greatest defensive left fielders of all time greatest defensive left fielders of all time

This week, we bring you the top 10 at each position, starting in the outfield. And without further ado, our list of the greatest defensive outfielders of all time, sorted by era: Tris Speaker (1907-1928) Ty Cobb (1905-1928) Fielder Jones (1896-1908) MLB's 10 Greatest Left Fielders of All Time Marcel Smith November 26, 2008 10. He will be eligible for Hall of Fame induction in 2017. 9 in 1983, and a sculpture of Minoso was unveiled at Guaranteed Rate Field in 2004. Bottom line: His dWar number is skewed by misspent time in center field. Players are evaluated on five criteria as the foundation of our rankings: We use Wins Above Replacement (WAR) as a basis for these calculations. Nationals top 5 >, Key fact: Hit .331/.445/.507 with 110 runs and 123 RBIs in 1910, Were considering Modern Era players (1900 and later), so Hall of Famers Ed Delahanty and Billy Hamilton aren't included in these rankings. Possessing a cannon for an arm, he terrified base runners with his pick off moves and laser throws to catch runners stealing. Having helped lead the Rangers to three division titles in four years (1996-99) with a .315/.398/.502 batting line and 80 home runs, Greer gets the edge. The. Elegance personified on the field of play. The Hall of Famer leads all Expos/Nationals players in offensive WAR (48.2), runs scored (947), singles (1,163), triples (82), walks (793), runs created (1,047), stolen bases (635), stolen base percentage (85.7) and win probability added (38.9). -- Kahrl, Teams 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? As his speed declined, his defense faded. Who would have bet he could do all that? Indians top 5 >. Join the discussion by using the #MLBRank hashtag, and follow along @BBTN and on Facebook. On Opening Day in 2010, the southpaw made a kick save on a shot up the middle, quickly ran down the ball in foul territory then executed a no-look, between-the-legs, glove-handed flip to first base for the out, the most insane, off-the-charts play by a pitcher in the history of history. Their consistency over baseballs grueling calendar has allowed them to be included among the greatest defensive players of all time. But he posted a .291/.357/.387 slash line across seven seasons, and he still ranks in the franchise's top five in batting average, runs, position-player WAR, hits, triples and stolen bases. -- Lauber, A seven-time All-Star who stole 808 bases, Raines also played in the majors with his son, Tim Jr. The Top 10 Boston Celtics of all Time. Mays is the all-time career leaders in putouts by an outfielder and games played by a center fielder. Bench was named to fourteen All-Star Games and earned ten Gold Glove Awards in his seventeen seasons in the majors. Is there a more fundamentally correct baseball player out there? 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. 1 overall pick in Aprils . And he pulled it off in only eight seasons as a regular. 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 William Felton Russell (February 12, 1934 - July 31, 2022) was an American professional basketball player who played as a center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1956 to 1969. His pitching credentials are some of the greatest of his era with 355 career wins, a 3.16 career ERA, and 3,371 career strikeouts. Ted Williams Carl Yastrzemski Willie Stargell Stan "The Man" Musial Luis Gonzalez Jim Rice Goose Goslin Moiss Alou Cleon Jones Gary Sheffield Mike Riley Lets also not forget how the "Little General" revolutionized the position with his hinged glove and one-handed technique. Yaz led all outfielders in assists seven times, total zone runs four times, and putouts as a left fielder four times. -- Caple, The last .400 hitter, decorated veteran, the pull hitter so great the shift couldn't stop him, Williams' legend as the patron saint of the art of hitting is unchallengeable. The adequate fielding was a bonus. Indeed, he turned the double play into an art form, sort of like a Mikhail Baryshnikovski in cleats. When he was the runner-up for the AL MVP Award in 1995, he led the AL with 121 runs scored and 126 RBIs and led the Majors with 50 homers, 52 doubles and a .690 slugging percentage. "Campy" had no weaknesses other than the assorted hurts that went with the position. Ichiro Suzuki Ichiro was the 2001 MVP, an All-Star 10 times, a Gold Glove winner 10 times, the winner of three Silver Slugger awards, and a batting title winner twice. FOR ST. LOUIS: 1,298 games (1,133 starts in CF) CARDINALS STATS:.280 BA, .739 OPS, 80 HR . The 18 greates Coaches in College Football History. I explained my methodology here, and weve previously looked at catchers, first-, second and third basemen, and shortstops. Maddux was an eight-time All-Star, four time NL Cy Young winner, and racked up an impressive eighteen Gold Glove Awards. 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). Teams: Cleveland Indians (1972-78), Texas Rangers (1979-85, 1989), Cincinnati Reds (1985-88), Houston Astros (1988). Quarterback Kirk Cousins and tight end Jordan Reed are dominating defenses.Their dominance keyed the 38-24 road win over the Philadelphia Eagles that . He played nearly 1,500 games in the field with nine different teams. Simmons remains the A's all-time leader in batting average (.356), RBIs (1,179), total bases (2,998) and extra-base hits (655). 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. Sometimes, it's a combination of all of the above. He also won the 1986 NL batting title, earned a Silver Slugger Award that year and was named to seven consecutive All-Star teams. Teams: Kansas City Royals (2004-10), Milwaukee Brewers (2011-12), Los Angeles Angels (2012), Los Angeles Dodgers (2013-15), Arizona Diamondbacks (2016-19), Houston Astros (2019-present). In baseball, the left fielder is a defensive position that is responsible for covering the left third of the outfield. Thatd be Sweet Swinging Billy Williams, who won the 1961 NL Rookie of the Year Award, made six All-Star teams, picked up a batting title (72), finished as the runner-up for the NL MVP twice and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1987. He is the all-time leader in defensive games and putouts among catchers. For his efforts he was the recipient of ten Gold Glove Awards and appeared in 12 All-Star Games. Thats right more than Ozzie Smith even. He was inducted into the Angels Hall of Fame in '16 and remains active with the organization. Carty stood as one of the best outfielders of his era, and fans showed their respect for his game when they used write-in votes to elect him to the NLs starting lineup in the 1970 All-Star Game. "Smooth" ranks second in TZR and 11th in Range Factor per nine innings at the position. Records are made to be broken, but MLB's all-time hit king might never lose his crown. Angels top 5 >, Key fact: His .959 OPS with the Astros is the second highest in franchise history, Berkman is one of the three greatest offensive players in Astros history, joining Hall of Famers Jeff Bagwell and Craig Biggio. At 35, Alex Gordon is a good bet to rank second when all is said and done. However, we also adjust for era, integration and level of competition, and missed playing time due to factors beyond the control of the player. Not only was Mays the best center fielder, he might have been the best all-around player to play the game. Long Peak = WAR in Best 7 Seasons. The Say Hey Kid is a living baseball treasure. Tweet Email Comment Next The Clooney Garage: Inside George Clooney's Insane Car Collection Related Topics Baseball Rockies top 5 >. (2:29) Tim Kurkjian, Eduardo Perez and Dallas Braden weigh in on who is the greatest left fielder in MLB history. Yaz's greatest achievement might have been succeeding Ted Williams in left field at Fenway Park in 1961 and playing at a Hall-of-Fame level for the next 23 years. No, not in home runs, Sluggo, but Total Zone Runs among left fielders. No Gavin Lux -- big problem. Rays top 5 >, Key fact: His 121.9 fWAR ranks second in AL history to Babe Ruth, The Red Sox have three Hall of Famers at the head of their left-field class, but Williams easily stands out as the most dominant player in team history. "The Glove" is the MLB career leader in Total Zone Runs and double plays at the position and it would take a search party to find the next in line. -- Kahrl, We're counting down the greatest players in baseball history. Clemente was the first Latino starter to win a World Series and the National League MVP. Midfielders may play an exclusively right back role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. Regarded as the one of the best defensive right fielders of all time thanks to a legendary arm that helped him win 12 Gold Gloves, Clemente was a notorious bad-ball hitter who hit .312 lifetime . Sure, he probably was. As fast as he was, somehow those stirrup socks made him look even faster. 344 views, 3 likes, 0 loves, 1 comments, 0 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from Field of Dreams Navojoa: Aguerridas Vs Buhas Photo credit (Matthew Stockman/Getty Images) 10. Thats short for Three True Outcomes, also known as walks, strikeouts and home runs. Rangers top 5 >, Braves: Rico Carty (1963-72)Key fact: Ranks first among Braves left fielders in bWAR (23.2)Nearly 50 years after Carty played his final game for Atlanta, theres still reason to wonder how great his career might have been had he not missed 1968 with tuberculosis and '71 with a fractured right knee cap. PRIME = WAR in 5 Best Consecutive Seasons. He was enshrined in Cooperstown in 1989 and no Cincinnati Red will ever wear his #5 again. Regardless, he makes everybody's short list of the greatest right-handed hitters of all-time. In addition to breaking Hank Aarons home run record, he also is the all-time leader in total zone runs from a left fielder. While good fielders, neither is known primarily for his defensive skills. He is the all-time leader in assists, double plays, and unassisted double plays by an outfielder. His defensive accomplishments are remarkable: seven Gold Gloves, three Wilson Defensive Player of the Year Awards, and the ALs Rawlings Platinum Glove Award in 2014. Bottom line: This guy never played a postseason game, so unlike Brooks Robinson in the 1970 World Series, Buddy Bell never had a chance to showcase his skills in front of a national audience. The best left fielder of the millennium ranks behind only Barry Bonds and Carl Yastrzemski on the career Total Zone Runs list. Generally, a players Career Value is worth about 50-60% of the ranking score we assign him. Orioles top 5 >, Key fact: Had four All-Star selections with Rays, the most in franchise history, In his nine seasons with Tampa Bay, Crawford displayed the athleticism and talent that made him a coveted three-sport athlete and a highly regarded prospect. Richards would depart before the Padres 1984 run to the NL pennant. He won eleven Gold Glove Awards and was named 1979 NL MVP. Roberto Alomar was a fixture on the Toronto Blue Jays World Series winning teams and would go on to have an impact on several other exciting teams. Richie Ashburn played the majority of his career before they awarded Gold Glove awards for elite fielders. 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). Keith Hernandez was welcomed into Americas living rooms on Seinfeld after a solid Major League career with three teams. Matthews, too, was primarily a good hitter. A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. The differences seen in baseball across different eras are significant, and television and radio were not always available to document the miraculous plays of major leaguers on a daily basis. Photo credit (Getty Images) 2. Age During 2022 Season: 34. His #33 is retired by the Pittsburgh Pirates and he was honored as part of the first class inducted to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1936. The White Sox retired his No. N'Golo Kante. Too bad he wasn't able to play longer because he finished just 73 hits shy of 3,000. Bell also ranks fifth in Range Factor per nine innings (3.18) overall. He is regarded as the " the best defensive fielder of all time" by the former Australian Captain Ricky Ponting. He notched an impressive 283 wins and 2,461 strikeouts in his career along with a career ERA of 3.45. Dave Winfield also won 7, but 5 of his were when he was playing primarily right field. -- Jim Caple, ESPN.com senior writer, Another whites-only era star, you can acknowledge that and then enjoy his being the Hall of Famer who never did stop putting his foot in the bucket at bat, as well as the key role he played as a guy with tremendous plate coverage starring for Connie Mack's last A's dynasty in 1929-31. 1. 3.4K views, 81 likes, 24 loves, 97 comments, 6 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from quei Clube de Barcelos: quei Clube de Barcelos - FC Porto | 19. jornada Mike Schmidt is the only third baseman among the top 10 in Gold Gloves (second), Range Factor per nine innings (seventh) and Total Zone Runs (ninth). 1 left fielder for each club, as chosen by MLB.com's beat reporters. He was a six-time All-Star and won two Gold Gloves as a member of the White Sox, topping .300 in six seasons. He is also the all-time career leader in assists as a shortstop and total zone runs. His pitching credentials are some of the greatest of his era with 355 career wins, a 3.16 career ERA, and 3,371 career strikeouts. He deserves to be in the Hall of Defense at the very least. Willie Mays 24-time All-Star (second-most in MLB history) -- Kahrl, Teams 1. Other career achievements include over 351 OBP, 440 OPS, and 215 hits. He was Brooklyns starting left fielder for 17 years, succeeding in both the Dead Ball and Live Ball eras. Sign up to receive our daily Morning Lineup to stay in the know about the latest trending topics around Major League Baseball. That year, Foster posted a .320/.382/.620 slash line with a club-record -- and Major League-leading -- 52 homers and 149 RBIs, winning NL MVP honors. Among Cardinals who were primarily left fielders, Brock is No. It doesnt make sense, in our opinion, for most of the great baseball players to have played prior to World War II, when MLB was segregated. A career .300 hitter with over 2,700 hits, he matches his prowess at the plate with solid defensive play in the middle infield. We believe our rankings are the most comprehensive, fair, and accurate.