Greatest Player of All-Time?

I don't know how you could say that. Ruth stood head and shoulders above everybody who played in the major leagues for many years. There were years when entire teams didn't hit as many homers as he did. Not to mention he was a star pitcher before he became an everyday player. No one before or since has been as dominant a player as he was in the 20's. Aaron was a great player and one of my favorites, but his biggest asset was how consistent a player he was over a longer stretch of time. Ruth was a giant.

 

WOW ..... what a list from everyone! But, as we all know, things do change from generation to generation. I personally like the lists from the older era and the modern era. While I wasn't old enough to see the Babe play, he has to be at the top of everyone's list. Barry Bonds .... don't get me started on him! I found it interesting that not one person had Ty Cobb or Cy Young on the list. Maybe that is because of the time they played, but you cannot and should not forget about these pioneers of the game!

 

Wait til I tell John that he still has a fan! Pretty decent utility player
(10 plus years in the big's). Still lives in the Maryland area and teaches the game to the youth of the area. Great guy and a better friend! Good try on the spelling though .... not that anyone cares, but it is Wockenfuss!

 

C- Johnny Bench
1B- Lou Gehrig
2B- Rogers Hornsby
SS- Cal Ripken
3B- Mike Schmidt
OF- Babe Ruth
Willie Mays
Ted Williams

RHP- Nolan Ryan
LHP- Lefty Grove
RELIEF- Mariano Rivera

 

Thanks for the spell check. I remember Wockenfuss, not a bad gig to play in the majors for 10 years.

 

Ever the homer

 

C: Johnny Bench
1B: Lou Gehrig
2B: Joe Morgan
3B: Mike Schmidt (I saw him hit #500)
SS: Ozzie Smith
LF: Ted Williams
CF: Willie Mays
RF: Babe Ruth

LHP: Sandy Koufax
RHP: Walter Johnson
RP: Mariano Rivera

Manager: Joe McCarthy

 

Interesting choice. If your list is putting a team together then I could see choosing Smith since you have so much offense from the other guys, but he obviously wouldn't rank near the top of the best shortstops ever. He just wasn't well-rounded enough. You could argue that he was the most fun to watch, though. It seemed like there was rarely a TWIB show during his career without him making the highlights.

 

I thought about that too(Lack of offense). But SS is such an important defensive position you can't exclude him. Most well-rounded I would probably give to Ripken.

 

As an Orioles fan I idolize Cal (I have multiple jerseys, balls, other memorabilia, and once had a lifesize cutout), but he wasn't a better shortstop than A-Rod. Rodriguez wasn't a top defender, but he was above average, which is what makes him moving over instead of Jeter all the more absurd.