Four-Decade Players

They're the kings of durability: players who appeared in four different calendar decades. Many of these guys are Hall of Famers, but some are just better-than-average players who worked hard and stayed healthy for a very long time.

Remarkably, out of the 32 players on the list, four - Dempsey, Fisk, McCarver, and Nomura - got there despite playing what is arguably the most physically demanding position on the field; catcher.

The list includes players active at the major league level in the United States or Japan for at least one game in each of four different decades; in many cases, the feat was only achieved thanks to a token appearance at the end of a player's career, or a cup of coffee at the beginning of such.

Minnie Minoso and Nick Altrock are the only players to appear in five different decades.

1990s-2020s

None

1980s-2010s

• Jamie Moyer (1986-2012)
• Ken Griffey, Jr. (1989-2010)
• Omar Vizquel (1989-2012)
• Takeshi Yamasaki (1989-2013)

1970s-2000s

• Rickey Henderson (1979-2003)
• Mike Morgan (1978-2002)
• Jesse Orosco (1979-2003)
• Tim Raines (1979-2002)

1960s-1990s

• Bill Buckner (1969-1990)
• Rick Dempsey (1969-1992)
• Carlton Fisk (1969-1993)
• Choji Murata (1968-1990)
• Jerry Reuss (1969-1990)
• Nolan Ryan (1966-1993)

1950s-1980s

• Isao Harimoto (1959-1981)
• Jim Kaat (1959-1983)
• Tim McCarver (1959-1980)
• Willie McCovey (1959-1980)
• Minnie Minoso (1949-1980)
• Katsuya Nomura (1954-1980)
• Sadaharu Oh (1959-1980)

1940s-1970s

• Minnie Minoso (1949-1980)

1930s-1960s

• Mickey Vernon (1939-1960)
• Ted Williams (1939-1960)
• Early Wynn (1939-1963)

1920s-1950s

• Bobo Newsom (1929-1953)

1910s-1940s

None

1900s-1930s

• Nick Altrock (1898-1933)
• Eddie Collins (1906-1930)
• Jack Quinn (1909-1933)

1890s-1920s

• Nick Altrock (1898-1933)

1880s-1910s

• Kid Gleason (1888-1912)
• Deacon McGuire (1884-1912)
• Jack O'Connor (1887-1910)
• Jack Ryan (1889-1913)

1870s-1900s

• Dan Brouthers (1879-1904)
• Jim O'Rourke (1872-1904)

Further Reading

• Andrew Simon and David Adler: "These players' careers spanned 4 decades", mlb.com, November 22, 2018. [1]