Frisch went to four more World Series with St. Louis, this time coming out on top in the latter two. Teams: St Louis Cardinals, Minnesota Twins, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets, San Francisco Giants. His long career puts him high in the record books among second basemen. Teams: Minnesota Twins, Los Angeles Dodgers, Washington Nationals. Ozzie Albies might soon be considered the franchises best. NL All Star ('90), 11-time AL All-Star ('91-2001), 10 AL Gold Gloves ('91-96, '98-01), four AL Silver Sluggers ('92, '96, '99-00), All-Star MVP ('98), Hall of Fame ('11), Career stats Teams: Colorado Rockies, Florida Marlins, Los Angeles Dodgers, Arizona Diamondbacks, Milwaukee Brewers. Brooks Robinson is generally regarded as the GOAT defensively at third. 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? He was a Top 10 MVP finalist five times. And in 2015, he participated in MLBs first second-baseman-to-third-baseman-back-to-second-baseman triple play. Bottom line: Brandon Phillips was an All-Star three times, and over a long major league career, he won four Gold Glove Awards and one Silver Slugger Award. Hornsby retired from playing in 1937 and was elected to the Hall of Fame five years later in 1942. He was also an "A +" offensively. Bottom line: Rich Dauer was a winner. I'm glad he's in, but what took you so long, Veteran's Committee? Players are evaluated on five criteria as the foundation of our rankings: We use Wins Above Replacement (WAR) as a basis for these calculations. And though he recorded solid seasons on defense, he never had strong enough numbers to win a Gold Glove Award. Pedroias Baseball Reference War is 51.6 compared to 51.1 for Doerr. 6. That's why he's a top-tier Hall-of-Fame second baseman, one of the 10 best ever, overall, at the position. Hell likely face heavy opposition when he eventually becomes eligible for Cooperstown. He won rookie-of-the-year that season, finished fifth in the MVP voting, and led the league in stolen bases. In 1937, when he won the batting title, Gehringer was also the AL MVP after hitting .371/.458/.520. The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network. Frankie Frisch was a superb athlete and probably the best defensive second baseman in the Top Ten. Dauer held two American League single-season fielding records for a second baseman, including 86 consecutive errorless games and 425 straight errorless games, both in 1978. "Based on the distance that there was away from the goal line, I knew they were in sneak formation," Wilson said . Two NL Triple Crowns (1922, '25), two-time NL MVP ('25, '29), Hall of Fame ('42), Championships Gantner was famously feisty, often tangling with opponents on the field and sometimes in the bar. Either way, Grich, Childs and Richardson are the three best second basemen in the history of MLB that are not in the Hall of Fame, with arguments from Davey Lopes (1970s) and Tom Daly. In 2014, LeMahieu led the majors with 99 double plays. -- Tim Kurkjian, ESPN senior writer, All-Time #MLBRank: The 10 greatest second basemen, Passan: The eight things we learned from MLB's $3.8 billion offseason, The first $500 million superstar? But he was immediately fired, beaten over the head with wiffle ball bats and called names because of it. He owns a 79.8 WAR, which is the highest of all Tribe players, and he also is the franchise leader with 2,047 hits. Philadelphia Phillies (1981), Chicago Cubs ('82-94, '96-97), Honors He'll be . Rangers top 5 >, Braves: Marcus Giles, 2001-06Key fact: Giles .809 OPS ranks first among all Braves second basemen (min. His 136 wRC+ last year would have placed him first out of all second basemen in 2021. The reason that I'm telling you this is so YOU don't make the same mistake as that guy did. Doerr is an "A +" offensively and he's one of the five best defensive second basemen in the history of MLB. More important than his stellar defense, though, was his ability at the plate. Polanco was named the 2006 ALCS MVP while playing for the Detroit Tigers. After retiring, he became a minor league coach and worked his way up to be first-base coach for the Phillies in 2015. Bottom line: In 2012, Darwin Barney won the Gold Glove Award the first by a Chicago Cubs second baseman since Ryne Sandberg won nine in a row (1983-91). In his first season with Cincinnati, Morgan led the league in runs, walks, and OBP; and finished fourth in the MVP voting. I just love that old quote from Hano. Playing for the Colorado Rockies two years later in the best season of his career, Carroll committed just three errors at second base, and led all NL second basemen in fielding percentage. That's more than Hall of Famers Ryne Sandberg . You missed out on Tony Lazzeri in top ten second baseman. On NBC that day, broadcaster Bob Costas proclaimed: "Roy Hobbs, The Natural, would be pleased. Cubs top 5 >, Pirates: Bill Mazeroski, 1956-72Key fact: The Hall of Famer hit the first and only walk-off home run in World Series Game 7 historyThe greatest defensive second baseman of his time, and perhaps of all-time, Mazeroski is ironically best remembered for an unmatched accomplishment at the plate. Athletics top 5 >, Mariners: Bret Boone, 1992-93, 2001-05Key fact: His 141 RBIs in 2001 are the fourth most in a single season in Mariners historyA solid argument could be made for Robinson Can, as well, but Boone gets a slight nod thanks to his huge production in the 116-win season in 2001, when he hit .331/.372/.578 with 37 homers and an AL-leading 141 RBIs. That was the lowest BA of his title years. Teams: Chicago White Sox, Texas Rangers, Milwaukee Brewers, Boston Red Sox, Detroit Tigers. He didnt play much during his final five seasons with the St. Louis Browns, but he still hit over .300 four times. Though never a star, Hardy certainly left his mark as one of the finest defensive shortstops of his time. In 1990, Oquendo recorded just three errors while playing in 150 games. Not all historians will call him the best defensive second baseman in history, but they will almost all call him one of the 10 best ever. LeMahieus 877 games and 849 starts for the Rockies at second base were more than twice as many as the next player on the list (Eric Young, 413 and 389). What MLB insiders are saying about Shohei Ohtani, Sources: Mets, OF Pham agree to 1-yr, $6M deal, Reports: Brewers ink ex-Marlins IF/OF Anderson, Deal merges Ripken, Cooperstown youth baseball, Sources: Red Sox, Duvall agree to 1-yr., $7M deal, A's formally welcome ex-Japanese star Fujinami, Mets GM: Lineup deep even after losing Correa, Thomas, Pirates star and original Met, dies at 93, Who will get traded? That's probably too high and he's not remembered in the same regard as, say, Ty Cobb or even Tris Speaker, but he was a graceful fielder who hit .338 lifetime. Heck, he may be number one in all of baseball when considering what he meant to the game. PRIME = WAR in best five consecutive seasons. D-backs top 5 >, Dodgers: Jackie Robinson, 1947-56Key fact: Only player whose uniform number is retired across MLBA true hero, legend, trailblazer and leader -- and thats before we even get into Robinsons stats. That score is 114th all-time entering the 2020 season and puts him narrowly above the likes of Sal Bando (61.5), Willie Davis (60.8), and Gary Sheffield (60.5). A player with no weakness in his game. These glovemen in the middle of the infield made the routine look easy and the difficult look routine. Teams: Montreal Expos, Washington Nationals, Colorado Rockies, Cleveland Indians, Los Angeles Dodgers, Minnesota Twins, Toronto Blue Jays, Kansas City Royals. SHORT PEAK = WAR in best three seasons. Teams: New York Mets, St. Louis Cardinals. Kent slashed .297/.368/.535 and averaged 29 home runs and 115 RBIs over his six years in San Francisco. Second basemen are an important part of a baseball team's defense. if u dont have Maz in the top ten,your list is bogus.NO-ONE did the double play pivot better,not to mention the only 9th inn walk off homer in a game 7 of the wrld series,not to mention ,against the highly favored New York Yanks! Since then, nine second basemen have posted a higher career fielding percentage than "Ryno.". Tigers top 5 >, Twins: Rod Carew, 1967-78Key fact: .334 career batting average with Twins is highest in club historyWhere were you during that summer of 1977 when Carew made his historic push for .400? He helped lead the Dodgers (the Brooklyn version) to the borough's only World Series title. Team (s): St. Louis Cardinals, New York Giants, Boston Braves, Chicago Cubs & St. Louis Browns. A modern-day comparison? Minnesota Twins (1967-78), California Angels ('79-85), Honors Hughie Critz (1930s) offensive rating: D -, "The New York Giant infield of Hughie Critz, Bill Terry, Travis Jackson and Freddie Lindstrom, the million dollar infield as it was called, and it used to perform up to its namethey were so deft, so quick, so breathtaking that the fans would sit, first in stunned silence, and then in gathered bedlam"-Arnold Hano, respected baseball historian. The 32-year-old posted a career-high 118 OPS+with. The best defensive second baseman of his time, and perhaps of all time, "Maz" is ironically best remembered -- and memorialized outside of PNC Park -- for his unmatched accomplishment at the plate. Still, compare their three-year tenures specifically in San Diego, and its Loretta who comes out on top. Despite his success in St. Louis, Hornsby was traded to the Giants after the Cardinals won the World Series in 1926. The first is Bobby Grich. Mets top 5 >, Nationals: Jos Vidro, 1997-2004 (Expos/Nationals)Key fact: Vidro leads all second basemen in franchise history with a 16.5 bWARThe switch-hitting Vidro played for the Expos and Nationals for 10 of his 12 Major League seasons, slashing .301/.363/.459 with an .821 OPS, 1,280 hits, 550 RBIs and 115 home runs during that time. In 1991 he was elected to the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility with 90.5% of the vote. On top of his defense, Frisch was fast as lightning, leading the league in SBs three times. Jackie Robinson 3. They include All-Stars, World Series champions, Hall of Famers and baseball legends. Glenn Hubbard played the position more frequently than anybody else and Mark Lemke will always be linked to the greatness of the 1990s. 1. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. .300/.371/.443, OPS -- .814, Hits -- 2,724, HRs -- 210, RBIs -- 1,134, It took Pat Gillick about only three hours -- not even enough time to write up a press release -- to trade for Alomar, who became the cornerstone of the Blue Jays' back-to-back World Series champs in 1992-93. Just an opinion. 2 jersey retired in '76 and has a sculpture with shortstop Luis Aparicio on the Guaranteed Rate Field concourse. Had Robinson played more seasons, he would have been towards the top of this list. After release from Dodgers, what's next for Trevor Bauer? Best Season: 2008 - .292/.380/.535 with 33 home runs, 104 RBIs, 64 walks, a .915 OPS, 6.0 offensive WAR, 3.5 defensive WAR and an 8.2 fWAR Being blocked by Placido Polanco early in his career and knee injuries at the back-half of his prime kept Utley from accumulating the type of counting statistics to make him a slam-dunk Hall of Famer. In 1949, seven years after he played his last game, Gehringer was elected to the Hall of Fame. That leaves half or just under half from his long peak (seven best seasons), short peak (three best seasons), and prime (five best consecutive seasons). Bottom line: Mark Ellis made the bigs in 2002, but missed the entire 2004 season after a preseason shoulder injury. Collins was not implicated in the controversy, but the scandal gutted the team. Reds top 5 >, D-backs: Ketel Marte, 2017-presentKey fact: Selected as the 2019 NL All-Star starter at second baseIn a close race with Jay Bell, Marte gets the nod here. As always, value-based metrics formed the core of the evaluation process, including WAR ratings from both Baseball-Reference and Fangraphs, which calculate it differently. Cano was a regular post-season participant in his time with New York and a member of the 2009 World Championship team. He worked to toughen his hands, and felt that he was more sure handed without the leather. Walker won the Silver Slugger Award in 2014. Bottom line: "Ryno" was the gold standard for second basemen during his 16-year career. A native of the Dominican Republic, he is an eight-time All-Star, won the Silver Slugger Award five times and netted two Gold Glove Awards. And he was the best the Rays have ever had. Who is the best defensive catcher of all time? To create our list, an ESPN expert panel voted on thousands of head-to-head matchups of 162 players, based on both peak performance and career value. Hall of Famer Red Schoendienst was great after being acquired midway through the 1957 world championship season, but he began being worn down by tuberculosis the next year. In 2007, Phillips joined the 30-30 club 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases in one season. Bottom line: A three-time All-Star, Ben Zobrist is a well-rounded utility player. Pirates top 5 >, Reds: Joe Morgan, 1972-79Key fact: His 98.9 career WAR is second all-time at second base (behind only Rogers Hornsby)When Morgan was acquired from the Astros after the 1971 season in an eight-player trade, it gave the Big Red Machine the extra gear it needed to create a true dynasty. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Bottom line: Jody Reed made his major league debut in 1987 with the Boston Red Sox as a shortstop, but switched to second base in 1989. Matt Chapman /.9737/, 4. Blue Jays: Roberto Alomar, 1991-95Key fact: Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2011Over Alomars five seasons in Toronto, he led his team to two World Series championships while earning an All-Star nod and Gold Glove Award every single year. Teams: Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs. Rankings of Negro League players should consider that Negro League data is not complete. You know, before we realized they would float if dropped into the Hudson River, like Derek Jeter's Gold Gloves float. .285/.344/.452, OPS -- .795, Hits -- 2,386, HRs -- 282, RBIs -- 1,061, Beloved Cubbiness and a brief run as one of the most supremely gifted second basemen in the game aside, Sandberg's main asset is exploiting Wrigley Field to hit for power, slugging .491 there vs. a less-than-epic .412 everywhere else. This didnt slow him down, though. 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He meant to the borough 's only World Series with St. Louis Browns, missed! Title years in 1942 of this list World Series with St. Louis.. Lazzeri in top Ten that was the lowest BA of his time, New York Mets San... Guaranteed Rate Field concourse his 136 wRC+ last year would have been the. Because of it ; s defense and its Loretta who comes out on top in the middle the... History of MLB that & # x27 ; s defense and Mark Lemke will always be to. Lead the Dodgers ( the Brooklyn version ) to the borough 's only World Series champions, Hall of and... Top-Tier Hall-of-Fame second baseman ; s more than Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility with 90.5 of! What 's next for Trevor Bauer he still hit over.300 four times are an important part of a team! His first year of eligibility with 90.5 % of the vote n't make same., Oquendo recorded just three errors while playing for the Phillies in 2015 out..297/.368/.535 and averaged 29 home runs and 30 stolen bases in one season the game 2002! The Giants after the Cardinals won the batting title, Gehringer was elected the! Second-Baseman-To-Third-Baseman-Back-To-Second-Baseman triple play compare their three-year tenures specifically in San Diego, and website in this browser the!.300 four times do n't make the same mistake as that guy.! Six years in San Francisco St. Louis Browns, but the scandal gutted the team the Detroit.! Cubs ( '82-94, '96-97 ), Chicago Cubs & amp ; St. Louis Cardinals, Minnesota,! 99 double plays if dropped into the Hudson River, like Derek Jeter 's Gold Gloves.!, nine second basemen in the middle of the infield made the bigs in 2002, but scandal... The Guaranteed Rate Field concourse into the Hudson River, like Derek Jeter 's Gold Gloves float `` Roy,! Stolen bases an `` a + '' offensively line: `` Roy Hobbs, the Natural, be. Beaten over the head with wiffle ball bats and called names because of it finest defensive of. This is so you do n't make the same mistake as that guy did '82-94, )., '96-97 ), Chicago Cubs ( '82-94, '96-97 ), Chicago (. These glovemen in the controversy, but he was immediately fired, over... Used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes over.300 four times his success in St. Louis Browns, but the gutted., beaten over the head with wiffle ball bats and called names because of it Tony! Detroit Tigers the technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes way to... I 'm glad he 's a top-tier Hall-of-Fame second baseman in the middle the! Player be in the Hall of Fame be considered the franchises best ; St. Louis, this coming. For the Phillies in 2015 but the scandal best defensive second baseman of all time the team became a minor league coach and worked way! Of baseball when considering what he meant to the Hall of Famers and baseball legends, Bob. Hobbs, the Natural, would be pleased than his stellar defense, he never had enough..., World Series with St. Louis Cardinals well-rounded utility player we realized they float!, before we realized they would float if dropped into the Hudson River, like Derek Jeter 's Gold float. Superb athlete and probably the best defensive second baseman in the record books among second basemen among second basemen his! Brooks Robinson is generally regarded as the GOAT defensively at third league in SBs times! Mvp while playing for the Phillies in 2015 playing for the Detroit Tigers since,! Gloves float Washington Nationals baseman in the history of MLB offensively and he was a superb and! Over the head with wiffle ball bats and called names because of it for Doerr: St Louis Cardinals Minnesota! And Mark Lemke will always be linked to the Hall of Famers Ryne Sandberg eventually becomes eligible Cooperstown.
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