The Major League Baseball (MLB) has existed longer than any other professional sport in the United States. And for as long as baseball has existed, so has wagering on the games. Now you can bet online at places like BetOnline! Of course, there have been many top players who have left a mark in such an illustrious history.
Of course, there will never be a full agreement on who the best players ever to grace the MLB. That said, this list will attempt to review some of the names that stand out. Let us get started, shall we?
Ty Cobb
Ty Cobb may not have had the finest reputation of any MLB player, but he certainly knew how to hit the ball, garnering a record of accomplishment of hitting records that few MLB players can match. During his 24-year career, he hit 944 home runs and drove in 1,944 runs. Cobb set 90 MLB records throughout his career, including a lifetime batting average of.366 that is unlikely to be surpassed.
Cy Young
Most baseball fans are familiar with the Cy Young Award, named after Cy Young, the pitcher with the most career victories (511 in MLB history). Young pitched in an era when starting pitchers routinely pitched whole games, even in doubleheaders. Young, pitching for the Boston Red Sox in the first World Series in 1903, threw the game’s opening pitch; in 1904, he threw the first perfect game in American League history; and in 1905, he pitched 25.1 innings without allowing a hit, which is now an MLB record.
Stan Musial
Stan Musial is unquestionably one of baseball’s best all-around hitters. He spent 22 seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals, helping them win three World Series in the 1940s and being named to the All-Star team 24 times, an MLB record at the time. Musial set multiple National League or Major League Baseball career marks, including 1,949 runs, 10,972 bats, and 6,134 bases, all of which were eventually surpassed by great players like Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, and Barry Bonds. Musial batted.376 with OPS of 1.152 and OPS+ of 200 in 1948, possibly his best season. Musial, who enjoyed playing the harmonica, was never thrown from a game.
Babe Ruth
Babe Ruth is frequently regarded as the greatest baseball player of all time. Many players we bet on on the various options to play, are often compared to Ruth’s talent in batting and pitching. However, it was as a slugging outfielder that he achieved his greatest baseball strides. His career home run record of 714 and his lifetime OPS, OPS+, and slugging percentage marks remain unbroken. With a career ERA of 2.28, the Babe won 94 games and twice reached the 20-game mark in a season.
Ted Williams
Ted Williams was as pure a hitter as the game has ever seen—or, possibly, ever will see—despite missing three years of his peak between 1943 and 1945 while serving in World War II. Williams, a two-time MVP and 17-time All-Star was the last player to hit.400 (.407, to be exact, in 1953). He concluded with a. 344-lifetime average and a record with an On-base percentage of 482. He was known as “Splendid Splinter” because he won six batting titles, hit 521 home runs, and pounded 2,654 hits.
Jackie Robinson
Jackie Robinson joined the Brooklyn Dodgers in April 1947, breaking MLB’s so-called Color Barrier. Since the late 1880s, no African Americans had played in Major League Baseball. Robinson, who played both infield and outfield, soon established himself as a Major League player by earning the new Rookie of the Year Award in 1947, a year in which he batted.297, scored 125 runs, and stole 29 bases. Then, in 1949, Robinson earned the Most Valuable Player Award after hitting.342 with 124 RBIs, 122 runs scored, 37 stolen bases, and a.960 OPS. Robinson is best known for his six World Series appearances, all of which he played against the New York Yankees, and for helping the Dodgers won their first World Series in 1955.
Willie Mays
Willie Mays was widely regarded as the best five-tool player of all time when he retired, having hit 660 home runs and eight consecutive seasons with 100 RBIs. Mays was also one of the defenders in the MLB , winning 12 Gold Glove Awards, and he had incredible speed, stealing 338 bases in his career. Mays was also a 24-time All-Star selection. Mays played in the minor leagues until the New York Giants offered him a $4000 contract. During the Korean War, Mays missed nearly two seasons due to military service but he still had a stellar career!
Honus Wagner
Honus Wagner, a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates, was an eight-time National League batting champion, a feat only matched by Tony Gwynn in 1997. Wagner played every position in the infield, as well as right field. Wagner hit.381 with an OPS of 1.007 in 1900, a season in which he hit 45 doubles, 22 triples and drove in 100 runs. He was famously nicknamed ‘The Flying Dutchman.’
Hank Aaron
Hank Aaron will always be remembered as the man who, in 1974, broke the all-time home run record with 755 home runs, a record that remained until 2007.
Nevertheless, Hammerin’ Hank is also the all-time leader in RBI (2,297) and total bases (6,856), with a lifetime batting average of 305 and 3 Gold Glove awards.
From 1954, when he made his debut as a 20-year-old, until his age-41 season in 1975, he appeared in at least 112 games every season, adding durability to his long list of Hall of Fame traits.
Wrap Up:
Debate is an exciting part of being a baseball fan. Discussion between eras, team debates, and statistics overview are all methods for determining who the finest players of all time were. We can all agree that some names are easy to remember as they are the legends that have been passed down through the years.