If you ever wondered about the players who bounce around from team to team in Major League Soccer, you might be interested in my ESPN.com story on MLS vagabonds. I take a look at the 10 players in MLS right now who have played on three more teams in a corresponding number of seasons (or fewer). (I missed Brandon Prideaux, who Chicago picked up off waivers, marking his third team in three seasons. Kyle Brown is on Houston, his third team in three seasons, but has yet to play for the Dynamo. He would be No. 12).
What’s interesting about the current group is the number of quality players on it, including Joe Cannon, Ronnie O’Brien and Amado Guevara. Obviously San Jose being in the mix as an expansion team sort of skews things but that still doesn’t erase the fact that Joe Cannon is playing for his third team in three years, or Alecko Eskandarian his fourth team in three seasons.
In looking back at all the league’s players who had had this anomoly occur in their careers (which basically amounts to having been traded or cut and picked up at least twice in a few years. The number of players to have this happen that I came up with was 69 (not including the 12 heading into this year). I could be off a player or two, but it gives you a sense of roughly how many per year go through this (you figure 69 over the course of 12 years is less than six per season.) Seems like a high number considering the small size of the league.
I’ll post some more of the tidbits regarding these players during the weekend. For now, give the column a read and share your thoughts below.