Baseball

The Worlds Greatest
Its America’s favorite game for a reason, and as everybody who’s ever played in the pro’s will tell you, you can love the game, but it won’t always love you back. Many people in history have tried to make a name in the baseball world and many have failed. Few have succeeded. The list goes on and on of those who have been good, but there’s a short list of those who have been great. And now they are being put together on one team, to play an imaginary game. From pitcher to outfield, the best players are chosen in order in their position decided by a survey.
Lynn Nolan Ryan, Jr, was born on January 31, 1947. Nicknamed "The Ryan Express", a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He is currently principal owner, president and CEO of the Texas Rangers. During a major league record 27-year baseball career, he pitched in 1966 and from 1968 to 1993 for four different teams, the New York Mets, California Angels, Houston Astros, and Texas Rangers. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999.
Ryan, a hard-throwing right-handed pitcher, threw pitches that were regularly above 100 miles per hour. The high velocity remained throughout his career. Even after the age of 40, he could still reach 95 miles per hour during games. Ryan was also known to throw a dirty 12-6 curveball at exceptional velocity for a breaking ball .While his lifetime winning percentage was .526, Ryan was an eight-time MLB All-Star, and his 5,714 career strikeouts rank first in baseball history. He leads the runner-up, Randy Johnson, by 839 strikeouts. Similarly, Ryan's 2,795 bases on balls lead second-place Steve Carlton by 962. Lynn walked over 50% more hitters than any other pitcher in Major League history. Other than Jackie Robinson, Ryan is currently the only major league baseball player to have his number retired by at least 3 different teams, the Angels, Astros, and Rangers. Ryan is the all-time leader in no-hitters with seven, three more than any other pitcher. He is tied with Bob Feller for most one-hitters, with 12. Ryan also pitched 18 two-hitters. Despite the seven no-hitters, he never threw a perfect game, nor did he ever win a Cy Young Award. Ryan is one of only 29 players in baseball history to date to have appeared in Major League baseball games in four decade.
Denton True "Cy" Young was born March 29, 1867, and passed November 4, 1955. During his 22-year baseball career, he pitched for five different teams. Young was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1937. One year after Young's death, the Cy Young Award was created to honor the previous season's best pitcher. Young established numerous pitching records, some of which have stood for a century.
Young put together 511 wins, 94 ahead of Walter Johnson, who is second on the list of most wins in Major League history. Young still holds the Major League records for most career innings pitched, most career games started, and most complete games. He also retired with 316 losses, the most in MLB history. Young's 76 career shutouts are fourth all-time. He also won at least 30 games in a season five times, with ten other seasons of 20 or more wins. Young pitched three no-hitters, including the third perfect game in baseball history, first in baseball's modern era. In 1999, 88 years after his final Major League appearance and 44 years after his death, editors at the sporting news ranked Cy Young 14th on their list of Baseball’s 100 Greatest Players. That same year, baseball fans named him to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team. Young's career started in 1890 with the Cleveland Spiders. After eight years with the Spiders, Young was moved to St. Louis in 1899. After two years there, Young jumped to the newly-created American League, joining the Boston franchise. He was traded back to Cleveland in 1909, before spending the final two months of his career with the Boston Rustlers. After his retirement, Young went back to his farm in Ohio, where he stayed until his death at age 88 in 1955.
Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra was born May 12, 1925. He played almost his entire 19-year baseball career for the New York Yankees. Berra was one of only four players to be named the Most Valuable Player of the American League three times and is one of only six managers to lead both American and National League teams to the World Series. As a player, coach, or manager, Berra appeared in 21 World Series. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972.
Berra is widely regarded as one of the greatest catchers in baseball history. According to the win shares formula developed by sabermetrician Bill James, Berra is the greatest catcher of all time and the 52nd greatest non-pitching player in major-league history. Berra, who quit school after the eighth grade, has a tendency to fracture the English language. "It ain't over till it's over" is arguably his most famous example, often quoted. Simultaneously denying and confirming his reputation, Berra once stated, "I really didn't say everything I said."
Bench's finest statistical season came in 1970; he became the youngest man to win the National League Most Valuable Player Award, hit .293, led the National League with 45 home runs and a franchise-record 148 Runs batted in, and helped the Reds win the National League West Division. The Reds swept the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1970 National League Championship Series, but lost to the Baltimore Orioles in the World Series. Bench had another strong year in 1972, again winning the Most Valuable Player Award and leading the National League in home runs and RBI , to help propel the Reds to another National League West Division title, and a five-game victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1972 National League Championship Series. One of his most dramatic home runs was likely his ninth-inning, lead off, opposite field home run in the final game of the 1972 National League Championship Series. The solo shot tied the game 3–3, in a game the Reds went on to win later in the inning on a wild pitch, 4–3. It was said talked about as the game as one of the great clutch home runs of all time. However, the Reds would lose in the World Series to a strong Oakland Athletics team in seven games. In the winter of 1972, Bench had a growth removed from his lung. Bench remained productive, but he never again hit 40 home runs in a season. In 1973, Bench slumped to 25 home runs and 104 RBI, but helped the Reds rally from a 10 1/2 game deficit in July to the Los Angeles Dodger to win a major league-high 99 games and claim another National League West Division. In the 1973 National League Championship Series, the Reds met a New York Mets team that won just 82 regular season games, but boasted three of the best starting pitchers in the NL, future Hall of Famer Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman and Jon Matlack. The trio led a strong Reds offense and helped the New York Mets advance to the World Series.(MLB)
Henry Louis "Lou" or "Buster" Gehrig born June 19, 1903 and passed June 2, 1941 was an American baseball first baseman who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees. Gehrig set several major league records, including most career grand slams and most consecutive games played. Gehrig is chiefly remembered for his durability, a trait which earned him his nickname "The Iron Horse". At age 36, when he was treated with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Gehrig was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1939. In 1969 he was voted the greatest first baseman of all time by the Baseball Writers' Association, and was the leading vote-getter on the Major League Baseball All-Century Team, chosen by fans in 1999. A native of New York City, he played for the Yankees until his career was cut short by ALS, a disorder now commonly known in the United States and Canada as Lou Gehrig's disease. Over a 15-season span from 1925 through 1939, he played in 2,130 consecutive games. This streak ended only when Gehrig became disabled by the fatal neuromuscular disease that claimed his life two years later. His streak, long considered one of baseball's few unbreakable records, stood for 56 years, until finally broken by Cal Ripken, Jr., of the Baltimore Orioles on September 6, 1995. Gehrig accumulated 1,995 runs batted in 17 seasons, with a career batting average of .340, on-base percentage of .447, and slugging percentage of .632. Three of the top six RBI seasons in baseball history belong to Gehrig. He was selected to each of the first seven All-Star games and he won the American League’s Most Valuable Player Award in 1927 and 1936. He was also a Triple Crown winner in 1934, leading the AL in batting average, home runs, and RBIs.
José Alberto Pujols Alcántara was born January 16, 1980, better known as Albert Pujols, is a Dominican-American professional baseball first baseman for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim of Major League Baseball. Pujols is considered one of the top players in Major League Baseball, and was the most feared hitter in baseball in 2008, according to a poll of all 30 MLB managers. During his eleven seasons as a member of the St. Louis Cardinals, Pujols won the National League Rookie of the Year award in 2001, was selected as an All-Star nine times, and won the National League Most Valuable Player Award three times. He has also twice won the National League Hank Aaron Award, and has two World Series rings from the Cardinals' 2006 and 2011 titles. At the end of the 2011 season, he led all active players in batting average, slugging percentage, and OPS, and ranked 37th in number of home runs in Major League Baseball history. He was selected by ESPN.com as the greatest player of the decade from 2000–09.
Jack Roosevelt "Jackie" Robinson was born January 31, 1919 and passed October 24, 1972. An American baseball player who became the first black Major League Baseball player of the modern era, Robinson broke the baseball color line when he debuted with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. As the first black man to play in the major leagues since the 1880s, he was instrumental in bringing an end to racial segregation in professional baseball, which had relegated black players to the Negro leagues for six decades. The example of his character and unquestionable talent challenged the traditional basis of segregation, which then marked many other aspects of American life, and contributed significantly to the Civil Rights Movement. In addition to his cultural impact, Robinson had an exceptional baseball career. Over ten seasons, he played in six World Series and contributed to the Dodgers' 1955 World Championship. He was selected for six consecutive All-Star Games from 1949 to 1954, was the recipient of the inaugural MLB Rookie of the Year Award in 1947, and won the National League Most Valuable Player Award in 1949—the first black player so honored. Robinson was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962. In 1997, Major League Baseball retired his uniform number, 42, across all major league teams. Robinson was also known for his pursuits outside the baseball diamond. He was the first black television analyst in Major League Baseball, and the first black vice-president of a major American corporation. In the 1960s, he helped establish the Freedom National Bank, an African-American-owned financial institution based in Harlem, New York. In recognition of his achievements on and off the field, Robinson was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal.
Murray was selected by the Baltimore Orioles in the 3rd round of the 1973 amateur draft and had several successful seasons in the minor leagues. He debuted at the major league level on April 7, 1977 and played in 160 games for the Orioles in his first season. He won the American League Rookie of the Year award by batting .283, hitting 27 home runs and contributing 88 RBI. With the Orioles from 1977 until 1988, Murray averaged 28 home runs and 99 RBI and was a perennial candidate for the MVP award, twice finishing second in the voting. His best season was 1983 with the Orioles when he hit .306/.393/.538 with 110 RBI and a career-high 33 home runs; though a spectacular season, he finished second in the MVP voting. The Orioles also appeared in the post-season twice, in 1979 and 1983, and won the World Series in 1983. Murray's close-knit friendship with fellow Oriole Cal Ripken Jr. was highly publicized in Baltimore at the time.
The first baseman electrified home-team fans with his remarkable clutch hitting. Chants of "EDDIE-EDDIE" often reached a deafening crescendo during climactic points in a game. As is true with other extraordinary batters, Murray's likelihood of getting a hit increased when runners were on second or third base and when he had fouled off several pitches during an at-bat.
Following the 1972 season, the Phillies dealt third baseman Don Money to the Milwaukee Brewers to open a spot for Schmidt on their infield. Schmidt batted only .196 with 136 strikeouts his first full season, however, he did demonstrate his power potential with 18 home runs. Schmidt's batting average climbed as high as .356 in 1974 to receive the first of his twelve All-Star nods. On June 10, Schmidt hit a ball into a public address speaker suspended 117 feet above and 329 feet away from home plate in the Astrodome in Houston, Texas. The ball then fell to the field, and by the Astrodome's ground rules, it remained in play. Schmidt was held to a single and the runners on first and second each advanced just one base. It is believed that had it not hit the speaker, the ball would have carried beyond 500 feet. For the season, Schmidt finished sixth in National League Most Valuable Player balloting as he batted .282 with 106 RBIs and a league leading 36 home runs to help the Phillies avoid a last place finish in the National League East for the first time since 1970. His 404 assists in 1974 remain a record for third basemen. He also filled in at shortstop and first base. Schmidt's batting average hovered below .200 through the month of May 1975. Solid months of July and August saw his average rise to .249 by the end of the season as he led the league in home runs for the second year in a row with 38. Schmidt started the 1976 season off by hitting twelve home runs in Philadelphia's first fifteen games, including four in one game on April 17, a feat accomplished only 15 times in the history of baseball. For the season, Schmidt drove in 107 runs, and led the league in home runs for the third year in a row, and won his first of ten Gold Gloves to lead the Phillies to their first division crown since division play started in 1969. The Phillies captured the NL east crown three years in a row; however, they were swept by Cincinnati's "Big Red Machine" in 1976, and lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1977 and 1978. On December 5, 1978, the Phillies signed Pete Rose as a free agent, temporarily making Rose the highest-paid athlete in team sports when they signed him to a four-year, $3.2-million contract. With Rose on board, the Phillies were early favorites to repeat as division winners in 1979. Instead, the Phillies finished the season at 84-78, and in fourth place in NL East. For his part, Schmidt broke the club record for home runs in a season with 45, eclipsing Chuck Klein's 43 hit in 1929.
A left-handed hitter, Boggs won five batting titles starting in 1983. He also batted .349 in his rookie year which would have won the batting title, but was 121 plate appearances short of the required minimum of 502. From 1982 to 1988, Boggs hit below .349 only once, hitting .325 in 1984. From 1983 to 1989, Boggs rattled off seven consecutive seasons in which he collected 200 or more hits, an American League record for consecutive 200-hit seasons that was later matched and surpassed by Seattle's Ichiro Suzuki. Boggs also had six seasons with 200 or more hits, 100+ runs and 40+ doubles. Although he would not win another batting title after 1988he regularly appeared among the league leaders in hitting. In 1986, Boggs made it to the World Series with the Red Sox, but they lost to the New York Mets in seven games. The photo of him fighting back tears, taken by George Kalinsky, photographer for the Mets, emblemized the emotions of many Red Sox fans after their team's loss at Shea Stadium.
The move to the Pittsburgh Pirates signified Wagner's emergence as a premier hitter. In 1900, Wagner won his first batting championship with a .381 mark and also led the league in doubles, triples, and slugging percentage, all of which were career highs. For the next couple of seasons, Wagner's average did not fall below .330. In 1901, the American League began to sign National League players, creating a bidding war, which depleted the league of many talented players. Wagner was offered a $20,000 contract by the Chicago White Sox, but turned it down and continued to play with the Pirates. Prior to 1904, Wagner had played several positions, but settled into the shortstop role full-time that season, where he became a skilled fielder. His biography on BaseballLibrary.com describes his gritty style: "Bowlegged, barrel-chested, long-limbed... he was often likened to an octopus. When he fielded grounders, his huge hands also collected large scoops of infield dirt, which accompanied his throws to first like the tail of a comet." In 1898, Wagner won a distance contest in Louisville by throwing a baseball more than 403 feet. In August 1899, he became the first player credited with stealing second base, third, and home in succession under the new rule differentiating between advanced bases and stolen bases. He repeated the feat in 1902, 1907, and 1909. Wagner retired with the National League record for most steals of home, which was broken by Greasy Neale in 1922. In September 1905, Wagner signed a contract to produce the first bat with a player's signature; the Honus Wagner was to become a best-seller for years. One month later, with one point separating him from Reds center fielder Cy Seymour for the batting title, Wagner fell short in a head-to-head matchup on the final day of the season, with Seymour collecting four hits to Wagner's two, as contemporary press reports stated that the fans were far more interested in the Seymour-Wagner battle than in the outcome of the games.
Derek Sanderson Jeter is an American baseball shortstop who has played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees. A five-time World Series champion, Jeter has been a central figure of the Yankees during their success of the 1990s and 2000s due to his clubhouse presence, on-field leadership, hitting ability, and base running. He is the Yankees' all-time career leader in hits, games played, stolen bases, and at bats. His accolades include twelve All-Star selections, five Gold Glove Awards, four Silver Slugger Awards, two Hank Aaron Awards, and the Roberto Clemente Award. Jeter is the all-time MLB leader in hits by a shortstop, and the 28th player to reach 3,000 hits. The Yankees drafted Jeter out of high school in 1992, and he debuted in the major leagues in 1995. The following year, he became the Yankees' starting shortstop, won the Rookie of the Year Award, and helped the team win the 1996 World Series. Jeter continued to contribute to the team's championship seasons of 1998–2000; he finished third in voting for the American League Most Valuable Player Award in 1998, recorded multiple career-high numbers in 1999, and won both the All-Star Game MVP and World Series MVP Awards in 2000. He has consistently placed among the AL leaders in hits and runs scored for the past ten years, and since 2003, he has served as the Yankees' team captain. Throughout his career, Jeter has contributed reliably to the Yankees' franchise successes in the postseason. He holds many postseason records, and has a .351 batting average in the World Series. Jeter has earned the titles of "Captain Clutch" and "Mr. November" due to his postseason heroics. Jeter has been one of the most heavily marketed athletes of his generation and is involved in several product endorsements. His personal life and relationships with celebrities have drawn the attention of the media throughout his career. Teammates and opponents alike regard Jeter as a consummate professional and one of the best players of his generation. Sportswriters anticipate that Jeter will be inducted in the Baseball Hall of Fame following his playing career.(Yankees)
George Herman Ruth, Jr, best known as "Babe" Ruth and nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Sultan of Swat", was an American baseball player who spent 22 seasons in Major League Baseball playing for three teams. Known for his hitting brilliance, Ruth set career records for home runs, slugging percentage, runs batted in, and on-base plus slugging. Ruth originally entered the major leagues with the Boston Red Sox as a starting pitcher, but after he was sold to the New York Yankees in 1919, he converted to a full-time right fielder. He subsequently became one of the league's most prolific hitters and with his home run-hitting prowess, he helped the Yankees win seven pennants and four World Series titles. Ruth retired in 1935 after a short stint with the Boston Braves, and the following year, he became one of the first five players to be elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Ruth was the first player to hit 60 home runs in one season, a mark first eclipsed by Roger Maris in 1961 with 61. Ruth's lifetime record of 714 home runs stood until 1974 when it was surpassed by Hank Aaron. Unlike many power hitters, Ruth also hit for a high batting average: his .342 lifetime average is the tenth-highest in baseball history, and in one season he batted .393, a Yankee record. Ruth dominated the era in which he played. He led the league in home runs during a season twelve times, slugging percentage and OPS thirteen times each, runs scored eight times, and RBIs six times. Each of those totals represents a modern record. Ruth is credited with changing baseball itself. The popularity of the game exploded in the 1920s, largely due to his influence. Ruth ushered in the "live-ball era", as his big swing led to escalating home run totals that not only excited fans, but helped baseball evolve from a low-scoring, speed-dominated game to a high-scoring power game. He has since become regarded as one of the greatest sports heroes in American culture. Ruth's legendary power and charismatic personality made him a larger than life figure in the "Roaring Twenties", and according to ESPN, he was the first true American sports celebrity superstar whose fame transcended baseball. Off the field he was famous for his charity, but also was noted for his often reckless lifestyle.
Giuseppe Paulo "Joe" DiMaggio, nicknamed "Joltin' Joe" and "The Yankee Clipper," was an American Major League Baseball center fielder who played his entire 13-year career for the New York Yankees. He is perhaps best known for his 56-game hitting streak, a record that still stands. DiMaggio was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1955. A three-time MVP winner and 13-time All-Star, DiMaggio is the only player to be selected for the All-Star Game in every season he played. During his thirteen years with the Yankees, the club won ten American League pennants and nine World Series championships. At the time of his retirement, he ranked fifth in career home runs and sixth in career slugging percentage. He was voted the sport's greatest living player in a poll taken in the baseball centennial year of 1969. His brothers Vince and Dom also became major league center fielders.
Willie Howard Mays, Jr,. is a retired American professional baseball player who played the majority of his major league career with the New York and San Francisco Giants before finishing with the New York Mets. Nicknamed The Say Hey Kid, Mays was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979, his first year of eligibility. Most baseball fans and historians agree that Mays was the greatest all-around baseball player to have played in the Major Leagues.
Mays won two MVP awards and tied Stan Musial's record with 24 appearances in the All-Star Game. Mays ended his career with 660 home runs, third at the time of his retirement, and currently fourth all-time. An outstanding center fielder, he won a record-tying twelve Gold Gloves starting the year the award was introduced six seasons into his career. In 1999, Mays placed second on The Sporting News' List of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, making him the highest-ranking living player. Later that year, he was also elected to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team. Mays is one of five NL players to have eight consecutive 100-RBI seasons, along with Mel Ott, Sammy Sosa, Chipper Jones and Albert Pujols. Mays hit 50 or more home runs in both 1955 and 1965. This time span represents the longest stretch between 50 plus home run seasons for any player in Major League Baseball history. Ted Williams once said "They invented the All-Star Game for Willie Mays." Baseball is a game of who got lucky on what day, so the world may never know who really the best combination to put together is. Maybe DiMaggio and Wagner wouldn’t have good chemistry and would have been a train wreck of a middle infield, but the world will never know. Their individual statics suggest that these fifteen guys are the best in the world and would have made an unbeatable team, but the joy of baseball is any given day is anybody’s game to win.