Inagural Post - All-Time Team

I want to kick off this blog right. So, I figured I'd open up with something often argued, debated, and analyzed: Who would be on the all-time baseball squad? I am asking this question not as "Who is the best at each position?" but rather, who would I chose to make a functioning baseball team?

Outfield

Rightfield is as easy a decision as there could possibly be. George Herman "Babe" Ruth is and will probably always be the starter in right field in every "Best All-Time" list ever made. His numbers are well chronicled and instantly recognizable: 714 home runs (2nd all-time), .469 OBP (2nd all-time), .690 slugging (1st all-time). In addition to his staggering offensive numbers, his defense was excellent as well; his right arm was so strong that he was a pitcher with a lifetime ERA of 2.28.

Centerfield has only two legitimate candidates: Ty Cobb and Willie Mays. Cobb, like Ruth, has legendary numbers: a lifetime average of .367, 297 triples, 4,191 hits, 12 batting titles (including nine in a row), 23 straight seasons in which he hit over .300, three .400 seasons (reaching .420 in 1911), .433 career OBP, 892 steals, and 2,245 runs. Other than perhaps Rickey Henderson, he is the greatest leadoff hitter in the history of the majors.

Mays on the other hand, was a power hitter. His undeniable statistics include 3,283 hits and 660 home runs (one of only three players ever to reach the 3,000-500 plateau, with Rafael Palmeiro seven hits away from making it four), 1903 RBIs, .302 batting average, and 12 Gold Gloves (and he likely would've won more, had the award existed at the beginning of his career).

I would take Cobb because he is the best fit for the leadoff spot. I can find other power hitters like Mays, but there is no other reasonable option for the top of the lineup who is of the same caliber of Cobb.

Leftfield is the most interesting spot in the outfield. Two candidates stand head and shoulders above the rest: Barry Bonds and Ted Williams. Their stats are both phenomenal:

Bonds:
703 homers
.300 batting average
.443 OBP
.611 slugging

Williams:
521 homers
.344 batting average
.481 OBP
.634 slugging

In this instance, it is really a tossup. However, I must give the edge to Teddy Ballgame. Bonds' career has varied greatly. He didn't bat .300 until his fifth season and hit only 84 home runs in his first four seasons. Late in his career, he has become an absolute joke in the outfield. Meanwhile, Williams was always consistent, hitting 127 home runs in his first four seasons, while hitting .406 in his third season. He has the highest all-time on-base percentage, and while his total number of home runs might not match up with Bonds, it is important to remember that Williams lost three years to military service and one year to injury. While Bonds does hold the single-season home run record, he twice didn't hit 20. I am inclined to give the edge to the more consistent Williams.

Final selctions: Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Ted Williams

First Base

First base is a crowded position. Eddie Murray? Rafael Palmerio? George Sisler?

It's gotta be Lou "The Iron Horse" Gehrig.

Over a thirteen year period, Gehrig averaged 139 runs and 148 RBI a season. His lifetime batting average is .340; he holds the record for most grand slams all-time (23) as well as the AL single-season record for RBI (184).

Gehrig is a superior hitter to all the other power hitters at first base: McGwire, Palmeiro, and Murray. However, George Sisler is the one player that offers skills that Gehrig doesn't have. Sisler won two batting titles, hitting over .400 both times, and had a total of 257 hits in 1920, a record that stood for 84 years until surpassed by Ichiro Suzuki in 2004. He hit .300 or better 13 times and had a .340 lifetime batting average.

However, Gehrig is a better fit than Sisler because Sisler is a leadoff man, and I already have Cobb filling that role. I would take Gehrig because he is the ideal compliment to Williams and Ruth. He would be a perfect fit as the fifth hitter in the lineup, adding additonal power in the heart of the lineup, protecting the two in front of him while doing damage himself.

Second Base

In this instance, Joe Morgan is absolutely the perfect fit. Morgan, who hit 268 home runs (the record for second basemen) and had more than 40 steals nine times in his career, is exactly what this team needs: someone to hit out of the two-hole. Morgan, who spent most of his career batting second in the lineup (behind men such as Pete Rose), slides in perfectly into this squad.

Third Base

When discussing all-time third basemen, Mike Schmidt is generally conscensed as the best all around player. He hit over five hundred home runs, and was solid defensively. However, I'm going to select Brooks Robinson.

Because I already have Williams, Gehrig, and Ruth I have no need of yet another big slugger. Adding Schmidt would simply be overkill and frankly, wouldn't be much use to the team. So, on when it comes to the hot corner, my number one concern is defense - and Brooks Robinson fits the bill perfectly. Robinson holds the major league record for putouts, assists, chances, double plays and fielding percentage. He also holds the record for most Gold Glove awards, winning sixteen consecutive, from 1960 to 1975. In addition, he was no slouch with the bat - his 268 home runs was at one time an AL record for third basemen. He is the perfect compliment to the rest of this team.

Shortstop

Like third base, I am going with defense at this position. While players such as Honus Wagner and Cal Ripken, Jr. might be better overall, I believe that there is little debate that Ozzie Smith is the best defensive SS of all-time. The Wizard won thirteen consecutive Gold Gloves, from 1980 to 1992. He had phenomenal range and a strong enough arm to put out just about anyone who hit the ball his way. While he was rather poor with the bat - his lifetime batting average is only .262, and he hit only 28 home runs for his entire career - like Brooks, he is chosen for his defense. However, his ineffective offense means he will likely be batting very low in the lineup.

Catcher

In the pantheon of great catchers, I have narrowed it down to five players who stand out above all else: Roy Campanella, Yogi Berra, Johnny Bench, Carlton Fisk, and Ivan Rodriguez. Here are their season averages:

Campanella: 24.7 HRs, .276 avg, .360 OBP, .500 slugging, 5.7 passed balls, 8.4 errors, .988 fielding average
Berra: 23.3 HRs, .285 avg, .348 OBP, .482 slugging, 5.4 passed balls, 5.7 errors, .987 fielding average
Bench: 25.3 HRs, .267 avg, .342 OBP, .476 slugging, 7.0 passed balls, 7.2 errors, .987 fielding average
Fisk: 23 HRs, .269 avg, .341 OBP, .457 slugging, 7.6 passed balls, 9.5 errors, .987 fielding average
Rodriguez: 19 HRs, .306 avg, .347 OBP, .490 slugging, 6.6 passed balls, 7.6 errors, .990 fielding average

Based on this, you can see that Campanella is the most accomplished offensive player (with the hi ghest homer avergage, OBP, and slugging), while Berra is the best defensively. Fisk is the worst of the five, both offensively and defensivly, with the lowest OBP and slugging, as well as averaging the highest number of passed balls and errors.

For me, it comes down to Campanella and Berra. I have to give the spot to Berra. Not only is he the best defensively, but he also has a higher batting average (nine points higher than Campanella) and a home run rate fairly comparable to Campanella (23.3 versus 24.7). And while Campanella does have better slugging and OBP averages, I think that defense should be the number one concern for the catching position. Yogi Berra is the pick.

Final selections: Yogi Berra, Lou Gehrig, Joe Morgan, Brooks Robinson, Ozzie Smith, Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, and Ted Williams

Batting Order
1.) Cobb
2.) Morgan
3.) Williams
4.) Ruth
5.) Gehrig
6.) Robinson
7.) Berra
8.) Smith