by David Hornestay

Created on: February 01, 2007   Last Updated: April 27, 2007

It's virtually impossible to pick an all-time greatest baseball team because of the span of baseball history and the change of conditions.

When I became a fan in the mid-1940's, it had been recognized that pre-1900 players and records could not be compared with later ones because of numerous rule changes (length of season, ball and strike counts, foul balls, e.g.). So, although Hugh Duffy's .438 batting average and Hoss Radbourne's 60 wins were occasionally recalled nostalgically, Rogers Hornsby's.424 and Jack Chesbro's 41 victories were the accepted records. 1900 was a convenient divider; not only was it the turn of the century but the permanent rivalry of the National and American Leagues came into being.

While 20th century rules changes were less radical (the prohibition of the spit ball after 1920 probably the most significant), other conditions continued to evolve. The deadball which limited home run champions to fewer then 20 a season until Babe Ruth came along made for a game strikingly different from the one we know. On the other hand, night baseball, beginning modestly in the 1930's and becoming much more widespread after World War II, and coast-to-coast travel after 1957 posed problems that the earlier athletes never dealt with.

Then there's the formidable problem of comparing players one has seen and those known only from historical records or film clips. Having seen Brooks Robinson's spectacular play at third base, can we really say he was better than Pie Traynor, the 20's and 30's Pittsburgh star who always made the all-time teams when I was growing up? How do we know Johnny Bench was a more effective catcher than Bill Dickey and Mickey Cochrane, consistent .300 hitters who were fabled pitch-callers? And how do we compare the pitchers of today, who are programmed to bear down for six or seven innings with those who pitched 30 or 40 complete games a year?

The best we can do is compile a list of exceptional players whom we have seen or followed closely and augment them with some from the past whose records and reputations are so outstanding that they must be included on an all-time team. Cy Young pitched almost half of his career in the 19th century, but 511 wins and three no-hitters is just too staggering to ignore. Babe Ruth is in a class by himself. Ty Cobb survived the dead ball era and kept hitting for an average never approached that a place must be reserved for him.

But how do Joe DiMaggio's consistent hitting and graceful fielding compare with Willie Mays's slugging and range? Can you find places for Ted Williams, Stan Musial, Roberto Clemente, Tris Speaker, and Barry Bonds in one or two outfields? Was Ozzie Smith's brilliant fielding enough to match Hans Wagner's big bat and reliable fielding?

Oh, well, here goes: Lou Gehrig, Charlie Gehringer, Honus Wagner, Mike Schmidt, Babe Ruth, Willie Mays, Ty Cobb, Roy Campanella, Cy Young, Nolan Ryan, and Rollie Fingers.

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