Rex Rundgren and Randy Rundgren were baseball playing anomalies. They’re the sons of a famous personality who just missed Hall of Fame induction recently. But, their father never played baseball. In fact, Rex and Randy Rundgren may be the only “legacy” ballplayers in history to have a rock star as a parent.

If you’re a fan of classic rock and pop music, Rex and Randy’s last name will certainly look familiar. They’re both the sons of Todd Rundgren, the multi-instrumentalist/producer/recording artist/singer/songwriter who was a 2019 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nominee and just narrowly missed the induction cut.

The baseball career of Rex Rundgren, in particular, fascinates me for one reason: I had drinks with his father shortly after his half-sister, actress Liv Tyler was born, and just before Rex was born.

At that meeting, I struggled with divulging to Todd a juicy bit of gossip I got from another rock star a couple years before about the production job he did on his band’s album.

The Tortured Artist Effect

Todd has admitted to never being a fan of baseball until Rex and his younger brother made it their careers; it’s interesting, now, to discover that both have become ardent fans of their father’s music.

Todd Rundgren, along with being an accomplished hitmaker himself (“Hello It’s Me,” “Bang the Drum All Day,” “I Saw the Light”), has produced albums by such varied artists as Meat Loaf, Hall & Oates, XTC, and The New York Dolls (more on them later).

Rex Gregory Rundgren, the first ballplaying Rundgren, was born in New York City on November 20, 1980, eight months before MTV was born with the playing of the music video for The Buggles’ “Video Killed the Radio Star on August 1, 1981.

In fact, Todd Rundgren’s “Time Heals” (recorded around the time of Rex’s birth, and featuring Todd on all instruments) was the eighth video ever aired on MTV, playing on the new cable network within its very first hour.

It’s Complicated

Making the rounds of the gossip columns more than three years before Rex’s birth was the emergence of his half-sister, actress Liv Tyler (Lord of the Rings), originally dubbed Liv Rundgren.

From 1972 to 1979, model/singer Bebe Buell lived with Todd. In 1976, she became unexpectedly pregnant from a brief relationship she had with Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler. Buell gave birth on July 1, 1977, naming her daughter Liv Rundgren, and claiming that Todd Rundgren was the biological father.

By that point, Rundgren and Buell had ended their relationship, but Todd nevertheless signed the birth certificate and acted as a father figure to Liv, including paying for her education.

“Todd Rundgren was my father,” explained Liv, in a 2011 interview with the UK’s Wonderland Magazine. “Todd basically decided when I was born that I needed a father, so he signed my birth certificate. He knew that there was a chance that I might not be his, but…Todd was my father. He lived in Woodstock. I’m so grateful to him, I have so much love for him.”

Rundgren then had a long-term relationship with the red-haired model Karen Darvin (ex-girlfriend of Bruce Springsteen in the mid-70s), with whom he had two sons, Rex and the other ballplaying Rundgren, Randy, who was born in 1985.

Rex and Randy later gained another half-brother: In 1998, Todd married Michele Gray, who had been a dancer with The Tubes, for whom Todd produced the Love Bomb album in 1985. Together, they have a son, Rebop Rundgren.

Into the Doll House

Todd Rundgren produced the New York Dolls’ self-titled 1973 debut LP, and despite reported tales of conflicts during the recording sessions, lead singer David Johansen and guitarist Sylvain Sylvain have been quoted as saying Rundgren successfully captured how the band sounded live.

In September 1973, I drove from my University of North Texas dorm room in Denton to Houston to see the Dolls, widely acclaimed as being the influential American punk rock bridge between Detroit’s Iggy Pop and the Stooges and fellow New Yorkers The Ramones, both 21st century Rock Hall inductees.

Their weekend stint was at the legendary downtown venue, Liberty Hall, demolished shortly after its 1978 closing to allow for added parking space for the home of the Houston Rockets, the Toyota Center.

It was backstage after Friday’s show that Sylvain asked me if I could recommend a Saturday outing for the band. I suggested a personal tour of my old high school hangout, the Galleria, a suburban three-story shopping mall with an ice skating rink at its center.

Suburbia was altered forever when the lads showed up in full Dolls stage regalia. Ice skating would have been impossible in stacked-heel boots, but it didn’t stop me from offering.

The weekend following their Houston gig, the Dolls appeared at Gertie’s Club in Dallas, and so did I, curiosity in tow. Having gained their trust in Houston, I decided to probe a little bit and asked for Sylvain’s opinion on Todd’s production of their album. Without missing a beat, Syl replied, “My grandmother could’ve done a better job!”

It was about five years later, sometime around 1978, maybe two years before Rex was born, that I ran into Todd after his Houston show. Perhaps following a tip, I found him post-concert, at the bar in Houston’s downtown Whitehall Hotel.

We chatted briefly over drinks, and as I was recalling Sylvain’s diss about Todd’s production, it was all I could do to bite my tongue to avoid spilling those beans.

Sylvain, now 68, should appreciate my restraint. Todd, now 70, should wonder where that restraint went.

Now to the Action on the Field

Todd, a resident of Hawaii when not on the road, had his son Rex attend Honolulu’s Mid-Pacific Institute after being raised in Princeville on the northern coast of Kauai. The right-handed, 6’2″, 170-pounder played shortstop for the Mid-Pacific Owls, later adding second base and left field to his resume.

Rex was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 24th round of the 1999 MLB Draft but decided to attend Sacramento City College in northern California.

The Other Ball-Playing Rundgren

Randy Rundgren followed Rex’s footsteps in baseball, as well, attending Mid-Pacific Institute. Randy was drafted by the Kansas City Royals in the 46th round of the 2004 MLB June Amateur Draft.

“I would have liked to have signed, but it was the 46th round, and it would have been a big transition from high school,” Rundgren told The LaCrosse Tribune in 2008. “I knew I wasn’t ready.”

Like Rex, Randy also attended Sacramento City College and broke into the starting lineup in the spring of 2007. Soon thereafter, he signed with the college summer Northwoods League’s LaCrosse Loggers.

Known as a player with “limited offensive skills,” Randy nonetheless, earned the reputation as a well above-average defender.

Andy McKay, Randy’s coach at both SCC and the Loggers, happily sang Rundgren’s praises: “His arm is a tick below average and I’d bet anybody he’s the slowest player in the Northwoods League.

“But, he’s a special player because he does everything fundamentally perfect. If the other guys could take lessons from him, it’s that he does it right every single time and with limited physical ability. He’s been a great player for us.”

During one nine-game span in early June 2008, Rundgren ranked first in the Northwoods League among shortstops in total chances (52) and double plays (eight), was tied for first in assists (32) and tied for second in putouts (16) with a .923 fielding percentage.

Rex Redux

After a couple years at Sacramento City College, Rex was drafted by the then-Florida Marlins in the 11th round of the 2001 MLB Draft.

He spent seven years toiling in the Marlins’ system, progressing apace to the team’s Double-A and AAA affiliates, before he was released by Florida following 2008’s Spring Training.

The Los Angeles Dodgers signed him soon after and he spent part of the 2008 season at their Pacific Coast League Las Vegas team, turning in a .185 average in 115 plate appearances. He was released by the Dodgers in August and was signed to a minor league free agent contract by the Colorado Rockies, and invited to Spring Training for the 2009 season.

Rex’s combined AA batting average over five years and over 1,600 plate appearances was .232, with 41 doubles, eight triples, four homers, and a .566 OPS. His nearly two seasons in AAA with 142 plate appearances yielded a .187 BA and a .444 OPS. In his combined nine minor league seasons, Rex tallied only 168 walks to 565 strikeouts.

Three years in independent ball (2010-2012) in Maui, Illinois, New Jersey, and Canada wrapped up Rex’s baseball career after a mid-season injury forced him to miss the last half of his 2012 season with the Somerset (NJ) Patriots.

Todd gave a recent update on his son, Rex to AV Club.com: “[Rex] is trying to break into the music business—not as a player but as a support person of some kind. He wants to possibly do some engineering, he’s interested in music publishing and stuff like that—so, ironically, he’s moving away from baseball and into music.”

“They say we all turn into our parents one day, like that’s a bad thing. I’m proud to be a mix of the both of them.”–Rex Rundgren