The 2020 baseball season has been stalled due to our current pandemic situation. I have certainly missed the crack of the bat, the pop of the glove, and baseball being played in parks across the country. So to pass the time, I've put together my picks for the Mt. Rushmore of baseball. Considering the sport began in the late 1800s, there are quite a few amazing players to consider! At the end, I'll put a few honorable mentions, but let's get started!
BABE RUTH
George Herman (Babe) Ruth has been generally accepted as the best baseball player of all time, or, at least, he's been on a very short list of players to be considered. Every sports fan knows of his legend and how he used to bash balls over the wall during an era when the home run was exceedingly uncommon. He was larger than life in the 1920s and 1930s. Think of him as the Michael Jordan of his time.
He wasn't just a popular personality though. He earned his fame on the field. Nicknamed "the Sultan of Swat" for a reason, he was a fearsome force at the plate as pitchers struggled to find ways to get him out. Speaking of pitchers, Ruth was also a talented thrower of the baseball. He could truly do it all on a baseball field.
His legend only grew after his death. The curse of the Bambino (another one of his many nicknames) haunted his original team, the Boston Red Sox, after they traded him to the Yankees. This curse lasted a whopping 86 years!
Here's just some of the Bambino's numbers from his historic career:
- 7x World Series Champion
- 1924 Batting Title
- 1916 ERA Title
- 1923 MVP
- 10th in career BA, 2nd in total RBIs, and 3rd in total HR, and 2nd in career WAR
WILLIE MAYS
Willie Mays was one of the more electrifying players to watch in Major League Baseball. His steady level of excellence persisted over his twenty-two year career, playing all but two years with the Giants.
He missed one full year and a significant portion of another year due to time served fighting in the Korean War. Had he played during that time, his numbers would be even more staggering.
- 20x All Star
- 12x Gold Glove
- 2x MVP
- 1954 World Series
- 1954 Batting Title
- 12th in total RBIs, 5th in HR, 12th in total hits, and 3rd in career WAR
TED WILLIAMS
One of the greatest hitters the game has ever seen. He played nineteen years, all for the Red Sox. He missed three years early in his career fighting in World War II. Ted was an MVP candidate his rookie year, which makes you wonder what those missed years could have been.
Williams was a disciplined and controlled hitter, never striking out more than sixty-four times in a season. He is also the last player to hit .400 in a season, which he did in 1941.
- 17x All Star
- 6x Batting Title
- 2x MVP
- 2x Triple Crown
- 7th in career BA, 15th in total RBI, 20th in total HR, and 11th in career WAR
CY YOUNG
Cy Young is the namesake for the award given to the best pitcher in the American League and National League each year. Why? Because Young owns an absurd amount of pitching records, which will never even be approached, much less broken.
Even though he pitched from 1890 to 1911, he is widely regarded as the standard for pitchers. Yes, pitchers today may throw a touch harder or have a wider variety of pitches at their disposal, but no one had or will ever have the endurance of Cy Young. He was also known as the hardest thrower of his day. Batters feared him more than any other pitcher. Think Randy Johnson's reputation but in 1900. I'll try to do his numbers as must justice as I possibly can.
- 1903 World Series
- 2x ERA Title
- 1901 Triple Crown
- All time leader with wins (511). 94 wins ahead of 2nd place.
- All time leader in losses (315)
- All time leader in complete games (749). 103 ahead of 2nd place.
- Al time leader in games started (815)
- All time leader in innings pitched (7,356). 1,353 innings ahead of 2nd place.
- All time leader in number of batters faced (29,656). 4,150 ahead of 2nd place.
- He has also given up the most hits and earned runs in MLB history.
- 22nd all time in strikeouts
- All time leader in WAR for pitchers
HONORABLE MENTIONS
There are a lot of players to mention, but I'll just list three with a brief reason why they're worthy. Here we go!
TY COBB
If Cy Young holds all the pitching records, then Ty Cobb held all the batting records. I say held because a lot of them have been broken, but the records he had include: total hits, total runs scored, total stolen bases, overall career batting average, and batted over .300 for 23 straight years.
NOLAN RYAN
Ryan is 1st all time with over 5,700 strikeouts. He also has the record for most no-hitters with 7.
HANK AARON
Aaron broke Babe Ruth's home run total, had over 3,700 hits, and had 3 gold gloves for good measure.
Hope you enjoyed my Mt. Rushmore of baseball players. Who is on your Mt. Rushmore? Comment and let me know!
Check out my Mt. Rushmore of basketball players here!