With the 2015 MLB All-Star Game madness currently taking place, we feel it’s only fair to shove a greatest of all-time list down your throat.
By Robby Sabo
It is the list of impossible lists. The list that no man usually takes head on for obvious reasons.
We’re talking about the list that is the “Greatest Players in MLB History.”
For other leagues and entities the task is harmless. Coming up with a greatest of all-time list in the NBA, for example, is easy. Those superstars dominated their game in a way that positions don’t matter.
With only 10-men on the court at a single time, positional difference can be overcome.
In the NFL, quarterbacks receive most of the love. Sure positional difference in the league we call “American’s Game” is quite drastic, but a greatest of all-time list has been attacked in relatively comfortable fashions time and again.
Baseball is different – a completely different animal all together.
Not only are positions so drastic, but the eras for which players participated in couldn’t be more topsy-turvy.
There was the “Dead-Ball” era, a time that pitchers dominated and smiled upon taking that rather large mound. We also went through the “Free Agency, Arbitration” era which started in the mid-1970s. And then, of course, we brought on the “Steroid Era.”
[mc4wp_form id=”11262″]Throw in the fact that Major League Baseball has been operating since 1869, we then allow complete and utter madness to ensue while creating a list like this.
With all the discussion surrounding New York Yankees designated hitter Alex Rodriguez getting the snub for the 2015 All-Star Game, and Pete Rose always seeming to pop up in the news, we found this list rather appropriate.
Here are the 50 Greatest Players in MLB history. Let the madness begin:
50-11
11. Alex Rodriguez
12. Lou Gehrig
13. Honus Wagner
14. Mickey Mantle
15. Rogers Hornsby
16. Bob Gibson
17. Pete Rose
18. Greg Maddux
19. Jimmie Foxx
20. Mel Ott
21. Mariano Rivera
22. Christy Matthewson
23. Ken Griffey, Jr.
24. Roger Clemens
25. Rickey Henderson
26. Randy Johnson
27. Johnny Bench
28. Tris Speaker
29. Frank Robinson
30. Lefty Grove
31. Yogi Berra
32. Tom Seaver
33. Grover Cleveland Alexander
34. Warren Spahn
35. Mike Schmidt
36. Pedro Martinez
37. Nap Lajoie
38. Nolan Ryan
39. Eddie Matthews
40. Steve Carlton
41. Bob Feller
42. Roberto Clemente
43. Hank Greenberg
44. Joe Jackson
45. Miguel Cabrera
46. Derek Jeter
47. Ernie Banks
48. Carl Yastrzemski
49. Joe Morgan
50. Albert Pujols
When glancing at the players who did crack the Top 50, only one thought is prevalent: damn it’s tough to crack this list.
Names such as Cal Ripken Jr., Eddie Collins, Brooks Robinson, George Brett, Al Kaline, Rod Carew, Harmon Killebrew and even Jackie Robinson couldn’t squeeze in.
For those who did make it, including Alex Rodriguez at No. 11, their resume speaks for itself (PEDs or not).
Major League Baseball has played under a different set of rules many times since its inception in 1869. The Steroid Era was just another one of those rules.
Now lets get on to the big show, the Top 10:
10. Hank Aaron, RF
- 1954-76, Braves, Brewers
- 1st in RBI (2,297), 2nd in HR (755)
The man many consider the true MLB home run king is this guy, Hank Aaron.
For good reason too, as Barry Bonds’ head was the only thing that got bigger than Mark McGwire’s biceps during the early 2000s.
The main point of contention as it relates to Aaron coming in at the No. 10 spot instead of higher on the list (as most usually peg him), will be directly due to his incredible number of 755 career home runs.
Here, however, he is penalized a bit as a man who compiled these astounding stats over a brilliant 23-year MLB career.
Hammerin Hank never surpassed 47 home runs in a season and only lead the National League in homers just four-times.
Still, the man is a legend and we’re only bringing up these points to justify him as the 10th greatest MLB player of all-time.
9. Joe DiMaggio (CF-Yankees)
- 1936-51, Yankees
- MLB Record 56-Game Hitting Streak
First of all, anybody who plays Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees and is married to Marilyn Monroe needs to be not only considered a hero, but a god.
That’s just what Joe DiMaggio was, a baseball god.
Sure, does his career 361 home runs project him as the ninth-greatest baseball player of all-time? Absolutely not.
When taking into consideration that he fought for our country during World War II and only struck out a mere 369 times, his status elevates to an obscene level.
DiMaggio’s career batting average was .325 over the course of his way-too-short MLB career (13 seasons). The man picked up two batting titles, three MVPs and a phenomenal nine World Series Championships.
8. Barry Bonds (LF-Pirates/Giants)
- 1986-2007, Pirates, Giants
- 1st HR (762), 1st in BB (2,558)
Hatred, confusion and sheer venom. Those are the descriptions many spew when the name Barry Bonds is mentioned.
Although most cursed the man out for bulking up on steroids and turning into the Incredible Hulk on the diamond, they all understood why he did it. The attention that was pouring out to Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa during that farce of a 1998 season was too much for Bonds to bare.
So, he decided to amp up and become the single most dangerous hitter baseball has seen in over a half-century.
During the 2004 season the man was walked an incredible 232 times, 120 of which were of the intentional variety.
The shame of it all was that Bonds didn’t need any performance-enhancing magic. He was already a Hall of Fame bat and glove prior to that madness ensuing.
7. Sandy Koufax (SP-Dodgers)
- 1955-66, Dodgers
- 382 Strikeouts in 1965 most ever by a Lefty
There’s only one sensible word that comes up when discussing Sandy Koufax and his place in MLB history.
That word is longevity.
Koufax only pitched 12-seasons. It was his very brief professional career that forces him to usually be outside the Top 10 when this discussion of the greatest takes place.
Whether his career was short or not, those 12-seasons were the best ever for almost any pitcher throughout history.
Kourfax wasn’t just dominant, he was downright filthy. From 1962 through 1966, Koufax led the league with an ERA that bordered on ridiculous. This includes a 1.73 ERA during his last season in ’66.
He took home three Cy Young Awards during those final five-seasons, one of which was capped off (1965) by a World Series MVP.
Koufax earns this No. 7 spot due to the fact that he was the most dominant pitcher over the span of five-seasons baseball has ever laid eyes on.
6. Stan Musial (1B/OF-Cardinals)
- 1941-63, Cardinals
- 4th in Hits (3,630)
Stan “The Man” Musial was more than just a baseball player for the St. Louis Cardinals. He was the city of St. Louis and embodied everything the Cardinals stood for.
Musial was another ball player who served the United States of America during World War II. He missed the entire 1945 season because of it.
No matter though, as Musial could hit through an ice-storm if he had to.
His career seven NL Batting Titles ranks as one of the highest honors in MLB history. This includes a pretty sweet .376 average during the 1946 season.
Musial was also a three-time NL MVP and three-time World Champion.
5. Walter Johnson (SP-Senators)
- 1907-27, Senators
- 2nd in Wins (417)
Just as Barry Bonds doesn’t get completely penalized for juicing during the Steroid Era, Washington Senators legend Walter Johnson doesn’t get pounded for pitching during the Dead-Ball Era.
As the highest-ranked pitcher on the list, Johnson was a complete nightmare for hitters during his day. Check out his stat-line during the 1913 season: 36-7, 1.14 ERA and 11 shutouts.
Granted, it was a different game during those days, but Johnson still stood out from the crowd.
He led the league in strikeouts an astounding 12-times and still holds the all-time record with 110 complete-game shutouts (a record I don’t see anybody breaking anytime soon).
4. Ted Williams (LF-Red Sox)
- 1939-60, Red Sox
- 7th in BA (.344)
The only crime during the 1940s and 50s as far as MLB was concerned was the fact that Boston Red Sox great Ted Williams didn’t have a better shot at that elusive World Series Championship.
Universally considered the greatest pure left-handed hitter of all-time, Williams ranks seventh on the all-time list with a career .344 batting average.
He won the AL Batting Title six times, led the league 12 times and nine-times respectively in on-base and slugging percentage. Williams still holds the distinction as the last man to hit .400 during a season (.406 in 1942).
Two MVPs and two Triple-Crowns later, Williams is still the best player to ever play for the Red Sox.
What cements his legacy is the notion that such a great contact hitter could still hit for power. His career 521 home runs proves just that.
3. Willie Mays (CF-Giants)
- 1951-73, Giants, Mets
- 5th in HR (660)
Where do you begin with the great Willie Mays?
How about the thought that the man collected 3,283 hits, 660 home runs, 1,908 runs batted in, 338 stolen bases and 12 Gold Gloves? Does that work?
A lot of sluggers find themselves on these lists. The lure of the home run and power usually garners more attention.
While Mays is no different in that regard, he is when it comes to a pure five-tool player. Power, speed, contact, arm and defense was what Mays was all about. He was the quintessential all-around brilliant talent with a career .302 batting average.
Mays was truly the first of his kind – the first prototype for what we saw throughout baseball the last half-century.
2. Ty Cobb (CF-Tigers)
- 1905-28 (Tigers, Athletics)
- 1st in BA (.366)
Widely considered the most despicable human being in MLB history, Ty Cobb sure could play some ball.
When first glancing at the list, one might wonder why Cobb outranked Willie Mays, and it’s a fair thought. After all, most greatest of all-time lists has Mays firmly planted in the No. 2 spot.
Here though, we decided that Cobb barely edged out Mays based on this one real distinction: he didn’t have the tool of the home run at his disposal.
Not only did Cobb not hit home runs (117 in his career), but nobody did. This means that his career 1,933 runs batted in were much tougher to come by than Mays’ 1,908.
In any event, we’re bickering about nonsense. Both guys were absurd players in their day.
For Cobb, his career .366 batting average (1st all-time) and 4,189 hits (2nd all-time) proves his worth without a shadow of a doubt.
The one negative for both Cobb and Mays came in the postseason. Mays only won one World Series Title (1954) and Cobb never captured one. Both guys actually played far worse during those pressurized situations than they normally did during the regular season.
As we normally see with baseball, unlike the NBA for example, even the greatest of all-time need those pieces around them to capture greatness.
Cobb was so respected by baseball that he received more Hall of Fame votes than Babe Ruth during the inaugural inductions.
1. Babe Ruth (RF/P-Yankees)
- 1914-35, Yankees, Red Sox, Braves
- 3rd in HR (714)
One guy who didn’t have an issue capturing World Series Titles was Babe Ruth who claimed seven of them during his magnificent career.
Honestly, did you expect anybody else in the top spot?
What’s marvelous about Ruth is not just his numbers, it’s that he literally saved and changed the game of baseball.
It’s widely chronicled that after the 1919 Black Sox Scandal that Major League Baseball needed something. They needed a hero.
It’s just what they got in Ruth.
Sure, his career 714 home runs are impressive, And of course, his remarkable 60 home runs during the 1927 season were so outrageous that smart people decided to have scientists run tests on the body of The Great Bambino for super-human powers.
What makes this guy so special is two-fold.
One, he was actually one of the better pitchers of all-time as well. With the Boston Red Sox from 1914 through 1919 he won 89 games and pitched to a microscopic 2.19 ERA.
The other was how incredible the difference was between his individual power and the rest of baseball. He literally changed the landscape of baseball from the Dead-Ball era to another thing nobody had ever witnessed before.
It took years for the rest of the majors to catch up.
In 1920 Ruth hit 54 home runs. This was obviously a new MLB record that furthered the previous season record when he hit 27.
This number of 54 was more than any other AL team had combined and only the Phillies in the National League could claim more.
Let’s not forget the man also hit .342 for his career and still holds the MLB record in slugging percentage (.690) and on-base plus slugging percentage (1.164).