Knowing that they couldn't afford to re-sign him when his contract expired, the Pirates traded him to the Padres in August of 2003 in exchange for Jason Bay and Oliver Perez, though he wouldn't enjoy the same level of success with the Padres. the first player to ever bat as a designated hitter. A seven-time All-Star, his 2.48 ERA led the American League in 1985. Career Stats: 1,998 G; .277/.343/.425; 193 HR; 1,007 RBI; 2,020 H; 1,092 R; 341-for-434 SB. Top 5 Underrated Position Players 5: Ty France (UTIL), Seattle Mariners Last year, Ty France came on to the scene when he hit over .300 in 23 appearances during the shortened season. Jim Edmonds made a career out of producing highlight-reel plays with his glove, winning eight Gold Glove awards over 17 years in the majors. The rate stats matter most with Mize. All told, he racked up 60.4 WAR in 17 seasons with 393 home runs and 1,199 RBI. Conine enjoyed success for a few seasons, placing third in Rookie of the Year balloting in 1993 and earning an All-Star selection in each of the next two seasons. Five times he hit more than 30 home runs, twice he broke the 100 RBI barrier and eight times he hit more than 20 home runs and drove in at least 70 runs. He struck out a ton, but he also hit .240/.319/.438 while averaging 23 home runs, 20 steals and 2.4 WAR in his five full seasons with the team. Owner of 11 Gold Glove awards, including nine straight from 1993 through 2001, Vizquel only made three All-Star games, due primarily to the fact that he's been overshadowed by those who were more offensively gifted. Every MLB Team's Most Underrated Player Since 2000 Joel Reuter December 16, 2021 Jim McIsaac/Getty Images "I completely forgot how good he was!" That's the response we set out to elicit. Id like to see more focus on what Bonds did over his first 13 seasons, 1986 through 1998, before its generally assumedhe began taking steroids. Like Oaklandsmore celebrated starting rotation, theres tremendous depthin the bullpen (plus a couple oftalented relievers on the 40-man roster who could getSeptember call-ups.) Interestingly enough, Finley could have had multiple 20/20 and 30/30 seasons, but the speed that he exhibited early in his career wasn't quite the same when his power finally developed. Is Lance Berkman leaning on a beat up old Ford in the Astrodome parking lot? Tigers' fans remember him fondly for his contributions during their march to the World Series championship in 1968. Trailing 5-3 as they headed into the bottom of the ninth inning against the Detroit Tigers on June 22, 1979, Doug DeCinces stepped to the plate with two outs, Eddie Murray on first base, and a Ken Singleton home run having cut the deficit to one run. I find that to be an amazing statistic. Longtime sports writer and researcher Bob Carroll wrote an article for the National Pastimein 1985 about 12 players he believed should be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Take a single nine-pocket sheet and a reasonable $100 budget, and build a nine-card collection with a unifying theme. He hit .313/.374/.489 while averaging 39 doubles, 16 home runs and 73 RBI during that six-year span, hitting alongside Vladimir Guerrero in the Montreal Expos lineup. Career Stats: 1,881 G; .271/.360/.404; 160 HR; 758 RBI; 1,803 H; 964 R; 233-for-350 SB. I wonder if Rolen might be in the same boat if hed spent more time at the Ballpark inArlington; his slash in just 34 plate appearances there is .419/.471/.742. When 22-year-old Bert Campaneris made his major league debut in 1964, he took Twins starter Jim Kaat deep in his first major league at-bat. Here are nine underrated ones: 1) Luis Gonzalez, D-backs, 2001 57 HR, 36 2B, 7 3B, 100 BB, 1.117 OPS So the man puts together one of the great offensive seasons of all-time, and all anyone wants to talk to him about is a bloop single that just cleared the infield. One half of a great double-play combination in Kansas City, along with second baseman Frank White, shortstop Freddie Patek was part of the Royals teams that won the American League West from 1976-78. Hernandez made his mark as a rookie during the Florida Marlins 1997 World Series run, but his best work came as a member of the Expos and Nationals. Peja Stojakovi 5. Career Stats: 1,919 G; .291/.319/.391; 57 HR; 941 RBI; 2,158 H; 980 R; 363-for-400 SB*. His best season came two years later with the Angels in 1991, when he went 18-11 with a 2.89 ERA, finishing third in the American League Cy Young Award voting. Not to take anything away from any of those players, all of whom have had excellent careers, but none of them come close to fielding their position as well as Vizquel. You've read the headline. Niese spent six full seasons in the Mets rotation from 2010 through 2015, posting a 59-59 record with a 3.86 ERA while averaging 171 innings per year. Youre correct. The pitchers threw the ball harder, and the sluggers hit the ball further than any previous decade. He hit at least 20 home runs in nine consecutive seasons from 1933 through 1941, and drove in at least 100 runs for seven straight seasons, from 1935 through 1941. Randolph was a patient hitter, drawing more than 80 walks seven times in his career, including a career high of 119 in 1980, a number that lead the American League. Venable had a quietly effective career with the Padres, logging 13.3 WAR in eight seasons. Babe Ruth also hit .393 with 41 homers in 1923. A key contributor on three World Series-winning Boston Red Sox teams in the 1910s, Dutch Leonard largely played in the shadow of Babe Ruth and "Smoky" Joe Wood. Corey Maggette Barry Sanders. From 1903 to 1909, he averaged 29 wins per season, leading the NL three times in . Nobody in the league could play balls that were hit off of Ebbets Field's high wall in right field like he could, and opposing runners quickly grew tired of testing his arm and failing to advance nearly every time. SP Christy Mathewson: (236-112, 1.98 ERA, 1.035 WHIP, 1,799 K, 2,996.2 IP) 3. Had Jim Wynn not spent 11 years of his 15-year career playing in the Houston Astrodome, one of the more pitching friendly parks in the history of the game, chances are that he'd have approachedor surpassedthe 400 home run mark for his career. In 1181 total games in a Blue Jays uniform, Bell slashed .286/.325/.486 with 202 homers and 740 RBI. His 146 home runs rank eighth all-time in franchise history. Closers Brian Wilson, Santiago Casilla and Sergio Romo received the bulk of the attention in the Giants bullpen during their impressive run to three World Series titles in five years. We use cookies to help personalize content, tailor and measure ads, and provide a safer experience. In seven seasons with the team, he won 70 games and posted a 3.98 ERA (106 ERA+) while leading the league in innings pitched three times and tallying 23 complete games. A reliever as a rookie in 2010 (44 G, 1.30 ERA) and an All-Star as a starter the following year (13-8, 3.51 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 169 IP), Ogando's debut coincided with the Rangers appearing in back-to-back World Series. Playing alongside future Hall of Famers like Paul Molitor and Robin Yount and solid pros in Sal Bando and Gordon Thomas, Money was selected to four All-Star games as part of the "Brew Crew" and set the major league record for consecutive games played at third base without committing an error, 86 games, in 1974. 3 overall pick in the 1997 draft out of UCLA, Glaus slugged 35 home runs between Double-A and Triple-A the following year in his pro debut, and he took over as the Anaheim Angels starting third baseman in 1999. Arguably the best pitcher in Expos history, an average season for Rogers from 1977 though 1983 was a 15-11 record with a 2.83 ERA, though Dick Williams, his manager from 1977 through part of the 1981 season, was never a fan and routinely questioned whether the right-hander was truly giving a maximum effort. Rarely mentioned among the most dominant relievers in recent history, Uehara had a 2.19 ERA, 0.81 WHIP and 11.6 K/9 with 79 saves in 91 chances during his four seasons with the Red Sox. Left unprotected by the Kansas City Royals in the 1993 expansion draft, the Florida Marlins took the talented youngster for their own. A nine-time All-Star over his 14-year career spent entirely with the Red Sox, Doerr was not only an excellent bunter but a second baseman with power as well. Originally a Yankee, Hal Morris was sent to Cincinnati in 1989 in exchange for Tim Leary in a perfect example of how George Steinbrenner used to run the club; trading prospects for veterans. My thought, by the way, is that many 19th century ballplayers are underrated and that were just re-discovering them via Baseball Reference.). Top 10 Players of the 1900s 1. The 1998 Bowman card above is one of 10 different Rookie Cards in his database. 1980-89: Dwight Evans. In those seasons alone, Bonds accomplished more than many players in Cooperstown: those three MVPs, 76.1 Wins Above Replacement and 112 defensive runs saved (second-best in baseball for those years behind, get this, Sammy Sosa.) While he hit the first-ever home run at Veterans Stadium as a member of the Phillies, it wasn't until Don Money was traded to the Brewers following the 1972 season that he enjoyed the most success of his career. He represented Toronto in two midsummer classics, won three consecutive Silver Sluggers from . Doc Halladay has been the most consistent pitcher of this decade. A top-25 prospect at the start of the 2005 and 2006 seasons, Quentin failed to live up to expectations during his time in the Arizona Diamondbacks organization. Reliever Mike Adams with his 1.66 ERA in 209 appearances over four seasons was also considered as most underrated for the Padres. From 1989 through 1990, Oquendo was the Cardinals starting second baseman, and he flourished in the position. He would hit .275 or better five times and put together seven consecutive seasons in which he stole at least 20 bases a year. Jurrjens made 115 starts in the big leagues before his age-26 season, going 50-33 with a 3.40 ERA in 702.1 innings, and he was an All-Star in 2011 when he went 13-6 with a 2.96 ERA in 152 innings. Al Oliver. Career Stats: 1,190 G; .256/.346/.317; 14 HR; 254 RBI; 821 H; 339 R; 35-for-68 SB. Maple Leafs defenceman Jake McCabe did exactly that on Saturday, responding to a monstrous Tyler Myers hit on Toronto captain John Tavares. His production was as steady as any player could hope, even if he was never a bonafide superstar. Today marks the final installment, for now, of my series about the most underrated baseball player of each decade. The Most Underrated NBA Players of the 2000s Hide 11. A six-time All-Star with the Angels, Fregosi formed one of the most capable double-play combinations in the game with second baseman Bobby Knoop from 1964 until the midway point of the 1969 season. He was traded from Baltimore to the Angels in 1982 to make room for Cal Ripken Jr.; ironically, DeCinces was the man who had the unenviable task of replacing legendary third baseman Brooks Robinson, so his time in Baltimore was sandwiched in between two all-time greats. Victimized by a lack of run support for most of his career, largely because he was the best pitcher on some awful teams, Stieb's numbers are even more impressive. He went 15-5 with a 3.23 ERA in a career-high 209 innings in 2009 and led the NL with a 2.30 ERA in 183.2 innings the following year to check in fifth in NL Cy Young voting, but that proved to be his peak. 1919 Cincinnati Reds. All MLB players dream of earning a place alongside legends such as Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron, Lou Gehrig, Tom Seaver, Willie Mays, and Bob Gibson. The Most Underrated MLB Players of All Time. He won Silver Slugger honors in 2014, hitting .271/.342/.467 for a 126 OPS+ with 23 home runs and 76 RBI and two years later he was traded to the Mets for left-hander Jon Niese. 320 batting average with a .370 OBP. White made ridiculous catches in the outfield look routine while hitting for power and flashing excellent speed when he got on base. Yes. Honorable mention: Anyone who plays for the As, my girlfriend said after I told her about this project. He was terrific once again in 2002 (15-4, 3.28 ERA, 144 K, 164.2 IP) and solid in 2003 (14-13, 4.13 ERA, 161 K, 187.1 IP) before shoulder injuries derailed his career. Abreus quietly wrapping up his career as we speak, his best years a distant memory. Thing is, Biggio was a valuable fielder during the 90s. Heywards 96 defensive runs saved are also best in baseball, by a wide margin, over the past five seasons. Career Stats: 1,514 G; .271/.347/.350; 28 HR; 574 RBI; 1,450 H; 676 R; 188-for-252 SB. Career Stats: 2,328 G; .259/.311/.342; 79 HR; 646 RBI; 2,249 H; 1,181 R; 649-for-898 SB. Over the next three games, Eckstein hit .615/.643/.846 with eight hits, three doubles, three runs scored and four RBIa run that not only led the Cardinals to the World Series championship but one that won him World Series MVP honors. He led the Tigers in hits and RBI, broke up three no-hitters, crushed five grand slams and with Game 7 of the World Series a scoreless tie in the seventh inning, Northrup stroked a two-run double off of the Cardinals' Bob Gibson that wound up being the series-winning hit. Now, lets turn our attention to an era still settling. Career Stats: 1,887 G; .267/.354/.475; 318 HR; 1,147 RBI; 1,703 H; 945 R; 14-for-33 SB.
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