Babe Ruth

George Herman Ruth Jr., better known as Babe Ruth, was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935.

“Yes best player ever to play the game because he hit in the dead ball era and hit the ball with power to all fields. He would have had another 40 to 50 home-runs in the 1925 season if he was not suspended because he was having marriage problems with his first wife. Thank God his second wife helped him and he hit the record of 60 home runs in the 1927 season a record that stood until Roger Maris hit 61 in 1961 as a Yankee. Henry Aaron came to bat 2000 times more than the babe and if they did not walk Ruth so much he would of hit 800 or more home runs. He would have been a great manager as well but was never given the opportunity because of prejudice. He was as good as a pitcher as anyone in either league at the time in his career as a Boston Red Sox pitcher. He saved the game because of the 1919 Chicago White Sox scandal where people would have lost interest in the game if it were not for the Babe hitting home runs when others were not hitting them. He made the game our “NATIONAL PASTIME” and was a great ambassador for the game later in his life and up until his death in 1948. Yankee Stadium is truly the house that Ruth built and his spirit will always be at rest and alive at Yankee Stadium.”

“Played in the dead era, hit more homeruns than entire teams in a season, he is the greatest player ever, the Great BAMBINO”.

Willie Mays

“While Babe Ruth was a great player, Willie Mays is the best position player ever. He could hit, catch, throw and run with the ability no other player had. As a hitter, he had to face probably the best pitchers that baseball has ever had, nevertheless, he finished his career with 660 homers playing in the extremely huge Polo Grounds first, then in Candlestick Park, where the wind blew in from left field. Two years in the army at the peak of his career surely deprived him of the sixty or so additional home runs that he needed to top Ruth. Also, he was quietly approaching Ruth’s career mark in 1955, but at some point his manager, Leo Durocher, made the decision to told Mays to hit less homers and increase his singles and doubles production as Durocher thought that Mays was most helpful to the teams as a higher average hitter. That year Willie finished the season with 51 home runs.

Ruth was a great player. But he spent most of his career at Yankee Stadium, where the right field distance was less than 300 feet. It is untrue that he pitched during the dead ball era. A live ball and a strong physique allowed Mays to hit 715 home runs, but we also have to take in consideration that the Babe played in an era of few good pitchers. In fact, Lefty Grove was one of the few star pitchers he had to face continuously, since most other pitching stars, Lefty Gomez included, were Yankee pitchers. Mays, always in top form during most of his career, had to face guys such as Koufax, Drysdale, Gibson, Robin Roberts and several other stars and/or hall of fame pitchers.

Also, May was a player gifted with an inordinate intelligence, a trait that can’t be measured statistically. According to baseball writers Mays often read the signs of coaches and managers in the dugout, or outwitted the opposition defensively and offensively to the advantage of his team.

Doubtless, Ruth was a great player. However, for all the factors I briefly discussed, Willie Mays outshines all men who have played baseball”.

“The only player with the talent to do everything (hit for power and average, field, rocket arm, run — both speed and smart, and all the intangibles) all at the highest level; super smart player also.

Doing that all in a time that was very hard for black players, playing for teams in ball parks that weren’t hitters parks (think of what he could have done in a hitters parks — 800 home runes easy and higher average) and he lost a couple of prime years in the military and playing a few years in the Negro league still had statistics that virtually everyone drools at.

Not to mention things like:

– Most golden gloves for an outfielder and he played in the majors 6 years BEFORE they started giving out the award

– I believe he was the first National Leaguer to join the 30-30 club, one of a few people to ever be in the 20-20-20 and 20-20-20-20 club (and I think the first person to be all of them)

– Was named Player of the Decade in the 1960’s

– If I remember 1971 correctly he had something like 14-15 home runs at the All-Start break at the age of 40 (before PEDs and before athletes really took care of themselves).

– He was rarely injured in his career and played something like 3,000 games.

I think someone told me he played in the Negro League World Series when he was a kid in high school or something like that playing against experience and highly talented black men!

By far the greatest all around baseball player in the history of the game and that is what this list is all about”.

Hank Aaron

“I think Aaron should be above Willie Mays because Aaron was three times better than Mays. Of course, he never hit 50 homers in a season, but he had lots of 40 homer seasons. What’s surprising is that even though Henry Aaron had more total bases than anyone else, he had a lower slugging percentage than guys like Mays, Hank Greenberg, and Ted Williams. While Babe Ruth was a great player, Aaron was the greatest hitter of all time. Because Ruth was a great hitter and a great pitcher, and Aaron was a great all-around player. If you take away all of his 755 home runs, he would still have 3,000 career hits because he had 3,771 hits in his career and you subtract the total number of home runs from that and he would have 3,016 hits in his career. He had a huge amount of doubles and he had nearly 100 triples in his career. Aaron had more power than Ruth and Mays. I’d say he would still have the home run record because I don’t think Barry Bonds deserves it. When he was with the Pirates Bonds was slim. He was a really good player, but not super good. And when he left Pittsburgh, Bonds’s home run totals started to go up each year and he started to get bigger and break all these records. I’m a big Pirates fan, and I, and a lot of other people in Pittsburgh, hate Bonds. I think they should’ve suspended Bonds for doing steroids”.

“Hammering Hank was great however because he hardly never hit more than 40 home runs a year none of the pitchers ever decided to walk him that much! The fact that he averaged 40 home runs a year for 15 years was amazing and hit 35 home runs for at least 5 of his 22 year career to go on and top Ruth all-time home run record. He did this with death threats to his life and much prejudiced against him and he is to be commended for going on to beat the Babe. Arron came to bat more than 2000 more than Ruth however he is to be con-graduated because he never sustained any major injuries that sidelined him for part or all of any season compared to Mickey Mantle. Henry was also a better right fielder than Ruth and has his gold gloves to prove this. He deserves great respect and honor for his service to the game even after his playing days were over”.

Ted Williams

“I can’t argue Babe Ruth as #1 for the fact that his pitching was as elite as his hitting. As far as #2 that’s tougher. Hank Aaron #3 no way, and don’t get it twisted I love Hank Aaron. But you see there’s an unrecognized stat that I can understand my generation (born ’79) not knowing, but it disappoints me that our elders ignore this and don’t ever mention it to younger generations! That is that Ted Williams stopped playing baseball and enlisted in the Air Force as a fighter pilot for 6 years in the prime of his baseball career. So as far as my logic tells me the question is who is #2. I have to put Mays & Williams as a tie as Williams was the greatest hitter EVER and if you were to modestly calculate what his stats would have been if he didn’t miss 6 years he blows everyone away period bar none. Yet Mays was a greater fielder one of the best ever so it’s hard for me to decipher which was better because I can only look at stats and a little film. It’s up to unbiased knowledgeable experts to make a case for this. OK here’s the kicker… I have #1 Ruth, #2 Mays and Williams; here it goes folks #4 Ken Griffey Jr, then #5 Hank Aaron. I haven’t even gone as far on the list passed Hank Aaron and will momentarily see Griffey’s rank but he may well be the greatest ever? His stats are an obvious indicator with I believe 621 career homers, a smart base runner with a good ability to steal bases in crucial moments, I know I will catch flack for this but in my opinion the greatest outfielder to ever play (argue all you want but just go back and watch the enormous amount of jaw dropping plays he made, he did have an injury plagued career, but what I believe could make him the all-time greatest is that in a steroid plagued era he has turned out to be the ONLY star player who’s ego didn’t get the best of them and showed the ultimate respect & honor for the MLB, his teammates, his fans, his family and himself by not cheating? And to put the cherry on top he remained loyal to Seattle just long enough to save the Mariners and undoubtedly is the man who built SafeCo Field. He took less money to play in his hometown to be closer to his family, then returned to the Mariners at the very end of his career just to show the appreciation he had for the city and most important the fans who truly loved him as more than just a baseball player, but as a truly special human being! And don’t ever forget about that smile that electrified everyone! So Mariners owners get your act together and build that monument for him at SafeCo Field which is beyond overdue and is disappointing to all of the Seattle community!”

“If Ted Williams had the 5 1/2 years of his prime athletic career in baseball instead of defending our country as a Marine in WWII then re-upping for the Korean War a few years later, we would not be talking about Mays, Aaron or anyone else but Ruth and maybe Gehrig. Best hitter ever to play baseball. But an even better American.M+1”

“Best hitter of all time, and the number.406 can back that up until we see one higher”.

Ty Cobb

“Cobb is second to no one, let alone 3rd! Cobb only batted under.300 once and that was his first season! He stole home when he was 42 years old, Aaron was great but has become overrated in hindsight. Ruth was great but began the downfall of baseball being tactical, beginning of the crowd pleaser brand of ball/instead of talented base hit & steal players. Ty Cobb was and is the greatest… PERIOD.M+35”

“Cobb is #1 on my list followed shortly by The Mick. Cobb played with aggression which I love in a ball player because you can’t be a nice guy playing baseball it just doesn’t work outM+7”

“Why is ty cobb so low? Huh? Most people say the greatest ever are these slow home run hitters who can’t field and have low avg. Ty cobb can field, check, can hit for avg., check, can field, check, and his homeruns are pretty high for his time. All in all I’m saying that he should be no.2 at least. I think he’s number 1 by far but that’s just me.M+20”

“Ty holds all the records except a few. If you leave his personal life out of the conservation and just judge him based on his stats he is easily hands down the best there ever was. None of us are perfect with our behaviors. there are plenty of big leaguers out there today who are much worse and I mean black and white and whatever. So back off of Ty and judge him on his playing ability.M+6”.