Copyright © 2026 OyList. All Rights Reserved.
Share
Items23
1
Honus Wagner
Born
Shortstop, Pittsburgh Pirates, 1897 to 1917. Wagner won eight National League batting titles and stole more than 700 bases, and contemporaries rated his range and arm at shortstop as the best of the era. He was one of the five players in the Hall of Fame's first class in 1936, chosen for all-round play in a game built on placing hits and taking bases.
More about Honus Wagner2
Ty Cobb
Outfielder, Detroit Tigers and Philadelphia Athletics, 1905 to 1928. Cobb's career batting average of .366 is still the highest in Major League history, and he stole home 54 times, a record. He played the "inside game" of bunts, hit-and-runs and aggressive running, a reminder of how runs were made before the home run took over.
More about Ty Cobb3
Walter Johnson
Born
Pitcher, Washington Senators, 1907 to 1927. Johnson threw 110 shutouts, a record that has never been approached, with a sidearm fastball that hitters of his day called the fastest they had seen. He won 417 games for a team that was often poor, which makes his record even more a measure of the pitcher alone.
More about Walter Johnson4
Satchel Paige
Born
Pitcher, Negro leagues and later Cleveland. Paige spent two decades as the most famous pitcher in Black baseball, relying on pinpoint control and an array of deliveries, including his "hesitation pitch". He reached the Major Leagues at 42 in 1948, helped Cleveland win the World Series that year, and in 1971 became the first Negro leagues player elected to the Hall of Fame.
More about Satchel Paige5
Ted Williams
Born
Left fielder, Boston Red Sox, 1939 to 1960. Williams hit plenty of home runs, but his defining skill was refusing to swing at bad pitches: his career on-base percentage of .482 is the highest in Major League history. In 1941 he batted .406, and no Major League player has reached .400 since. His book The Science of Hitting is still read by coaches.
More about Ted Williams6
Jackie Robinson
Second baseman and infielder, Brooklyn Dodgers, 1947 to 1956. Robinson broke the Major League colour line in 1947 and was the first Rookie of the Year. On the field he was the most disruptive baserunner of his time, stealing home 19 times, including in the 1955 World Series, and his threat to run changed how pitchers and catchers worked whenever he reached base.
More about Jackie Robinson7
Willie Mays
Born
Centre fielder, New York and San Francisco Giants. Mays is the model of the five-tool player: he hit for power and average, but his over-the-shoulder catch in the 1954 World Series is the most famous defensive play in baseball, and he won 12 Gold Gloves in centre field. He also led the league in stolen bases four times, so he belongs here for everything beyond the home runs.
More about Willie Mays8
Roberto Clemente
Right fielder, Pittsburgh Pirates, 1955 to 1972. Clemente's throwing arm made runners stop at third rather than test him, and he won 12 Gold Gloves and four batting titles. He reached exactly 3,000 hits in his last regular-season game before dying in a plane crash while taking relief to earthquake victims in Nicaragua, and baseball's award for community work now carries his name.
More about Roberto Clemente9
Brooks Robinson
Born
Third baseman, Baltimore Orioles, 1955 to 1977. Robinson won 16 consecutive Gold Gloves at third base, where reactions matter more than range, and he was nicknamed "the Human Vacuum Cleaner". His diving stops in the 1970 World Series earned him the series MVP award and are still the best showcase of the position's defensive demands.
More about Brooks Robinson10
Sandy Koufax
Pitcher, Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers, 1955 to 1966. Koufax's peak from 1962 to 1966 is among the most dominant in the game: he won three Cy Young Awards, led the league in earned run average five years running and threw four no-hitters, including a perfect game in 1965. Arthritis in his elbow ended his career at 30.
More about Sandy Koufax11
Bob Gibson
Born
Pitcher, St Louis Cardinals, 1959 to 1975. Gibson's 1.12 earned run average in 1968 is the lowest of the live-ball era, and it was one reason the league lowered the pitcher's mound the following year. He also won nine Gold Gloves as a fielding pitcher and was World Series MVP in 1964 and 1967, known for working fast and pitching inside.
More about Bob Gibson12
Johnny Bench
Born
Catcher, Cincinnati Reds, 1967 to 1983. Bench won ten straight Gold Gloves and popularised catching one-handed with a hinged mitt, which protected his throwing hand and let him get rid of the ball faster. His arm shut down opposing running games for the "Big Red Machine", making him the standard against which defensive catchers are still measured.
More about Johnny Bench13
Ozzie Smith
Born
Shortstop, San Diego Padres and St Louis Cardinals, 1978 to 1996. "The Wizard" won 13 consecutive Gold Gloves and was elected to the Hall of Fame mainly for his fielding, a rare honour. His acrobatic range on the artificial turf at Busch Stadium, and the backflip he performed before games, made defence at shortstop something crowds came to watch.
More about Ozzie Smith14
Rickey Henderson
Born
Left fielder, Oakland Athletics and many others, 1979 to 2003. Henderson holds the career records for stolen bases (1,406) and runs scored, and his 130 steals in 1982 remain the single-season record. A small strike zone and a sharp eye also made him one of the best leadoff hitters ever at drawing walks, so he was on base, and moving, more than almost anyone.
More about Rickey Henderson15
Tony Gwynn
Born
Right fielder, San Diego Padres, 1982 to 2001. Gwynn won eight National League batting titles and finished with a .338 career average, placing the ball through gaps rather than over the fence. He struck out rarely, never more than 40 times in a season, and was an early adopter of video to study his own swing and opposing pitchers.
More about Tony Gwynn16
Greg Maddux
Born
Pitcher, Chicago Cubs, Atlanta Braves and others, 1986 to 2008. Maddux won four consecutive Cy Young Awards without an overpowering fastball, relying on movement, location and reading hitters. His 18 Gold Gloves are the most by any player at any position, and his low pitch counts made him a lesson in efficiency rather than strikeouts.
More about Greg Maddux17
Iván Rodríguez
Born
Catcher, Texas Rangers, Detroit Tigers and others, 1991 to 2011. "Pudge" Rodríguez won 13 Gold Gloves, the most by a catcher, and threw out close to half of attempted base stealers over his career. His habit of throwing to first from his knees to catch runners leaning off the bag made catcher defence an attacking weapon.
More about Iván Rodríguez18
Mariano Rivera
Relief pitcher, New York Yankees, 1995 to 2013. Rivera built the most successful closing career in history on essentially one pitch, a cut fastball that broke bats even when hitters knew it was coming. He holds the record with 652 regular-season saves, had a 0.70 earned run average in the postseason, and in 2019 became the first player elected to the Hall of Fame unanimously.
More about Mariano Rivera19
Ichiro Suzuki
Born
Right fielder, Orix BlueWave, Seattle Mariners and others. Ichiro arrived from Japan in 2001 and won Rookie of the Year and MVP in the same season, then set the single-season hits record with 262 in 2004. Speed out of the box, bat control and ten straight Gold Gloves made him the opposite of a power hitter, and he entered the Hall of Fame in 2025.
More about Ichiro Suzuki20
Pedro Martínez
Born
Pitcher, Montreal Expos, Boston Red Sox and others, 1992 to 2009. At his peak in 1999 and 2000, Martínez posted earned run averages of 2.07 and 1.74 while hitters across the league were setting home run records, the clearest case of a pitcher beating his era. A slight build, a fastball and a fading changeup made him a lesson in pitch mix rather than size.
More about Pedro Martínez21
Clayton Kershaw
Pitcher, Los Angeles Dodgers, 2008 to 2025. Kershaw spent his whole career with one club, won three Cy Young Awards and the 2014 MVP, and retired with a career earned run average of 2.53, the lowest of the live-ball era among pitchers with 2,000 or more innings. His slow, looping curveball is one of the most recognisable pitches of the century.
More about Clayton Kershaw22
Shohei Ohtani
Born
Pitcher and designated hitter, Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, Los Angeles Angels and Los Angeles Dodgers. Ohtani hits home runs, but he belongs on this list because he is also a front-line starting pitcher, something no Major League player had sustained since Babe Ruth. He has won multiple MVP awards as a two-way player, and his starts are the rare games where one player affects both halves of every inning.
More about Shohei Ohtani23
Juan Soto
Born
Outfielder, Washington Nationals, San Diego Padres, New York Yankees and New York Mets. Soto's strike-zone judgement is the best of his generation: he led the National League in walks three years running from 2021 and won a World Series at 20 with Washington in 2019. His "Soto shuffle" after taking a ball has made patience at the plate something fans notice.
More about Juan Soto
