This MLB puzzle ran on Oct 13, 2026. The task was to connect Frank White to Ryan Dempster with a chain of real players. The objective: “Your chain must include a player born in Germany.” Par was 4 links. A search of the full player pool found a shortest chain of 3 links.
Frank White (2B) played in the MLB from 1973 to 1990. A one-team career, spent with the Royals (1973 to 1990). No college is on record for this player. As the Start of the chain, a household name like this gives you a lot of teammates to branch from, which makes it a friendly place to begin.
Ryan Dempster (SP) played in the MLB from 1998 to 2013. Career stops: the Marlins (1998 to 2002), the Reds (2002 to 2003), the Cubs (2004 to 2012), the Rangers (2012), and the Red Sox (2013). As the Finish of the chain, a household name like this gives you a lot of teammates to branch from, which makes it a friendly place to begin.
Frank White and Ryan Dempster do not share a team or a college, so there is no direct link. You need at least one connector in between, and the objective decides which ones are allowed to count.
This was a birthplace objective. At least one player in the chain has to have been born in the named country. Of the 11,807 players in the pool, 20 satisfy it. The best known are Max Kepler (OF, 2015 to 2026), Edwin Jackson (SP, 2003 to 2019), Glenn Hubbard (2B, 1978 to 1989), Craig Lefferts (RP, 1983 to 1994), Brendan Donovan (3B, 2022 to 2026), and Mike Blowers (3B, 1989 to 1999).
0 of those players share a team or college with Frank White, and 6 share one with Ryan Dempster. With one side that thin, the route has to be built outward from the other end.
One shortest chain found by searching the full player pool, preferring the best known names at every step:
Many other chains work. Scoring rewards lower-profile connectors, so the best-known route is rarely the highest scoring one.
Want more? Browse the full MLB puzzle archive, read the strategy guides, or see how scoring works on How to Play.