletic looking basketball coaches in the NBA – Stan and Jeff Van Gundy.
Todd Hansen says:
Just thought of another – World Cup Skiing Champions and Olympic Medalist Phil and Steve Mahre!
Merrill Dubrow says:
Salaner,
Thanks for letting me clarifying.
Merrill
Harry Heller says:
Before I wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah, I’d liked to add two golden oldies — Dixie Walker (who was a great hitter but ruined his career because he wouldn’t accept Jackie Robinson on his team) and Harry “the Hat” Walker (who played with his hat between every swing, much like Nomar plays with his gloves, and could waste 20 close pitches in a row until he got a fat one to hit) who won the NL batting championship one year.