So you set his triple crown next to his membership card for the 500 HR & 3000 hits club.
Then scrutinize deez nuts!
Most Exclusive Trio In MLB History
- Thread starter LuteHawk
- Start date
Then scrutinize deez nuts!
Teddy Baseball said he was never the same hitter after he broke his elbow in the 1950 All Star game...Ted isn’t a “member” of this elite trio but he did serve 5 years in the military (WW2 and Korea) in what many said would have been his “prime years” as a major leaguer.
Theodore was a .344 hitter in the bigs. He had 2654 base hits and 521 homeruns, with 1839 runs batted in...missing the “prime 5 years” of his career. No professional could swing the bat like Ted Williams. Seriously doubt I will ever see anyone who ever will.
I still find it amazing how long we went with no Triple Crowns, especially with how close some came.
Stan Musial folks...
.331 career
475 home runs
1951 RBI
24 all star games
3 NL MVP
3 rings
3630 hits, 1830 LH 1830 RH
7 time batting champion
Not too shabby...
.331 career
475 home runs
1951 RBI
24 all star games
3 NL MVP
3 rings
3630 hits, 1830 LH 1830 RH
7 time batting champion
Not too shabby...
6,134 total bases as well, second only to Aaron who had almost 1,300 more at bats. Musial led the league in triples 5 times, Aaron none, ( surprised ). Musial also missed 1945 to military service when he was averaging 210 hits and .362 batting average either side of the missed season. Musial only struck out an average of 37 times per year, among the least of anyone hitting with enough power to be the TB leader when he retired.
@bagdropper you mean he had 1830 hits home/road not left/right...
Yeah, I knew something was wrong there because after posting I remembered, he was a LH batter. Was working at the time and something came up right after. But I knew he did something unique with 1830 hits *2.
Musial had one of those careers where he truly has wound up being under-rated, which is amazing considering how great a hitter he was. I've always thought it was because he sort of gets lost playing in the era of Aaron, Mays, DiMaggio, Williams, and Mantle.
The longevity and consistency of players a couple of generations ago is eye-opening compared to those of today's game. Even with today's players being much better physical specimens, they have shorter careers (we don't see as many stars play past 40 these days - partially due to injuries and gradual lack of productivity as players age, and partially due to stiffer competition) plus they also played 154-game schedules (or were just starting to transition to the modern 162 game schedule). Even with players like Williams and Musial (two of the finest pure hitters of all time) sacrificing many games due to WWII (and in Williams' case, the Korean War as well) they also effectively lost a full season by not playing the extra 8 games (Musial might have played a season or two past the 1961 MLB expansion but not nearly enough to offset the fact that he played 90% of his career before expansion).
Part of the oldster longevity was due to the fact they were not paid much in their old age. Musial's average salary over 22 years was less than 50K/year. Now the luxury tax will mean cutting established players in favor of cheaper, rookies instead of hanging on to an icon in their wanning years...
There is truth to that, plus I don't think MLB provided nearly as many post-retirement benefits.
That said, a 50K/year salary in say 1957 was a VERY handsome salary. Extremely few politicians made that kind of money in those days. Same with physicians, attorneys, and even CEOs.
That said, a 50K/year salary in say 1957 was a VERY handsome salary. Extremely few politicians made that kind of money in those days. Same with physicians, attorneys, and even CEOs.
50K in 1957 = 511K today, not even the MLB minimum of 750K. I guess it could be said that 500K today is a handsome salary, but Max Scherzer is making 43,000,000 a year for the Mets, almost the same as the entire Baltimore team....
The violent swing of batting takes a sneaky toll.
my son was a catcher. Let’s just say MLB catchers are genetic freaks of nature. Amazing they can do what they do for a 100+ games for years and years.
my son was a catcher. Let’s just say MLB catchers are genetic freaks of nature. Amazing they can do what they do for a 100+ games for years and years.
Without looking it up, I think the title of a book I read a few years ago was, “The Year Babe Ruth Hit 100 Home Runs”. Back in that era many cities/states had laws against playing games Sundays. So, the players would play Saturday, then jump on a train across a state line, and play an exhibition game for money in a neighboring state. Coupled with some exhibition games along the rail line from Spring Training, Ruth hit 100 that year.
Lifelong Yankee and Mick fan but it's hard to not put Musial and Williams in the GOA club with Babe and Willie. Guess you put Hank or Cobb in to make it 5.
I always liked Mick's answer when asked who was greater, Mickey Mantle or Willie Mays. He said it was easy and named Willie. When asked why he replied, "Just look at the stats".
Here are the top 5 career batting averages for MLB
players who played in the past 60 years:
1. Ted Williams.........344
2. Tony Gwynn.........338
3. Stan Musial..........330
4. Wade Boggs.........327
5. Rod Carew............327
For 21st century MLB fans it is possible that Williams
and Musial do not get the high respect they deserve.
players who played in the past 60 years:
1. Ted Williams.........344
2. Tony Gwynn.........338
3. Stan Musial..........330
4. Wade Boggs.........327
5. Rod Carew............327
For 21st century MLB fans it is possible that Williams
and Musial do not get the high respect they deserve.
