When it's Player's Weekend and the guys across MLB get to choose nicknames to be placed on the backs of their jerseys, Scooter Gennet plays it safe and goes by "Ryan." After all, that's his real name.
That's right, Scooter is just a nickname for the Giants' recently acquired second baseman -- and luckily for you, the backstory of how he got it is readily available. It all started with him breaking the law back when he was a kid in Lebanon, Ohio.
"I was a big fan of 'Muppet Babies' and 'The Muppets,' and Scooter was my favorite character," he told the Cincinnati Enquirer in June 2017. "I was just that really annoying, defiant kid and I was in the car one day with my mom and I graduated from the car seat, so I was sitting in the back seat and she'd put my seatbelt on. She'd start driving and I'd click it off and unclick it. She'd have to stop the car, get out, come around and put it back on. I'd wait until she'd start driving again and unclick it.
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"Then, basically, she was over it and drove into the police station. All I remember -- I don't remember any of that, I just remember a badge. And I was probably four or five, and that's probably my earliest memory as a kid. I just remember a badge and being scared. I guess the police officer asked me what my name was and I just made up 'Scooter Gennett' and my mom had no idea. By her face, he knew it wasn't my real name.
"So he's like, 'Hey buddy, what's your real name,'" Gennett continued. "I said, 'Scooter.' I didn't answer to Ryan, my given name, for a year-and-a-half because I thought I'd get in trouble or get arrested. So I came up with Scooter. I came up with an alias at a really young age. You know some kids have imaginary friends and stuff. I had an alias. An alter-ego type deal. It just kind of stuck."
He went on to tell The Enquirer he introduces himself as "Ryan" for the most part, since he usually gets flooded with questions as to why his name is "Scooter."
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And as for the officer that almost arrested him, but not really, Gennett was curious to know if the guy with the badge would even remember such a story. And while we're still not sure, the Lebanon Police Department let him off, coincidentally after Gennett made history by becoming the first Cincinnati Red to hit four home runs in a game.
It's nice to know he comes to San Francisco possessing a Reds' record ... and not a criminal one.