Part of that may be due to the natural elevated status of the recently deceased, but Willie Mays has been described all week as the undisputed greatest living baseball player. Let’s accept this as true.
Who’s next? No one is indisputable.
So let’s argue. (Let us not question the use of “distribution” as an imperative verb. It is indisputable.)
There are now parameters required to select today’s greatest players. Barry Bonds – who happens to be Mays’ godson – amassed some of the best hitting numbers in baseball history, and Roger Clemens has come close as a modern pitcher level. They have the most wins (wars) of any player alive to date.
However, both men were forever stained by alleged doping. The same goes for Alex Rodriguez, another shocking hitter who ranks third in WAR among active players.
Cincinnati Reds’ Pete Rose breaks Ty Cobb’s career hit record set in 1985 when he drives past first base with a single.
(Associated Press)
Pete Rose is the all-time favorite, but he has been banned from baseball since 1989 for betting on games both as a player and as a manager. The betting presumably didn’t improve his performance, but it raised questions about the integrity of the game, questions that have arisen again now that sports betting is now legal in most states and considered a revenue source by all major sports.
The “everyone is doing it” rationale can be applied to PED, and those who go this route are free to rank Bonds, Clemens, and A-Rod at or near the top of their lists of the greatest living players.
A quick poll on social media shows that a similar number of fans refuse to consider the exaggerated number of confirmed steroid users. Position players at the top of the list include all-time stolen bases and runs scored leader Ricky Henderson, incomparable outfielder Ken Griffey Jr. and slugging third baseman Mike Schmidt.
Fans with long memories will mention Big Red Machine catcher Johnny Bench, Boston Red Sox legend Carl Yastrzemski and “the drink-stirring straw” Reggie Jackson. Those looking for a more modern option will think of Albert Pujols, Cal Ripken Jr. and Adrian Beltre.
After the death of Willie Mays, some fans considered Ken Griffey Jr. to be the greatest living baseball player.
(John Froschauer/AP)
A list of today’s greatest pitchers can start with two left-handers: the Dodgers’ three-time Cy Young Award and World Series champion Sandy Koufax and 6-foot-10 flamethrower Randy Johnson, who won four consecutive Cy Young Award and five championships.
Right-handers receiving support include Nolan Ryan, who leads by far the most strikeouts and walks, and Greg Maddux, whose accuracy matches Ryan’s formidable Speed is the complete opposite. The jovial Pedro Martinez has his public supporters, while Steve Carlton shouldn’t be ignored because of his cantankerous temper.
Mays was 93 when he died, making him the oldest Hall of Fame player in the world. That honor now belongs to Luis Aparicio, a 5-foot-9, 160-pound shortstop who dazzled with the glove and played in his first nine career During the season, he led the American League in stolen bases in every season.
Again, nothing is indisputable at this point. It’s fun to relive the illustrious careers of so many players, and ranking them is a personal choice that involves research, memory, and rabid fandom. Enjoy the process.
Candidates for the greatest player today
sort Baseball-Reference wins above replacement and age
defective person
Barry Bonds, 162.8, 59
Roger Clemens, 139.2, 61
Alex Rodriguez, 117.6, 48
Pete Rose, 79.5, 83
pitcher
Greg Maddux, 106.6, 58
Randy Johnson, 101.1, 60
Steve Carlton, 90.2, 79
Pedro Martinez, 83.9, 52
Nolan Ryan, 81.3, 77
Sandy Koufax, 48.9, 88
position player
Ricky Henderson, 111.1, 65
Mike Schmidt, 106.9, 74
Albert Pujols, 101.4, 44
Karl Yastrzemski, 96.5, 84
Cal Ripken Jr., 95.9, 63
Adrian Beltre, 93.5, 45
George Brett, 88.6, 71
Ken Griffey Jr., 83.8, 54
Johnny Bench, 75.1, 76
Reggie Jackson, 74.0, 78
Derek Jeter, 71.3, 49
Ichiro Suzuki, 60.0, 50
active player
Mike Trout, 86.2, 32
Justin Verlander, 81.4, 41
Clayton Kershaw, 79.7, 36
Mookie Betts, 68.8, 31
Shohei Ohtani, 38.5, 29
oldest hall of famer
Luis Aparicio, 90
Sandy Koufax, 88
Bill Mazeroski, 87
Orlando Cepeda, 86
Juan Marichal, 86
Billy Williams, 86
Tony Oliva, 85
Jim Kite, 85
Carl Yastrzemski, 84
Tony Perez, 82
Ferguson Jenkins, 81
