Editor’s note: This piece first appeared on AMNY.com
After three weeks and hundreds of votes, you’ve decided the starting lineup for Major League Baseball’s all-time team.
With 90 players to choose from, the best nine have been selected across the ages of the game, providing an old-school theme to the best of the very best.
Without further ado, here are the results:
Metro Philly’s All-Time MLB Starting Lineup
Starting Pitcher: Sandy Koufax
Vote percentage: 33%
Career stats: 165 wins. 2.76 ERA, 1.106 WHIP (29th all-time), 2.932 K/BB, 2,396 strikeouts
Career accolades: 3x Cy Young Award, 1963 NL MVP, 7x All-Star, 5x ERA title, 3x World Series, 2x World Series MVP, 0.95 career postseason ERA
Notable vote receivers: Walter Johnson (13%), Tom Seaver (13%), Bob Gibson (13%), Greg Maddux (6%), Pedro Martinez (6%), Christy Mathewson (6%), Randy Johnson (6%)
Catcher: Johnny Bench
Vote percentage: 27%
Stats: 75.2 WAR, 19.7 dWAR, .267 BA, .817 OPS, 2,048 hits, 389 HR, 1,376 RBI
Accolades: 2x (’70, ’72) NL MVP, 1968 NL Rookie of the Year, 14x All-Star, 10x Gold Glove, 2x World Series, 1976 World Series MVP, Hall of Fame
Notable vote receivers: Ivan Rodriguez (22%), Yogi Berra (22%), Mike Piazza (16%)
1st Baseman: Lou Gehrig
Vote percentage: 80%
Stats: 114.1 WAR (13th all-time), .340 BA (16th all-time), 1.080 OPS (3rd all-time), 2,721 hits, 493 HR, 1,995 RBI (7th all-time)
Accolades: 2x AL MVP, 1934 AL Triple Crown winner, 7x All-Star, 1x batting title, 6x World Series, 185 RBI in 1931 (2nd all-time), 4 seasons of 166+ RBI, played in 2,130 consecutive games, Hall of Fame
Notable vote receivers: Willie McCovey (10%), Jimmie Foxx (10%)
2nd Baseman: Rogers Hornsby
Vote percentage: 50%
Stats: 127.1 WAR (9th all-time), .358 BA (2nd all-time), 1.010 OPS (7th all-time), 2,930 hits, 301 HR, 1,584 RBI
Accolades: 2x NL MVP (’25,’29), 2x Triple Crown (’22,’25), 1x World Series, 7x batting title, 3 seasons batting over .400, top career WAR, BA, OPS by 2B ever, Hall of Fame
Notable vote receivers: Joe Morgan (16%), Craig Biggio (8%), Ryne Sandberg (8%), Roberto Alomar (8%)
3rd Baseman: Mike Schmidt
Vote percentage: 63%
Stats: 106.9 WAR (19th all-time), 18.4 dWAR, .267 BA, .908 OPS, 2,234 hits, 548 HR (16th all-time), 1,506 RBI
Accolades: 3x (1980, ’81, ’86) NL MVP, 12x All-Star, 10x Gold Glove, 6x Silver Slugger, 1x World Series, 1980 World Series MVP, Hall of Fame
Notable vote receivers: Brooks Robinson (27%)
Shortstop: Honus Wagner
Vote percentage: 30%
Stats: 130.8 WAR (7th all-time), 21.3 dWAR, .328 BA (35th all-time), .858 OPS, 3,420 hits (8th all-time), 101 HR, 1,732 RBI (23rd all-time), 723 stolen bases (10th all-time)
Accolades: 8x NL batting champion, 13 seasons with a .320 batting average or better, batted .381 in 1900, 8 seasons with at least 40 stolen bases, Hall of Fame
Notable vote receivers: Alex Rodriguez (23%), Cal Ripken Jr. (23%), Derek Jeter (15%)
Left Fielder: Ted Williams
Vote percentage: 62%
Stats: 121.9 WAR (11th all-time), .344 BA (T-7th all-time), 1.116 OPS (2nd all-time), 2,654 hits, 521 HR (T-20th all-time), 1,839 RBI (15th all-time)
Accolades: 2x AL MVP (’46, ’49), 2x AL Triple Crown winner (’42, ’47), 19x All-Star, 6x AL Batting Champion, Last player to hit .400 in MLB history (.406 in 1941), Highest career on-base percentage in MLB history (.482), Registered a 1.000 OPS in 18 of 19 MLB seasons, Lost three seasons due to military service, Hall of Fame
Notable vote receivers: Barry Bonds (37%)
Center Fielder: Willie Mays
Vote percentage: 46%
Stats: 156.2 WAR (3rd all-time), .302 BA, .941 OPS (26th all-time), 3,282 hits (12th all-time), 660 HR (5th all-time), 1,903 RBI (12th all-time), 338 stolen bases
Accolades: 1951 NL Rookie of the Year, 2x NL MVP (’54, ’65), 24x All-Star, 1954 NL Batting Champion, 12x Gold Glove, 1x World Series, Hall of Fame
Notable vote receivers: Mike Trout (23%), Ken Griffey Jr. (15%), Mickey Mantle (15%)
Right Fielder: Babe Ruth
Vote percentage: 70%
Stats: 162.5 WAR (2nd all-time), .342 BA (10th all-time), 1.164 OPS (1st all-time), 2,873 hits, 714 HR (3rd all-time), 2,214 RBI (2nd all-time)
Accolades: 1923 AL MVP, 7x World Series, 1924 AL Batting Champion (.378), Former MLB-holder for most home runs in a single season (60) and career (714), MLB all-time leader in Slugging Percentage (.690), OPS, OPS+, 4 seasons of 50+ home runs, 6 seasons of 150+ RBI, Led MLB in HR 11 times, Led MLB in walks 11 times, Led MLB in OPS 13 times, Hall of Fame
Notable vote receivers: Hank Aaron (20%), Roberto Clemente (6%)
