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Who is the GREATEST baseball player of all-time, and WHY?
mintluster
Posts: 926
in Sports Talk
Let's be serious about this and say who is the greatest and why.
We all have opinions, let's express them now.
I will not debate with anyone who posts, I just want to read the responses and compare them.
This is a great subject.
We all have opinions, let's express them now.
I will not debate with anyone who posts, I just want to read the responses and compare them.
This is a great subject.
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Comments
Quiet leadership
Great all around player
Thoughtful toward fans
Great till the very end
There have been others - but he was the first that popped into my mind.
Ruth was an excellent pitcher (probably a Hall of Famer if he had pitched his career) and no worse than a Top 5 hitter of all-time, although I personally would put him first. He was a good baserunner and a decent fielder.
The combination of excellent pitcher and awesome hitter cannot be matched in history. It would be like Barry Bonds moving to pitcher next year and posting 7 or 8 15 to 20 win seasons.
As much as he may look like an old slug; his H.R.'s, on base percentage, slugging percentage, and World Series exploits put him ahead of the pack from players who just put up big stats.
Unfocused, impulsive collector of everything ...
Ruth-NYY 54
Sisler-SLB 19
Walker-PHA 17
Felsch-CHW 14
Jackson-CHW 12
Smith-CLE 12
Meusel-NYY 11
Pipp-NYY 11
Veach-DET 11
Ward-NYY 11
Ruth, 54 Homers. 2nd Best was Sisler with 19 Home Runs
You want Babe Ruth Hall of Fame like pitching statistics and I will give you them too.
Nuff said
He doesn't even have a lifetime .300 average, never hit .400 and never won the triple crown? Again
basing it on MVP's is dumb, those are opinions, you can't ignore hard facts plus compare Teddy Ballgame
to Bonds based on equal number of at bats and Bonds isn't even in the same league as Williams
greatest hitter of all time: Williams
greatest player of all time: Ruth (pitching stats are amazing!)
greatest whiner of all time: Bonds
Class Dismissed
JS
Stats through 7706 AB's, that includes Williams career stats and Bonds stats roughly half way through the
year 2001:
Williams had 2654 hits while Bonds had 2247
Williams had 1798 runs while Bonds had 1665
Williams had 525 doubles while Bonds had 470
Williams had 73 triples while Bonds had 69
Williams had 521 homers while Bonds had 551
Williams had 1839 RBI's while Bonds had 1498
Williams had 2021 walks while Bonds had 1675
Williams hit lifetime .344 Bonds .288 (now is .298)
Awards:
Williams had two triple crowns Bonds not even close
Williams had 2 MVP's while Bonds had 6 (8 now)
Williams had 6 batting titles Bonds 1
Williams led in total bases 6 times Bonds once
Williams had the HR title 4 times Bonds once
Williams had most walks per season 8 times Barry 5 (7 now)
Bonds isn't even close to this guy...facts don't lie!
JS
talks about walks..Williams even dominates in that. I didn't even mention 5 years in his prime to war...oops
I just did. Ill admit Bonds is great, power and speed seldom seen but the numbers don't lie! Williams hit .400
TWICE!!! Guys can't even come close to that now a days!
JS
Don't forget Williams lost 3 years (in his prime, no less) to the war.
And how's this for consistency:
Year Ag Tm Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO BA OBP SLG TB SH SF IBB HBP GDP
+--------------+---+----+----+----+---+--+---+----+---+--+---+---+-----+-----+-----+----+---+---+---+---+---+
1942 23 BOS AL 150 522 141 186 34 5 36 137 3 2 145 51 .356 .499 .648 338 0 4 12
1946 27 BOS AL 150 514 142 176 37 8 38 123 0 0 156 44 .342 .497 .667 343 0 2 12
Nearly identical SLG, hits, doubles, HR...the years basically mirror each other, and this is after he spent 3 years away from the game. Amazing.
With those years he'd have easily surpassed 3000 hits, one or two more triple crowns and/or MVPs.
Put into historical context, I wouldn't even put Barry in the top 5 all time.
<< <i>Put into historical context, I wouldn't even put Barry in the top 5 all time. >>
I feel the same way since IMO "the best" is more than just statistics.
While statistics won't back-up my candidate, Roberto Clemente is way up on my list. Roberto Clemente
Joe (Kevin) - you did a great job analyzing the greatest hitter(s) of all time. However that is not what was asked, the question is Who is the greatest baseball player of all time. I think hands down Ruth #1 and Teddy Ballgame #2 for hitters. But if you are going to ask who is the best baseball player of all time, you have to include walks, SB, Fielding anf throwing.
My #1 is Willie Mays - the guy can hit, steal bases and no one was a better fielder or thrower - plus he won a world series and Ted did not.
My #2 is Babe Ruth - greatest offensive hitter plus pitching
My #3 is Bonds - he does it all but no rings and questonable throwing arm
My #4 is Ted Williams - best pure hitter ever!
My #5 is Pete Rose - my boyhood idol so I have to mention him
Makes perfect sense. Noclass picks someone with noclass.
As far as Rose having 'no class', what he did on the field will never be matched....as I've said in another thread, the Hall has it's share of people who were far from saints.
outfielders but what is that really saying? Outfield isn't where all the great defensive players go! The infield
is much more respected. Plus the highest Mays ever hit was .347, Williams hit .400, plus two
triple crowns to Mays none. No doubt Ted would of matched if not surpassed Mays home run totals minus the war,
sure Mays was quicker around the base paths but look at this:
Mays had almost 3000 more at bats than Williams yet:
Williams had 525 doubles while Mays had 523!!!
Williams had 1839 rbi's while Mays had 1903 (only 64 more)
Williams had 2021 walks while Mays had just 1464
Williams hit lifetime .344 while Mays hit just .302 liftime and only hit better than Williams career mark in a season
once!
I don't have time to carve off 3000 at bats worth of stats off Mays numbers but if we did he too would
pale in comparison to Williams. Is Mays fielding stats enough to surpass Williams hitting stats, a .400
seasons and two triple crowns? I don't think so.
JS
<< <i>At least I'm not endorsing some tree hugging communist flip-flopping wusses like you. Who are you going to endorse for Defense Security, Barbara Striesand??? >>
Huh? Are you really going to start a political debate on this thread? I think his post should be deleted.
Unfocused, impulsive collector of everything ...
I think his large sig line with the picture of Kerry and Edwards should also be deleted and his personal attack on me should also be deleted - but they won't
Talk to me about Bonds when he hits twice as many homeruns in one year as the guy who came in second.
Talk to me about Bonds when he hits more homeruns in one year than the total of any other team.
Talk to me about Bonds when he can pitch.
I don't care if Bonds hits 800 homeruns, Ruth is the best ever.
To mention Rose in a conversation regarding the games top 20 players is ridiculous.
HOF Quarterbacks Football
As far as the comments regarding Ruth, you are dead on. He absolutely dominated the game...how far above everyone else was (to me) one of his most incredible stats (that, along with his pitching.)
For people to mention Bonds while mentioning Ruth have no grasp of the history of this game or just how good Ruth was.
seriously babe ruth imo
At least I'm not endorsing some tree hugging communist flip-flopping wusses like you. Who are you going to endorse for Defense Security, Barbara Striesand???
id nominate hanoi jane fonda