In no particular order,
Lou Gehrig
Seasons 17
Games 2164
Games 2164
AB 8001
Runs 1888
Hits 2721
HR 493
RBI 1995
BB 1508
SO 790
BA .340
OBP .447
SLG .632
Key Stat: 8001 At bats, only 790 Strikeouts, and 1508 walks. 9.8% of the time he struck out. Compared to Barry Bonds who strikes out 15% of the time, Reggie Jackson 26%, Ken Griffey Jr 18%.
Babe Ruth
Seasons 22
Games 2503
AB 8398
Runs 2174
Hits 2873
HR 714
RBI 2217
BB 2062
SO 1330
BA .342
OBP .474
SLG .690
Key Stat: Obviously Home Runs. Awe at the amount of walks, a .342 BA as a power hitter, and .474 OBP. Remember, these are CAREER stats. But get this, The Sultan of Swat averaged a home run every 8.5 at bats.
Mickey Mantle
Seasons 18
Games 2401
At Bats 8102
Runs 1677
Hits 2415
HR 536
RBI 1509
BB 1733
SO 1710
BA .298
OBP .421
SLG .557
Key Stat: For every 6.5 at bats, the Mick hit a home run. It is the belief of this publication that Mickey is the greatest of all time. Which is where this argument usually begins. A below .300 avg in the hall. If Mickey wasn't drunk 90% of the time, and was healthy, we believe it would be his records being broken, not the Babes.
Willie Mays
Seasons 22
Games 2992
At Bats 10881
Runs 2062
Hits 3283
HR 660
RBI 1903
SB 338
BB 1464
SO 1526
SO 1526
BA .302
OBP .384
SLG .557
Key Stat: Not listed. The 'Say Hey' Kid had an incredible fielding percentage of .981. Compare it to these three men known for their defense; The Wizard, Ozzie Smith .978, Iron Man Cal Ripken Jr. .977 and 12 time gold glover Roberto Clemente with .972. Players that played with Willie said you'd never see him dive for a ball, cause he'd already be under it.
Ty Cobb
Seasons 24
Games 3035
At Bats 11434
Runs 2246
Hits 4189
Doubles 724
Triples 295
HR 117
RBI 1937
SB 892
BB 1249
SO 357
BA .366
OBP .433
SLG .512
Key Stat: All of them. I added a few stats to Cobb's list because he was good at everything. A few things I will point out though. Cobb's numbers, as I have said before, set the standard for the hall. Both him and Ruth were in the first class inducted into the hall. Also, Cobb only has 117 HR in his career. Rumour has it, the press told him he couldn't hit home runs. That day he went out and hit three, just to show he could, but Cobb repeatedly said that he hit for average. One more thing, 357 strikeouts in 24 seasons. Lets put that into perspective. The most strikeouts in one season by a hitter is Adam Dunn with 195, and Bonds sits at 3rd on the list with 189. Go back... 357 over 24 seasons, Barry Bonds, 189 in ONE.
These players are listed in no particular order, but it is to the belief of this publication that if Mickey Mantle played a full and healthy career, he would be the greatest of all time. Furthermore, this board believes, healthy or not, there has never been a greater player than Mr. Ty Cobb.
Please feel free to make an argument for a player you believe should be on this list, or someone that should not be listed here.
3 comments:
You forgot Greg Zaun from your list.
Must have been an oversight...
i definitely agree with mickey mantle being the greatest of all time but u can't leave ted williams from this list either. Only guy to ever hit .400 521 homers 2654 hits and a .344 career average and if hadn't gone into the war for those few years he would've had even better stats. And by best player ever do you mean best career ever? or best in his prime because if you mean prime you can't forget Ken Griffey Jr. everyone thought he would be the best player ever and break all of the records in his prime. The only reason he didn't was because of all the years full of injuries, but the Griffey still has 600 home runs and will probably reach the 3,000 hit mark if he continues to play.
I definitely agree with Mickey Mantle being the greatest player of all time but you also can't leave ted williams from this list. I myself am a Yankees fan but i believe that Ted Williams was a better player than Lou Gerig he had more homeruns (521), 2654 hits, and a .344 BA. He was the only player to ever hit .400 in a season. His numbers are better than Lou's and they would be much greater had he not been in the war those few years.
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