The Best of All Time: 1950s

One of the best catchers of all time, Roy Campanella played from 1948-1957 in Brooklyn before his career tragically ended after he became paralyzed from a car accident. However, no matter how short his career, he boasted career numbers of a .276 batting average, 242 homeruns and a .988 fielding percentage. He was an All Star eight out of his ten seasons and NL MVP in 1951, 1955 and 1958. In 1969, he was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame.


Mickey Mantle is one of the most well known and talked about greats of the 1950s, a lot in part to his life of the field. When up at the plate, he swung from both sides to end his 18-year Yankee career with a .298 average, 536 homeruns, 2,415 hits, 1,509 RBI, a .557 slugging percentage and 1,733 walks. The Mick was 20-time All Star, helped earn seven World Series Rings, was AL MVP three times, won a Golden Glove and the 1956 Triple Crown. As if that wasn't enough, he also owns the record for the most homeruns, RBI, runs, walks, extra-base his and total bases in the World Series, as well as the most walk-off homeruns of all time. He made his way into Cooperstown in 1974.


Giants great Willie Mays finished his 22-year career batting .302 with 660 homeruns, 1,903 RBI, 3,283 hits, 5,232 doubles and a .557 slugging percentage. He once hit four home runs in one game. The remarkable 24-time All Star, 1954 World Series champ, 12-time Gold Glove winner, two-time NL MVP, 1951 Rookie of the Year and two-time All-Star MVP was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1979.


"Mr. Cub" Ernie Banks spent his entire career in the windy city from 1953-1971. He ended his time there with a .274 average, 512 homeruns, 2,583 hits and a .986 fielding percentage. He was named an All Star 14 times, won a Gold Glove in 1960 and was named league MVP twice. In 1977 he was made a Hall of Famer.


Maybe not known as well as the others, Earl Wynn boasted numbers fierce enough to make my list. He broke into the majors when he was just 19-years-old and played from 1939-1963. Wynn finished with a 3.54 ERA, with a .551 winning percentage and 2,334 career strikeouts. His best years came in the 1950's, as he was an All Star every year from 1955-1960 and was a 1959 Cy Young winner. Cooperstown welcomed him into the Hall in 1972.



Native New Yorker Whitey Ford reigned as "Chairman of the Board" for his hometown Yankees for 16 years. In that time, he had a 2.75 ERA, .690 winning percentage, 1,956 strikeouts. Not to mention, Ford made the All-Star roster ten times, helped win six World Series rings, and had his best year in 1961 when he won the AL Cy Young award and World Series MVP. He was elected into the Hall of Fame in 1974.


Warren Spahn was a fearsome southpaw during his time, spending 21 years on the mound mainly for the then Boston Braves. His career line reads a 3.09 ERA with a 363-245 record and 2,583 strikeouts. He was a 17-time All Star and won a World Series championship and Cy Young in 1957. In 1973 he made the ballot and went on to be a member of the Hall.


Last but not least on the list is Duke Snider. The Brooklyn Dodger great played 18 season with a career average of .295. He also had 2,116 hits, 407 of them round-trippers, as well as 1,333 RBI and a .540 slugging percentage. Being a eight-time All Star and a big part of two World Series championship teams helped him earn his spot in the Hall of Fame in 1980.

It's Here! Playoff Preview: ALDS

Rays vs. Rangers:

Head-to-Head: Both teams won their respective divisions, the Rays nudging the Yankees in the East with a 96-66 record and the Rangers finishing nine games up in the West with 90 wins and 72 losses. In the regular season, Tampa Bay took four out of six games versus Texas.

On the Mound: Tampa Bay starts the series sending their ace, the Cy Young-hopeful David Price. He finished the regular season 19-6 with a 2.72 ERA, second and third, respectively, in the AL. Behind Price is Shields, Garza and Davis, all with 12 or more wins. Out of the bullpen, the Rays call on Rafael Soriano to close things out, as he has done a league leading 45 times in the regular season. The Rangers have Cliff Lee, CJ Wilson, Colby Lewis and Tommy Hunter in their playoff rotation, which boast the lowest combined ERA for a playoff team. When it comes to a closer, Texas has a tough one of their own in Neftali Feliz whose 40 saves was third best in the AL.

My pick: Rays: The pitching is going to be close in this series, with great arms on both sides. So, looking at offense, the Rays get the slight edge. Texas’s slugger Josh Hamilton finished with the best average with .359, but missed most of September with a rib injury that is still does not have him at 100%. On the other side, Tampa Bay’s Carl Crawford is looking to continue on the same note into the postseason. Crawford batted .360 in the month of September. Also taken into consideration is the fact that the Rays were the best team in baseball and won a division were only on team finished under .500. On the other hand, beside themselves, the Rangers were the only team to finish about .500 in the AL West.


Twins vs. Yankees:

Head-to-Head: Back in May, the Yankees took 5 out of seven against the Twins. New York heads into the post season as the Wild Card winner, finishing 95-97 in the East. Minnesota won the Central by six games with a 94-68 record, although they head into the playoffs losing eight of their last ten.

On-the-Mound: The Yankees are starting AL win leader C.C. Sabathia in game 1. Andy Pettitte and Phil Hughes will follow him in the starting roles and C.C. will again take the mound on three-days rest in Game 4 if necessary. Out of the bullpen, Kerry Wood has been dominating in pinstripes and Mariano Rivera is the epitome of big-time closers. The Rangers rotation begins with Francisco Liriano and continues on with Brian Duensing and Carl Pavano. The Twins are without their star closer Joe Nathan, who has sat out the whole season with an injury.

My pick: Yankees Both teams have been struggling a bit of late, but I believe the Yankees will come out the victor. I do not worry about the starting rotation; C.C. pitched on little rest last year in the postseason and I like him any day over a struggling A.J. Burnett. Also, Pettitte’s postseason play is always phenomenal and Hughes is one of the brightest young starters out there. Let’s remember, the Yanks won it all a year ago using just three starters in the rotation. Plaguing Minnesota is the loss of Justin Morneau who is out of the playoffs because of injury. Hometown hero Joe Mauer has posted impressive numbers since the All-Star break, but he cannot do it alone against the Yankees lineup that includes A-Rod, Jeter and a MVP probable Cano.

The Best of All Time: 1940s, Part II

No list of baseball greats can be made without the inclusion of Jackie Robinson. Not only did he break the color barrier in the Major Leagues in 1947, but he also played like everyone else mentioned in this compilation. From 1947-1956 he batted .311 with 1,518 hits, 734 RBI and 197 stolen bases, many of home, which he was known for. Robinson was named Rookie of the Year in 1947 and went on to become a six-time All Star and Hall of Fame member in 1962. His number 42 is the only number retired universally across baseball.


I have to include a Negro League player on this list who was one of the best to play the game across the board. The “Black Babe Ruth,” Josh Gibson reportedly batted .359 with a .648 slugging percentage in his 17 seasons, although some say his career batting average was as high as .384. The Hall of Fame, into which he was inducted in 1972, says he hit nearly 800 homeruns. He also was chosen as an All Star ten times.


Back in the Majors, Johnny Mize hit .312 with a .562 slugging percentage, 359 homeruns, 2,011 hits and 1,337 RBI from 1936-1953. He holds the MLB record for the most games with three homeruns, which he did six times. Mize was a ten-time All Star, five-time World Series champ, even with a break from baseball to serve in WWII from 1943-1945, and he made it into Cooperstown in 1981.


Lou Boudreau played from 1938-1952 and ended with a batting average at .295 with 1,779 hits. He led the league in doubles in 1941, 1944 and 1947 and holds the record for consecutive doubles in a game when he hit four-in-a-row in 1946. He made the All Star team eight times, was named MVP in 1948 and became a Hall of Famer in 1970.


11-year pro Joe Gordon was one of the best offensive second baseman of his time. He had a career .268 batting average, 253 homeruns, 1,530 hits and a .925 fielding percentage. Gordon was a nine-time All Star, helped his team win five World Series rings and was league MVP in 1942. He holds the AL record for homeruns for a second baseman, too. Just recently, in 2009 he was elected into the Hall of Fame.


Enos Slaughter had a 19-year career from 1938-1959 with a three-year interruption beginning in 1943 because of WWII. In that time, he batted an even .300 including 2,383 hits (413 of them doubles), 1,304 RBI and a .980 fielding percentage. He was a ten-time All Star, four-time World Series champion and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1985.

The Best of All Time: 1940s, Part I

The 1940s is called the Golden Era of baseball because of the plethora of great players that graced the diamond. Many also spent time heroically serving their country as World War II broke up this decade.

One of the best of this time period was 19-year Boston Red Sox Ted Williams. In his career, Williams batted .344 with 521 homeruns, 1,839 RBI and a .634 slugging percentage. He was an All Star 19 times and the AL MVP twice, even more remarkable because of his multiple pauses from the game when he went into active duty as a pilot in WWII and the Korean War. He was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1966.



Williams’ teammate Bobby Doerr suited up from 1937-1951. He had a .288 career average with a .461 slugging percentage. He held the Major League record for double plays as a second basemen until 1963 and his record fielding percentage of .980 lasted until 1953. He was a nine-time All Star and entered the Hall of Fame in 1986.


Yogi Berra played almost his entire 19-year career behind the plate for the New York Yankees, batting .285 with 1,430 RBI. He was on the All Star roster 18 times, helped win 13 World Series rings and was the AL MVP in 1951, 1954 and 1955. In 1972 he was inducted into Cooperstown.


Lifetime St. Louis Cardinal Stan “the Man” Musial ended his 22-year career with a .331 batting average, .559 slugging percentage and 3,630 hits, including 475 homeruns. He also had a career .989 fielding percentage. Musial was named an All Star 24 times and MVP three times. He made his way into the Hall of Fame in 1969.


On the other side of things, hurler Bob Feller spent his career in Cleveland from 1936-1956. In that time, he posted a 3.25 ERA with 2,581 strikeouts and a .621 win percentage. He was an eight-time All Star, led the league in wins six times and led the league in strikeouts seven times. He threw three no hitters, including the only Opening Day no hitter in 1938 when he struck out a then-record 18 batters. Feller became a Hall of Famer in 1962.


to be continued...

The Best of All Time: 1930s

Mel Ott started young at just 17 years old in 1926, and went on to play 21 seasons all with the New York Giants. He finished his career with a .304 batting average and 511 homeruns. He was the first person in the National League too hit the 500 homerun mark and was also the youngest player to reach 100 homeruns. Ott was a six-time NL homerun leader, participated in twelve All Star Games and led his team in a Triple Crown category (homeruns) for 18 consecutive seasons, a feat that is yet to be broken. In 1951, he was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame.


From the other New York team, Joe DiMaggio batted a career .325 with a .579 slugging percentage and 2,214 hits from 1936-1951 with the Yankees. He was AL MVP three times, helped the Bronx Bombers win nine World Series and he made the All Star team 13 times, making him the only player to ever be an All Star every year of his career. Most notably, DiMaggio still holds the record for consecutive games with a hit at 56. He entered the Hall of Fame in 1955.


Another slugger of the time was Jimmie Foxx. Fox played from 1925-1945 and racked up a .325 batting average, .609 slugging percentage, 534 homeruns, 1,922 RBI and a .990 fielding percentage. He was the second player to reach 500 homeruns and the second youngest to reach that feat after Alex Rodriguez. He was a nine-time All Star, three-time MVP and entered Cooperstown in 1951.


Carl Hubbell is a little more less-known to today’s fans, but his numbers warrant him mention on my list. He was a little older entering the league at 25 years old and played from 1928-1943 for the New York Giants. He finished with a 2.98 ERA, 1,677 strikeouts and a .622 win percentage. He no-hit the Pirates in 1929 and threw 18 shutout innings against the Cardinals in 1933. During the All Star Game in 1934 he did the unthinkable when he set a record for striking out five consecutive opposing All Stars; those five players: Ruth, Gehrig, Foxx, Al Simmons and Joe Cronin, all future Hall of Famers. Hubbell also won 24 consecutive games from 1936-1937, which still stands as the most consecutive wins ever. In 1943, he was chosen for the Hall of Fame.


One of the most neurotic players of all time, Dizzy Dean was also one of the best. In his career spanning from 1930-1947, he had a .302 ERA with 1,163 strikeouts. He was the last pitcher in the National League to ever have a 30-win season. He made the All Star roster four times, was the MVP in 1934 and became a Hall of Famer in 1953.


Lefty Grove was another great pitcher of the time. From 1925-1941 he had a 300-141 career record with a 3.06 ERA and struck out 2,266 batters. He was also a six-time All Star, back-to-back World Series champ in 1929 and 1930 and the 1931 AL MVP. Grove was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1947.


Another Lefty finishes off the list of 1930s greats. Lefty Gomez spent 13 years as a Yankee from 1930-1942 and played his last season in 1943. He had a 189-102 record giving him a .649 win percentage. Gomez also had a 3.34 ERA and 1,468 career strikeouts. Seven consecutive seasons he was named an All Star from 1933-1939 and he helped earn his team five World Series rings. In the 1934 and 1937 seasons, he led the AL in wins, ERA and strikeouts. In 1972 he was elected into the Hall of Fame.