Which Relievers Should Be in the Baseball Hall of Fame?

We don't yet have a clear idea of what gets a reliever into the Hall of Fame. So I'm going to run a comparison, between those who are in, and those who some people say should be in.

First, let's take Hoyt Wilhelm and Dennis Eckersley out of the equation, because they both spent significant time as starters. And John Smoltz, while pretty good as a reliever, was a starter for the vast majority of his career.

That means that there are only 6 relievers in the Hall of Fame. In order of election, they are: Rollie Fingers, Bruce Sutter, Rich "Goose" Gossage, Trevor Hoffman, Mariano Rivera and Lee Smith.

Let's look at a few other relievers of note: Dan Quisenberry, star reliever of the 1980s; Jeff Reardon, another 1980s reliever, and the all-time leader between Fingers and Smith; John Franco, the all-time save leader among lefthanded pitchers; Billy Wagner, right behind Franco in that regard, and who, a few days ago, fell 5 votes short of election; and Francisco "K-Rod" Rodriguez, who has the most saves of any pitcher not in the Hall, eligible or otherwise, and holds the single-season record.

And if you think I missed any relievers worth considering, let me know. Just don't suggest any that are not yet eligible.

Saves: Rivera 652, Hoffman 601, Smith 478, Rodriguez 437, Franco 424, Wagner 422, Reardon 367, Fingers 341, Gossage 310, Sutter 300, Quisenberry 244.

Earned Run Average (ERA): Rivera 2.21, Wagner 2.31, Quisenberry 2.76, Sutter 2.83, Rodriguez 2.86, Hoffman 2.87, Franco 2.89, Fingers 2.90, Gossage 3.01, Smith 3.03, Reardon 3.16.

ERA compared to the league average (ERA+), with 100 being exactly average: Rivera 205 (making him the all-time leader, among all pitchers), Wagner 187, Rodriguez 148, Quisenberry 146, Hoffman 141, Franco 138, Sutter 136, Smith 132, Gossage 126, Reardon 122, Fingers 120.

Walks and Hits (BB + H), Divided by Innings Pitched (WHIP): Wagner 0.998, Rivera 1.000, Hoffman 1.058, Sutter 1.140, Rodriguez 1.155, Fingers 1.156, Quisenberry 1.175, Reardon 1.199, Gossage 1.232, Smith 1.256, Franco 1.333.

Why do I not count Wins + Saves? Because it's not that hard to blow a lead, then still be your team's pitcher of record when they retake the lead. For a reliever, Wins is a misleading statistic.

Why do I not count Strikeouts (K's), or K/Innings Pitched, or K/BB? Because, while strikeouts help, outs in general matter more than how you get them.

The main case for Wagner is his career save total: He's 2nd all-time among lefthanded pitchers, right behind Franco. But most people supporting the election of Wagner do not support that of Franco. Also, until he was surpassed by Hoffman, and both were surpassed by Rivera, the all-time leader in saves was Smith. And yet, it took the Veterans Committee (or whatever that's called now) to get him in. The writers did not consider his all-time leadership in a major pitching category to be enough to elect him. Given where he ranked in the other categories, they had a point.

Based on Saves, ERA, ERA+ and WHIP, a case can be made for both Wagner and Rodriguez.

Based on Saves, ERA and ERA+, a case can be made for Franco. However, his WHIP is noticeably higher than the next-lowest reliever mentioned.

Based on ERA, ERA+ and WHIP, a case can be made for Quisenberry. But the cumulative one, saves, is one on which he trails by a lot.

Based on Saves and WHIP, a case can be made for Reardon. But ERA and ERA+ don't help him.

Then again, based on the preceding judgments I've made, Fingers, Sutter and Gossage might not have enough saves. And Gossage and Fingers might not have a high enough ERA+. Gossage and Smith each have a WHIP that seems a bit high. Each of those assessments could be explained by things being different in their era, which would then help their contemporaries, Quisenberry and Reardon.

Clearly, Hall voters took the pitchers' effects on their teams into account. So let's look:

Rollie Fingers, In: Reached the postseason with the Oakland Athletics in 1971, '72, '73, '74 and '75; and the Milwaukee Brewers in 1981 and '82. Won Pennants in 1972, '73, '74 and '82. Won the World Series in 1972, '73 and '74. Was key to all of that.

Bruce Sutter, In: Made the postseason only once, but he was critical to it, helping the St. Louis Cardinals win the 1982 World Series -- over Fingers and the Brewers.

Goose Gossage, In: Made the postseason with the New York Yankees in 1978, '80 and '81; the San Diego Padres in 1984. Won Pennants in 1978, '81 and '84. Won the World Series in 1978. Was key to all of that.

Dan Quisenberry, Out: Made the postseason with the Kansas City Royals in 1980, '81, '84 and '85. Won the Pennant in 1980, beating Gossage and the Yankees; and '85. Won the World Series in 1985, beating the Cardinals after they foolishly traded Sutter. Was key to all of that.

Jeff Reardon, Out: Made the postseason with the Montreal Expos in 1981, the Minnesota Twins in 1987, the Boston Red Sox in 1990, and the Atlanta Braves in 1992. Won the Pennant in 1987 and '92. Won the World Series in 1987. Was key to all of that, although results varied: He had a 0.00 ERA in 4 games for the '87 Twins, but a 13.50 ERA in 2 games that may have helped cost the Braves the '92 Series.

Lee Smith, In but had to wait for the Vets Committee: Made the postseason with the Chicago Cubs in 1984, and the Red Sox in 1988. Didn't win the Pennant either time. Clearly, this didn't help his bid for election.

Trevor Hoffman, In: Made the postseason with the Padres in 1996, '98, 2005 and '06. Won the Pennant in 1998. Was key to all of that.

Mariano Rivera, In: Made the postseason with the Yankees in 1995, '96, '97, '98, '99, 2000, '01, '02, '03, '04, '05, '06, '07, '09, '10 and '11. Won the Pennant in 1996, '98, '99, 2000, '01, '03 and '09. Won the World Series in 1996, '98, '99, 2000 and '09. May well have been the biggest key to all of that, including 1998 over Hoffman and the Padres.

Billy Wagner, Out: Made the postseason with the Houston Astros in 1997, '98, '99 and 2001; the New York Mets in 2006; the Red Sox in 2009; and the Braves in 2010. This is where the case for Wagner takes a huge hit: He may have been the worst pitcher in postseason history, going 1-1 with a 10.03 ERA and a 1.971 WHIP. In addition, he was with the Philadelphia Phillies in 2005, when they missed the National League Wild Card berth by one game. If ever a pitcher could not be counted on when you needed him most, it was Billy Wagner.

John Franco, Out: Made the postseason with the Mets in 1999 and 2000, winning the Pennant in 2000, although he was no longer the closer by that point. Nevertheless, he did save Game 3, their only win in the 2000 Series. He helped the Cincinnati Reds reach 2nd place 4 straight seasons, 1985-88, and it certainly wasn't his fault that they didn't reach the Playoffs; but they traded him to the Mets before he could be a part of their 1990 title team. That doesn't help much.

Francisco Rodriguez, Out: Made the postseason with the team now known as the Los Angeles Angels in 2002, '04, '05, '07, '08; and the Brewers in 2011. The fact that he helped those teams, among the least successful in the post-expansion era, reach the postseason is remarkable. The fact that he was key to the Angels' only Pennant and only World Series win in 2002, his rookie season, speaks volumes. In between the Angels and the Brewers, he pitched poorly for the Mets, which may, thus far, have made a difference in keeping him out, but I'm not sure it should.

CONCLUSION: Among these names, Wagner and K-Rod are the closest to being Hallworthy. Quis, Reardon and Franco are certainly worthy of consideration. I can't definitively say that any of them should get in. But I don't think much of a fuss should be made if and when any of them get in.

There will be, though. There are plenty of people who will say the Hall has been "watered down" with the election of guys who should have remained in "The Hall of Very Good."

But some of those people were fine with the election of steroids cheats like David Ortiz, so to Hell with them.

Baseball Hall-of-Famers By Team, 2019 Edition

Left to right: Edgar Martinez, Mike Mussina and Mariano Rivera

This year, I'm going to deviate from my usual routine, and wait until after the newly-elected Pro Football Hall of Fame members are announced the night before the Super Bowl, and do a post on living Hall of Famers in all sports for each metropolitan area. But I will still do Hall of Famers by team for both MLB and the NFL.

With the announcement of the elections of Mariano Rivera, Mike Mussina, Edgar Martinez, Lee Smith, Harold Baines, and the late Roy Halladay, it is time to update this list.

Ford Frick Award winner Al Helfer will not be added to this list, since he did not spend at least 4 seasons as a broadcaster for any single team.

A player is counted as a Hall-of-Famer with the team if he played at least 4 seasons with them. However, there will be the occasional exception. Teams are ranked in order of most HOFers.

If there is a tie, it will be broken by which team has more players, as opposed to those who were elected in other categories. If there is still a tie, then I go to which has more non-broadcasters. If it's still a tie, which has more players whose contributions were mostly with that club. If it's still a tie, which team has played fewer seasons will be ranked ahead -- since, for example, 5 HOFers is more impressive for a team that's been around since 1977 than it would be for one that's been around since 1961.

Teams that no longer exist in that form will be listed in italics, and in the position where they would be ranked if they still did.

Players are listed in chronological order of when they arrived at the club, then managers, then broadcasters.

1. New York Yankees, 41: It works out to just over 1 for every Pennant the team has won:

Clark Griffith (the team's first manager, elected as a pitcher and he was still a solid pitcher while he was their manager), Willie Keeler, Jack Chesbro, Frank "Home Run" Baker, Waite Hoyt, Herb Pennock, Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Tony Lazzeri, Earle Combs, Bill Dickey, Red Ruffing, Lefty Gomez, Joe DiMaggio, Joe Gordon, Phil Rizzuto, Yogi Berra, Johnny Mize, Whitey Ford, Mickey Mantle, Enos Slaughter, Jim "Catfish" Hunter, Reggie Jackson, Rich "Goose" Gossage, Dave Winfield, Rickey Henderson, Wade Boggs, Mariano Rivera and Mike Mussina.

Also, managers Miller Huggins, Joe McCarthy, Casey Stengel and Joe Torre; owner Jacob Ruppert; executives Ed Barrow and George Weiss; broadcasters Mel Allen, Red Barber, Joe Garagiola, Jerry Coleman (played for the Yankees but elected as a broadcaster, first for the Yankees, then for the Padres) and Tony Kubek (played for the Yankees but elected as a broadcaster).

Bucky Harris managed the Yankees to the 1947 World Championship, but was only their manager for 2 seasons (1947 & '48), so I'm not counting him with the Yankees. In this case, according to the rule I set, I have to count Rickey Henderson as a Yankee. If Lou Piniella is ever elected as a manager, I wouldn't be able to count him as a Yankee HOFer, since he wouldn't be elected as a player ,and only managed them for 3 seasons, none of them a title season.

Rizzuto was also a longtime broadcaster. Lee MacPhail was elected for what he did as American League President, not as Yankee general manager. Bernie Williams and Paul O'Neill have dropped off the writers' ballot. They, like Don Mattingly, will, in a few years, become eligible once again, through the Veterans' Committee -- but in all 3 cases, let's not kid ourselves.

And then there's Roger Clemens: Even if he does get in, would you want to count him as a Yankee? George Steinbrenner, now being dead, is now eligible through the Veterans' Committee.

Tim Raines was a Yankee for only 3 years, although 2 of them were title seasons. Ivan Rodriguez was a Yankee for about 3 minutes. So neither of them can be included here.

Andy Pettitte is eligible. Derek Jeter becomes eligible next year. Alex Rodriguez becomes eligible, in 2022 -- the same year as David Ortiz, who hit a lot fewer home runs, was not the runner or fielder that A-Rod was, and, unlike A-Rod, is known to have flunked a steroid test. Bet you any money you like, Ortiz gets in in his 1st year of eligibility, and A-Rod goes through his entire 10-year BBWAA eligibility without getting in.

At any rate, all 3 of those Yankees have the stats to get in. Derek will, the 1st time around. Andy and A-Rod are big question marks, but will probably, at least for a while, become victims of the Yankee Doodle Double Standard.

2. St. Louis Cardinals, 31: Charlie Comiskey (played for them before managing and owning teams elsewhere), Jake Beckley, Roger Bresnahan, Rogers Hornsby (won a World Series as their player-manager), Jesse Haines, Grover Cleveland Alexander, Jim Bottomley, Charles "Chick" Hafey, Burleigh Grimes, Frankie Frisch (elected as a player, won a World Series as their player-manager), Dizzy Dean, Joe Medwick, Johnny Mize, Enos Slaughter, Stan Musial, Red Schoendienst (elected as player, also managed them to a title), Bob Gibson, Lou Brock, Orlando Cepeda, Steve Carlton (7 seasons), Bruce Sutter, Ozzie Smith, Lee Smith (4 seasons, so he qualifies here).

Also, Miller Huggins (manager, also played several years for the Cards), Billy Southworth (manager, also played for them), Whitey Herzog (manager-executive), Tony LaRussa (manager), Branch Rickey (executive), Harry Caray (broadcaster), Jack Buck (broadcaster), Joe Garagiola (broadcaster).

Jesse Burkett won a batting title with the Cards, but only played 3 seasons with them, so he just misses qualifying. On the other hand, Cepeda didn't even play 3 full seasons with the Cards, but his tenure included the 1967 title and the 1968 Pennant, and he, as much as Gibson, was a symbol of that team, and he may be better remembered as a Cardinal than as a Giants, so I'm bending the rule for him. Leo Durocher was a good player for the Cards, but was elected as a manager and never managed them, so he doesn't qualify here.

Mark McGwire and Jim Edmonds did not qualify on enough ballots, and won't be eligible again until they qualify under the Veterans Committee. Surprisingly, longtime owner Gussie Busch has never been elected.

New York Giants, 26: Roger Connor, Buck Ewing, Tim Keefe, Mickey Welch, John Montgomery Ward, Roger Bresnahan, Christy Mathewson, Joe McGinnity, George Davis, Richard "Rube" Marquard, Dave Bancroft, Ross Youngs, Frankie Frisch, George "Highpockets" Kelly, Fred Lindstrom, Travis Jackson, Bill Terry, Mel Ott, Carl Hubbell, Johnny Mize, Monte Irvin, Willie Mays, Hoyt Wilhelm.

Also, John McGraw (manager, also played for them), Leo Durocher (manager), Russ Hodges (broadcaster).

Casey Stengel played for the Giants, but was elected as a manager, so I can't count him as a Giant HOFer.  

Counting all figures who played or managed at least one game for the Giants, in New York and San Francisco, they have 76, more than any other team; however, many of those were with the club only briefly. But even by my definitions, they are ahead of the arch-rival Dodgers.

3. Chicago Cubs, 28: Adrian "Cap" Anson, Mike "King" Kelly, Clark Griffith (elected as a pitcher for them, later a manager and owner elsewhere), Joe Tinker, Johnny Evers, Frank Chance (elected as a player but should have been elected as a manager instead), Mordecai "Three-Finger" Brown, Grover Cleveland Alexander, Hazen "Kiki" Cuyler, Lewis "Hack" Wilson, Charles "Gabby" Hartnett (also managed them to a Pennant), Rogers Hornsby, Billy Herman, Ernie Banks, Billy Williams, Ron Santo, Ferguson Jenkins, Bruce Sutter, Ryne Sandberg, Lee Smith, Andre Dawson, Greg Maddux (spent enough time with them).

Also, Al Spalding (elected as an executive but was also a great pitcher), Frank Selee (manager), Joe McCarthy (manager, managed them to a Pennant before going to the Yankees), Leo Durocher (manager), Jack Brickhouse (broadcaster), Harry Caray (broadcaster).

Sammy Sosa is eligible, but he's not getting in. If Lou Piniella is elected as a manager, I'll have to count him as a Cub HOFer, since he managed them for 4 seasons.

Lou Boudreau was a beloved broadcaster for the Cubs after his playing and managing career, but never played or managed for them, and so I can't count him as a Cub HOFer. Santo was also a longtime broadcaster. Surprisingly, longtime owner Phillip K. Wrigley is not in.

4. Chicago White Sox, 24: Ed Walsh, George Davis, Eddie Collins, Ray Schalk, Red Faber, Ted Lyons, Luke Appling, Nellie Fox, Luis Aparicio, Early Wynn, Hoyt Wilhelm, Goose Gossage (5 years with them), Carlton Fisk, Harold Baines, Frank Thomas, Tim Raines, Jim Thome, Al Lopez (manager), Tony LaRussa (manager), Charlie Comiskey (owner), Bill Veeck (owner), Jack Brickhouse (broadcaster), Bob Elson (broadcaster), Harry Caray (broadcaster).

Although Clark Griffith pitched for them in their 1st 2 seasons and won the 1st American League Pennant as their manager, those 2 seasons are not enough to qualify with the White Sox. Although Tom Seaver notched his 300th victory with the Pale Hose, he pitched for them in just 3 seasons, and can't be counted as one of their HOFers.

Thome was a White Sock for less than 4 full seasons, but did play for them in 4 seasons, so he counts with them.

5. Pittsburgh Pirates, 23: James "Pud" Galvin, Vic Willis, John "Honus" Wagner, Fred Clarke (elected as a player, also won Pennants as their manager), Jack Chesbro, Jake Beckley, Max Carey, Hazen "Kiki" Cuyler, Waite Hoyt (5 seasons with them), Harold "Pie" Traynor (also managed them), Paul Waner, Lloyd Waner ("Big Poison" and "Little Poison," though Lloyd was actually taller), Joseph "Arky" Vaughan, Al Lopez (elected as a manager but was an All-Star catcher for the Pirates), Ralph Kiner, Bill Mazeroski, Roberto Clemente, Willie Stargell, Bert Blyleven.

Also, Bill McKechnie (manager), Barney Dreyfuss (owner), Branch Rickey (executive), Bob Prince (broadcaster).

Blyleven was only a Pirate for 3 seasons, but I'm bending the rule because he was a key cog on their last World Championship team in 1979. Barry Bonds is eligible, but while the stance against steroid cheats is softening, he still, for the moment, falls under the category of, "Who's kidding who?"

Boston Braves, 22: Harry Wright (player and manager), George Wright, Al Spalding, Jim "Orator" O'Rourke, James "Deacon" White, Charlie "Old Hoss" Radbourne, Mike "King" Kelly, John Clarkson, Charles "Kid" Nichols, Cy Young, Hugh Duffy, Tommy McCarthy (he and Duffy were known as "the Heavenly Twins"), Billy Hamilton, Vic Willis, Jimmy Collins, Johnny Evers, Walter "Rabbit" Maranville, Dave Bancroft.

Also, Frank Selee (manager), Bill McKechnie (manager, though with no success with the Braves), Casey Stengel (ditto, also played for Braves), Billy Southworth (manager).

6. Boston Red Sox, 22: Jimmy Collins (elected as a player but also managed them to the 1st World Series title in 1903), Cy Young, Tris Speaker, Harry Hooper, Babe Ruth (6 seasons with Sox before going to Yanks), Herb Pennock (7 seasons before Yanks), Red Ruffing (also 7 seasons before Yanks), Joe Cronin (elected as a player, but also managed them to the 1946 Pennant, though unlike Collins had already retired as a player; was also longtime AL President), Rick Ferrell, Jimmie Foxx, Lefty Grove, Bobby Doerr, Ted Williams, Carl Yastrzemski, Carlton Fisk, Jim Rice, Dennis Eckersley, Wade Boggs, Pedro Martinez.

Also, Dick Williams (manager, no relation to Ted), Tom Yawkey (owner), Curt Gowdy (broadcaster).

I am bending the rule slightly for Dick Williams, who only managed 3 seasons for the Red Sox, but 1 of them, 1967, was the most important season in the club's modern history. Luis Aparicio played 3 seasons for the Red Sox, so by my rule he is not eligible to be counted with them. Eckersley, however, played 7 seasons with them, so I have to count him with them, and with their living HOFers for as long as he lives.

It was long suspected that owner Jean Yawkey would become the 1st woman elected to the Hall of Fame, but Effa Manley, who owned the Negro Leagues' Newark Eagles, is in, while Mrs. Yawkey is still out.

David Ortiz (500 Home Run Club but known steroid cheat) becomes eligible in 2022. Manny Ramirez (500 Home Run Club but known steroid cheat), Roger Clemens (300 Win and 3,000 Strikeout Clubs but suspected steroid cheat) and Curt Schilling (3,000 Strikeout Club but possible steroid cheat) are eligible, but not yet in.

Brooklyn Dodgers, 21: Willie Keeler, Joe Kelley, Richard "Rube" Marquard, Zack Wheat, Burleigh Grimes, Charles "Dazzy" Vance, Joseph "Arky" Vaughan, Billy Herman, Joe "Ducky" Medwick, Harold "Pee Wee" Reese, Jackie Robinson, Edwin "Duke" Snider, Roy Campanella, Ned Hanlon (manager), Wilbert Robinson (manager), Leo Durocher (elected as a manager but was also a good player), Walter Alston (manager), Branch Rickey (owner), Walter O'Malley (owner), Red Barber (broadcaster), Vin Scully (broadcaster).

Casey Stengel played 6 seasons for the Dodgers, and was good, but not Hall of Fame good.  He managed 3 seasons for them; in spite of their poor performance under him, had he managed them for 1 more season, he would still qualify as one of theirs under my rule.  Dick Williams played 5 seasons for them, but was elected as a manager, and never managed the Dodgers. Owner Charles Ebbets is not in.

7. Detroit Tigers, 18: Sam Crawford, Ty Cobb, Harry Heilmann, Henry "Heinie" Manush, Charlie Gehringer, Goose Goslin, Hank Greenberg (the last 3 nicknamed the "G-Men" in those early days of the FBI), Mickey Cochrane (elected as a player, also managed them to 2 Pennants), Hal Newhouser, George Kell, Al Kaline, Jim Bunning, Jack Morris, Alan Trammell, Ivan Rodriguez, Hughie Jennings (manager, also played for the team), Sparky Anderson (manager), Ernie Harwell (broadcaster).

With Trammell getting in through the Veterans Committee, Lou Whitaker's chances of also doing so increase. Kaline and Kell were also longtime broadcasters. Longtime owners Frank Navin, Walter Briggs and John Fetzer are not yet in. Former executive Will Harridge is in, but for what he did as President of the AL, so I can't count him as a Tiger HOFer.

8. Philadelphia Phillies, 18: Billy Hamilton, Ed Delahanty, Sam Thompson, Grover Cleveland Alexander, Eppa Rixey, Dave Bancroft, Chuck Klein, Richie Ashburn, Robin Roberts, Jim Bunning, Steve Carlton, Mike Schmidt, Jim Thome, Roy Halladay, Harry Wright (manager), Pat Gillick (executive), By Saam (broadcaster), Harry Kalas (broadcaster).

Thome spent 3 seasons with them, then left, then returned for a 4th, so he counts here. Ashburn was also a longtime broadcaster for the Phils. If Curt Schilling gets in, he can be counted with the Phillies. Pete Rose, of course, is ineligible.

9. Cincinnati Reds, 18: Bid McPhee, Jake Beckley, Joe Kelley, Sam Crawford, Edd Roush, Eppa Rixey, Ernie Lombardi, Frank Robinson, Johnny Bench, Tony Perez, Joe Morgan, Tom Seaver (6 seasons with Reds), Barry Larkin, Ken Griffey Jr., Bill McKechnie (manager), Sparky Anderson (manager), Red Barber (broadcaster), Marty Brennaman (broadcaster).

Pete Rose, of course, is ineligible. John Franco is not yet in, but if he gets in, he pitched enough seasons with the Reds to qualify for this list. If Lou Piniella is elected as a manager, I'll count him as a Reds HOFer: He only managed them for 3 seasons, but 1 was a World Championship season. Miller Huggins played several years for the Reds, but was elected as a Yankee manager.

Longtime owner Powel Crosley and GM Bob Howsam should be in, but they're not. Waite Hoyt broadcast for the Reds, and was beloved in that role, but has not been given the Ford Frick Award, so I can't count him with the Reds.

And while 2 members of the 1st openly professional baseball team, the 1869-70 Cincinnati Red Stockings, are in the Baseball Hall of Fame, Harry and George Wright -- the other Wright Brothers who "invented" something important in American life -- that team was not the same team as the current Reds franchise, which began in the old American Association of 1882 and joined the NL in 1892.

10. Cleveland Indians, 17: Napoleon "Nap" Lajoie, Elmer Flick, Addie Joss, Tris Speaker (elected as player but also managed them to a title), Stan Coveleski, Joe Sewell, Earl Averill, Bob Feller, Lou Boudreau, Bob Lemon, Larry Doby, Early Wynn, Gaylord Perry, Jim Thome, Al Lopez (manager), Bill Veeck (owner), Jimmy Dudley (broadcaster).

Barring a major shift in voters' attitudes, Manny Ramirez is probably out of luck. Satchel Paige reached the majors with the Indians, but only pitched 2 seasons for them. So, although I can count him with 3 different Negro League teams on this list, I can't count him with any major league team. Indeed, that fact is the reason I've included the Negro League teams on this list, along with moved and defunct major league teams.

11. Baltimore Orioles, 14: Brooks Robinson, Hoyt Wilhelm, Robin Roberts (4 seasons with O's), Luis Aparicio, Frank Robinson, Jim Palmer, Eddie Murray, Cal Ripken, Roberto Alomar, Harold Baines, Mike Mussina, Earl Weaver (manager), Chuck Thompson (broadcaster), Jon Miller (broadcaster).

Although he won his only World Series with the Orioles, we don't usually associate Aparicio with them, but he did play 5 seasons with them, so, by my own rule, I've got to count him here. Same with Robin Roberts, who played 4 seasons in Baltimore. Rafael Palmeiro is eligible, but he's not getting in.

Mike Mussina should be in. Frank Cashen should be in as an executive. Dick Williams played enough seasons with the O's to qualify, but was elected as a manager and never managed them, so he doesn't qualify as an O's HOFer.

Philadelphia Athletics, 13: Eddie Plank, Rube Waddell, Frank "Home Run" Baker, Chief Bender, Eddie Collins, Herb Pennock, Al Simmons, Mickey Cochrane, Jimmie Foxx, Lefty Grove, George Kell, Connie Mack (owner-manager), By Saam (broadcaster).

Washington Senators, 11: Walter Johnson, Bucky Harris (elected as a manager but was also a great player), Sam Rice, Henry "Heinie" Manush, Goose Goslin, Joe Cronin (elected as a player but also managed them to a Pennant), Rick Ferrell, Early Wynn, Clark Griffith (owner), Arch McDonald (broadcaster), Bob Wolff (broadcaster). 

No, you can't count Ted Williams as a manager.

12. New York Mets, 11: Nolan Ryan, Tom Seaver, Gary Carter, Mike Piazza, Tom Glavine (5 seasons), Pedro Martinez (4 seasons), Casey Stengel (manager, 4 seasons), Joe Torre (manager), Lindsey Nelson (broadcaster), Bob Murphy (broadcaster), Tim McCarver (broadcaster). So that's 3 broadcasters, 2 managers, and 6 players.

Still, you didn't realize the Mets had so many, did you? And that's without counting Ralph Kiner, who was elected as a Pirates' player, not as a Mets' broadcaster. Nor can you count Richie Ashburn, Duke Snider, Warren Spahn or Willie Mays -- and why would you want to count Eddie Murray, Rickey Henderson or Roberto Alomar as Mets?

I had not previously counted Ryan. However, he did appear in at least 1 game for 5 different seasons, including the 1969 World Championship season. So I have to count him here.

I had previously counted Yogi Berra, but while he managed them for 4 seasons, including winning a Pennant, he was elected to the Hall as a player, not as a manager, and so I can't count him as a Met HOFer.

As for Torre: Yes, he managed in 4 seasons for them. They were awful then, and there wasn't much he could do about it, but he counts as a Met Hall-of-Famer. Although I notice that, unlike Yogi and Willie, he wasn't invited to the farewell ceremony at Shea Stadium in 2008.

Frank Cashen should be in as an executive. If John Franco is ever elected, you can count him.

13. Atlanta Braves, 10: Hank Aaron, Phil Niekro, Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux, John Smoltz, Chipper Jones, Bobby Cox (manager), Joe Torre (managed them in between Cox's 2 tenures there, also a player), John Schuerholz (general manager), Milo Hamilton (broadcaster).

Fred McGriff and Andruw Jones will be listed with them if they are elected. Don Sutton broadcasts for the Braves, but can't be counted among their HOFers. Former owners Bill Bartholomay and Ted Turner are not in, nor do I ever expect them to be elected, but maybe they should be.

14. Los Angeles Dodgers, 10: Duke Snider (played 5 seasons for them in L.A.), Don Drysdale, Sandy Koufax, Don Sutton, Mike Piazza, Walter Alston (manager), Tommy Lasorda (manager), Walter O'Malley (owner), Vin Scully (broadcaster), Jamie Jarrin (broadcaster).

Steve Garvey is not getting in. Pedro Martinez started out with the Dodgers, but only played 2 seasons for them.

15. San Diego Padres, 9: Dave Winfield, Ozzie Smith, Rollie Fingers, Goose Gossage, Tony Gwynn, Trevor Hoffman, Dick Williams (manager), Jerry Coleman (broadcaster), Dick Enberg (broadcaster).

Yes, the Wizard and the Goose each played 4 seasons in Mission Valley. Considering how many they have in a comparatively short history, you shouldn't also count Willie McCovey, Gaylord Perry or Roberto Alomar. Longtime owner Ray Kroc, who saved the team from being moved to Washington in 1974, is not in. Steve Garvey, who is not my Padre, is not getting in.

16. Oakland Athletics, 9: Jim "Catfish" Hunter, Reggie Jackson, Rollie Fingers, Rickey Henderson, Dennis Eckersley, Dick Williams (manager), Tony LaRussa (manager), Lon Simmons (broadcaster), Bill King (broadcaster).

Mark McGwire is eligible, but he's not getting in. Owner Charlie Finley is eligible, but I don't think he'll ever get in, either. I am bending the rule slightly for Williams, who only managed 3 seasons for the A's, but got them into the postseason in all 3, including 2 World Championships.

Chicago American Giants (Negro Leagues), 8: Andrew "Rube" Foster (also manager and owner), Bill Foster (a.k.a. Willie Foster, Rube's brother), Cristobal Torriente, Pete Hill, George "Mule" Suttles, John Henry "Pop" Lloyd, Norman "Turkey" Stearnes, Willie Wells.

Kansas City Monarchs (Negro Leagues), 8: Jose Mendez, Leroy "Satchel" Paige, James "Cool Papa" Bell, Wilber "Bullet" Rogan, Norman "Turkey" Stearnes, Andy Cooper (also manager), Hilton Smith, J.L. Wilkinson (owner).

Bell played 3 seasons for them, but because Negro League players bounced around as much as international soccer players do, and also like club soccer there were often loan deals involved, I'll bend my 4-season rule. John "Buck" O'Neil, 1st baseman and manager, is not in the Hall of Fame, a terrible oversight, especially given that his contributions to the game include what he did in the last 15 or so years of a very long life.

Jackie Robinson played his first season in professional baseball, 1945, with the Monarchs. They were also the first pro team of Ernie Banks. But neither was elected on the basis of anything he did in Kansas City.

Homestead Grays (Negro Leagues), 7: Cumberland "Cum" Posey (pitcher, then manager, then owner), Smokey Joe Williams, Josh Gibson, Buck Leonard, James "Cool Papa" Bell, Jud Wilson, Ray Brown.

Oscar Charleston and Judy Johnson each played 2 seasons for them, but I'm not willing to bend the rules THAT much. Gibson was known as the Black Babe Ruth, Leonard as the Black Lou Gehrig, and together they were known as the Thunder Twins or the Dynamite Twins. Williams was sometimes known as Cyclone Joe, sometimes as Smokey Joe (but never as Smokin' Joe, like boxer Frazier).

As for Posey, "Cum" was short for "Cumberland," and it is possible that, like James "Pud" Galvin, his nickname was not considered sexually explicit in his time. As an athlete, he was probably better in football, and Wendell Smith, the leading black sportswriter of the between-the-wars years and a winner of the Hall's Taylor Spink Award for media work, called him "the smartest man in Negro baseball and certainly the most successful."

Newark Eagles (Negro Leagues), 7: George "Mule" Suttles, Ray Dandridge, Leon Day, James "Biz" Mackey (also manager), Monte Irvin, Larry Doby, Effa Manley (owner, the only woman in the Baseball Hall of Fame). Don Newcombe also played for the Eagles, and if his service there is counted, I believe that it makes him worthy of election to the Hall, but he hasn't been elected.

17. San Francisco Giants, 7: Willie Mays, Orlando Cepeda, Willie McCovey, Juan Marichal, Gaylord Perry, Lon Simmons (broadcaster), Jon Miller (broadcaster).

Barry Bonds is eligible, and his rising percentages suggest that he might get in despite his known cheating. And I'm surprised that longtime owner Horace Stoneham isn't in, and that neither is his son-in-law, Charles "Chub" Feeney, a Giant executive who became President of the NL.

Montreal Expos, 7: Gary Carter, Andre Dawson, Tim Raines, Pedro Martinez, Vladimir Guerrero, Dick Williams (manager), Dave Van Horne (broadcaster). If Larry Walker gets in, he can be counted with the Expos. Duke Snider could not, although he broadcast for the Expos and had played in Montreal for the Dodgers' farm team, the Montreal Royals. So did Tommy Lasorda.

18. Houston Astros, 7: Joe Morgan, Nolan Ryan, Craig Biggio, Jeff Bagwell, Gene Elston (broadcaster), Milo Hamilton (broadcaster), Harry Kalas (broadcast 6 seasons for them before joining the Phillies' broadcast team).

Roger Clemens is eligible, but only played 3 seasons with the Astros, and, even with his legal exoneration, it's not clear that he will ever get in.

19. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, 6: Nolan Ryan, Rod Carew, Reggie Jackson, Bert Blyleven, Vladimir Guerrero. Dick Enberg (broadcaster). Jim Edmonds will have to wait for the Veterans Committee. Founder-owner Gene Autry is not in, but should be. All but Guerrero played for them under the "California Angels" name.

Baltimore Orioles, AA & NL 1882-1899, 6: John McGraw, Wilbert Robinson, Hughie Jennings, Willie Keeler, Joe Kelley, Ned Hanlon (manager).

While McGraw, Robinson and Jennings were all elected as managers, all could have been elected on the basis of their playing for the old Orioles. Indeed, to this day, McGraw has the highest lifetime batting average of any 3rd baseman, .334. Dan Brouthers played 2 seasons with them, the 1894 and '95 Pennant seasons, but can't be counted with them.

St. Louis Browns, 6: Bobby Wallace, George Sisler, Rogers Hornsby (also managed them), Rick Ferrell, Branch Rickey (executive), Bill Veeck (owner).

Rube Waddell, Goose Goslin, Heinie Manush and Satchel Paige just miss, each having played 3 seasons for the Browns. That was also the length of time that Veeck owned the team, but since he (and his one-at-bat midget Eddie Gaedel) are now the people most identified with this team, I'm bending the rule for him.

Pittsburgh Crawfords (Negro Leagues), 5: Oscar Charleston, Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson, James "Cool Papa" Bell, WIlliam "Judy" Johnson.

20. Texas Rangers, 5: Ferguson Jenkins, Gaylord Perry, Nolan Ryan, Ivan Rodrgiuez. Eric Nadel (broadcaster). Bert Blyleven pitched just 2 seasons for them. Rafael Palmeiro and Juan Gonzalez are eligible, but who's kidding who? No, you can't count Ted Williams as a manager. And I sure hope former owner George W. Bush is never elected; but, since the team won nothing while he was in control, that seems safe.

21. Minnesota Twins, 5: Harmon Killebrew, Rod Carew, Bert Blyleven, Kirby Puckett, Herb Carneal (broadcaster).

Tom Kelly could be elected as a manager, but Tony Oliva seems unlikely to ever be elected as a player, having missed in a recent Vets' Committee election by a single vote.

No, you can't count Dave Winfield, Paul Molitor, or, if he ever gets in, Jack Morris: Although hometown heroes, none played 4 seasons with the Twins. Jim Thome played only 2 seasons with them. Founder Calvin Griffith is not in, nor should he be.

22. Milwaukee Brewers, 5: Robin Yount, Paul Molitor, Rollie Fingers, Bud Selig (owner), Bob Uecker (broadcaster). No, you can't count Hank Aaron, because, while he played 14 seasons in Milwaukee, only 2 of those were for the Brewers.

23. Toronto Blue Jays, 5: Roberto Alomar, Roy Halladay, Pat Gillick (executive), Tom Cheek (broadcaster), Tony Kubek (broadcaster). No, you can't count Dave Winfield, Rickey Henderson, Paul Molitor or Frank Thomas. Or Roger Clemens, if he ever gets in.

Milwaukee Braves, 4: Warren Spahn, Eddie Matthews, Hank Aaron, Red Schoendienst. Joe Torre began his playing career with them, but can't be counted here.

Buffalo Bisons (NL 1879-1885), 4: Dan Brouthers, Jim "Orator" O'Rourke, James "Deacon" White, James "Pud" Galvin.

24. Seattle Mariners, 4: Edgar Martinez, Randy Johnson, Ken Griffey Jr., Pat Gillick (executive). If Lou Piniella is elected as a manager, I'll have to count him as a Mariner HOFer.

25. Kansas City Royals, 4: George Brett, Whitey Herzog (manager), John Schuerholz (executive), Denny Matthews (broadcaster). Founder-owner Ewing Kauffman, surprisingly, is not in.

Lincoln Giants/Brooklyn Royal Giants (Negro Leagues), 3: Louis Santop, Smokey Joe Williams, John Henry "Pop" Lloyd. Imagine that, a Brooklyn team called the Giants. What the heck, from 1944 to 1948, the NFL had a Boston Yanks (defunct); and, in the 1961-62 season, the NBA had a Chicago team called the Packers (today's Washington Wizards).

Cuban Giants (Negro Leagues, based in New York), 3: Frank Grant, Sol White, Pete Hill. Unlike the later Cuban Stars and New York Cubans, both also based in New York, this 1880s-90s team had no Cubans: They were called "Cuban" so their all-black roster would be better accepted. Grant has been called the best black player of the 19th Century.

Detroit Stars (Negro Leagues), 3: Pete Hill, Andy Cooper, Norman "Turkey" Stearnes. Stearnes now has a statue at Comerica Park, alongside several Tiger greats.

Indianapolis ABCs (Negro Leagues), 3: Oscar Charleston, Ben Taylor, James "Biz" Mackey (also managed them). A later team, the Indianapolis Clowns, was the first professional team of Hank Aaron.

Philadelphia Giants (Negro Leagues), 3: Sol White, Pete Hill, John Henry "Pop" Lloyd.

Philadelphila Hilldale (Negro Leagues), 3: Martin DiHigo, James "Biz" Mackey (also managed them), William "Judy" Johnson.

St. Louis Stars (Negro Leagues), 3: George "Mule" Suttles, James "Cool Papa" Bell, Willie Wells.

Cuban Stars (Negro Leagues, based in New York), 3: Jose Mendez, Martin Dihigo, Alex Pompez (owner).

Providence Grays (NL 1878-1885), 2: John Montgomery Ward, Charlie "Old Hoss" Radbourn. Their 1879 Pennant was managed by original 1869 Cincinnati Red Stocking George Wright, but he only played with them for 2 seasons.

Cleveland Spiders (NL, 1887-1899), 2: Cy Young and Jesse Burkett.

Detroit Wolverines (NL, 1881-1888), 2: Sam Thompson, Ned Hanlon (elected as a manager but played 8 seasons for them). Dan Brouthers and Deacon White played 3 seasons for them.

26. Miami Marlins, 2: Felo Ramirez and Dave Van Horne (both broadcasters). Ivan Rodriguez was only a Marlin for 1 season, although it was a World Championship season. If Gary Sheffield gets in, he can be counted as a Marlin, but I don't think he's getting in. No, you can't count Miami native Andre Dawson, although he did close his career with the club and is now working in their front office. So is Tony Perez, who briefly managed the team, but you can't count him, either.

Baltimore Black Sox (Negro Leagues), 2: Jud Wilson, Ben Taylor. This team is not to be confused with the Elite Giants.

Washington/Baltimore Elite Giants (Negro Leagues), 2: James "Biz" Mackey (also manager), Roy Campanella. And that's pronounced EE-light, not the usual Eh-LEET.

Birmingham Black Barons (Negro Leagues), 2: George "Mule" Suttles, Satchel Paige. Willie Mays played his first professional season, 1948, for the Black Barons, but only that 1 season, so he can't be counted here.

Kansas City Stars (Negro Leagues), 2: James "Cool Papa" Bell, Willard Brown.

New York Cubans (Negro Leagues), 2: Martin DiHigo, Alex Pompez. Although DiHigo and Pompez were also involved with the Cuban Stars, and that team was also based in New York, it was not the same team as the New York Cubans. Like several of the Negro League owners, Pompez got some funding from the black organized crime bosses of the era, and eventually turned state's evidence to avoid prison. He later worked as an unofficial scout for the New York/San Francisco Giants, helping to sign Hispanic stars like Orlando Cepeda, Juan Marichal, and the Alou brothers.

Philadelphia Stars (Negro Leagues), 2: James "Biz" Mackey (also manager), Jud Wilson.

27. Arizona Diamondbacks, 1: Randy Johnson. If Curt Schilling gets in, he can be counted with them.

28. Washington Nationals, 1: Frank Robinson, their 1st manager, was already in the Hall long before MLB returned to D.C., but he did manage for them for 5 years, 1 more than my rules require. But you can't count the HOFers from this franchise's previous incarnation, the Montreal Expos.

Bacharach Giants (Negro Leagues), 1: John Henry "Pop" Lloyd.  This team played its home games in Atlantic City, and were named for Harry Bacharach, who was that city's Mayor on and off from 1912 to 1935. He was played by John Rue on the TV series "Boardwalk Empire." Lloyd stayed in Atlantic City after he retired, died there, and a youth baseball facility there is named for him.

Harrisburg Giants (Negro Leagues), 1: Oscar Charleston.

San Antonio Black Bronchos (Negro Leagues, pronounced like Broncos), 1: Smokey Joe Williams.

29. Tampa Bay Rays, none: If Fred McGriff gets in, he can be counted with them. Wade Boggs cannot. Nor, if he is ever elected as a manager, can Lou Piniella.

30. Colorado Rockies, none: If Larry Walker gets in, he can be counted with them.

Kansas City Athletics, none: No player in the Hall of Fame was with the A's in their K.C. tenure for at least 4 seasons.

Dallas' All-Time Baseball Team

The Texas League featured the Dallas Eagles and the Fort Worth Cats, before 1965 when Turnpike Stadium was built in Arlington, and became home to the Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs. It seated 10,000, with room for expansion, in the hope of landing a moving major league team.

After failing to convince Charlie Finley to move the Kansas City Athletics there (before he eventually moved them to Oakland for 1968), Turnpike Stadium was expanded to 20,000 in 1970. With the announcement that the "new" Washington Senators were coming, under the Texas Rangers name, it was expanded to 35,000 in 1972, renamed Arlington Stadium, before a final expansion to 43,000 in 1978.

The new stadium, previously known as "The Ballpark in Arlington" and Ameriquest Field before the insurance company bearing that name went to the last roundup, opened in 1994, right next to Arlington Stadium, which was demolished. The new ballpark hosted the All-Star Game in 1995 and the Rangers' home games in the 1996, '98 and '99 American League Division Series -- all of them won by the Yankees.

This was before the Rangers won the AL West in 2010 and finally beat the Yankees in the AL Championship Series, but lost 2010 and '11 World Series (the latter in crushing fashion), and choking away the 2012 AL West title.

23. Dallas' All-Time Baseball Team

This is a powerful team, with Hall-of-Famers at every position but 1st base (and even that comes pretty close), and 1st base and the outfield are particularly deep. The pitching is quite strong, with 2 starters whose careers were sadly cut short, but one made the Hall of Fame anyway and the other could have. It also includes the former all-time saves leader.

For all players mentioned below, their hometowns are in the State of Texas, unless otherwise specified.

1B Joe Carter of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He starred for the San Diego Padres and Cleveland Indians before becoming a 5-time All-Star with the Toronto Blue Jays, hitting 396 home runs with 10 100-RBI seasons. In 1992, he caught the final out as the Jays won the World Series. He was also involved in the final play of the 1993 World Series, hitting a home run off Mitch Williams to take the Jays from a 6-5 deficit against the Philadelphia Phillies to an 8-6 win in Game 6 to clinch.

Baseball-Reference.com has him at 87 on its Hall of Fame Monitor, where a "Likely HOFer" is at 100; and a 32 on its Hall of Fame Standards, where the "Average HOFer" is at 50, so he'll probably never make it. But you'd have to be a Phillies fan who still hasn't gotten over '93 to not like Joe Carter. The Jays have only retired one number to date (Roberto Alomar's 12), but Carter's Number 29 is on their "Level of Excellence," a sort of combined Jays and CFL Toronto Argonauts hall of fame on the luxury boxes of the Rogers Centre.

Honorable Mention to Norm Cash of Post. He was a rookie on the 1959 American League Pennant-winning Chicago White Sox, but general manager Frank Lane then traded him to the Detroit Tigers for Steve Demeter.

Bone. Head. Trade. Stormin' Norman became a 4-time All-Star for the Tigers, winning the batting title with a .361 average in 1961 (he later admitted to having corked his bat that season) and helping them win the 1968 World Series, also coming close in 1961, '67 and '72. He finished with 377 home runs and a career OPS+ of 139. Sadly, he drowned in a boating accident near Detroit in 1986, shortly before his 52nd birthday.

Honorable Mention to Mike Hargrove of Perryton. Actually, Perryton is at the northernmost edge of the Texas Panhandle, almost exactly halfway between Dallas and Denver, so, theoretically, I could have made him the manager of the Colorado Rockies' all-time regional team. But his ties to the Rangers solidify his case for this team.

He was the AL Rookie of the Year in 1974, and an All-Star for the Rangers and Indians, batting .290 lifetime. Unfortunately, as a player, he is best remembered for all his fidgeting with his equipment at the plate, giving him the nickname "the Human Rain Delay."

He is also the manager of this team, leading the Indians to Pennants in 1995 and 1997, making him the only living human ever to do so. (Tris Speaker in 1920, Lou Boudreau in 1948 and Al Lopez in 1954 are all dead.) He managed the Tribe to the AL Central Division title 5 straight seasons, 1995 to '99. He later managed the Baltimore Orioles and Seattle Mariners, and is now a special advisor in the Indians' front office.

Honorable Mention to Chris Davis of Longview. He just turned 28, but the Oriole made his 1st All-Star team last season, leading the AL in home runs with 53 and RBIs with 138, finishing 3rd in the AL Most Valuable Player voting. His career OPS+ is 120, and the Rangers are going to look dumber and dumber for dumping him after 3 injury-plagued seasons that he definitely seems to have shaken off.

2B Rogers Hornsby of Fort Worth. He was a rotten person: A grouch, a snob, a member of the Ku Klux Klan, and on more than one occasion was nearly suspended from baseball due to his compulsive gambling. And, as it turned out, Rogers Hornsby the manager was lousy when he didn't have Rogers Hornsby the player in anything resembling his prime.

He may also have been the greatest right-handed hitter who ever lived. He batted .358. For his career. That's 2nd all-time behind Ty Cobb, and 1st among righthanders and among players who played mainly in the National League. He averaged .402 from 1921 to 1925. That's (roughly) 2 hits in every 5 at-bats for 5 years. In 1924, he set a 20th Century record (or just one for the NL, depending on whose stats you believe) with a .424 average. He won the Triple Crown in 1922 and 1925, along with Ted Williams one of only 2 men to do it twice (and the only one to do it in the NL).

In 1926, he was the player-manager for the World Champion St. Louis Cardinals. But he could never get along with management anywhere, and was immediately traded to the New York Giants for All-Star Frankie Frisch. It was a great trade for the Cards, and it might've been a great one for the Giants, if they could have hung onto him. Except Hornsby didn't let anyone tell him what to do, not even John McGraw, the imperious manager of the Giants. He did win 2 more Pennants, with the 1929 and 1932 Chicago Cubs.

He didn't quite make it to the 3,000 Hit Club, finishing with 2,930. But he had a career OPS+ of a staggering 175. He hit 301 home runs, 3rd all-time behind Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig at the time he retired, and 1st among NLers.

He was elected to the Hall of Fame and the All-Century Team -- keeping in mind that, when the ACT was voted on in 1999, he'd had his last good season 68 years earlier, played his last game 62 years earlier, and had been dead for 36 years, so hardly anybody who voted had seen him play, and he didn't live long enough to give a comprehensive interview in the age of baseball nostalgia. Also in that year, when The Sporting News announced its 100 Greatest Baseball Players, he came in at Number 9.

He played most of his career before uniform numbers were worn, and, as a result, the modern Cardinals have honored him on the retired-number display of the wall at the new Busch Stadium with a representation of their "STL" logo instead of a number, instead of the only number he actually wore in a Cardinal uniform, in a return to them in 1933, which was Number 4. (He also wore that number with the St. Louis Browns.)

SS Ernie Banks of Dallas. Dallas gets insanely hot in the summer, so Chicago's summers must've seemed cool to him by comparison, enabling him to say, "It's a beautiful day for a ballgame, let's play two!" He was the NL MVP with the Cubs in 1958 and '59, even though they were in the second division. He hit 512 home runs for his career, still the honest record in Chicago. (Sammy Sosa hit 545 as a Cub, and 28 as a White Sock, but in a city noted for official corruption, his homers fit in a lot better than Ernie's.)

He labored so long and so hard to bring Cub fans a Pennant, only getting close in 1969 and '70. (People forget the Cubs actually finished closer in '70, mainly because they finished 2nd to Pittsburgh, not to New York.)

Despite the achievements of Michael Jordan, Walter Payton and Bobby Hull, "Mr. Cub," now 83 years old, remains the most popular athlete in Chicago history -- among Chicagoans, anyway. Hall of Fame, All-Century Team, and his Number 14 was the 1st retired by either Chicago ballclub. When The Sporting News announced its 100 Greatest Baseball Players in 1999, he came in at Number 38.

3B Brooks Robinson of Little Rock, Arkansas. Until Cal Ripken Jr., Brooksie was the most popular athlete in Baltimore history, even more so than Johnny Unitas. He won 16 Gold Gloves. In a row. And gained himself one of the great nicknames, for the way he sucked up grounders and liners: The Human Vacuum Cleaner.

He won Pennants with the Orioles in 1966, '69, '70 and '71, winning the World Series in '66 and '70 (Series MVP in the latter). A 15-time All-Star, and not just for his fielding: He collected 2,848 hits, including 482 doubles and 268 home runs, despite playing his home games in Baltimore's Memorial Stadium.

He went on to become a broadcaster, in effect Baltimore's answer to Phil Rizzuto and Richie Ashburn, although he was a better all-around player than either one of them.  He was named to the Hall of Fame and the All-Century Team. His Number 5 was retired, and he and Frank Robinson were the 1st 2 inductees into the Orioles Hall of Fame. (Frank was born in Texas, but grew up in Oakland, California, and is thus eligible for the A's regional all-time team, not the Rangers'. This is also true of Willie Stargell and Joe Morgan.) When The Sporting News announced its 100 Greatest Baseball Players in 1999, he came in at Number 80.

Honorable Mention to Travis Jackson of Waldo, Arkansas. A lifetime .291 hitter, he played on 4 Pennant winners for the New York Giants, including winning the 1933 World Series. He might not have been an obvious choice for the Hall of Fame, but he's in.

LF Lou Brock of Monroe, Louisiana. While Luis Aparicio, Nellie Fox and Maury Wills reawakened interest in baserunning, Brock took it to another level. He was a better runner than Aparicio and Fox, and better at everything else than Wills.

He set major league records, which still stand as NL records, with 118 stolen bases in a season (1974) and 938 in a career. Lifetime batting average .293, 3,023 hits including 486 doubles, and might have had a lot more than 149 home runs if he'd played most of his career at the last Sportsman's Park (a.k.a. the 1st Busch Stadium) with its 310-foot right-field fence, instead of the spacious Busch Stadium II.

He won World Series with the Cardinals in 1964 and '67, and nearly again in '68. In '67, he became 1 of only 3 players (Bobby Richardson in '64 and Marty Barrett in '86 are the others) to collect 13 hits in a single Series, and stole a record 7 bases in the '67 Series and again in '68.

He was elected to the Hall of Fame, his Number 20 was retired, and has a statue outside Busch Stadium III (previously outside Busch II) dedicated by the Cardinals. When The Sporting News announced its 100 Greatest Baseball Players in 1999, he came in at Number 58.

Dishonorable Mention to Albert Jojuan Belle of Shreveport, Louisiana. Known first as "Joey" and then, after angry protests, as Albert, he brings to mind what Sparky Lyle said about Thurman Munson: "(He's) not moody, he's just mean. When you're moody, you're nice sometimes." And yet, he was an Eagle Scout as a boy.

His lifetime batting average is .295, his OPS+ is a mighty 143, he hit 381 homers including 50 in the strike-truncated 1995 season, and had 9 straight 100-RBI seasons with a peak of 152 in 1998, leading the AL 3 times. He made 5 All-Star teams, finished 3rd in AL MVP voting in '94 and '96 and 2nd in '95, as he helped the Indians win a Pennant.

But his anger issues hurt his reputation, and a hip injury ended his career in 2000, at age 32 -- despite batting .281 with 23 homers and 103 RBI that year. He hit a home run in his last major-league at-bat, and among all players who've done that, only Ted Williams hit more career homers. Baseball-Reference.com's Hall of Fame Monitor has him at 135 to 100, and their Hall of Fame Standards at 36 to 50. Another season or two at the same pace, and he might be in, even with his issues.

CF Tris Speaker of Hubbard. "The Grey Eagle" (always written as "Grey," never "Gray") was regarded as perhaps the greatest defensive outfielder in history until Joe DiMaggio came along, known for playing shallow enough to turn 6 unassisted double plays at 2nd base in his career. He would have been ideal for today's shifts on lefty hitters who won't hit to the opposite field.

And he was as good a hitter as anyone who played in the Dead Ball Era. In 1912, he had over 50 doubles and 50 stolen bases, a feat since matched only by Craig Biggio. He helped the Boston Red Sox win the World Series in 1912 and 1915, then refused to take a salary cut when his batting average dropped, yes, dropped, to .322.

So the Sox traded him to the Indians, and although they also won the Series in 1916 and 1918, this was one of the dumbest trades ever. Speaker became player-manager of the Indians and won the 1920 World Series, also finishing 2nd to the Yankees in 1921, '23 and '26.

He had to resign as Indians manager, and Ty Cobb as Tigers manager, after the 1926 season because they were accused of colluding to fix games; however, when the main witness against them didn't show up at the hearing, they were allowed to remain in the game, but both retired as players 2 years later. Thanks to playing at the same time and in the same League as Cobb, Shoeless Joe Jackson and George Sisler, he only won 1 batting title, in 1916, but (probably unbeknownst to him, as the category wasn't well-known then) he led the AL in on-base percentage 4 times.

He batted .345 lifetime, with 3,515 hits, 2nd all-time to Cobb upon his retirement and still 5th. His 792 doubles (some sources say 793) and 449 outfield assists make him the all-time leader in those categories. Career OPS+ of a whopping 157.

He was elected to the Hall of Fame in its 2nd election in 1937. In 1947, despite (as was Hornsby) having once been a member of the Klan, Speaker accepted an appointment from new Indians manager Bill Veeck to coach Larry Doby, the AL's first black player, on how to play center field, which he hadn't played before. Speaker would assist other black players on the Indians as well, showing no outward signs of racism, and earning praise for this from Doby in his Hall of Fame induction speech.

As an Indians coach, Speaker wore Number 43, and while that number has not been retired by the team, they have honored him with a plaque in their Heritage Park at Progressive Field. When The Sporting News announced its 100 Greatest Baseball Players in 1999, he came in at Number 27, even though he'd played his last game 71 years earlier.

Honorable Mention of Lloyd Waner of Harrah, Oklahoma, who along with his brother Paul forms one of only 2 brother combinations in the Hall of Fame (the others being pioneers Harry and George Wright, the Wright Brothers who invented professional baseball rather than the airplane).

Some people say Lloyd doesn't deserve to be in the Hall, and B-R.com backs them up: 86 out of 100 on their HOF Monitor, 31 of 50 on their HOF Standards. But he wasn't that far behind HOF quality: He batted .316 lifetime, and had 2,459 hits. He also struck out 173 times. In his entire 18-year career. (For perspective: The aforementioned Chris Davis struck out 199 times last year alone, and 169 times the year before.) And, like his brother Paul, he helped the Pittsburgh Pirates win the NL Pennant in 1927, and nearly again in 1938.

Honorable Mention to Bobby Murcer of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, who wasn't "the next Mickey Mantle" but was something beloved anyway. Beyond his role as a Yankee broadcaster and de facto club ambassador, he was a 5-time All-Star, and had a 124 OPS+. He led the AL in slugging in 1971, and in runs and total bases in 1972. He hit 252 home runs, despite missing 2 early seasons (1967 and '68) serving in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War (although not in combat).

Although he helped the Yankees get close to the Playoffs in 1972, '73 and '74, and then went to San Francisco and Chicago before being brought back, he did help the Yankees win the AL East in 1980 and the Pennant in 1981. He wore Number 1 the first time around, and it is retired, although for Billy Martin. He wore Number 2 the second time around, and it will be retired, although for Derek Jeter.

Honorable Mention to Torii Hunter of Pine Bluff, Arkansas. One of the best glove men of his generation, he was nicknamed Spider-Man because of his ability to climb walls to make catches, including one of a Barry Bonds drive in the 2002 All-Star Game that is his signature moment. He's made 4 All-Star teams, won 9 Gold Gloves, has a 111 OPS+, 443 doubles, 314 homers, and 8 seasons of at least 90 RBIs (twice reaching 100 and just missing another).

He helped the Minnesota Twins win the AL Central in 2002, '03, '04 and '06, and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim the AL West in 2008 and '09. He turns 39 this season, and comes off a year with the Detroit Tigers in which he batted .304, hit 17 homers and had 84 RBIs, on route to the AL Central title and the ALCS.

Honorable Mention to Matt Kemp of Midwest City, Oklahoma. Only 29 years old, "the Bison" (one of the few really good nicknames in baseball these days) is one of the top players in the game at the moment. Already with 2 All-Star berths, 2 Gold Gloves, a .293 lifetime batting average, a 126 OPS+, and 157 home runs despite playing his entire career at pitcher-friendly Dodger Stadium. He led the NL with 39 homers and 126 RBIs in 2011, and has now led them to 3 NL West titles. This could be a future Hall-of-Famer.

By the way, if you're seeing these Oklahoma players, and remembering that Mickey Mantle was from Oklahoma, and that he lived his off-season life in Dallas, and wondering why I haven't mentioned him here, it's because his hometown of Commerce was in the northeastern corner of the Sooner State, which puts him in the Kansas City market, not the Dallas one.

RF Paul Waner of Harrah, Oklahoma. A reporter from Brooklyn called Paul and his brother Lloyd "a big person and a little person." Another reporter overheard this, in the Brooklyn reporter's accent, and started calling them "Big Poison" and "Little Poison." Except that Paul was 5-foot-8 and 153 pounds, and Lloyd was 5-foot-9 albeit roughly the same weight

Unlike Lloyd, there is no doubt about Paul's HOF credentials: He was the NL MVP in the Pennant-winning 1927 season (he came up in '26 and missed out on the Bucs' '25 World Championship), he had a .333 BA, a 134 OPS+, 3 batting titles and 3,152 hits (the only player to crack the 3,000 barrier between 1925 and 1958), including 605 doubles -- 62 in 1932, an NL record until broken by Joe Medwick 4 years later and not surpassed since.

He had 5 seasons batting .360 or above. He was the NL's starting right fielder in the 1st 3 All-Star Games. The Pirates retired his Number 11 -- but have not retired Lloyd's Number 10. When The Sporting News announced its 100 Greatest Baseball Players in 1999, he came in at Number 62.

Honorable Mention to Willard Brown of Shreveport, Louisiana, a powerful slugger who starred in the Negro Leagues for the Kansas City Monarchs in the 1930s and '40s, before playing 21 games in the majors, all with the St. Louis Browns in 1947. For his Negro League contributions, he is in the Hall of Fame, included in that making-up-for-lost-time election of 2006.

Honorable Mention to Hunter Pence of Arlington. He's about to turn 31, but he's already got a 120 OPS+, made 2 All-Star teams, and hit 165 home runs. He now plays for the San Francisco Giants, having helped them win the 2012 World Series after getting to the postseason the year before with the Philadelphia Phillies.

C Johnny Bench of Binger, Oklahoma.  He was the NL Rookie of the Year in 1968, and its MVP in 1970 and '72. He won NL Pennants in '70 and '72, and the World Series in '75 (he was named Series MVP) and '76. His 389 homers made him the all-time leader among catchers until passed by Carlton Fisk.

His manager on the Reds, Sparky Anderson, may not have been intentionally slighting Thurman Munson by saying this after the '76 Series, in which Munson got hits in his last 6 at-bats but Bench hit 2 homers in the Game 4 clincher, but, insulting or not, Sparky had a point: "Don't ever embarrass anybody by comparing them to Johnny Bench."

Late in his career, he hosted the kids' TV series The Baseball Bunch as a warmup act for NBC's Saturday Game of the Week. He was named to the Hall of Fame and the All-Century Team. The Reds have retired his Number 5. When The Sporting News announced its 100 Greatest Baseball Players in 1999, he came in at Number 16 -- the highest-ranking catcher, and the highest-ranking Oklahoman, ahead of Mantle.

Honorable Mention to Sherm Lollar of Durham, Arkansas. A 9-time All-Star, he was the catcher for the 1959 "Go-Go White Sox," Chicago's only Pennant-winner from 1945 to 2005.

Honorable Mention to Louis Santop of Tyler. Because he played before the founding of the original Negro National League, he was sort of lost by history, before the 2006 Hall of Fame election to find great black players from the pre-Jackie Robinson era who were deserving of a long-overdue election. Starring in both Philadelphia and New York, he appears to have been one of the most sensational hitters of the 1910s and '20s, black or white.

Whether he was as good as Negro League catchers Biz Mackey and Josh Gibson, let alone Negro Leaguer-turned-big-leaguer Roy Campanella, or big leaguers such as the aforementioned Bench, we may never know. But he's in the Hall, and he should have been in decades before.

SP Jay Hanna “Dizzy” Dean of Lucas, Arkansas, born in 1910. Or is that Jerome Herman Dean of Hodgenville, Oklahoma, born in 1911? Or was he born in Jackson, Mississippi in 1912? (The first set of name, birthplace and year of birth is officially, legally true.) One time-honored story is that Dean gave conflicting information to 3 different reporters, in quick succession, as to his name and birthplace. A teammate questioned him about that, and he answered, "I wanted to give each of them fellers an exclusive story!"

He reached the Cardinals' rotation in 1932, along with his brother Paul, known as Daffy Dean (who, unlike Diz, was not particularly odd and hated his nickname). In 1934, Diz said, "Me an' Paul are gonna win 50 games this season." He was almost right: Diz won 30 (losing only 7) and Daff won 19, leading the "Gashouse Gang" to the Pennant. Then Diz said, "Me an' Paul are gonna win this here World Series." He was completely right: Not only did he and Paul each win 2 games of the Series, but Diz pitched a shutout against the mighty Tigers in Game 7.

He remained, with Carl Hubbell and Satchel Paige, one of the 3 best pitchers on the planet, until the 1937 All-Star Game, when he took a line drive off his toe (supposedly telling the doctor, "Fractured, hell, the damn thing's broken!"), and began to favor the toe by changing his motion, thus wrecking his elbow. Despite a favorable trade to the Cubs in 1938 and a memorable "last stand" against the Yankees in Game 2 of that year's World Series, Diz was done after the 1941 season, only 31 years old. (He made a one-game comeback in 1947, which is a hell of a story.)

Although injury limited him to 150 wins, he lost only 83 for a .644 winning percentage. ERA+, 131. "Only" 1,163 strikeouts, and never topped 200 in a season, but led the NL 4 times. Hall of Fame, Number 17 retired and a statue dedicated by the Cards, and since he lived his adult life in Mississippi, a Dizzy Dean Museum was built next to Smith-Wills Stadium in the State capital of Jackson, now a part of the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame. When The Sporting News announced its 100 Greatest Baseball Players in 1999, he came in at Number 85.

He went on to become a legendary broadcaster, mangling syntax and pronunciations. A teacher wrote him a letter, saying he shouldn't use the word "ain't" on the air, because children would copy him. He said, on the air, "Teach, a lot o' folks that ain't sayin' 'ain't' ain't eatin'. So you learn 'em English, and I'll learn 'em baseball." I wonder if, while growing up in St. Louis, Yogi Berra's speech was affected by listening to Diz call Cards and Browns games?

Diz was the Terry Bradshaw of his time: A great athlete turned star pundit of his sport, and since people already thought of him as a dumb, even "dizzy" redneck, he decided to use it to his advantage. "The Good Lord was good to me," Diz said. "He gave me a strong right arm and a weak mind."

SP Lon Warneke of Mount Ida, Arkansas. While Diz was the ace of the Cards, "the Arkansas Hummingbird" was the ace of the Cubs, pitching them to Pennants in 1932, '35 and '38 -- including '35 when the Cubs won 20 straight games, most since 1916 (since tied by the 2002 A's), and caught the Gashouse Gang for 1st. The Cubs lost the Series to the Tigers in 6, but both of their wins had Warneke as the winning pitcher. Strangely, he was traded to the Cards in '37 and became Diz' teammate, although only for a year or so; effectively, if not officially, Diz and Lon were traded for each other.

He finished his career 192-121 for .613, an ERA+ of 119. He's not in the Hall of Fame, but according to Baseball-Reference, of his 10 most statistically similar pitchers, 4 are: Jack Chesbro, Dazzy Vance, Stan Coveleski and Bob Lemon; 2 others should be, Urban Shocker and Carl Mays; and the other 4 aren't that far off, Art Nehf, Dave McNally, Mike Cuellar and Jimmy Key.

SP Allie Reynolds of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. I thought about cheating a little with Allie, because while he was a great starter, Yankee manager Casey Stengel frequently used him in relief. If he’d been born later, and reached the majors in the 1970s onward, instead of being born in 1917 and reaching the majors in 1942, he probably would have been one of the greatest relievers ever, because he had the speed and the guts for it.

He played on 6 Yankee World Championship teams: 1947, '49, '50, '51, '52 and '53. He formed the "Big Three" with fellow righthanded fireballer Vic Raschi and lefty junkballer Steady Eddie Lopat. He went 182-107 for his career, and while he only won 20 once (in 1952), he also saved 49 games in his career. Of those 182 wins, 36 were shutouts, and 2 were no-hitters, both in 1951, the latter a Pennant-clincher against the Red Sox.

He went 7-2 in World Series play, including a 1-0 duel against Don Newcombe in Game 1 in '49, and 3 clinchers: Game 5 in '49, Game 4 in '50, and Game 7 in relief in '52. Had Casey left him as a starter, he would've had well over 200 wins and he'd be in the Hall of Fame.

The Yankees have honored him with a Plaque in Monument Park, although his Number 22 remains in circulation. His alma mater, Oklahoma State University (known as Oklahoma A&M until 1958), named their baseball stadium after him. Due to his Creek heritage, he was called "the Indian," "the Big Indian," and "the Superchief," which was also a reference to his fastball and the fast Chicago-to-Los Angeles train of the same name on the Santa Fe Railroad, which went through his home State.

He was also responsible for negotiating the first players' pension fund. This he did not have to do, since investing in Oklahoma oil made him richer than most players, and enabled him to retire following a 1954 back injury, only 37, since he didn't need baseball income anymore. So for him to help out his fellow players like that makes him a bigger hero than most players of his era.

SP Johnny Sain of Havana, Arkansas. In 1948, the Boston Braves won the Pennant, their last until moving to Milwaukee, with a superb rotation, with Sain, Warren Spahn, Vernon Bickford and Bill Voiselle. Both Bickford and Voiselle had better ERAs than Spahn that year, but Gerald V. Hern of the Boston Post coined the phrase "Spahn and Sain and two days of rain." (It's frequently been incorrectly printed as "Spahn and Sain and pray for rain." In 1999, Dan Shaughnessy of the Boston Globe would say the Red Sox rotation should be "Pedro and Lowe and three days of snow.")

Sain was later traded to the Yankees, and won the World Series with them in 1952 and '53. As with Reynolds, Casey used him as a reliever, and he led the AL with 22 saves in 1954, a big total for that era. Sain went on to become one of the best pitching coaches ever, winning Pennants with the Yankees in 1961, '62 and '63, and with the '65 Minnesota Twins and the '68 Tigers.

SP Vida Blue of Mansfield, Louisiana. He made his major league debut on July 20, 1969, the day of the 1st Moon walk, although it would be his Oakland Athletics teammate, Johnny Odom, who would (for a reason that escapes me) be known as Blue Moon. In 1971, Vida Blue had one of the most sensational years any pitcher has had in the Divisional Play Era (which is also the post-1968, 10-inch-high pitcher's mound era), going 24-8 with a 1.82 ERA and a 0.952 WHIP, to win both the AL Cy Young Award and MVP.

(This led to a trick question: Who was the last switch-hitter to win the MVP? People who asked that tended to forget that Pete Rose was a switcher, or that he won the NL MVP in '73. Five have done it since, most recently Jimmy Rollins.)

Then Blue demanded a big raise, which was a bad idea, as he pitched for the A's while they were owned by Charlie Finley. He held out for a while, and went 6-10 in '72. But he won 77 for them in the next 6 years, as he helped them with the 1972, '73 and '74 World Series. In 1978, 2 years after his sale of Blue to the Yankees for $1.5 million was vetoed by Commissioner Bowie Kuhn, Finley finally traded him, across the Bay to the San Francisco Giants, and he went 18-10. He was 28 and had a nice career record of 142-96.

Then cocaine began to take its toll, and not only would he never again top 14 wins in a season, but he would miss the 1984 season due to prison and suspension. In 1986, at 36, he was done: 209-161. On Baseball-Reference's HOF Monitor, he's at 114 of 100; on its HOF Standards, 35 of 50; of the 10 Most Similar, only 3 are in. (Catfish Hunter, Hal Newhouser and Don Drysdale. The others, all good but not quite good enough for Cooperstown, were Billy Pierce, Orel Hershiser, Bob Welch, Milt Pappas, Luis Tiant, Kevin Brown and Bucky Walters. At his peak, Blue was better than any of those 7 except maybe Hershiser in '88.) What a waste, but he has spent his post-playing days in charitable causes, and promotes youth baseball in the Bay Area.

Honorable Mention to Lynwood “Schoolboy” Rowe of El Dorado, Arkansas. He won 62 games for the Tigers from 1934 to '36, and opposed Dean in the '34 Series (lost) and Warneke in the '35 Series (won). An injury at age 27 curtailed his career, but he still went 16-3 for the Pennant-winning Tigers in 1940, and 14-8 and 11-4 for weak Phillies teams later in the Forties, hanging on until age 39. He went 158-101 for his career.

Honorable Mention to Cliff Lee of Benton. Now 35, he's had a very inconsistent career. His record currently stands at 139-86, but 18-5 of that was in 2005, 22-3 of it in 2008. Take out that 40-8, and he's 99-78, not especially noteworthy. His ERA+ is a neat 119, his WHIP a nifty 1.189. He's a 4-time All-Star, and won the 2008 AL Cy Young.

He reached the postseason with the Phillies in 2009 and '11, and the Rangers in '10, but was not placed on the postseason roster by the Indians in '07 -- meaning that, just 1 year before he went 22-3, he wasn't good enough to help them win the 1 more game they would've needed in the ALCS to win the Pennant.

Clearly, there's reasons why 4 different teams have acquired him (including the Phillies twice) -- but there's also got to be a reason why 4 different teams have let him go (including the Phillies once). Also, it should be noted that, despite playing on 4 teams that reached the postseason in a span of 5 years, he hasn't won a World Series ring.

Honorable Mention to Clayton Kershaw of Highland Park. He just turned 26, but he might be the best starting pitcher in baseball today. He's won the last 3 NL ERA titles, including a miniscule 1.83 ERA last year; and he just missed winning the last 3 NL Cy Youngs. He's 77-46 for his career, has already led the NL in strikeouts twice, and has helped the Dodgers win 3 NL West titles. If he doesn't get hurt, he could be one of the best pitchers we'll ever see.

Very Honorable Mention to Andy Cooper of Waco. Another Negro Leaguer elected in the 2006 vote, he was one of those rare players who batted right but threw left. He starred for the Detroit Stars in the 1920s, and in the 1930s was both pitcher and manager of the Kansas City Monarchs -- which means he had to both share a rotation with and manage Satchel Paige. Unfortunately, a stroke ended his magnificent career and his life in 1941, at just 43 years old.

RP Lee Smith of Castor, Louisiana. The former all-time saves leader with 478, an ERA+ of 132, but only reached the postseason twice, with the 1984 Cubs (infamously giving up a walkoff homer to Steve Garvey in Game 4 of the NLCS) and the 1988 Red Sox (swept). He's eligible for the Hall of Fame, but with Trevor Hoffman and now Mariano Rivera having taken away his all-time saves leader status, I'm not sure he'll ever make it.

Honorable Mention to Fred "Firpo" Marberry of Streetman. Nicknamed for his resemblance to Luis Firpo, the Argentine boxer who nearly knocked out heavyweight champion Jack Dempsey at the Polo Grounds in 1923, he was one of the first real relief pitchers in the game.

The Washington Senator led the AL in games pitched 6 times, and, although it wasn't an official statistic yet, in saves 5 times, with a peak of 22 (then a record) in 1926. He helped the Senators win their only World Championship in 1924 and another Pennant in 1925. In 1929, pitching as both a starter and a reliever for a Senator team that won only 71 games, he went 19-12. He helped the Tigers win a Pennant in 1934 and a World Series in 1935. His career record was 148-88, and his 101 saves were a record upon his 1936 retirement.

Honorable Mention to Lindy McDaniel of Hollis, Oklahoma. A career save total of 172 isn't all that impressive these days, but he led the NL 3 times, with the Cardinals and Cubs. His 987 appearances once made him 2nd on the all-time list to Hoyt Wilhelm, and in 1973 he went 12-6 with 10 saves for the Yankees.

Then he got traded to the Kansas City Royals for Lou Piniella, and it was a great trade: McDaniel was pretty much done but was able to be an extra pitching coach for the Royals' bright young staff, and if you're a Yankee Fan then you know what Sweet Lou did.