By standards of the museum, all players honored in the baseball Hall of Fame are equal. Once a man’s in, he’s in and all players get the same plaque. There is no delineation between the Mickey Mantles and Tommy McCarthys of Cooperstown. Should this be?
Over the past month, I’ve run a project at this website challenging people to determine the best of the best. Between June 18 and the morning of July 15, 235 people submitted countable ballots to rank a 50-player Inner Circle for the Hall of Fame. Anyone was eligible to vote, the only requirements being that people vote for exactly 50 players. To do the players who made the Inner Circle justice, I recruited an All Star lineup of writers.
The results of our handiwork follow momentarily. On a side note, this project is dedicated to two people: my half-brother Richard who died in 2007 and would’ve turned 40 today; and former Sports Illustrated editor and prolific baseball writer Robert Creamer who died Wednesday at 90. Creamer gave an incredible interview to this site over the winter that’s worth a read after this.
Anyhow, here’s how the Hall of Fame Inner Circle came out:
1. Willie Mays, 234 votes (out of 235), written by Rob Neyer of SB Nation
How great was Willie Mays?
He was so great that unless you saw Willie Mays during his prime, you’ve never seen anyone so great.
Granted, his prime lasted a dozen-odd years. But I’ve been watching baseball for nearly forty years, and I didn’t see Willie Mays in his prime. Which means all I’ve got are the memories of those who did see him play before 1965 or ’66 … Well, those memories and an awful lot of statistics.
Statistics, of course, can tell us only so much. Which in this case is actually quite a lot.
At some point it became, perhaps thanks to Bill James, de rigeur to allow that while Willie Mays probably enjoyed the greatest career since Babe Ruth, at his best he wasn’t quite the equal of Mickey Mantle at his best.
I no longer believe that’s true. Mantle drew more walks than Mays. But Mays had Mantle’s power, and Mays was far more valuable on the basepaths and in center field than Mantle. If you look at an overarching measure like Wins Above Replacement, Mays and Mantle’s best seasons were roughly equivalent.
Except Mays had more of those seasons. And he had them in the better league.
Mickey might have been Willie’s equal, if he’d avoided all the injuries or taken better care of himself. But he didn’t, on either account. Both players reached the majors in 1951, at exceptionally tender ages. Twenty years later, Willie led the National League in on-base percentage and Mickey had been retired for three years.
It’s not abundantly clear that Willie Mays is the greatest baseball player who’s ever lived. But if there’s ever been a baseball player who’s done more things brilliantly, nobody has seen him.
2. Babe Ruth 233 votes, written by me
Upon Babe Ruth’s death in 1948, his friend, longtime newspaper columnist Grantland Rice wrote, “No game will ever see his like, his equal again. He was one in many, many lifetimes. One all alone.”
I rate the best of the best in sports by how far above their peers they operate. The term “Inner Circle” was, for all intents and purposes, invented for men like Babe Ruth. He may not have been the greatest player in baseball history (I reserve that honor for Willie Mays and rate Ruth second, personally) but the Bambino was probably the closest thing to a God his sport’s ever known. There were the 714 home runs, his annual totals higher than many teams some years. There was the .342 lifetime batting average, the eight seasons he had at least 10 WAR, the 11 years he had an OPS+ above 200; and the list of statistical accolades of course goes on, way on. And along with all the eye-popping numbers that were, well, Ruthian, there was an out-sized personality to match.
I generally favor a larger, more inclusive Hall of Fame for the sake of history, but by that same token, I recognize Cooperstown could lose half its plaques and not be hugely worse off. That doesn’t go for players like Babe Ruth. The Hall of Fame wouldn’t be the Hall of Fame without him. He could commandeer his own wing, and it might still not do him justice.
3. Lou Gehrig, 232 votes, written by Frank Graham Jr., author of A Farewell to Heroes
Lou Gehrig’s name has escaped the abyss of oblivion and sailed on into our own time.
Sure, Gehrig is one of those unfortunates who bequeathed us a popular nametag for a dreaded disease. But a combination of power, consistency, clutch hitting, and genuine modesty distinguishes him from most of his fellows among the pre-World War II “immortals.”
Gehrig’s reputation survives the enormous shadow cast by his teammate, Babe Ruth. He still holds the American League season record of 184 RBI’s in 1931—- this despite often filling the cleanup spot in the Yankees’ lineup behind the Babe, who regularly cleared the bases himself with towering home runs and left not a scrap for Gehrig to send home. His career totals, though he was cut down near his peak by a fatal illness, remain impressive: A .340 batting average and 494 homers, while his 1995 RBI’s place him fourth behind Hank Aaron, Ruth, and Barry Bonds.
Gehrig is always there when talk about Hall of Famers crops up among
fans, and the recent convincing vote for him as the first baseman for this website’s all-time dream team is a case in point. He remains one of the elite.
4. Hank Aaron, 230 votes, written by Joe Lucia of The Outside Corner
The argument against Hank Aaron being one of the all-time greatest players is one of “longevity,” meaning that Aaron didn’t have a high peak, but he instead compiled stats. It’s true he played a lot of games, 3,298, third-most all-time. But you can’t argue with his achievements. He’s the all-time leader in RBI, second in homers, fourth in runs, and fourth in hits. Aaron is one of four players with both 3000 hits and 500 homers, joining Willie Mays, Eddie Murray and Rafael Palmeiro. But of those three players, only Mays is in the top ten all-time in either category, ranking fourth all-time in homers. Aaron is top five in both categories. Call him a compiler all you want, and while it’s true, Aaron is pretty much the best compiler in baseball history.
5. Mickey Mantle, 228 votes, written by Phil Pepe who co-authored My Favorite Summer, 1956 with Mantle
There was the blazing sprinter’s speed, the L’il Abner physique that generated the superhuman power to produce prodigious home runs from both sides of the plate, the alliterative, catchy, easy-to-remember name (delete the “MIC” from Mickey and the “TLE” from Mantle and what do you have?)
There was the boyish grin that caused his nose to crinkle, the dashing good looks of a blond god, the shy country boy persona, the endearing, innocent clubhouse pranks, and the mischievous ribald sense of humor.
All of it combined to create an “Inner Circle” baseball player.
Mickey Mantle was revered by teammates, (he was friendly and convivial unlike his Yankees’ superstar centerfield predecessor Joe DiMaggio who was aloof and distant), admired by fans (sportscaster Bob Costas carries Mantle’s baseball card in his wallet and comic Billy Crystal admits as a boy he emulated Mantle’s limp and slump-shouldered gait), and respected by opponents, dozens of whom grew up idolizing him.
As a baseball writer I covered Mantle and later assisted him in the writing of his best-selling book, “My Favorite Summer 1956.” I found him to be humble, profane, charming, rude, considerate, crude and generous. During a working brunch I watched him pay the check of an elderly gentleman, a stranger seated at the next table who was unable to pay for his meal.
More than a half century of covering baseball I have learned that home runs and a lofty batting average alone do not make an Inner Circle Player. Rather it’s a mystique, a presence, a perception. It’s a Babe Ruth, a Stan Musial, a Willie Mays, a Mickey Mantle.
6-Tie. Stan Musial, 227 votes, written by Tara Wellman of AerysSports.com
Legendary.
That’s truthfully the only way to describe a career like that of Stan “The Man” Musial. Twenty-two years in baseball, all while wearing the ever-recognizable “Birds on the bat,” represents both colossal talent and immense loyalty, the likes of which are not often seen in the game of baseball today.
Musial made his debut with the St. Louis Cardinals on September 17, 1941, and in 1943 won his first “Most Valuable Player” award after posting a .357 average with 220 hits, 48 doubles, 20 triples and 13 home runs. He would win the award again in 1946 and 1948.
On his way to claiming nearly every offensive statistic record in St. Louis history, Musial was a part of three World Series’ teams (1942-44, 1946). His career franchise records include batting average (.331), hits (3,630), RBI (1,959), extra base hits (1,377), and total plate appearances (12,712) … to name a few.
Musial played his final game on September 29, 1963, and was induced into the Hall of Fame on July 28, 1969. In his induction speech, “The Man” said this:
“…of all the thrills I really experienced I still say that the greatest thrill to me was just putting on the uniform, reaching the top of your profession, and becoming a big league ball player … It’s a pleasure now to be a part of this great game and I hope that I gave baseball as much as it gave to me.”
Indeed you did, Mr. Musial. Indeed you did.
6-Tie. Ty Cobb, 227 votes, written by Josh Worn, columnist for the Detroit Free Press and blogger at Walkoff Woodward
Ty Cobb has to be the very first name that comes to mind when you look for an example of a player who was inducted into the Hall of Fame by numbers alone. If he had played in any era I wonder if he would have managed to play long enough to post such historic numbers.
You see, Cobb was not only a racist, but in 1912 he beat a man who had no hands for jeering him at a game against the New York Highlanders. He was only suspended 10 games. Such a horrific act would not have been tolerated had he played in a more popular time. I feel obligated to mention that if he had played in the era of beat writers, I wonder how many would actually vote him in. He wasn’t exactly the nicest guy to talk to.
However, no one can deny his numbers: a .366/.433/.512 line with 4189 hits and 2246 runs in over 24 major league seasons. The Georgia Peach is without a doubt an Inner Circle Hall of Famer, because without such gaudy talent on the baseball diamond, Ty Cobb left much to be desired.
8-Tie. Honus Wagner, 226 votes, written by Julian Levine of Giants Nirvana
When you talk about the greatest all-around players in baseball history, Honus Wagner immediately comes to mind. Wagner, like so few others, could do it all– and could do it all well. Upon breaking into the majors with the Louisville Colonels in 1897, he immediately established himself as a premier hitter, posting a 125 OPS+ through his first 242 career at-bats. By 1900, his first season with the Pirates, the then-26-year-old shortstop really came into his own, mashing to the tune of a .381/.434/.573 slash line with a league-best 176 OPS+.
And that was essentially the pace that Wagner would maintain for the next decade, as he went on to post a 175 OPS+ in 1256 games from 1901 to 1909. During his ten-year prime which coincided with the first decade of the 1900s, Wagner racked up 1847 hits, 487 steals, a .417 on-base percentage and 51 homers — outstanding totals in the context of the pre-live ball era. And he did this all while playing great defense at one of the most demanding positions on the baseball diamond.
8-Tie. Ted Williams, 226 votes, written by Chip Buck of Fire Brand of the American League
What can we say about Ted Williams that hasn’t already been said? We all know his biggest claim to fame: he was the last player to ever hit .400 in a season. While his .406 mark is certainly an unbelievable feat, the story (one my grandfather shared with me repeatedly) of how he finished the 1941 season is perhaps the greatest example of the kind of person the Splendid Splinter was not just on the field, but off of it as well.
Entering the final day of the season, the Red Sox were scheduled for a double header against the Philadelphia Athletics. Prior to the start of that day’s twin bill, Williams was hitting .3996, which of course would be rounded up to .400. Understanding the rarity of such a feat, Red Sox manager Joe Cronin planned to sit Williams in order to protect his batting average. Upon seeing his omission from the lineup cards, Williams lobbied to get himself into the lineup. Although he understood Cronin’s rationale, he saw it differently. If he was going to hit .400, he wanted to do it with integrity. He didn’t want it be because his average was rounded up. He played both games of the double header, and finished up 6-for-8 with a double, home run, and two RBIs; thus giving him a .406 batting average on the season.
Above all else, integrity symbolizes Williams’s legacy. He lost nearly five full seasons to fighting in foreign wars, robbing him of much of his prime, and never complained once about taking time away from baseball to fight on behalf of his country. He wasn’t just a baseball great, he was an American hero.
Teddy Ballgame cemented himself as one of the all-time greats by producing a career .344/.482/.634 line with 521 home runs, 525 doubles, 2021 walks, 1839 RBIs, and 139.8 fWAR. One can only imagine his career totals had he not lost nearly five full seasons due to global conflict.
10. Cy Young, 225 votes, written by Mark Armour, author of Joe Cronin and editor of the SABR Baseball Biography Project
The holder of numerous pitching records that will not be broken any time soon, Denton True “Cy” Young is on the short list of the greatest pitchers who ever lived. He first starred in the high-scoring National League of the 1890s, where he won 286 games in 11 years (1890-1900) for the Cleveland Spiders and St. Louis Cardinals. Just when it appeared he might be slowing down, the 34-year-old joined the Boston club of the upstart American League in 1901, and won 192 games in eight years. After three more seasons, he finally retired with 511 wins, 815 starts, 749 complete games, and 7356 innings pitched, totals that read like misprints today.
At a time of characters and hooligans, Young was a quiet man known for his clean and temperate living. He was known for a great curveball a terrific fastball, one that led to his nickname of Cyclone, shortened to Cy. Honus Wagner, for one, thought he was faster than Walter Johnson. Besides his wonderful accomplishments, Young made his greatest impact on baseball history with his decision to jump to the upstart American League in 1901. The AL spent the winter aggressively trying to lure stars from the NL, it was the defections of Napolean Lajoie and Young that signaled the league might be for real. Within a few short years, the leagues had comparable talent. Young dominated the league right away, starred for the American in the first modern World Series in 1903, and in 1904 threw the first major league perfect game since the advent of the current pitching distance.
11. Joe DiMaggio, 223 votes, written by Peter J. Nash of Hauls of Shame
Joe DiMaggio is one of the no-brainers amongst the Inner-Cicle’s top fifty players of all-time. The Yankee Clipper never reached the 3,000 hit mark like Derek Jeter, but then again, Jeter didn’t have to serve his country and miss three seasons in his prime.
The Yankee Clipper’s sheer greatness is sometimes overshadowed by the famous 56-game hit streak in the summer of 1941, but his lifetime batting average of .325 and an OBP of .398 are a testament to his mastery at the bat.
Roaming center field with the monuments at old, old Yankee Stadium DiMaggio’s defensive skills were unmatched with speed and accuracy his trademarks.
DiMaggio was voted the “Greatest Living Player” in 1969 while Willie Mays was still an active player.
DiMaggio was the Say-Hey Kid’s idol. What more can you say?
(….and no one could carry $600k in a garbage bag through an earthquake like Joe D. either.)
12-Tie. Jimmie Foxx, 221 votes, written by Michael Clair of Old Time Family Baseball
Growing up, I knew the names of Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, and Willie Mays, but the first time I ever heard of Jimmie Foxx, I was eight years old and had finally won a game of Home Run Derby on Sega Genesis. Using the crude avatar of Foxx, I was able to defeat the cruel and unfeeling AI despite my stubby fingers and lack of hand-eye coordination. Which is the truest test for anyone’s Hall of Fame merits. How, with a nickname as cool as “The Beast,” coming long before “Beast Mode” or the X-Men character, could Foxx’s Q Score be so low?
Jimmie Foxx ended his career with with 534 home runs and a .325/.428/.609 line, becoming the youngest player to hit 500 HR before Alex Rodriguez came along and beat him by a measly 330 days. Foxx won three MVP awards, lead the league in home runs four times (topping 50 twice), RBI three times, average and walks twice, and slugging five times. As if that wasn’t enough, he started his career as a catcher and ended it as a pitcher, throwing 22.2 innings with a 1.59 ERA for Philadelphia in 1945. To put that into modern perspective, that would be like Albert Pujols finishing his career on the hill and doing a damn fine job.
Were it not for injuries and alcohol, The Beast with “muscles in his hair” would have put up even more spectacular numbers. But even as they stand, and as verified by an eight-year-old playing video games, Jimmie Foxx is absolutely deserving of membership in baseball’s pantheon.
12-Tie. Walter Johnson, 221 votes, written by David Pinto of Baseball Musings
All time great pitchers should possess a number of traits: power, control, and durability. Walter Johnson brought all three to the table and dominated an era of putting the ball in play.
Johnson struck out 3,509 batters during his career, a rate of 5.3 per nine innings. That doesn’t seem like much today, but from 1907 to 1927, the major league average stood at 3.4 per nine innings. The two fewer balls in play per nine innings not only made hits less likely, but the poor fielding of the day would hurt the Big Train less as well.
Batters saw few free passes from Walter especially early in his career. For his first 14 season, Walter averaged 1.8 BB per nine innings. He did lose some control late in his career, winding up walking 2.1 batter per nine innings an outstanding number for any era. Johnson also kept the ball in the park. While home runs rates were low during most of Walter’s career, three times he pitched over 250 innings without allowing a home run. Nineteen sixteen was one of those seasons, Johnson pitching 369 2/3 innings with no homers.
As for durability, Johnson topped 300 innings nine years in a row and pitched nearly 6000 innings during his career. The ability to stay on the mound gave him a career strikeout record that stood until the era of Nolan Ryan and Tom Seaver. The eight men who passed Johnson in total Ks all saw their careers start after 1960.
Put that all together and there stands a pitcher with 417 wins, a .599 winning percentage, a 2.17 ERA and a 147 ERA+. Four times Johnson posted an ERA+ over 200, and twice was voted MVP. At age 36, with his skills fading, Johnson went 23-7 to lead Washington to the only World Series championship in the city’s history. In every aspect, he deserved his first class Hall of Fame selection.
14. Rogers Hornsby, 218 votes, written by Nick Diunte of Examiner.com
Rogers Hornsby’s legacy as a player is unquestioned. Offensively, he shattered that stereotype of the “good-field, no-hit” second baseman, dominating the entire decade of the 1920′s, winning the Triple Crown twice. He .358 career batting average is ranked second all-time, placing him only behind Ty Cobb. He batted over .400 three times, and holds the distinction of being the only player ever to hit more than 40 homers while batting over .400 in a season. At the time of his retirement, he had the home run record for the National League. Hornsby had difficulty translating his playing success to his managerial career, having strained relations with most of his players, showing difficulty understanding why the game didn’t come as easily to others as it did to him.
15-Tie. Christy Mathewson, 214 votes, written by Rory Paap of Bay City Ball
If you hear anyone say Matty in reference to the Giants today, you probably think of Matt Cain. 100 years ago, though, that honor fell to Hall of Fame right-hander Christy Mathewson. And before Michael Jordan perfected the fadeaway, it’s what they called Mathewson’s signature pitch; we just call it a screwball now.
Mathewson did it all. Though not at quite the rate they tend to at present, he missed a ton of bats in his day while, with his stellar control, not giving up many base on balls. That led to a still-record in the Senior Circuit of 373 wins. He also managed two no-hitters, two pitching Triple Crowns. And he managed it all without pitching Sunday, a day he reserved for the Lord.
If postseason is your thing, Matty was nearly unhittable in the 1905 World Series. He threw three shutouts in six days in that series, walking one and whiffing 18, propelling the New York Giants to their third World Championship.
If peak is your thing, Christy had that in spades too. In fact, he may have had one of the most unbelievable pitching peaks in history. From 1901 to 1913 Mathewson accumulated a bWAR of 92.8.
Sadly, Matty didn’t make it to his induction into Cooperstown’s five-man inaugural class in 1936, passing from tuberculosis in ’25 at the age of 45.
15-Tie. Tom Seaver, 214 votes, written by Dan Epstein, author of Big Hair and Plastic Grass and the related blog, columnist for Rolling Stone
It was all about the knee. For 20 major league seasons, pitch after pitch, Tom Seaver dragged that right knee of his across the front of the mound with a form that was as consistent as his results. The dirtier the knee, the adage went, the better Tom was throwing. And in his prime — roughly 1968 through 1978 — Seaver’s knee, like his stuff, was positively filthy. During that period, “Tom Terrific” was terrific indeed, notching five 20+ win seasons, leading the NL in ERA and WHIP three times, and taking home three Cy Youngs. He logged nine straight 200+ strikeout seasons (leading the NL five times), and would made it eleven straight if he hadn’t whiffed “only” 196 hitters in 1977.
Seaver had some solid later years with the Reds and White Sox, but it was with the Mets that he firmly established his greatness, lifting a once-pathetic team onto his shoulders and carrying them to respectability, and a World Series championship to boot. He went 198-124 over 11½ seasons with the Mets, a W-L record that would be even more impressive had the Mets been able to put some decent bats in their lineup. He was so firmly established as the face of the franchise that many New Yorkers of a certain age can still tell you where they were when the news hit about his “midnight massacre” trade to Cincinnati. It happened about a month before the NYC blackout; and for many young Mets fans at the time, it was even more memorably traumatic.
17-Tie. Frank Robinson, 213 votes, written by Dan Szymborski of ESPN.com and Baseball Think Factory
What makes Frank Robinson an inner-circle Hall of Famer? Robby’s numbers don’t pop out at you the way you sometimes see with other greats – he simply achieved such a consistent level of excellent that he almost made awesomness seem run-of-the-mill. He fell short of obvious “great” milestone, like 3,000 hits and 600 homers, and his Triple Crown year was the only time he led the league in any one of the Triple Crown categories. Robinson was a jack-of-all-trades that just happened to master most of them and he put up a superstar season nearly every year for two decades, only occasionally slipping to the level of an ordinary star. Going by a more sabermetric stat, baseball-reference’s wins above replacement, Robinson ranks 20th among position players, 6th among those that have played in the last 40 years. It takes a darn good player to make acquiring a solid pitcher like Milt Pappas look like a bad idea, but Frank Robinson managed to do that. An inner-circle without Frank Robinson is a very small one.
17-Tie. Johnny Bench, 213 votes, written by Jonathan Wagner
After the 1976 World Series, Cincinnati manager Sparky Anderson was asked to compare Yankees catcher Thurman Munson to his own catcher, the newly crowned World Series MVP. Anderson replied, “You don’t compare anyone to Johnny Bench. You don’t want to embarrass anybody”.
What is there left to say?
He has more Offensive bWAR than Mark McGwire, Raffy Palmeiro and Willie Stargell. He has more Defensive bWAR than Mike Schmidt, Luke Appling and Willie Mays. And he did it while spending 13 years as a full time catcher (in Cincinnati, in summer.)
Other things Bench achieved:
Multiple Rings and MVPs ( Rookie of the Year, too )
Double-Digit All-Star appearances and Gold Gloves
First Ballot HOF Inductee
Exceptional Durability in his prime (averaged over 140 games caught for his first 10 seasons)
Spent his whole career in one town and was one of the leaders of (arguably) the greatest team in Baseball History, The Big Red Machine
Namesake for the annual honor for the best young catcher in the nation, the Johnny Bench Award
He’s the first or second name mentioned in any and all Best Catcher discussions. The voters on this very site elected him Catcher for the BPP All-Time Dream Project this past spring, giving him more votes than the rest of the top 5 combined.
It is almost easier to try to list reasons that Johnny Bench is not one of the 50 best players ever because he fills out the resume so completely. Take Mike Piazza’s power and patience, Yogi Berra’s durability and leadership and Ivan Rodriguez’s mobility and rifle arm, and well… you’ve got Johnny Bench.
19. Rickey Henderson, 211 votes, written by David Wiers of Bullpen Banter
What makes a great player rank among the truly greatest players? If the player in question happens to be Rickey Henderson, then in his own words he is “the greatest of all time.” Rickey was a unique player for a whole host of reasons. From batting right-handed despite throwing left-handed, to his numerous pithy quotes and stories, or of course his fantastic batting numbers, he was always one to garner attention.
He was the best leadoff hitter of all time, with a lifetime on-base percentage of .401. His 1,406 stolen bases are 400 more than second place Lou Brock. On 81 separate occasions he started the scoring single handedly, hitting a home run to lead off his team. Those 81 leadoff home runs are a MLB record. To further illustrate him as one of the game’s inner-circle Hall of Famers, another record he holds is most runs scored in a career. You can’t win if you don’t score, and Rickey has scored more runs than anyone in the history of the game. Rickey has more unintentional walks than Barry Bonds, more doubles than Babe Ruth and hit more home runs than Brooks Robinson.
For 24 seasons Rickey was a part of the game, and now he is a first ballot Hall of Famer. To quote the great Bill James: “If you could split him in two, you’d have two Hall of Famers.” I couldn’t have said it better myself. By any metric, new school or old, Rickey ranks among the greatest to ever play the game.
20. Mike Schmidt, 209 votes, written by Cliff Corcoran of SI.com
Mike Schmidt was the greatest third baseman in major league history. Period. He was also arguably the best player in baseball in over the course of his career, which lasted from 1972 to 1989. Indeed, over the 30-year span from 1965 to 1995, he leads all players, pitchers included, in Baseball-Reference’s Wins Above Replacement (bWAR). From 1974 to 1987, the 14 seasons in which Schmidt qualified for the batting title, he hit .274/.387/.546 while averaging 36 home runs, 104 RBIs, 99 runs scored, and 98 walks per season and led the NL in homers eight times and the majors six times. He not only won ten gold gloves during that span, but earned them, seven times leading NL third basemen in Total Zone Runs saved.
Before he turned 32, he stole 141 bases (averaging 17 a season from 1974 to 1981) at a 69 percent success rate (not great, but significant for a power hitter in that era). He finished in the top three in the NL in bWAR every year from 1974 to 1981, and from 1980 to 1986, his age-30 to -36 seasons, he led his league in OPS+ six times in seven seasons (posting a 161 mark over the entire seven-year span) and won three Most Valuable Player awards. When he retired in 1989, the 12-time All-Star was seventh all-time in both home runs (548) and intentional walks (201), and in the nearly quarter century since, no one has come close to challenging his largely uncontested place as the game’s greatest third baseman.
21. Bob Gibson, 207 votes, written by Christine Coleman of AerysSports.com
In 1968’s “Year of the Pitcher,” no other hurler dominated like Bob Gibson of the St. Louis Cardinals. His numbers are still familiar 44 years later: 1.12 ERA. Thirteen shutouts. Seventeen strikeouts in Game One of the World Series. His accolades as Most Valuable Player and Cy Young Award winner are familiar too, as well as the fact Major League Baseball lowered the pitcher’s mound in 1969.
And while 1968 was Gibson’s best season, it was just one of many very successful ones. He was the pitching cornerstone of the Cardinals 1960s World Championship teams. During the team’s epic 1964 stretch run alone, where they came back from 11 games behind the Phillies on Aug. 23 to win the pennant, Gibson was 9-2 with seven complete games and one shutout. He started three World Series games, winning two, including Game Seven on two days’ rest. He set a World Series record with 31 strikeouts and was named Series MVP.
Gibson was a fierce, intimidating competitor who rarely smiled and would never hesitate to throw a brushback pitch. Yet he was tough as well, facing three more batters after a Roberto Clemente line drive hit and fractured his right leg in July 1967. He returned in September and won three games during the World Series, again being named Series MVP.
During his 17-year career, Gibson was 251-174 with a 2.91 ERA, 3,117 strikeouts, 255 complete games and 56 shutouts. In addition to 1968, he also won the Cy Young Award in 1970. Gibson was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1981, his first year of eligibility.
Interesting side note: Gibson received a basketball scholarship to Creighton University and averaged 22 points a game his junior season. He even was a Harlem Globetrotter in 1957, before making his Major League debut in 1959 at age 23.
22. Tris Speaker, 204 votes, written by Andrew Martin of The Baseball Historian
One of the earliest five-tool players, Speaker is criminally underrated by contemporary audiences, despite how well his numbers still hold up even today. The Hall of Fame center fielder is in the top ten all-time in numerous categories, including WAR, batting average, doubles, triples, hits, and outfield assists. While he played he was considered every inch the player as rival Ty Cobb. Speaker’s career OPS+ of 157 just nudges out the player many consider to be the best ever; Willie Mays, who posted a 156 mark. Speaker was also the linchpin of three World Series winning teams, including being the player/manager for the victorious 1920 Cleveland Indians. His penchant for playing an extremely shallow center field is an enduring legacy in baseball history and a testament to what a great defensive player he was. He had it all and did it all during his 22 year career; making his inclusion in the inner circle an absolute must.
23. Jackie Robinson, 203 votes, written by E of Joe Never Left
People forget the proximity of WWII to the Jackie Robinson era. He was a great uplift for a war-weary nation, who had become sickened by the specter of their own casualties and the atrocities committed upon millions simply because of their ethnicity, religion and skin color.
The war was over, and the GI Bill was helping millions of vets get back on their feet. For the first time in a generation there was hope for a better life. Major League Baseball with the best players was back. And while not the best Negro Leaguer, Jackie would become a MLB All-Star six times in his remarkable career.
Though many white ball fans, still consigned African Americans to “less than” status for reasons they were never quite sure of, eventually joined the African American community, to celebrate his play, and his dignity. It was a beginning.
Jackie was probably the toughest man to ever play the game; physically, emotionally, and mentally. Nobody outside of combat has ever been tested the way Jackie Robinson was.
Forget the Baseball Hall of Fame and the Inner Circle of the 50 greatest ballplayers of all time. Jackie Robinson belongs in the Inner Circle of the Human Race Hall of Fame. And I am greatly privileged to have been given an opportunity to share my thoughts with you about Jackie.
24-Tie. George Brett, 197 votes, written by Greg Schaum of Pine Tar Press
Baseball in Kansas City in the mid-1970’s was electric. The Royals had everything you needed to build the blueprint for a successful baseball franchise. They had some power, a lot of speed, great defense, and excellent starting pitching from the left and right side. They had a great manager and an owner who loved his team and the city he lived in. But, one player emerged from those great ball clubs as a legend of the city.
George Brett was a California kid with a gap between his teeth, a plug of tobacco in his mouth and golden blonde hair flowing out the pack of his heavily salted cap. He played the game at 150 percent and was the dirtiest guy in the stadium almost every game he played. He had a textbook swing that began with a spin of his bat, shifting his weight back in the box before he uncoiled a beautiful swing that every kid in my school tried to emulate at 3&2 fields.
The fans of Kansas City saw Brett work hard on his defense to become a solid defender and a fantastic all around talent. He became a star in 1976 and the face of the franchise soon after. He played hard off the field as well as stories of long nights with his buddies are still told to this day. He respected the game and if clutch exists, and I believe it does, you should find a picture of Brett in the definition.
Those teams did not win a championship though as Chris Chambliss and the Yankees would rip out the heart of this city in one famous swing in 1976. But, Brett entered the 80’s with his book still being written.
1980 started off as one of the best sports years ever when Team USA beat Russia in Olympic Hockey. For Kansas City fans what followed could not have been written up by its own native son Walt Disney. George Brett went after the hardest and most prestigious goal in major league baseball “.400”.
After the first month of the season he was hitting just .259 and he was at .301 after May. He was at .337 on June 10th before one of his many career trips to the D.L cost him a month but when he returned on July 10th the magic began. He went 21-38 his first 9 games back and we saw his .AVG climb to .377 it was at .390 to end July. On August 17th he was above .400 (as high as .406) for 6 games. He dipped below for 3 games before a 5-5 game on August 26th at Milwaukee put him at a season high .407. He competed all year and was last at .400 on September 19th. The season ended with a .390 clip. However, the now 27 year old star, lead his Royals to finally beat the Yankees and get to the World Series.
The last half of the career of the face of his organization included a World Series title in 1985 and one more batting title as a 37 year old in 1990 which meant he was the only player in baseball history to win titles in 3 different decades. He reached the 3000 hit plateau near his boyhood home (El Segundo, CA) against the Angels and closed out his career in true Brett fashion. His second to last At Bat he grounded out to 2B and busted his ass the entire way to first. I would bet that if you asked him he would have loved for this to be his last AB because it was so important to him to show young fans the right way to play the game. But, for fans his last at-bat was perfect as he faced Tom Henke in the ninth inning at Texas singling up the middle for hit number 3,154.
Royals’ fans are like a childhood star that makes it in Hollywood but suffers the rest of his life as payment for the success he/she had before the age of 30. The last years are full of “remember when” and “if I could just get one more break” and this is often tortuous and leads to years of abuse to body and soul. George Brett, though, is a figure we can always go back to that reminds us of how great it once was.
24-Tie. Warren Spahn, 197 votes, written by Scott Candage of Fire Brand of the American League
If the Inner Circle is going to have a lefty, Warren Spahn is the perfect choice. Warren Spahn is the winningest lefty of all time, and has the most wins for a pitcher in the live-ball era.
Spahn debuted in the majors in 1942 but was demoted by Braves manager Casey Stengel for refusing to throw at Pee-Wee Reese. When Spahn returned to baseball after WWII he began dominating the National League. With his high leg kick, pinpoint control and flawless mechanics, Spahn started a string of thirteen 20-win seasons, 17 All-Star Games, two World Series appearances and the Cy Young Award in 1957.
When Spahn’s fastball began to wane he started throwing a devastating screwball, further confounding hitters and extending his career. Spahn’s greatest game was in 1963 when he was 42 years old, a 15-inning duel with 25-year-old Juan Marichal, in which Spahn gave up a solo homer to Willie Mays to lose 1-0.
Spahn played briefly for Casey Stengel’s Mets and the Giants in 1965 before leaving the major leagues. After two seasons in minor league ball Spahn retired for good. Spahn was enshrined in Cooperstown in 1973.
26-Tie. Roberto Clemente, 192 votes, written by Dave England of AerysSports.com
A few weeks ago I sat in the smoky mountains, drinking wine and chatting with an aging gentleman from Pittsburgh who sat in the bleachers at Forbes Field and watched Roberto Clemente play in the late 1950’s as a child. I’ll always remember this exact quote he said to me, “Son, you ain’t EVER seen an arm like that.”
Sitting there listening to this man transform back to being a little boy and now knowing he had witnessed in person one of the greatest players of all-time got me and him a little misty eyed. Now obviously Clemente was more than a right fielder displaying a precise and powerful arm. He won four batting titles, amassed 3,000 hits, won 12 gold gloves, went to the same number of all-star games and finished in the top 10 of MVP voting 8 times and winning it in 1966.
On New Years Eve 1972, following 18 tremendous seasons playing baseball Clemente, he died a saint’s death, killed in a plane crash attempting to deliver food and supplies to Nicaragua after an earthquake.
Clemente and Lou Gehrig are immortal; they are the only players to have the five-year waiting period waived so they could be enshrined in the Hall of Fame immediately after their deaths.
His sweetest moment may have been, in the dugout after the Pirates won the 1971 World Series, be brought pride to all Latin America by choosing to speak Spanish to honor his parents back home.
In Spanish, Clemente means merciful. And it had to do the way he played and what he meant to his entire country.
He was intensely proud of everything about his native land; he was the fire of dignity, on and off the field. He was a patron saint for the way he played the game on the field and for what he did off it.
26-Tie. Yogi Berra, 192 votes, written by Stacey Gotsulias of AerysSports.com
Until I was about five, I thought that the adorable, older man who played with the New York Yankees when my dad was growing up, who I always saw on television or heard stories about and who was famous for his silly quotes was actually named Yogi Bear. Unfortunately, my parents never corrected me because they thought my mistake was cute and it wasn’t until I arrived in kindergarten that I learned the error of my ways. It was 1979 and I figured I’d impress the boys with my baseball knowledge until one of them said to me rather obnoxiously, “His name isn’t Yogi Bear! It’s Yogi Berra!!”
As a young child, I didn’t quite understand just how good the man, Yogi Berra, actually was. And I think because he played in an era that is now so long ago, a lot of baseball fans still don’t know the greatness of Berra. So here are some facts about Yogi that everyone should know.
He has won more World Series championships than any other player in the history of Major League Baseball – he has enough rings for all of his fingers. He also appeared in 14 World Series, 14 All-Star games, was a three-time MVP, and was in the Top 30 in MVP voting every year from 1947-1961.
Berra had a long, consistent career, finishing with a .285/.348/.482/.830 line and 358 home runs. And while his batting average may not have been as high as Ted Williams (.344) and his home run total wasn’t exactly world beating like Mickey Mantle’s 536, his numbers are still impressive considering he played the majority of his career at catcher.
One more thing to know about Yogi Berra is that on October 8, 1956 he caught the only perfect game in World Series play. And as his battery mate Don Larsen walked off the field, Berra ran up to him, jumped into Larsen’s arms and wrapped his legs around him. For his part, Larsen didn’t miss a beat and kept on walking toward the victor’s dugout with Berra latched onto him. That iconic film image is still shown regularly today.
28. Cal Ripken Jr., 188 votes, written by Larry Granillo of Wezen Ball
It is an absolute certainty that Cal Ripken, Jr. will forever be associated with “The Streak.” From May 1982 through September 1998, Ripken played in 2,632 consecutive games as the Baltimore Orioles shortstop and third baseman. For the first five of those years, he even played in every inning.
But Cal was more than the streak. From 1982 to 1991, a period bookended by a Rookie of the Year award and two American League Most Valuable Player awards, Ripken was one of the greatest shortstops to ever play the game. Despite his unconventional height, Ripken played a strong defense, setting a record for errorless games (95) and errorless chances (428) for a shortstop in 1990. In his “New Historical Abstract”, Bill James claimed that “Ripken had the best arm I ever saw on a shortstop.” It was his offense that set him apart, though. At a time when offense – and especially home runs – was down, Ripken had ten straight years of 20-or-more home runs at an historically weak position. He dwarfed his contemporaries (including greats like Ozzie Smith, Alan Trammell, and Barry Larkin) in home runs, runs, runs batted in, slugging, OPS and more over that time. He also managed to put up an astonishing 67.4 Wins Above Replacement in that time, led mostly by his offensive contributions.
In the end, Ripken finished with many career records besides “The Streak”, including most home runs by a shortstop and most consecutive All-Star starts. The 1990s weren’t as kind to the Baltimore star, but the historic and league-changing start to his career more than makes up for any decline he experienced. There is no doubt that Cal Ripken, Jr. belongs on the very short list of “Best Shortstop in Major League History.”
29. Joe Morgan, 181 votes, written by Dave Studenmund of The Hardball Times
If you only know Joe Morgan as an announcer that baseball analysts like to ridicule, then you should know that you missed one of the greatest players to ever play the game. For proof, there are the awards–two MVP’s, five Gold Gloves and ten All-Star game appearances–and there are the numbers–leading the league four times in OBP, once in Slugging, twice in OPS. He was a walking and stolen base machine. The ultimate sabermetric stat, Wins Above Replacment, ranks Morgan as the third-best second baseman of all time, behind Hornsby and Collins.
But they only tell part of the story. If you saw Morgan play, you remember the left elbow sticking straight out at bat. He always flipped the elbow down toward his body when the pitch was thrown. If he flipped it more than once, he was nervous. If he was locked in, just once. You also remember Bill James’ observation that Morgan was always standing on first base when a pitchout was thrown. He always picked up something from the catcher or pitcher that told him a pitchout was coming and held his ground. Pitching out was a waste of time against Little Joe.
And I remember the time that my brother, who had Morgan on his APBA for his entire career, once wrote Joe because he was worried that his stolen bases were down. Joe wrote back and told my brother to hang onto him, that he’d be stealing bases again soon. I don’t think my brother ever regretted that choice.
Truth is, when Morgan first began announcing the ESPN games with Jon Miller, I thought he was one of the best baseball announcers I had heard. His insights were quick and often spot on. He brought those brains and experience to the broadcast booth every day. He hasn’t done well with baseball analysts in recent years. Which is ironic, really. Because Morgan’s combination of skills made him an idol of the sabermetric set in his playing days. He was the best second baseman I ever saw.
30. Sandy Koufax, 178 votes, written by Dan Evans, former general manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers
Perhaps the most dominant pitcher over a five-year period in baseball history, left-hander Sandy Koufax harnessed control issues that plagued him early in his career and excelled before an arthritic elbow condition prematurely ended his career at age 30.
Koufax signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers for $14,000 at age 19 in December 1954, and existing rules slowed his development since he had to remain in the Majors his first two seasons as a “bonus baby.” Koufax was a pedestrian 46-38 his first six seasons.
Once a delivery flaw was detected in his overhand motion prior to the 1961 season, Koufax’ performance levels reached superior levels. Over the next six years, he was 119-49 with a 2.19 ERA, won the Cy Young Award unanimously three times, won the 1963 NL MVP, made seven consecutive All-Star teams, and led the National League in ERA his final five seasons. In addition, Koufax became the first pitcher to throw four no-hitters, including a perfect game in 1965.
His arthritic elbow, first diagnosed in 1956, forced him to end his career after an incredible 1966 season in which he went 27-9 with a 1.73 ERA and his final Cy Young Award. He finished with a career 165-87 record and 2.76 ERA.
He is the youngest person elected to Baseball’s Hall of Fame, attaining the honor in 1972 just weeks after his 36th birthday. His #32 was retired by the Dodgers that same year, and was named to the All-Century Team in 1999.
31. Bob Feller, 177 votes, written by Ev Cope, baseball historian
Much has been written about the amazing Iowa farm boy, American sports and World War II hero, Bob Feller. This writer had the privilege of being friends with Bob for almost 30 years. Over that period of time he never changed from the up-front, out-spoken, tell-it-like-it-is person that let you know if you were friend or foe. If you were the former, he would do anything for you. If you were the latter, you might as well stay away.
Bob Feller probably was baseball’s greatest ambassador – even more than Babe Ruth – due in part to his long and active life of 92 years. He also could rightful claim to have thrown more baseballs than anyone in history since he was still going to spring training, and doing exhibitions into his 80s. An example of Bob’s philosophy was how he kept his autograph fees at appearances affordable. He always defended that by saying he felt that anyone that wanted his autograph should be able to afford it. This attitude cost Bob several thousand dollars during the peak of paid appearances and also caused him to be criticized by contemporary signing players.
If not for two bunt singles and a miss-played fly-ball triple, Feller could have had a total of six no-hitters in his World War II interrupted career. Another ‘what if’ study shared with Bob is what if he had signed with the Yankees and pitched on those pennant-winning teams. Based on his actual record, the Indians’ record and that of the Yankees’ during Bob’s career, he could have won 300 games even with his lost war years and maybe won as many as 375 games with those seasons. How about this thought? With New York, he might have had two 30-win seasons (actually 33 in 1941 and 1946) and 29 in 1939!
YEAR
INDIANS
YANKEES
1936
5
6
1937
9
11
1938
17
20
1939
24
29
1940
27
27
1941
25
33
1942
U. S. Navy all season
1943
U. S. Navy all season
1944
U. S. Navy all season
1945
U. S. Navy most of season
1945
5
6
1946
26
33
1947
20
24
1948
19
19
1949
15
16
1950
16
17
1951
22
23
1952
9
9
1953
10
11
1954
13
12
1955
4
4
1956
0
0
TOTALS
266
300
● Bob averaged 21.1 wins a season during his top 10 seasons and might have added another 75-80 wins to the above totals if not for WWII.
● Feller’s 26 victories represented 38% of his team’s wins in 1946.
● Bold – Indicates league leader.
Bob Feller never regretted being an Indian instead of a Yankee and was loyal to the city of Cleveland, and Indian fans, until the end of his life. Nor did he regret being a naval hero instead of an Indian for almost four seasons. His records were impressive, but Bob Feller was about more than numbers. Thanks for the memories Bob.
32. Nap Lajoie, 176 votes, written by Kevin Graham of Baseball Revisited
Napoleon Lajoie was not your prototypical Deadball Era 2nd baseman. At 6’1” and 200 lbs. he was a big man with a big bat, while fielding his position with sure hands and a strong arm.
In 21 seasons(1896-1916) Lajoie never played on a Pennant winner, but he was a lifetime .338 hitter with 3242 hits. He led the league in hitting 5x, hitting over .300 in 16 seasons, while leading all 2nd baseman in fielding % 7x.
After playing his 1st 5 seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies, he jumped to the American League in 1901 to play with Connie Mack’s Philadelphia A’s.
Despite an injunction filed by the Phillies, citing baseball’s reserve clause, Lajoie was able to put together a Triple Crown season for the A’s, which featured a .426 average, the highest in the 20th Century.
At the start of the 1902 season a Pennsylvania Appeals court ruled in favor of the Phillies, a ruling that only had jurisdiction in Pennsylvania. Mack promptly sold Lajoie to the Cleveland Bronchos. In 1903 the city of Cleveland honored their slugging 2nd baseman by renaming the team the Naps. He played 13 seasons in Cleveland.
He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1937, his 2nd year on the ballot.
33. Lefty Grove, 174 votes, written by Brendan O’Toole of Over the Monster
Robert Grove (“Lefty” because, well, it was a simpler time) was probably the greatest southpaw ever. In seventeen seasons, pitching for the Philadelphia Athletics and Boston Red Sox, Grove won exactly 300 games, led the league in strikeouts seven times, and led in ERA nine times. For comparison’s sake: last year, Justin Verlander put up one of the best pitching years in recent memory, logging 251 innings and racking up 8.3 WAR. Over a seven-year span from 1930 to 1936, Lefty Grove put up more innings and a better WAR five times. For the better part of two offense-heavy decades, there was no one better.
Oddly to modern fans of the game, he did it all while striking out only 5.2 batters per nine. That’s a rate lower than the career K/9 of Jason Marquis, a pitcher only the Twins could love. The more one looks at baseball’s history, the more it astounds. Baseball’s been exactly the same for over a hundred years, except in all the ways it’s changed.
34. Josh Gibson, 168 votes, written by Jason Lukehart of Ground Ball With Eyes
“There is a catcher that any big league club would love. He can do everything. He hits the ball a mile.” –Walter Johnson
Josh Gibson was, by most accounts, the greatest hitter in Negro League history. Records are incomplete, but statistics provided by the Hall of Fame show a lifetime Negro National League batting average of .359 for Gibson, and a slugging percentage of .644. He won four batting titles, but the long ball was his signature talent. Gibson reportedly hit 84 home runs in 1936 alone. His Hall of Fame plaque credits him with “almost 800 home runs,” others have his total even higher.
Many called Gibson “the black Babe Ruth,” while others insisted that Ruth was “the white Josh Gibson.” Tales of 600-foot blasts to the farthest reaches of every stadium defy belief, but there is no doubt Gibson had remarkable power. As my favorite story goes, Gibson once hit a rocket in Pittsburgh, so deep the ball never landed. The next day, in Philadelphia, a baseball dropped from the sky into a fielder’s glove. The umpire pointed to Josh and said, “You’re out… yesterday, in Pittsburgh!” Gibson was, to my mind, the greatest catcher who ever lived.
35. Satchel Paige, 167 votes, written by Patrick Dubuque of NotGraphs
Satchel Paige is human hyperbole; the words we use to describe him mean nothing when compared to anyone or anything else. His adjectives, much like his statistics, simply don’t translate.
Certainly, Paige was baseball player who threw baseballs and won baseball games and struck baseball players out. He did those things, and we have numbers to represent some of them, numbers that are strong enough to warrant our appreciation.
But what makes Satchel Paige such a special ballplayer was the way in which he created his own story. None of us are in complete control over our destiny; there are always external forces that buffet us from place to place. These forces kept Paige out of major league baseball until he was more t