Who's the greatest baseball player ever?

Question

And why.

Answer 1

I hate the Yankees and hate Ruth's lifestyle, but nobody matches Ruth. He is on the first tier by himself.

Many are great on the second tier but still behind Ruth.
Mays
Aaron
Walter Johnson
Bob Gibson
Clemente
DiMaggio, Joe
Clemens
Speaker
Cobb
Shoeless Joe
Josh Gibson
Hornsby
Wagner...

Answer 2

Ty Cobb. He was a son of a *****, but he could play. According to the stat measures for Hall of Fame rating on baseball-reference.com, he is the #1 batter of all time. He batted above .400 three times, and posted an OBP of .486 in 1915. He posted a career average (24 seasons) of .366 and stole 892 bases. While it was a different game then (he led the league in homers in 1909 with a season total of 9), there is no doubt that Ty Cobb played with a level of ferocity and skill that has never been matched. (Pete Rose is the closest thing to a Ty Cobb there has been since.)

The best pitcher statistically is Walter Johnson. A career (21 seasons) 2.17 ERA with an incredible 531 complete games (110 shutouts) and 417 wins and 3500 strikeouts. While I'm inclined to think Sandy Koufax was the greatest pitcher ever (in an era that was rougher on pitchers, no less), he didn't have as full a career as Johnson. Walter Johnson was a testament to both excellent pitching and longevity.

Answer 3

Babe Ruth was the greatest and most influential baseball player of all time.

As a pitcher with the Red Sox, he set a World Series record for consecutive scoreless innings pitched. His last World Series appearance with the Red Sox occurred in 1918. This record lasted until 1961 (Whitey Ford).

As a hitter, he set the record for hitting the most HRs in World Series play, with 15. His last WS homer was hit in 1932. This record was not broken until 1964 by Mickey Mantle (whose 18 HR still stands as a World Series record).

The thought that one man could hold BOTH records for over 30 years should tell you all you need to know.

Yes, there were no blacks in MLB when Ruth played. But he would have done just fine, even if there were.

Ty Cobb was a great player as well. Someone mentioned that he threw a World Series game the year before the Black Sox scandal. The Black Sox scandal involved the 1919 World Series. Ty Cobb only played in the World Series in 1907, 1908 and 1909. He never made it to the World Series again.

Cobb was 'accused' by another player (of dubious character) to have conspired with Tris Speaker to 'fix' the final game of the 1920 regular season. Judge Landis found him 'not guilty' despite the fact that Cobb acknowledged writing a letter which seemed to incriminate him. It's a long story, but the Judge (Commissioner) found Cobb not guilty of the conspiracy. (Speaker was probably completely innocent).

Cobb played for the Tigers for 17 years after they last won a pennant with him.

Honus Wagner was probably better than Ty Cobb, and was probably the 2nd best player ever, behind Babe Ruth.

Ruth was described by one post as a 'fat old man with little girl legs' (as described by "George Steinbrenner" of "Seinfeld" fame...great episode by the way).

Fact is, Ruth was in fantastic shape throughout most of the 1920s...it's mostly during the 30s that he put on a bit more weight, and it's the films from the 30's that are most often shown of him. There's far less film of him in action from the '1910s and 1920s. He was also a very fast runner until he lost much of his speed as he got into his late 30s and approached 40.

Cobb got more hits and hit for a higher average than Ruth..he also stole a lot more bases than Babe...but Babe was a better outfielder, had a better arm, had far more power, hit for a great average himself, and definitely wound up on many more winning teams.

I should note that Cobb could hit for power if he wanted to... once the 1920s came and Ruth was hitting HRs like crazy, every now and then Cobb would be asked why HE didn't hit HRs like the Babe did...and Cobb would go out and hit a couple of HRs that day, just to show the writer that he could do it if he wanted to. But that wasn't the way Cobb played the game.

However, not many players of that era would choose to have Cobb for a teammate if they could get Babe Ruth on their team instead.

But Babe Ruth was the best player ever. Won seven World Series (in ten trips) and was the only player to hit three HRs in a World Series game twice.

And, he saved baseball after the Black Sox scandal.

Answer 4

As he is in the Baseball Hall of Fame, Mickey Mantle will always have a place in my heart as being the best player.

'The Mick' was an inspiration as he played under the most strenuous of circumstances...enormous physical pain.

It would take Mantle over an hour just to tape his body, arms/wrist/legs/elbows/etc. and everybody knew that and he inspired a team and a nation to not complain and get out there and be the best you can be.

These multi-million dollar cry babies who needs rest because they injured an arm or wrist would have never lasted in Mantle's company. For that reason, being a man who wouldn't accept defeat, Mickey Mantle was the greatest ball player ever.

And, even when the Yankee ownership ignored Mantle when he retired and never offered Mantle a coaching job, Mantle packed his belongings, smiled, said goodbye and left the ball park.

You were great, Mick.

Answer 5

babe ruth was just a fat old man with little girl legs.

the answer is, of course, ty cobb. he was the game's first real complete player. he could hit, steal bases and field. his records have been broken by several different players but no single player has come close to breaking all of them. pete rose was the closest modern equivilant, though not nearly the base stealer cobb was.
ty coob was a deplorable human being. he was most likely guilty of helping throw a world series game the year before the black sox scandal. but he still is the most complete player the game has ever seen.

Answer 6

why is everyone always ready to ride the Babe Ruth bandwagon??...he was a god of baseball and probably the most recognizable player ever..but he wasn't the best when it came to an all around game...you want the best player ever..check all the records besides homeruns and see who is in the top 5 or 10 in almost every category.....Ty Cobb

Answer 7

William Howard Mays

Answer 8

Although it doesn't seem like it right now Alex Rodruiguez is the best player in baseball now and when he retires he will be known as the best player ever

Answer 9

Hank Aaron is the only player to ever hit over 750 home runs. Even if Barry Bonds beats the record, he used steroids to win

Answer 10

The Babe of course. The dude could pitch too.
Nolan Ryan comes close too. He had a 100mph express train, but could throw a 70mph changeup the exact same way.

Answer 11

The Babe-Ruth, Just hear alot about him over the years. Pat