We throw around words like ballplayers toss around a baseball during pregame warm-ups in the outfield. A foot injury suffered while running the bases derailed his career, but for a short time, Wang was one of the best starters in the American League. Career Stats: 2,239 G; .296/.340/.375; 37 HR; 842 RBI; 2,705 H; 1,357 R; 62-for-135 SB. Throw in four seasons of at least 100 RBI, and you've got yourself a pretty complete player. Money pitcher. A nine-time All-Star and five-time Gold Glove Award winner during his 19-year career with the Cincinnati Reds, Concepcion's contributions were routinely overshadowed by his Hall of Fame teammates, namely Pete Rose, Tony Perez and Morgan. Hell likely get into Cooperstown on the writers ballot, thanks to a late career renaissance with the Rangers that has pushed him near 3,000 hits and a .300 lifetime batting average. Part of the excellent Baltimore Orioles teams of the late 1960s and early 1970s, Don Buford was a relatively unknown leadoff hitter who holds the record for grounding into the fewest double plays per at-bat than anyone else, one every 138 at-bats. Career Stats: 1,673 G; .286/.351/.455; 202 HR; 870 RBI; 1,706 H; 843 R; 103-for-171 SB. The tussle between Myers and McCabe was short yet spirited, but the new Toronto blueliner picked up 17 penalty minutes on the play five for fighting, plus a two-minute instigator and a 10-minute misconduct. He had four straight 4-WAR seasons from 2002 through 2005, peaking in '04 when he hit .340/.419/.562 with 41 doubles, 27 home runs and 104 RBI to win Silver Slugger honors and tally a career-high 5.6 WAR. 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. Thus far, Heyward has mostly seemed to offer tantalizing glimpses of what he might become. Over the next four seasons, Giles would be named to two All-Star teams while posting an average season of .309/.426/.604 with 37 HR, 106 RBI and 10 stolen bases. Career Stats: 2019 G; .254/.352/.408; 242 HR; 1,039 RBI; 1,790 H; 982 R; 75-for-121 SB. Its tough for a third baseman if they dont have Mike Schmidts power, George Bretts batting average, or Brooks Robinsons highlight reel glove. The No. Career Stats: 1,998 G; .277/.343/.425; 193 HR; 1,007 RBI; 2,020 H; 1,092 R; 341-for-434 SB. Graig Nettles and Darrell Evans came up in yesterdays post. Fuentes was an All-Star for three straight seasons from 2005 to 2007, converting 84.7 percent of his save chances en route to a franchise record 115 saves. White chased the ball down and caught it while crashing full speed into the walla play some have said was more impressive than "The Catch" by Willie Maysthen threw a strike to Blue Jays' second baseman Roberto Alomar. His big-league career was over before he turned 30. While he began his major league career in 1968, it wasn't until 1969 that a 22-year-old center fielder named Larry Hisle got a chance to play on a daily basis, and he rewarded the Phillies with a solid campaign that resulted in a fourth place finish in the Rookie of the Year voting. Ibanez began his MLB career with five forgettable seasons as a part-time player with the Mariners before breaking out in Kansas City. 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.) Thanks for another fun article. Go ask the Los Angeles Dodgers if they thought Nettles was unappreciated or underrated in Game 3 of the 1978 World Series. I find that to be an amazing statistic. They'd go on to win 20 of their next 23 games and the World Series as well. He was a four-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger winner, crushing an AL-best 47 home runs in 2000 at the age of 23. Without question, the highlight of Abbott's career came on Sept. 4, 1993 when he threw a no-hitter against the Cleveland Indians at Yankee Stadium, walking five while striking out three. He then returned to Seattle in 2004 after a three-year run with the Royals and put together some of the best years of his career. He has six seasons with at least 16 wins and he has at least an ERA under 3.30. Best-Selling Autographs from 2021 Topps Sterling Baseball 2021 Panini Instant Rated Rookie Showcase Football One-Sheet Collections: Rookie Cards of the 2001 World Series Champion Arizona Diamondbacks, One-Sheet Collections: Most 3s by 7-Footers, One-Sheet Collections: 1990s World Series MVPs, $100 Colorado Rockies Baseball Card Starter Kit One-Sheet Collections. In the five seasons that followed a respectable sixth-place finish in 2004 AL Rookie of the Year voting, DeJesus hit .286/.357/.427 for a 107 OPS+ while filling up the stat sheet and averaging 30 doubles, eight triples, 10 home runs, 63 RBI, 79 runs and 2.9 WAR. Doug Christie 9. These guys had solid career resumes and often came up big in big games, yet they seldom, if ever, received widespread acclaim. It's time to unveil the 2022 MLB All-Underrated Team. 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. His hit tool should be remembered with Ichiro, Miggy, Pujols, Vladdy, and its beginning to look like Trout will go down in that group as well. Theres also Buddy Bell, Ron Santo, Ken Boyer and a range of other third basemen who hit respectably and offered superb, if under-appreciated, defensive value. SS Honus Wagner: (.352/.417/.508, 1,847 H, 51 HR, 956 RBI, 1,014 R) 2. For many, nostalgia remains the driving force behind baseball card collecting, and thats how we arrived at the idea of One-Sheet Collections. White was also one of the two runs that scored on Dave Winfield's 11th-inning-double in Game 6 of that series, the hit that eventually won the championship for Toronto. Norm Cash thrived in the middle of the Tigers' lineup for 15 years, though he was often overshadowed by his teammates Al Kaline and Rocky Colavito. Yes, the Chicago "Black Sox" threw the World Series, but everybody believes that if Shoeless Joe and Co. had tried, they . Career Stats: 1,881 G; .271/.360/.404; 160 HR; 758 RBI; 1,803 H; 964 R; 233-for-350 SB. Get caught up:1960s, 70s, and 80s|1930s, 40s, and 50s|1900s, 10s, and 20s. Left unprotected by the Kansas City Royals in the 1993 expansion draft, the Florida Marlins took the talented youngster for their own. It appeared the Astros had found a co-ace to slot alongside Roy Oswalt when Miller went 16-8 with a 3.40 ERA and 183 strikeouts in 212 innings during his age-24 season in 2001. It's not like Vizquel is the second coming of Rey Ordonez, a slick fielding shortstop who was inept at the plate. Here are the 30 most unsung, under-the-radar, underrated pitchers in major league history. He won 80 games and posted a 3.66 ERA in 1,163.1 innings in his first years in the big leagues, but multiple Tommy John surgeries limited him to just 49 innings after his age-27 season. Seattle Mariners designated hitter Ty France (23) is congratulated by teammates in the dugout after hitting a two-run home run against the Houston Astros during the fifth inning at T-Mobile Park. Top 10 Players of the 1900s 1. In spite of it all, Rolen will be lucky to top 15 percent his first time on the writers ballot. I grew up with Bill White, watching him team up with Phil Rizzuto on WPIX in New York to call Yankees games from the late '70s through the early '90s. The Most Underrated MLB Players of All Time. He racked up 18.6 WAR in nine seasons with the team, earning three All-Star selections and peaking as a 6-WAR player in 2006 when he helped the Tigers reach the World Series. Winner of the 1949 American League Rookie of the Year as a member of the St. Louis Browns and a four-time All-Star, first baseman/outfielder Roy Sievers kind of blended into the background and never really got much attention from fans or from the media. Career Stats: 1,526 G; .276/.338/.441; 163 HR; 852 RBI; 1,570 H; 737 R; 39-for-72 SB. The Opening Day starter twice during his time in Cleveland, Westbrook eclipsed 200 innings three years in a row from 2004 to 2006. Bonds qualifies here because the steroid-addled caricature he created for himself in his final seasons obscures everything he was before. Let's take a look at the 50 most underrated baseball players in the history of the game. Concepcion was rounding the bases after hitting a home run and crossed home plate roughly four seconds after Watson. He had a 26-homer, 27-steal, 6.3-WAR season in 2001, and his 22.4 WAR from 1999 through the 2004 season ranked 40th among all position players and sixth among third basemen during that stretch. No one-year wonders or self-promoters here. 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. Its a crime! After starting his career with three years of limited playing time in Cleveland, Jay Bell was dealt to the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1989, where he became the everyday shortstop for the team that went to the NLCS in three consecutive seasons. Career Stats: 1,514 G; .271/.347/.350; 28 HR; 574 RBI; 1,450 H; 676 R; 188-for-252 SB. One of the more versatile players of his time. There have been just 12 position players worth three or more WAR in each of the last four seasons. 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. Fck. He'd accomplish the feat three more times over the course of his career. An on-base machine who regularly posted a .400 OBP while also tallying eight 100 RBI seasons as a middle-of-the-order run producer, he earned just two All-Star selections in his 18-year career. He had a 126 OPS+ with 22 home runs, 22 steals and a career-high 3.5 WAR in 151 games in 2013, earning a two-year, $8.5 million extension. It was an era in baseball defined by power. 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. Now, lets turn our attention to an era still settling. Yet somehow, Tim Salmon was never named to an All-Star team. Said Bill James in The New Baseball Abstract: No other player in baseball history was so richly praised for his defensive skillno one. Jeff Dean/Associated Press Enough about. He was far from a one-sided player though, being selected to four All-Star games. Adrian Beltre played 21 seasons in the majors, most of which came in the 2000s, so it'd be impossible to leave him off our list. He debuted in 1997 and earned the first of three All-Star selections in 2000. During the first six seasons of the 2000s, he hit .292/.406/.584 while averaging 35 home runs, 98 RBI and 6.1 WAR and winning a Gold Glove every year. Required fields are marked *. 2022 Bowmans Best Baseball Checklist, Team Set Lists and Details, One-Sheet Collections: Best Active NBA Stars Who Have Never Been All-Stars, 2022 Bowman Inception Baseball Checklist, Team Set Lists, Odds and Details, 2022-23 Leaf Exotic Basketball Checklist and Details, 2021-22 SP Game Used CHL Hockey Checklist and Details, 2023 GAS Arnold Schwarzenegger: Built to Perfection Trading Cards Carry Some Heavy Weight, 2022 Panini Flawless Collegiate Basketball Checklist and Details, 2022 Topps Allen & Ginter Chrome Baseball Checklist, Team Set Lists and Details. Justice hit a ball to deep center field. He spent the last five seasons of his major league career with the Brewers, where he took two future Hall of Famers under his wing: Paul Molitor and Robin Yount. His 5.5 WAR this season is seventh-best in the majors. We use cookies to help personalize content, tailor and measure ads, and provide a safer experience. Larry Wayne Jones is one of the greatest switch-hitters of all-time. Career Stats: 1,286 G; .264/.362/.379; 93 HR; 418 RBI; 1,203 H; 718 R; 200-for-305 SB. All told, he racked up 60.4 WAR in 17 seasons with 393 home runs and 1,199 RBI. Morris hit .340 in his first full season with the Reds and was an instrumental part of the team that upset the heavily favored Oakland Athletics in the 1990 World Series. To qualify for the All-Underrated Team, a player must have: Zero All-Star selections 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. All-time underrated athletes. In February 2012, godfather of baseball stats Bill James wrote an open letter for Grantland arguing Dwight Evans' case for the Hall of Fame. During the first six seasons of the 2000s, he hit .292/.406/.584 while averaging 35 home runs, 98 RBI and 6.1 . Sharing a lineup with Prince Fielder, Ryan Braun and slugging middle infielders Rickie Weeks and J.J. Hardy, he wasn't always a focal point, but he stands as one of the most underrated outfielders of his era. From 1903 to 1909, he averaged 29 wins per season, leading the NL three times in . 1919 Cincinnati Reds. White made ridiculous catches in the outfield look routine while hitting for power and flashing excellent speed when he got on base. Clutch. Graig Nettles and Darrell Evans came up in yesterday's post. He was a legitimate star in 2012 (137 OPS+, 22 HR, 92 RBI) and 2013 (129 OPS+, 13 HR, 97 RBI), but was traded to the Red Sox the following year and his production dropped off significantly from there. The left-hander was never a star, but he was a rock solid middle-of-the-rotation arm, and he went 13-9 with a 3.40 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in 190.1 innings during the best season of his career in 2012. Career Stats: 1,190 G; .256/.346/.317; 14 HR; 254 RBI; 821 H; 339 R; 35-for-68 SB. Upon the discovery of a tumor in his foot and with the Angels having mixed feelings about his future as a ballplayer, Fregosi was traded to the Mets in exchange for four players, most notably a right-handed pitcher named Nolan Ryan. Now go take a look at his career stats. Hornsby fell one homer short of doing it twice. Career Stats: 2,488 G; .267/.322/.357; 101 HR; 950 RBI; 2,326 H; 993 R; 321-for-430 SB. He continued to shuffle roles effectively the next two years before the wheels fell off, but he was a 9.1-WAR player in his first four seasons in the big leagues for some contending Texas teams. Olerud fired the ball to Blue Jays' third baseman Kelly Gruber who clipped the heel of Sanders' foot for what should have been the second triple play in World Series history. 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. You've read the headline. Peja Stojakovi 5. Part of the Impossible Dream Sox team that won the 1967 American League pennant in one of the closest races in history, Petrocelli hit two home runs in Game 6 of the World Series, forcing a Game 7 that the Sox ultimately lost to Bob Gibson and the Cardinals. A two-time All-Star, he wouldn't join a winning baseball team until 1946 when he was sold to the Boston Red Sox. The deal to acquire Guillen from the Seattle Mariners prior to the 2004 season in exchange for Ramon Santiago and Juan Gonzalez (not that one) is one of the best trades in Tigers history. He has two 20/20 seasons on his resume and fell three home runs short of adding three more to his collection. 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. A five-time All-Star, Doc Cramer patrolled center field for four different teams over a 20-year-career, one that saw him hit .300 eight times and break the 200-hit barrier on three different occasions. It wasn't until he was traded to the Brewers prior to the 1978 season that a then 29-year-old Oglivie got a chance to play on an everyday basis. Career Stats: 1,392 G; .267/.333/.429; 153 HR; 610 RBI; 1,254 H; 603 R; 39-for-77 SB. The best shortstop of the 1970s, Dave Concepcion paired with Joe Morgan to form one of the great double-play combinations in the history of the game. Read our. Giles finished his career with more than 300 more walks than strikeouts, and while he was never the same player in San Diego as he was in Pittsburgh, Giles was one of the most popular Padres during his time with the club. Keltner made two outstanding backhanded plays at third to rob DiMaggio, and along with a walk and a ground out, the streak ended. I would go so far as to say his career (career not hit tool) is better than the greatly revered Tony Gwynns (random reference, but it gives perspective) and I dont say that lightly. Not only would he help the Red Sox win the American League Pennant in 1946, he did everything that he could to win the 1946 World Series, hitting .417 against the St. Louis Cardinals in what wound up being a Cardinals' sweep. From 1989 through 1990, Oquendo was the Cardinals starting second baseman, and he flourished in the position. DeCinces wouldn't have the same kind of memorable moments with the Angels as he did with the Orioles, but he was a solid contributor to the Angels success nonetheless. His 2,043 hits rank 10th all-time among players who played primarily catcher in their career, and his .280 career average speaks to his offensive prowess. All told, he had a 129 OPS+ with 179 home runs and 22.6 WAR with the North Siders. You've heard them allyou've used them all. The 1953 National League batting champion with a .344 mark, Furillo was an important part of two World Series championship winning teams in 1955 and 1959. However, who were the most underrated MLB players of the 2010s? Some might wonder how someone who is enshrined in the Hall of Fame could possibly be underrated, but without a doubt Ron Santo is arguably the most underrated player to ever play the game. Otis knew better, and he and Hodges clashed until the day that the Mets traded Otis to the Royals prior to the 1970 season. Career Stats: 2,012 G; .291/.364/.416; 89 HR; 674 RBI; 2,138 H; 1,124 R; 174-for-255 SB. Before Clayton Kershaw arrived on the scene, it was Billingsley who was on his way to becoming a homegrown ace for the Dodgers after the team selected him 24th in the 2003 draft. Career Stats: 1,806 G; .399/.355/.458; 192 HR; 1,058 RBI; 1,910 H; 895 R; 48-for-74 SB. the first player to ever bat as a designated hitter. 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. He would make two All-Star teams as a member of the Twins and lead the American League in RBI with 119 in 1977. 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. He led the National League in hits with 192 in 1990 as a member of the Giants, led the National League in runs scored twice and triples four times while consistently placing near the top of the league in stolen bases.