# Name Your Favorite Team's Ten Greatest Players **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [March 8, 2009, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730 "2009-03-08T14:07:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Bootis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e8c25b/32.png) [@Bootis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bootis)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/41 "2009-03-09T05:10:54Z")
Boston Red sox: 1. Ted Williams 2. Jimmy Foxx 3. Pedro Martinez 4. Cy Young 5. Carl Yastrzemski 6. Tris Speaker 7. Manny Ramirez 8. Jim Rice 9. Bobby Doerr 10. Roger Clemens 11. Wade Boggs ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/42 "2009-03-09T06:18:36Z")
Red Wings( in sort of chronological order by not really) 1. Howe 2. Abel 3. Sawchuk 4. Lindsay 5. Delvecchio 6. Kelly 7. Yzerman 8. Lidstrom 9. Konstantinov ☹ 10. Redmond 9.(grudgingly) Fedorov ---
**Author:** ![Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleeps_With_Butterflies)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/43 "2009-03-09T06:41:38Z")
The New York Yankees - in no particular order [ol] [li]Babe Ruth[/li][li]Lou Gehrig[/li][li]Derek Jeter[/li][li]Mariano Rivera[/li][li]Whitey Ford[/li][li]Joe DiMaggio[/li][li]Mickey Mantle[/li][li]Don Mattingly[/li][li]Bernie Williams\*[/li][li]Alex Rodriguez\*\*[/li][/ol] - - Although I think Bernie was fantastic, this is mostly a sentimental vote because he was the first Yankee I ever got an autograph from \*\* - My lust requires me to mention him, but he _will_ be one of the greatest Yankees ever before his time in New York is done. The man can play. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 8:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/44 "2009-03-09T08:29:15Z")
Oakland/Kansas City/Philadelphia Athletics: Rickey Henderson Jimmie Foxx Lefty Grove Reggie Jackson Catfish Hunter Frank Baker Mickey Cochrane Eddie Collins Dennis Eckersley Eddie Plank I excluded players who were only with the team for a short time (like Joe Morgan, whose last season was with the A’s). I didn’t include McGwire because he had some pretty poor seasons mixed in with his good ones with the A’s. His single-season home run record was with another team. Add in the steroid question and he drops off the list. I could have included Rollie Fingers and Rube Waddell. Rube was easier for me to omit than Rollie - I can’t imagine Waddell being in Major League Baseball today. Fingers was tougher to leave off. I suppose one could argue that the skills of Eddie Plank and Eddie Collins were more suited to the dead ball era, and that Fingers could have been a great pitcher in any era. ---
**Author:** ![Wilson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/96bed5/32.png) [@Wilson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wilson)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/45 "2009-03-09T14:04:21Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > New York Yankees > > 1. Babe Ruth > 2. Mickey Mantle > 3. Joe Dimaggio > 4. Lou Gehrig > 5. Yogi Berra > 6. Whitey Ford > 7. Rickey Henderson \* > 8. Reggie Jackson \* > 9. Bill Dickey > 10. Derek Jeter > I include asterisks and rank these guys lower than they may deserve SOLELY because, great as these guys were, they only spent a small part of their careers as Yankees. I’d take Rickey and Reggie off the list, just because they spent such a short time in pinstripes. Bernie Williams is an easy choice to replace one of the two. The other - it’s tough. Mariano Rivera, Don Mattingly, Red Ruffing, Charlie Keller… I guess I’d go with Mariano, although I don’t know that I feel right having three Yankees of this generation on the list. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/46 "2009-03-09T14:34:37Z")
Zamboniracer and Moidalize, I’ve read your arguments and substitute one of my own. I’m happy with Doby; somebody’s coming off my list to make room for Eddie Murray, and it just might be Manny. I also want very much to find a place for Sandy Alomar, so my list might go to 11. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Walking\_Dude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/90ced4/32.png) [@The\_Walking\_Dude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Walking_Dude)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/47 "2009-03-09T14:53:37Z")
Not shockingly, nobody has done the Kansas City Royals yet. I’ll give them a shot. Kansas City Royals: 1. George Brett 2. George Brett 3. George Brett 4. George Brett 5. George Brett 6. George Brett 7. George Brett 8. George Brett 9. George Brett 10. George Brett Sorry, I couldn’t help it. Sometimes it hurts to be Royals fans. For real this time. Kansas City Royals: 1. George Brett 2. Frank White 3. Dan Quisenberry 4. Bret Saberhagen 5. Jeff Montgomery 6. Bo Jackson 7. Hal McRae 8. Dennis Leonard 9. Kevin Appier 10. Johnny Damon A fair number of good players played for the Royals in the 90s and 2000s, but as soon as they had a good season and wanted more money the Royals traded or released them. Not long after they had a good season and left the Royals they went on to have good and even great careers with other teams. I probably missed somebody. Any other Royals fans out there that want to correct me? ---
**Author:** ![Invisible\_Chimp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f05b48/32.png) [@Invisible\_Chimp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Invisible_Chimp)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/48 "2009-03-09T15:16:12Z")
**The Walking Dude** , I am not a Royals fan, but I would have thought Mike Sweeney would get some love. He spent parts of 12 seasons with KC and was clearly the best player for them from '99-'05. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/49 "2009-03-09T16:08:02Z")
University of Wisconsin Football: 1. Ron Dayne 2. Alan Ameche 3. Mike Webster 4. Paul Gruber 5. Joe Thomas 6. Al Toon 7. Ron Vanderkelen 8. Chris Chambers 9. Nate Odoms 10. Pat Richter ---
**Author:** ![chowder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/977dab/32.png) [@chowder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chowder)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/50 "2009-03-09T16:17:21Z")
**Manchester City FC** In no particular order. Bert Trautmann Colin Bell Francis Lee Frank Swift Mike Doyle Fred Tilson Shaun Wright-Philips Georgi Kinkladzi Mike Summerbee Joe Corrigan ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/51 "2009-03-09T16:20:53Z")
> [@The\_Walking\_Dude](#): > > Kansas City Royals: > > 1. George Brett > 2. Frank White > 3. Dan Quisenberry > 4. Bret Saberhagen > 5. Jeff Montgomery > 6. Bo Jackson > 7. Hal McRae > 8. Dennis Leonard > 9. Kevin Appier > 10. Johnny Damon 1. George Brett 2. Frank White 3. Carlos Beltran 4. Bret Saberhagen 5. Mike Sweeney 6. Dan Quisenberry 7. Danny Tartabull 8. Hal McRae 9. Kevin Appier 10. Jeff Montgomery IMO, you can’t leave out Betran, Sweeney or Tartabull. Damon was good, but not as good as those guys. Bo was great, but didn’t have the longevity - but man do I miss him. I have a hard time putting Montgomery behind Quisenberry - Monty was better, but Quiz was more important. There are a number of pitchers that were important to the team over the years (Leonard, Gubicza, Splitoff, Leibrandt, Black), but don’t make the cut. Gubicza probably should… ---
**Author:** ![Haas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ed655f/32.png) [@Haas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Haas)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/52 "2009-03-09T16:33:09Z")
Michigan State Spartans Basketball Magic Mateen Cleaves Jumpin Johnny Green Shawn Respert Greg Kelser Scott Skiles Morris Peterson Drew Neitzel Steve Smith Jay Vincent Honorable mention to Paul Davis, Sam Vincent, Terry Furlow, Charlie Bell, Shannon Brown and Antonio Smith See you soon - Kalin Lucas, Delvon Roe Football Bubba Smith George Washington Lorenzo White TJ Duckett Carl Banks Kirk Gibson Charles Rogers Andre Rison Plaxico Burress Percy Snow Honorable mention to Julian Peterson, Robaire Smith, Drew Stanton, Chuck Bullough I’m sure I missed many greats here, this was just off the top of my head. ---
**Author:** ![not\_austin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c68b51/32.png) [@not\_austin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_austin)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/53 "2009-03-09T16:39:36Z")
Nice to see some proper football here… My top ten Hammers:- Bobby Moore Geoff Hurst Martin Peters Trevor Brooking Billy Bonds Syd Puddefoot (never saw him play, but met him) Paulo Di Canio Tony Cottee Malcolm Allinson Harry Redknapp And as manager, Ron Greenwood ---
**Author:** ![Invisible\_Chimp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f05b48/32.png) [@Invisible\_Chimp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Invisible_Chimp)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/54 "2009-03-09T16:41:14Z")
Seattle Mariners Ken Griffey, Jr. Alex Rodriguez Randy Johnson Edgar Martinez Ichiro Alvin Davis Jay Buhner Mark Langston Jamie Moyer Raul Ibanez ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Scud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Tom\_Scud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Scud)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/55 "2009-03-09T16:43:12Z")
Houston Astros: 1. Craig Biggio 2. Jeff Bagwell 3. Lance Berkman 4. Jim Wynn 5. Cesar Cedeno 6. Nolan Ryan 7. Roy Oswalt 8. J. R. Richard 9. Larry Dierker 10. Mike Scott The 5 position players were easy. Biggio is a sure Hall of Famer, Bagwell should be, and Berkman has been one of the best power hitters in the league since his second season. Wynn and Cedeno are both just-barely-not-in-the-HOF players. Pitchers were tougher, because so many of the Astros best pitchers have either had short careers or pitched a large number of their seasons elsewhere: Ryan only had nine years in Houston, but two of them were Cy Young caliber. I left off Joe Niekro, whose time in Houston was pretty similar to Dierker’s career, and Mike Hampton, whose six years in Houston were very, very good. I might have given the #10 spot to Jose Cruz, but Scott gets it for 1986. ---
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/56 "2009-03-09T18:30:59Z")
> [@The\_Walking\_Dude](#): > > Not shockingly, nobody has done the Kansas City Royals yet. I’ll give them a shot. > > Kansas City Royals: > > 1. George Brett > 2. George Brett > 3. George Brett > 4. George Brett > 5. George Brett > 6. George Brett > 7. George Brett > 8. George Brett > 9. George Brett > 10. George Brett I was going to make that same joke with the Cavaliers and LeBron James, but you went through with the joke and I didn’t. My hat is off to you. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Bootis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e8c25b/32.png) [@Bootis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bootis)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/57 "2009-03-09T19:31:38Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > 1. George Brett > 2. Frank White > 3. Carlos Beltran > 4. Bret Saberhagen > 5. Mike Sweeney > 6. Dan Quisenberry > 7. Danny Tartabull > 8. Hal McRae > 9. Kevin Appier > 10. Jeff Montgomery > > IMO, you can’t leave out Betran, Sweeney or Tartabull. Damon was good, but not as good as those guys. Bo was great, but didn’t have the longevity - but man do I miss him. I have a hard time putting Montgomery behind Quisenberry - Monty was better, but Quiz was more important. There are a number of pitchers that were important to the team over the years (Leonard, Gubicza, Splitoff, Leibrandt, Black), but don’t make the cut. Gubicza probably should… The Royals are starting to get some face time here! You guys are missing a couple big ones though. **Amos Otis**! 4 seasons finished top 10 for mvp, 2000+ hits, 1000+rbi, and 350 stolen bases. **Willie Wilson**! Mr. Triple, 2200 hits, almost 700 stolen bases, multiple all star and gold glover. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/58 "2009-03-09T19:47:36Z")
> [@Bootis](#): > > The Royals are starting to get some face time here! You guys are missing a couple big ones though. > > **Amos Otis**! 4 seasons finished top 10 for mvp, 2000+ hits, 1000+rbi, and 350 stolen bases. > > **Willie Wilson**! Mr. Triple, 2200 hits, almost 700 stolen bases, multiple all star and gold glover. Wilson was a big name for the '80 and '85 WS teams, but he was not that great of a player. He made far too many outs to rank about McRae as a hitter on my team. Definitely an above-average fielder, though. Otis was way before my time, so I can’t really properly put him in perspective. (3 HRs in the 1980 World Series, though!) ---
**Author:** ![Wilson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/96bed5/32.png) [@Wilson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wilson)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/59 "2009-03-09T21:14:50Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > Wilson was a big name for the '80 and '85 WS teams, but he was not that great of a player. He made far too many outs to rank about McRae as a hitter on my team. Definitely an above-average fielder, though. Otis was way before my time, so I can’t really properly put him in perspective. (3 HRs in the 1980 World Series, though!) I’m not a Royals fan, but I can see an argument for Amos Otis over Danny Tartabull. Tartabull was only in KC for five years - although it was a hell of a five years. Otis doesn’t have as high a peak (but his 1978 was a great year considering the offensive environment) but he played in KC for 14 years and was an integral part of the great 70s era teams. Plus he was a far better defensive player than Tartabull. Guess it all depends if you want to emphasize career value or a high peak. ---
**Author:** ![jjohns828](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/49beb7/32.png) [@jjohns828](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjohns828)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730/60 "2009-03-09T21:16:58Z")
Orlando Magic Shaquille O’Neal Tracy McGrady Penny Hardaway Dwight Howard Rashard Lewis Hedo Turkoglu Jameer Nelson Scott Skiles Nick Anderson Darrell Armstrong The only hard part of this list was choosing between Darrell Armstrong or Dennis Scott. Dennis Scott might have been the better overall player in terms of skill but even when we had better players Darrell Armstrong was always the heart of our team and that led me to putting him in this list over Scott. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favorite-teams-ten-greatest-players/488730.md?page=4)