Best Father/Son Combos

The hits just keep on coming!  Now we've reached the first Father's Day without my dad.  But that doesn't mean I can't celebrate the 41 Father's Days I had with him.  Besides, Father's Day is always a special day on the sports calendar simply because of the bond fathers and sons share, often through sports.

Just think about all the stories of kids growing up in a Major League clubhouse only to become Major Leaguers themselves.  Or just look at the Toronto Blue Jays, who have three second-generation Major Leaguers on their roster, two of whom are the sons of Hall of Famers!  They're not the only ones.  From Kody Clemens to Tyler Nevin, they're everywhere you look!  And that's just in baseball!  There are plenty of examples in other sports, too.  That doesn't even include LeBron and Bronny James, who could end up becoming the best father/son of all-time. 

As it is, LeBron and Bronny don't currently make this list.  I could easily do four separate ones for each of the four major league sports, but it's almost more exclusive to combine them into one.  Because of that, families like the Ripkens, Alous and Tkachuks didn't make the cut.  So who did?

10 (tie). Ray/Bob/Bret/Aaron Boone: Baseball's only three-generation Major League family absolutely deserves a place.  Ray was a two-time All-Star in the 50s and was on Cleveland's last World Series championship team.  Bob had an outstanding 20-year career as a catcher primarily for the Phillies and Angels.  Bret won three Gold Gloves at second base and Aaron hit one of the most famous home runs in the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry before going on to become Yankees manager.  Bob also managed in the Majors with the Royals and Reds.

10 (tie). Clay Matthews, Sr./Jr./III: I'll be honest.  I had no idea there were three Clay Matthews who played in the NFL!  We all know about Clay III and his outstanding decade with the Packers.  And his dad, Clay Jr., who played linebacker for 19 years mainly for the Browns.  We also know about Hall of Fame offensive lineman Bruce Matthews, Clay Jr.'s bother and Clay III's uncle.  Clay Sr., however, also had a brief NFL career, playing four seasons with the 49ers between a stint serving in the Korean War.

9. Marv/Kenny Albert: Is this cheating?  Maybe.  But any list of sports' greatest father/son duos wouldn't be complete without Marv & Kenny Albert.  Marv is considered the "voice of basketball," but he's also called boxing, football and hockey (among other sports).  Kenny followed in his father's footsteps and is the No. 1 play-by-play announcer for the NHL on TNT and FOX's No. 2 guy for the NFL.  He's also done every Olympics since 2002.  No matter the sport, no matter the network, there's a good chance Kenny Albert is there!

8. Gordie/Mark/Marty Howe: Hockey's Holy Trinity is Wayne Gretzky, Gordie Howe and Bobby Orr.  You can debate which of the three is the best all you like, but it's hard to say Gordie isn't the best ever.  He played 25 years for the Red Wings, retired, then came back to play for the Houston Aeros of the WHA specifically so he could play with his sons, Mark and Marty.  He ended up playing until he was 52 (a record the ageless Jaromir Jagr is trying to beat!).  Mark and Marty are nowhere near as accomplished as their father, but the sheer fact that the three of them played together on the same line for three years gets them on the list.

7. Dell/Stephen/Seth Curry: Dell Curry was one of the best three-point shooters of his day and is the Charlotte Hornets' all-time leading scorer.  Now he's best known as the father of Steph and Seth.  And, no offense to Seth, who's had a solid NBA career, but he's not his brother.  Not even close.  Stephen Curry isn't just one of the premier NBA players of this generation.  He may go down as the greatest three-point shooter in history.  Not to mention the greatest player ever to wear a Golden State Warriors jersey.

6. Vladimir Guerrero, Sr./Jr.: Vlad Sr. is a Hall of Famer.  He played 16 seasons, primarily for the Expos and Angels, finishing with 449 home runs.  And, back before he became exclusively a DH later in his career, had a cannon for an arm from right field.  Vladito may end up being a better hitter than his father.  He's only 24 and already has 113 career home runs, as well as a Gold Glove at first base, and his 2021 season, when he was the MLB home run leader, was exceptional.  The coolest part is that Vlad Sr. made his name in Montreal, while Vlad Jr. is currently the face of the Toronto Blue Jays.

5. Jack/Joe Buck: Yep, I snuck another pair of father/son broadcasters in there!  The venerable Jack Buck is in the broadcasters' wing of both the Baseball and Pro Football Halls of Fame.  He called 18 Super Bowls and 11 World Series on radio, and a pair of World Series on TV (including his iconic calls in Games 6 & 7 in 1991).  Joe called all but two World Series from 1996-2021 and took over as FOX's No. 1 NFL play-by-play announcer, as well, in 2002 and called six Super Bowls for the network before he and partner Troy Aikman left to do Monday Night Football on ESPN.

4. Bobby/Barry Bonds: They have more home runs (1,094 between them) than any other father/son combo in baseball history.  Barry has most of those.  He's the all-time leader with 762, but Bobby wasn't exactly a slouch, hitting 332 of his own!  If not for the steroid allegations that have tainted his legacy, Barry Bonds would be considered one of the greatest players ever.  As it is, he's still one of the defining players of his era.  Bobby's career is a bit underrated, but he was a tremendous leadoff hitter for eight teams (primarily the Giants) throughout the 70s.  In addition to the combined power numbers, the Bondses are the only two players in MLB history with five 30/30 (home run/stolen base) seasons.

3. Ken Griffey, Sr./Jr.: We all know the coolest stat about the Griffeys.  That game in 1990 when they not only both started in the same Mariners outfield, they both homered!  Senior was a key member of the Big Red Machine in the 1970s.  Junior is one of the best players of all-time (and my favorite player growing up).  When his name first appeared on the Hall of Fame ballot in 2016, he received all but three votes, setting a record for percentage until Mariano Rivera's unanimous election.  He hit 630 home runs, and he made it look effortless with that gorgeous left-handed swing.  He also made playing center field look effortless, winning 10 career Gold Gloves.

2. Bobby/Brett Hull: Bobby Hull is widely considered one of the greatest players of all-time.  He was named one of the "100 Greatest NHL Players" during the league's centennial celebration in 2017 and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1983.  Brett was also named one of the "100 Greatest NHL Players" but, surprisingly, hasn't been elected to the Hall of Fame yet.  When he is, they'll become the first father/son combo to both be elected to their sport's Hall of Fame as players.  They're also both arguably the greatest player in the history of their respective primary franchises--Bobby with the Blackhawks, Brett with the Blues.

1. Archie/Peyton/Eli Manning: One family, three quarterbacks, two No. 1 overall picks, four Super Bowl titles, three Super Bowl MVPs.  Archie was a fine NFL quarterback in his own right, playing for really bad New Orleans Saints teams in the 70s.  And he's the third-best of the three!  Now let's talk Eli and his 210 consecutive starts, two Super Bowl upsets of the Patriots and two Super Bowl MVP awards for the Giants.  He's No. 2 behind his brother, who's on the shortlist of greatest quarterbacks in NFL history.  I could go on all day about Peyton's 18 brilliant seasons.  I'll limit it to this.  His five MVP awards are a record, he was the first quarterback to win the Super Bowl with two different teams, and his first-ballot Hall of Fame election in 2021 was obvious the second he retired after Super Bowl 50.