No one loves a good debate quite like baseball fans, and with that in mind, we asked each of our beat reporters to rank the top five players by position in the history of their franchise, based on each player's career with that franchise. The Puerto Rican flash was ahead of his time, what with his sweeping glove motions and one-handed technique, which were no-nos in his day. AJ Pollock is one of the best left fielders in baseball right now. No one did it so well for so long. This definition appears very frequently and is found in the following Acronym Finder categories: Slang/chat, popular culture. And none led the league in Total Zone Runs more times (eight). In Jo-Jo Moore and Gary Matthews we see the conventional wisdom about left field come to the fore. Williams not only had a .344 average for his career, but he also blasted 522 home runs despite missing nearly five full seasons serving in World War II and the Korean War. "The Say Hey Kid.". This Day in Giants History, February 20, 1895: John Montgomery Ward Hates the Reserve Clause, This Day in Giants History: December 3, 1960, Constructing a Team from Players Who Have Been Both Senators/Twins and Giants, Elysian Fielders Constructing a Team from Players Who Have Been Both Senators/Twins and Giants, Constructing a Team of Players Who Have Been Both Braves and Giants, Elysian Fielders The General Managers: John McGraw, 1919-32, The General Managers: John McGraw, 1902-12, Baseball's Great Experiment: Jackie Robinson and His Legacy, The Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract, The Numbers Game: Baseball's Lifelong Fascination With Statistics. Montreal Expos (1979-90, 2001), Chicago White Sox ('91-95), New York Yankees ('96-98), Oakland A's ('99), Baltimore Orioles ('01), Florida Marlins ('02), Honors 5. But I wouldn't put him in the top 100 players. Saving a perfect game or no-hitter. He was enshrined in Cooperstown in 1989 and no Cincinnati Red will ever wear his #5 again. Ibanez leads all Mariners left fielders and ranks among the franchise's overall top 10 in games (1,110), hits (1,077), homers (156), doubles (216), extra-base hits (392), RBIs (612), runs (540), walks (367) and slugging percentage (.466). In 1966, the National League All-Star team fielded a lineup with arguably the greatest outfield ever to appear in a baseball game: Willie Mays, Roberto Clemente, and Hank Aaron. -- Kahrl, Honors PRIME = WAR in 5 Best Consecutive Seasons. Widely considered to be the greatest catcher in the history of baseball, Johnny Bench was a key member of the Big Red Machine teams that won four National League pennants and two World Series titles. The World's Most Entertaining Car Website. He will be eligible for Hall of Fame induction in 2017. Dodgers top 5 >, Key fact: He is Major League Baseballs all-time home run leader, with 762, After spending the first seven years of his career with the Pirates, Bonds signed with the Giants ahead of the 1993 season and sparked the revitalization of the franchise. How Many Good Giants Were Good Prospects? Yelich had -6 defensive runs saved in his first season as a primary left fielder in 2020, though that's far from the biggest concern of the Brewers. Padres top 5 >, Rockies: Matt Holliday (2004-08, 18)Key fact: Led NL in average (.340), RBIs (137), hits (216) and total bases (386) in 2007Rockies fans will argue until the end of time that Holliday's 2007 performance -- a .340/.405/.607 slash line with 46 home runs and league-leading totals in hits (216), doubles (50) and total bases (386) -- should have netted him the NL MVP Award. Over his 11 seasons in Cincinnati, Foster went to five All-Star Games and was the team's biggest power threat during the Big Red Machine years. Philadelphia A's (1924-32, '40-41, '44), Chicago White Sox ('33-35), Detroit Tigers ('36), Washington Senators ('37-38), Boston Bees ('39), Cincinnati Reds ('39), Boston Red Sox ('43), Honors He was inducted to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1983 as a first ballot member. The 18 greates Coaches in College Football History. The top 100 will roll out next week. In baseballs rich history there have been many players that have excelled in the defensive aspects of the game. Yaz led all outfielders in assists seven times, total zone runs four times, and putouts as a left fielder four times. The 18 time All Star won the World Series in 1968 and was also the AL Batting Champion in 1955. A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. .294/.385/.425, OPS -- .810, Hits -- 2,605, HRs -- 170, RBIs -- 980, The fact that he's one of only four players with at least 2,500 hits, 1,500 runs and 800 stolen bases proves he was far more than merely Rickey Henderson Lite. How We Ranked Baseballs Greatest Players, PRIME = WAR in 5 Best Consecutive Seasons. We feel its important to acknowledge that baseball is harder to play today than it was 25 years ago, and 50 years ago, and so on. He notched an impressive 283 wins and 2,461 strikeouts in his career along with a career ERA of 3.45. All told, Anderson appeared in 623 games in left over his 14 seasons in Baltimore, good for second in franchise history. He spent the majority of his career with the Texas Rangers among other teams, but a one year stint with the Florida Marlins earned him a World Series title in 2003. Bottom line: Roberto Alomar and his record 10 Gold Gloves originally were in this spot, but this Royals lifer got the final nod because of his impressive career metrics. But at his peak, he was excellent, a guy who could get on base, would play wherever his team needed him (he was a regular second base, left field, right field, third base and first base) and rarely missed a game. Career stats Dave Winfield also won 7, but 5 of his were when he was playing primarily right field. He led all left fielders in range factor per game five times, assists six times, and is the all-time leader in putouts by a left fielder. Ashburn has remained one of the best Phillies center fielders of all time and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1995. That campaign ranks among the best of any player in franchise history: Floyd recorded a .317/.390/.578 slash line with 31 home runs, 123 runs scored, and 103 RBIs. Many who have known Manny would disagree. "The Curacao Kid" ranks second in Total Zone Runs (253) in baseball history. For this calculation, we use a replacement level on defense is the league average. He played more games in his career than anyone else by more than an entire season. Teams: Tampa Bay Rays (2006-14), Oakland Athletics (2015), Kansas City Royals (2015), Chicago Cubs (2016-19), Positions: Second base, shortstop, outfield. That's short for Three True Outcomes, also known as walks, strikeouts and home runs. However, we also adjust for era, integration and level of competition, and missed playing time due to factors beyond the control of the player. -- Lauber, His 1967 season goes down as one of the best ever: He won the Triple Crown, hitting .326/.418/.622 with 44 home runs in a pitcher's era, but most famously carried the Impossible Dream Red Sox to the pennant, hitting .417 with nine home runs and 26 RBIs in September. -- Schoenfield, It isn't easy taking the place of Ted Williams, but Yaz did a pretty good job, winning three batting titles and making 18 All-Star teams. Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid watches while quarterback Patrick Mahomes warms up before the Chiefs take on the New England Patriots on Monday, October 5, 2020, at . Notable Astro Highlights: #25 Retired. "Campy" had no weaknesses other than the assorted hurts that went with the position. 1. A few had better range. Matthews, too, was primarily a good hitter. Athletics top 5 >, Mariners: Raul Ibanez (1996-2000, '04-08, '13)Key fact: Ranks among Mariners' top 10 in games, hits, homers, RBIs and runsLeft field traditionally has been a revolving door for the Mariners, but Ibanez provided some stability during his three stints with the team. Jonty Rhodes features at number one on our list of "Best fielders in world cricket." He was described by Ricky Ponting as "The best defensive fielder of all-time." This probably had some truth to it, because he could stop runs inside the 30-yard circle, like no other fielders could. The 20 Greatest Athletes of all Time Being shutout for nearly five minutes to start the third quarter Friday once again put the Golden Bears in chase mode. These impressive fielding statistics earned him eight Gold Gloves when combined with his hitting statistics earned him seven NL MVP Awards and fourteen All-Star appearances. He also ranks among the top 100 in career Total Zone Runs at second base (28th), shortstop (99th) and all positions (100th). Robinson was also recognized as an 18-time All-Star and 16-time Gold Glove Award Winner. The year after, he hit 40 homers with 120 RBIs, leading the NL. In two short weeks the Cleveland Browns will close the book on their disaster 2015 season. A career .630 OPS dwarfed his excellence in the field. Jim Kaat is regarded as one of the greatest fielding pitchers of all time. A. Ted Williams Carl Yastrzemski Willie Stargell Stan "The Man" Musial Luis Gonzalez Jim Rice Goose Goslin Moiss Alou Cleon Jones Gary Sheffield Mike Riley Thursday brings the top 10 infielders by position of all time, followed by pitchers and catchers on Friday. *Honorable mentions - Ernst Ocwirk, Sergio Busquests, Edgar Davids, Dunga, Diego Simeone, Graeme Souness, Didier Deschamps. Cubs top 5 >, Key fact: Is only player ever to have at least a share of the league lead in home runs seven years in a row, Simply put, Kiner is one of the greatest sluggers in the Pirates long history. His career, you may have heard, was cut a little short after all. Just imagine if he hadn't lost three prime years to serve in World War II. The Flying Dutchman also has his visage on the most expensive baseball card of all time. Left field is located down the third baseline when viewing the field from home plate. Here are the ten greatest defensive midfielders of all time. He spent his entire 18-year career with the Philadelphia Phillies where he was chosen as an All-Star twelve times and won ten Gold Glove Awards. Astros top 5 >, Athletics: Rickey Henderson (1979-84, '89-93, '94-95, '98), Key fact: 72.7 bWAR is highest of any position player in As history, Widely considered the greatest leadoff hitter ever, Henderson had four separate stints with the A's and is the franchise's all-time leader in position-player bWAR (72.7), runs (1,270), walks (1,227) and stolen bases (867). He was the league leader in Total Zone Runs five times. Teams: Baltimore Orioles (1964-76), New York Yankees (1977-80), Cincinnati Reds (1979). Arozarena and Meadows split left field duties almost evenly in 2021 and that duo should take on the majority of starts there again this season. Today we turn our attention to left fielders. He led the American League in fielding percentage as a second basemen four times, assists twice, and committed the fewest errors as a second baseman twice. -- Christina Kahrl, ESPN.com baseball writer, Honors 18-time All-Star ('63, '65-79, '82-83), All-Star Game MVP ('70), MVP (1967), Triple Crown ('67), seven Gold Gloves ('63, '65, '67-69, '71, '77), Hall of Fame ('89), Career stats Honorable Mention: Rickey Henderson (29.7 fWAR) and Bobby Murcer (27.1 fWAR) The Yankees have a rich history of impactful center fielders. He won eleven Gold Glove Awards and was named 1979 NL MVP. Quarterback Kirk Cousins and tight end Jordan Reed are dominating defenses.Their dominance keyed the 38-24 road win over the Philadelphia Eagles that . Garvey was as an All-Star for the NL in eight straight seasons and while with the Dodgers would win four pennants and a World Series in 1981. Richards made a different kind of impact in left. He earned two of the best nicknames in baseball history because of his prowess with the glove, the Human Vacuum Cleaner and Mr. See, the career leader in Total Zone Runs at the position had a certain mystique about him, an unmatched flair and grace and passion that set him apart from the rest. .279/.401/.419, OPS -- .820, Hits -- 3,055, HRs -- 297, RBIs -- 1,115, Runs -- 2,295 (all-time leader), SB -- 1,406 (all-time leader), "Rickey being Rickey" was a sight to behold. 1 left fielder for each club, as chosen by MLB.com's beat reporters. .282/.360/.529, OPS -- .889, Hits -- 2,232, HRs -- 475, RBIs -- 1,540, The most feared slugger on the "We Are Family" Pirates? All you need to know about his defensive prowess can be seen on one epic play in the 1954 World Series opener. 2 -- Pittsburgh (1971, '79), Career stats It's been a rollercoaster couple of years for N'Golo Kante at Chelsea, but there's no disputing that he's back to his very . He also played the Green Monster at Fenway Pahk like it was his rec room wall. Moore was installed as the Giants leadoff hitter by Bill Terry in one of his first acts after taking over for John McGraw in 1932. "Charlie Hustle" was durable and one of baseball's greatest hitters. Who's the greatest left fielder of all-time? "Motormouth" played so shallow in the field, he could almost shake hands with the second-base umpire. The four time All-Star has played his entire career with the Colorado Rockies where he has won two Gold Glove Awards and three Fielding Bible Awards. We believe our rankings are the most comprehensive, fair, and accurate. Join the discussion by using the #MLBRank hashtag, and follow along @BBTN and on Facebook. Seven-time NL All-Star (1981-87), NL Silver Slugger ('86), All-Star Game MVP ('87), Career stats The Ultimate Compendium for the Baseball Fan, Including All-Time Teams for Your Favorite Franchise From Yankees to Dodgers and More. While Bobby Veach has a strong case as one of the Tigers' great run producers of the Dead Ball Era, Horton's legacy as a hometown hero and clutch performer in the Tigers' 1968 World Series have secured his place in franchise history. -- Caple, When you look at combined value metrics like WAR or Jay Jaffe's JAWS, it might surprise you to find that after LF's all-time trinity of Williams, Bonds and Henderson, Yaz is the guy who doesn't quite rise to their level, but is far better than everyone else on this list. Yes, his legacy is deservedly controversial, but Ted Williams wasn't close to the all-around player that Bonds was. Although he played only 1,027 games during his nine-year career, Greer ranks 10th in franchise history with 1,166 hits. Is there a more fundamentally correct baseball player out there? In 2002, Bonds was walked intentionally with no one on base eight times. For most of his career, Ozzie Smith was the premier defensive shortstop in baseball. ALL-TIME #MLBRANK, Top 100: 100-91 | 90-81 | 80-71 | 70-61 | 60-51 | 50-41 | 40-31 | 30-21 | 20-11 | 10-1, Insider analysis: 100-81 | 80-61 | 60-41 | 40-21 | 20-1, Top 10s: LHP | RHP | C | SS | 3B | 2B | 1B | LF | CF | RF, My Top 10: Kurkjian | Stark | Olney | Crasnick | Schoenfield, Stark: The perception of greatness in the Top 100, Szymborski: Who's in the future 100? The adequate fielding was a bonus. Yaz excelled at playing balls off of Fenways Green Monster and for his efforts has had his #8 retired by the Boston Red Sox. "The Great One" would be the first player who we would pay to watch play defense. -- Kahrl, Teams 300 games) with a .305 AVG.The Rangers have three worthy candidates for the title of best left fielder in club history: Greer, Frank Howard and Al Oliver. -- Caple, Barry Bonds the young player was the game's greatest in his day; Barry Bonds the older man was the most feared slugger ever. He was inducted into the Angels Hall of Fame in '16 and remains active with the organization. Clementes defensive skills were virtually unparalleled, with Roberto earning 12 Golden Gloves and 15 All-Star appearances. This may not look too poor except the league's outfielders are at .986 during the same time. His untimely death while on a humanitarian aid trip to Nicaragua came after a baseball career during which his feats on the baseball diamond matched up to his generosity off of it. .303/.375/.409, OPS -- .784, Hits -- 4,256 (all-time leader), HRs - 160, RBIs -- 1,314, Games -- 3,562 (all-time leader), At-bats -- 14,053 (all-time leader), The epitome of a hustler, on the field and off. Overall, Holliday had a .319 average with 130 homers over six seasons with the Rockies. Mike Trout FAQ Who are the best MLB center fielders of all time? D-backs top 5 >, Key fact: Is the Dodgers franchise leader in hits, doubles, triples and total bases, Wheat was a rookie more than 110 years ago, and hes still the Dodgers franchise leader in career hits (2,804), doubles (464), triples (171) and total bases (4,003). Key fact: Bell was the first Blue Jays player to win the AL MVP Award (1987), Bell starred for the Blue Jays through the mid- and late 1980s, earning the first MVP Award in club history in 1987. Players are evaluated on five criteria as the foundation of our rankings: We use Wins Above Replacement (WAR) as a basis for these calculations. Gold Glove Awards: 7 (1963, 1965, 1967-69, 1971, 1977). Photo: Elsa Source: Getty Images Brock was at his best in October, hitting .391 -- second only to Pepper Martin (.418) in franchise history -- with 34 hits in 21 World Series games. -- Lauber, A seven-time All-Star who stole 808 bases, Raines also played in the majors with his son, Tim Jr. In ranking the top 25, many great players were left off the list including Hall of Famers Andre Dawson, Jim Rice, Al Simmons, Duke Snider, Dave Winfield, Lou Brock and others. The unquestioned best leadoff hitter of all time. Dave Kingman had two separate stints with the Mets, navigating the Shea Stadium grass from 1975-1977 and 1981-1983. This marked the first and only time a player eclipsed 50 in both homers and doubles. Get Jay Jaffe's book The Cooperstown Casebook where he outlines who should and shouldn't be in the Hall of Fame based on his JAWS metric used here.. He also leads the club in total steals (409), as well as hits (1,480), batting average (.296) and triples (105). Left field has been the position of some of baseball's greatest players, including Ted Williams, Stan Musial, Carl Yastrzemski, and Frank Robinson, and was one of the primary positions on a . Before he was the first baseman on the Giants pennant-winning teams of 1951 and 1954, Whitey Lockman was an outfielder, and a good one, too, but by 1951 Leo Durocher had him trade positions with Monte Irvin.