After extensively looking over and comparing statistics of the greatest players of the last 125 years I have come up with my list for the greatest team. Now of course there is fair debate at almost every position and the players that aren’t on this team will astound you (Hank Aaron, Jimmie Foxx) but I hope my explanations clarify my thinking, even if they are only brief.

Beneath the players names you will see lines of numbers. They are displayed in their order below:

Lines: OBP/SLG/OPS+ AVG/HR/RBI/RUNS

If you want more explanations on statistics and other metrics go to www.baseballprospectus.com

Well here we go:

LF: Ted Williams - Boston Red Sox (1939-1942, 1946-1960)

.482/,634/155.9+  :  .344/521/1839/1798

The outfield positions are where there is the most competition and Left Field produces the likes of Stan Musial, Rickey Henderson, Barry Bonds, and Carl Yastrzemski. If Bonds didn’t extend and enhanced the end of his career through steroids then he is tops, but I doubt he didn’t. Musial is the closest but Williams numbers are better than most of Musial’s and keep in mind Ted Williams lost 24-26 seasons where he with almost all certainty would have been the best in the game at the time.

Center Fielder: Willie Mays - New York/San Francisco Giants (1951-1971)

.384/.557/135+  :   .302/660/1903/2062

Again another hotly contested position with Willie, Ty Cobb, Ken Griffey Jr., Joe Dimaggio, and the Mick at the peak.  Dimaggio and Mantle may have the legend and Griffey could have been the greatest of all time if he stayed healthy but this race comes down to Mays and Cobb.

Cobb has the hits and batting average, probably the most consistent hitter of all time. Mays wasn’t the statue of consistency that Cobb was, but what he did have was power and speed. On top of that Willie is one of the greatest defensive players of all time and the glove can not be undervalued. Ruth is bar none the greatest hitter (and a pretty damn good pitcher), but there is definitely an argument for Willie Mays as the best all around offensive threat.

Right Fielder: Babe Ruth - Boston Red Sox/New York Yankees (1915-1934)

.474/.690/161.9+  :  .342/714/2213/2174

Here is why Babe Ruth is hands down the best:

Hank Aaron who also happened to play right field, and is thought to be number 2 or 3 behind Ruth has a line of: .374/.555/133.2  :  .305/755/2287/2174

The first stats show exactly why Babe is easily the choice, but to put Aaron’s counting stats in perspective he did this in 700 MORE GAMES.  That is how disgusting Babe Ruth was.

1st Baseman: Lou Gehrig - New York Yankees (1925-1938)

.447/.632/143.7+  :  .340/493/1995/1888

Lou Gehrig, Jimmie Foxx, Hank Greenberg. These are the only names that come up when you are talking 1st baseman. I’m picking Gehrig over Foxx in a barn burnder because his OPS+ and Gehrig’s counting stats are on par with Foxx’s but in 200 less games. I won’t be surprised if in 15 years we add one name, possibly to the front of this list: Albert Pujols.

2nd Baseman: Rogers Hornsby - St. Louis Cardinals/Chicago Cubs/St. Louis Browns (1916-1931 and 132 games from 1932-1937)

.434/.577/140.4+  :  .358/301/1584/1579

Those who say Eddie Collins are out of their minds. He played in 600 more games and yet had 250 less HR, 200 less RBI’s, SLG that was 150 points lower and a OPS+ 17 points less. They aren’t even in the same stratosphere.

In my opinion, Hornsby is the most underrated player of all time. The numbers that he put up at 2nd base, a historically weak offensive position, would hold up at any other.  He’s so good, I don’t think Chase Utley could even come close to him.

3rd Baseman: Mike Schmidt - Philadelphia Phillies (1973-1988)

.380/.527/130.9+  :  .267/548/1595/1506

This one isn’t really close, as there is no competition from players in the golden age. The nearest competition would be Chipper Jones, who could maybe one day take this place, if only he could have stopped being injured so often.

Those who say is average is too low don’t understand baseball, because one look at his OBP tells you he got on base plenty.

Short Stop: Honus Wagner - Pittsburgh Pirates/Louisville Colonels (1888-1917)

.391/.466/.857  :  .327/101/1732/1736

If Alex Rodriguez would have stayed at shortstop he would take this even with 8-10 years left in his career and his recent steroid admission. But Honus Wagner is a more than qualified number 1.

Honus was thought as the best player to play until the Sultan of Swat came around, combining a keen batters eye, sharp glovework, and especially his speedy legs which spawned the greatest nickname of all-time: The Flying Dutchman.

Hopefully, Mr. Hanley Ramirez can keep on his Hall of Face trajectory and challenge The Dutchman.

Catcher: Yogi Berra - New York Yankees (1947-1963)

.348/.482/116.5+  :  .285/358/1430/1175

On the outset it looks to be a tough call between Berra, Bench, and Piazza. Piazza is the best offensively and Bench is the personification of catcher but I’m going with Berra.  Berra is top 5 offensively, and was always solid enough defensively. What puts him over the top is the championships (10 - The most by anyone) and how prolific his pitching staffs were, something Berra definitely played a part in.

Starting Pitcher: Pedro Martinez - Los Angeles Dodgers/Montreal Expos/Boston Red Sox/New York Mets (1993-Present)

Didn’t see this coming did you? It’s funny because when you look at the metrics it’s actually a very sound choice. Using ERA+(which is ERA that is park adjusted and is adjusted for era so that we can compare deadball pitchers, golden age, and modern day pitchers) his career number of 154+ is easily tops along with his 1.051 WHIP which is top 5. Of course there are so many choices for this slot from Sandy Koufax, Walter Johnson, or Cy Young to Steve Carlton, Lefty Grove, or Christy Matthewson.

However, I must note that Sachel Paige may just be the best ever. Sadly, we do not have the majority of his Negro League stats. It is widely held that he won over 900 games in his over 30 year career. Oh and he pitched in the majors when he was 60. Yea, I’m throwing up too.

Relief Pitcher: Mariano Rivera - New York Yankees (1995-Present)

This one isn’t close. At all. His career ERA: 2.29. His career WHIP 1.020 and most disgusting of all his ERA+: 199. Numbers say it all.