The Top 10 greatest right handed starting pitchers in the last 50 years

 Today I am continuing my list of the greatest players at each position in the last 50 years with the top 10 right-handed starting pitchers.

 Here’s the criteria.

·         Must have played at least 5 years since the 1971 season to be considered (only looking at his playing career since 1971. Previous year stats prior to 71 will not be considered).

·         Player cannot qualify for 2 positions. Will be considered based on position he played most in his career (example. Rod Carew played more games at first base then at second base. He would only make the list at first base). Using baseball reference to confirm amount of games at each position.

·         Same consideration takes place for Designated Hitter (Frank Thomas being an example. He played more games as a DH than at first base. He would only make the list at DH).

·         Rankings based on regular season stats, awards won (MVPS, titles, gold gloves, etc). Post season will add to consideration.

Here is my list of the top 10 greatest right-handed starting pitchers in the last 50 years.

1.   Greg Maddox

2.   Roger Clemens

3.   Tom Seaver

4.   Pedro Martinez

5.   Jim Palmer

6.   Justin Verlander

7.   Max Scherzer

8.   John Smoltz

9.  Nolan Ryan

10.  Catfish Hunter

Comments.  This is probably the toughest list to put together. Everyone is either in the Hall of Fame, active and will be in the HOF, or should be in the Hall. Maddox is a 4-time Cy Young award winner and 18-time gold glove winner. Performance enhanced or not, Clemens won the Cy Young 7 times and led the league in ERA 7 times. Seaver won the Cy Young 3 times and led the league in strikeouts 5 times. Martinez won the Cy Young 3 times and led the league in ERA 5 times. Palmer won the Cy Young 3 times and had 8 seasons where he won 20 or more games. Verlander is a 2-time Cy Young winner and MVP. Scherzer is a 3-time Cy Young winner who finished in the top 5 voting 3 other seasons. Smoltz won a Cy Young and excelled in the post season with a record of 15-4.  Ryan holds the all-time strikeout record and pitched the most no hitters. Hunter won at least 20 games in 5 consecutive seasons and is a 5-time world series champion.  Honorary mention to the great pitchers who didn’t make the list that met the criteria. Gaylord Perry, Ferguson Jenkins, Phil Niekro, and Bert Blyleven. All in the Hall of Fame.

Next up is top 10 greatest left handed starters in the last 50 years.

The Top 10 greatest designated hitters in the last 50 years

 Today I am continuing my list of the greatest players at each position in the last 50 years with the top 10 designated hitters.

 Here’s the criteria.

·         Must have played at least 5 years since the 1971 season to be considered (only looking at his playing career since 1971. Previous year stats prior to 71 will not be considered).

·         Player cannot qualify for 2 positions. Will be considered based on position he played most in his career (example. Rod Carew played more games at first base then at second base. He would only make the list at first base). Using baseball reference to confirm amount of games at each position.

·         Same consideration takes place for Designated Hitter (Frank Thomas being an example. He played more games as a DH than at first base. He would only make the list at DH).

·         Rankings based on regular season stats, awards won (MVPs, titles, gold gloves, etc). Post season will add to consideration.

Here is my list of the top 10 greatest designated hitters in the last 50 years.

1.   David Ortiz

2.   Edgar Martinez

3.   Paul Molitor

4.   Frank Thomas

5.   Hal McRae

6.   Harold Baines

7.   Don Baylor

8.   Chili Davis

9.  Brian Downing

10.  Andre Thornton

Comments. A lot of all-time greats have spent time as DH, but the players on this list spent most of their career at the position. Ortiz won 2 RBI titles and finished in the top 5 MVP voting for 5 consecutive seasons. He has a lifetime.455 World Series average, won a WS MVP and led the Red Sox to 3 championships. Martinez won 2 batting titles and has a lifetime .312 batting average. Molitor played 5 different positions other than DH. He led the league in hits and runs scored in 3 seasons and has a lifetime .306 batting average. Thomas is a 2-time MVP who had 8 consecutive seasons of 100 RBI, leading the league 4 times. McRae is considered the first full time everyday DH. He hit over .300 in 7 seasons and led the league in RBI once. He has 2 top 5 finishes in MVP voting. Baines hit over .300 in 8 seasons and finished once in the top 10 MVP voting (good DH, but why is he in the HOF? For another post). Baylor is the first full time DH to win an MVP, when he led the league in RBI and runs scored. Davis won 3 World Championships as full time DH. Downing started his career as a catcher, then moved to left field before becoming an everyday DH. Playing most of his years with the Angels, Downing was the teams all time leader in hits, runs, doubles, home runs and RBI when he retired. Thornton was 1 of the few good players on some bad Indians teams in the late 70s and early 80s. He hit more than 25 home runs 5 times during his career.

Next up is the top 10 greatest right-handed starting pitchers in the last 50 years.

The Top 10 greatest catchers in the last 50 years

 Today I am continuing my list of the greatest players at each position in the last 50 years with the top 10 catchers.

 Here’s the criteria.

·         Must have played at least 5 years since the 1971 season to be considered (only looking at his playing career since 1971. Previous year stats prior to 71 will not be considered).

·         Player cannot qualify for 2 positions. Will be considered based on position he played most in his career (example. Rod Carew played more games at first base then at second base. He would only make the list at first base). Using baseball reference to confirm amount of games at each position.

·         Same consideration takes place for Designated Hitter (Frank Thomas being an example. He played more games as a DH than at first base. He would only make the list at DH).

·         Rankings based on regular season stats, awards won (MVPS, titles, gold gloves, etc). Post season will add to consideration.

Here is my list of the top 10 greatest catchers in the last 50 years.

1.  Johnny Bench

2.  Mike Piazza

3.  Joe Mauer

4.  Carlton Fisk

5.  Ivan Rodriguez

6.  Gary Carter

7.  Yadier Molina

8.  Buster Posey

9. Thurman Munson

10. Ted Simmons

Comments. Bench is a 2-time MVP, WS MVP, and 10-time gold glove winner. He is considered the greatest catcher in baseball history. Piazza has the record for most home runs hit by a catcher and has a .308 lifetime batting average. Mauer won an MVP and is the only catcher in MLB history to win 3 batting titles. Fisk has the record for most years played as a catcher. Rodriguez won an MVP and 13 gold gloves.  Carter won the gold glove 3 times and was an 11 time All Star. Molina won 9 gold gloves. Posey won an MVP, batting title, and is a 3-time world champion. Munson won an MVP and has a .373 lifetime average in 3 World Series. Simmons hit over .300 in 7 different seasons.

 

Next up is the top 10 greatest designated hitters in the last 50 years.

The Top 10 greatest right fielders in the last 50 years

Today I am continuing my list of the greatest players at each position in the last 50 years with the top 10 right fielders.

 Here’s the criteria.

• Must have played at least 5 years since the 1971 season to be considered (only looking at his playing career since 1971. Previous year stats prior to 71 will not be considered).
• Player cannot qualify for 2 positions. Will be considered based on position he played most in his career (example. Rod Carew played more games at first base then at second base. He would only make the list at first base). Using baseball reference to confirm amount of games at each position.
• Same consideration takes place for Designated Hitter (Frank Thomas being an example. He played more games as a DH than at first base. He would only make the list at DH).

·       Rankings based on regular season stats, awards won (MVPS, titles, gold gloves, etc). Post season will add to consideration.

Here is my list of the top 10 greatest right fielders in the last 50 years.

1.  Reggie Jackson

2.  Tony Gwynn

3.  Vladimir Guerrero

4.  Larry Walker

5.  Ichiro Suzuki

6.  Andre Dawson

7.  Dave Winfield

8.  Mookie Betts

9. Dave Parker

10. Sammy Sosa

Comments.  Jackson hit over 500 home runs but is more known for his World Series heroics. He is 1 of only 3 players to win the World Series MVP twice (Bob Gibson and Sandy Koufax being the others). Gwynn won the batting title 8 times and has a lifetime .338 average. Guerrero won an MVP and has a lifetime .318 average. Walker won an MVP and 3 batting titles. Ichiro is 1 of only 2 players to win the MVP and rookie of the year in the same season. He won 2 batting titles and 10 gold gloves. Dawson played more games in right field than centerfield. He won an MVP and 2 gold gloves as a right fielder. Winfield had 8 years of over 100 RBI and won 7 gold gloves. Betts is quickly moving up this list as he already has won an MVP and finished in the top 10 voting the last 5 years. Parker won an MVP and 2 batting titles. Finally, steroids or not, Sosa had to make the list. He won an MVP and had 7 years over 40 home runs (3 of those years over 60!).

Honorary mention to some of the all-time greats who just missed the criteria and had their best years in the 60s. Hank Aaron, Frank Robinson, Roberto Clemente, and Al Kaline.

Next up is the 10 greatest catchers in the last 50 years.

The Top 10 greatest centerfielders in the last 50 years

Today I am continuing my list of the greatest players at each position in the last 50 years with the top 10 Centerfield

Here’s the criteria.

·       Must have played at least 5 years since the 1971 season to be considered (only looking at his playing career since 1971. Previous year stats prior to 71 will not be considered).

·        Player cannot qualify for 2 positions. Will be considered based on position he played most in his career (example. Rod Carew played more games at first base then at second base. He would only make the list at first base). Using baseball reference to confirm amount of games at each position.

·       Same consideration takes place for Designated Hitter (Frank Thomas being an example. He played more games as a DH than at first base. He would only make the list at DH).

·       Rankings based on regular season stats, awards won (MVPS, titles, gold gloves, etc). Post season will  add to consideration.

Here is my list of the top 10 greatest centerfielders in the last 50 years.

1.  Mike Trout

2.  Ken Griffey Jr

3.  Kirby Puckett

4. Dale Murphy

5. Carlos Beltran

6. Andruw Jones

7. Jim Edmonds

8. Kenny Lofton

9. Fred Lynn

10. Bernie Williams

Comments.  Trout has 3 MVPs and has finished no lower than 5^th in voting in any of his 9 full seasons. Griffey won an MVP and won 10 gold gloves. Puckett won a batting title, led the AL in hits 4 different times, and won 6 gold gloves. Murphy won the MVP twice, while leading the NL in home runs twice and winning 5 gold gloves. Beltran had 8 seasons of over 100 RBI and won 4 gold gloves. Jones had 8 straight seasons over 90 RBI and won 10 gold gloves.  Edmunds won 8 gold gloves. Lofton led the AL in stolen bases for 5 straight years and hit over .300 in 10 seasons. Lynn was the first player to win both the Rookie of the Year and MVP in the same season. Williams won a batting title and hit over .300 in 8 seasons.

Honorable mention. Willie Mays retired in the early 70s, and didn’t meet the criteria, but, is widely considered the greatest centerfielder of all time.

Next up is the 10 greatest right fielders in the last 50 years.