This is my 3rd installment in the All Time Team series. Previously I've selected the all time team for the New York Yankees and the San Francisco Giants.

As with the Yankees and Mets teams I will be choosing the greatest Met at each position based solely on his contributions to the Mets. In other words I would not be including Pedro Martinez at pitcher due to his years with the Red Sox and Expos.

The Mets having begun play in only 1962 have a much shorter history than the Yankees and Giants which should make choosing their all time team somewhat easier. They won the World Series in 1969 and 1986.

The All Time New York Mets Team (With Career Mets Stats)

First Base - Keith Hernandez (.297 Avg, 80 Home Runs, 468 RBI, .387 OBP, .429 SLG, 130 OPS+)

Some know Keith best for his Just For Men TV commercials or his guest appearance on Seinfeld but Hernandez was a fixture at first base for the Mets during the 80s including during their championship season of 1986. His best seasons with the Mets were '84, '85, and '86 when he hit .311, .309, and .310 respectively. His best year in his career came with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1980 when he won the MVP award with a .344 batting average. While Hernandez did not have great power (his career high was 18 homers) his career Mets OPS+ of 130 shows that he was a great hitter when taking into account the lower power numbers of the era in general.

Second Base - Edgardo Alfonzo (.292 AVG, 120 Home Runs, 538 RBI, .367 OBP, .445 SLG, 114 OPS+)

Alfonzo had some good years for the Mets in the late 90s and early 00s. His best season came in 2000 when he made the All Star team for the only time hitting .324 with 25 home runs. Alfonzo also played a lot of games at third base for the Mets.

Shortstop - Jose Reyes (.288 AVG, 35 Home Runs, 213 RBI, .331 OBP, .430 SLG, 99 OPS+)

Reyes has very little competition as this position which is why I've already chosen him as the Mets all time best shortstop. The Mets career leaders in games played at the shortstop position; Bud Harrelson and Rey Ordonez were both awful hitters. Reyes best season of his career thus far was last year in 2006 when he hit .300 with 19 home runs and stole 64 bases. Reyes is already 4th on the Mets all time stolen bases leaders and will probably be second by the All Star break.

Third Base - Howard Johnson (.251 AVG, 192 Home Runs, 629 RBI, .341 OBP, .459 SLG, 124 OPS+)

If David Wright can keep up what he's doing now he'll probably overtake Johnson sooner rather than later but for now I have to give this position to Johnson. Johnson is 3rd all time on the Mets home run & RBI leader board. While his career rate stats look somewhat anemic by current standards one again has to understand the era that he played most of his career in. His career Mets OPS+ of 124 tells a truer story of his ability as a hitter. Also consider that HoJo holds the Mets single season OPS+ record of 169 in 1989 when he hit 36 home runs with a .287 batting average.

Catcher - Mike Piazza (.296 AVG, 220 Home Runs, 655 RBI, .373 OBP, .542 SLG, 137 OPS+)

Piazza is second all time on the Mets home run & RBI leader boards and leads the Mets in career slugging percentage. Piazza's best year with the Mets came in 2000 when he hit .324 with 38 home runs. Although Piazza was even better when he was with the Dodgers, his career with the Mets easily makes him the Mets greatest catcher. All apologies to Gary Carter but when you look at the numbers it isn't close. Carter also had his best years for another team (the Expos in Carter's case.)

Outfield - Darryl Strawberry (.263 AVG, .359 OBP, .520 SLG, 252 Home Runs, 733 RBI, 145 OPS+)

Strawberry is the Mets all time leader in Home Runs, RBI, and OPS+. Strawberry's best years came in 1987 and 1988. Although he had better numbers in '87 his '88 season was probably more impressive due to '87 being a hitter's year. In '88 he finished second in the MVP voting and had a 165 OPS+. He did become a member of the 30-30 club in 1987 when he had 39 home runs and 37 stolen bases. Strawberry is 3rd on the Mets career list with 191 stolen bases. Although Strawberry's career went downhill fast in the 1990s he was one of the best power hitters of the 1980s.

Outfield - Cleon Jones (.281 AVG, 93 Home Runs, 521 RBI, .340 OBP, .406 SLG, 111 OPS+)

Jones was instrumental in the "Miracle Mets" 1969 World Series win. He hit a career high .340 that season with a 151 OPS+. Jones played all but 12 games of his career for the Mets.

Outfield - Kevin McReynolds (.272 AVG, 122 Home Runs, 456 RBI, .331 OBP, .460 SLG, 120 OPS+)

McReynolds best year came in 1988 when he hit .288 with 27 home runs and finished 3rd in the MVP voting. Again you have to take into consideration the era. McReynolds had a 142 OPS+ that year.

Starting Pitcher - Tom Seaver (198 Wins, 2.57 ERA, 136 ERA+)

Seaver is the Mets all time leader in Wins, Complete Games, Shutouts, Strikeouts, ERA, and ERA+. Seaver's best year was 1969 when he won the Cy Young award with a 25-7 record and a 2.21 ERA while leading the Mets to the World Series. Seaver won two more Cy Young awards with the Mets; one in 1973 when he had 19 wins and a 2.08 ERA and another in 1975 22-9 with a 2.38 ERA.

Starting Pitcher - Dwight Gooden (157 wins, 3.10 ERA, 115 ERA+)

While Tom Seaver had a more consistent career for the Mets no other Mets pitcher ever hit quite the peak that Dwight Gooden did in 1985 when he had one of the greatest single pitching seasons in the history of the Major Leagues with a 24-4 record and a 1.53 ERA. His ERA+ of 226 in '85 has been bettered by only Pedro Martinez ('99 and '00), Greg Maddux ('94 and '95), and Bob Gibson ('68) among single seasons since 1920. Despite never again reaching the incredible heights of 1985 Gooden did have many more good seasons for the Mets and is second all time on the Mets career wins leader board. He was also a key element of their 1986 championship team going 17-6 with a 2.84 ERA.

Starting Pitcher - Jerry Koosman (140 Wins, 3.09 ERA, 114 ERA+)

Koosman's best year came in 1969 when he helped the "Miracle Mets" get to and win the World Series. He won 17 games that year with a 2.28 ERA and a career best 161 ERA+. He went 2-0 in the 1969 World Series with a 2.04 ERA. He had another great year in 1976 when he won 21 games with a 2.69 ERA and finished second in the Cy Young voting.

Starting Pitcher - David Cone (81 Wins, 3.13 ERA, 112 ERA+)

Cone's best year came in 1988 when he went 20-3 with a 2.22 ERA. He's the Mets career leader in Strikeouts per 9 innings at 8.72 S0/9.

Relief Pitcher - John Franco (276 Saves)

Franco was with the Mets from 1990 through 2004 and is the Mets career leader in Saves. His best single season for saves with the Mets was 1998 when he had 38.

Labels: All Time Team, New York Mets

I did this earlier with the New York Yankees All Time Team. And I plan on eventually getting to every team (I'm really looking forward to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays...)

Tonight it's the San Francisco Giants turn to have their greatest player ever at every position chosen.

The Giants have one of the longest histories of any Major League franchise as they got their start in 1883 as the New York Gothams. They weren't the Gothams for long and adopted the name the Giants soon after. They stayed in New York through the end of the 1957 season. In the 1958 season they began a second life out west in San Francisco. The Brooklyn Dodgers moved to Los Angeles that same season to move the oldest rivalry in baseball from the east coast to the west.

The New York Giants won 5 World Series but the Giants have not won a World Series in three appearances since moving to San Francisco. Most recently they lost to the Angels in the 2002 World Series.

This all time team selection will take into consideration the entirety of the Giants history both New York & San Francisco.

Who is the greatest Giant of all time at each position?

Just like with the Yankees team I am only considering what a player did while playing with the Giants. For example Barry Bonds stats with the Pittsburgh Pirates are not taken into consideration.

The New York/San Francisco Giants All Time Team (with career Giants stats)

First Base - Willie McCovey (469 Home Runs, 1388 RBI, .377 OBP, .524 SLG, 150 OPS+)

The Giants have had some amazing first basemen so this was a difficult choice. If I was going squarely by the numbers perhaps I should have chosen another hall of fame Giants first baseman. Bill Terry is the Giants all time leader in batting average at .341 but Terry didn't have a lot of home run power (McCovey had more than 3 times as many Giants home runs as did Terry) and when considering the respective eras they played in I had to give the edge to McCovey.

McCovey's peak year came in 1969 when he won the MVP with a .320 batting average and 45 home runs, both career highs.

Second Base - Jeff Kent (.297 AVG, 175 Home Runs, 689 RBI, .368 OBP, .535 SLG, 138 OPS+)

I'm a Giants fan and I hate Jeff Kent so I get no pleasure choosing him for this slot and perhaps there's someone more deserving I'm overlooking but what Kent did in his 6 years for the Giants was pretty awesome offensively for a second baseman. His peak year came in 2000 when he hit .334 with 33 home runs and won the MVP award.

Shortstop - Travis Jackson (.291, 135 Home Runs, 929 RBI, .337 OBP, .433 SLG)

Jackson played his entire 15 year career from 1922 to 1936 with the New York Giants. His best year came in 1927 when he hit .318 with 14 home runs. Like most decent players on a New York team during the early era of baseball, Jackson is in the Hall of Fame.

Third Base - Matt Williams (247 Home Runs, 732 RBI, .498 SLG, 122 OPS+)

Williams started off his career very slowly hitting just .188, .205, and .202 his first three years but in his fourth season in 1990 things picked up considerably as he hit .277 with 33 home runs. Unfortunately his very best seasons were cut short due to the mid 90s baseball strike. He may have got to Maris' record before McGwire if the 1994 season had not ended early due to the strike. He lead the majors that year with a career high 43 home runs. He is 5th on the Giants all time home run leader board with 247 career Giants homers.

Catcher - Harry Danning (.285 AVG, 397 RBI)

Danning played his entire 10 year career with the Giants from 1933 to 1942. He was selected to the All Star team 4 times including his best season of 1939 when he hit .313 with 16 home runs. 16 home runs was good for 9th in the NL that year.

Outfield - Barry Bonds (.314 AVG, 569 Home Runs, 1397 RBI, .478 OBP, .673 SLG, 203 OPS+)

Bonds Giants career rates stats are unreal because he's not hindered by his comparatively slow start in Pittsburgh (He was not an All Star until his 5th season.) After starting his career with 7 seasons in Pittsburgh, Bonds is now in his 15th year with the Giants. He is the all time Giants leader in many statistics including OBP, SLG, OPS, OPS+, & Walks) Choosing Bonds best season is a bit difficult but I think his numbers in 2004 are his most astoundingly awesome. That year he hit an NL leading .362 with a MLB record .609 OBP and a MLB record 232 walks. He also had an .812 slugging percentage, one of only 4 seasons over .800 in history. Only Bonds and Babe Ruth have ever finished a season with a slugging percentage over .800! I venture a guess that his .609 OBP and 232 walks will last in the record books much longer than any of his home run marks.

Outfield - Willie Mays (.304 AVG, 646 Home Runs, 1859 RBI, .385 OBP, .564 SLG, 158 OPS+)

Mays is the all time Giants leader in Home Runs, Runs, Hits, Games, Plate Appearances, and many other stats. Mays played almost his entire career with the Giants (moving with them from New York to San Francisco in 1958) before finishing up with the Mets. Mays best year came in 1965 when he hit .317 with 52 home runs winning his second MVP award.

Outfield - Mel Ott (.304 AVG, 511 HR, 1860 RBI, .414 OBP, .533 SLG, 155 OPS+)

Mell Ott played his entire 22 year career with the New York Giants from 1926 to 1947. Ott was only 17 when he first played in the majors. Amazingly he hit .383 in 60 at bats as a 17 year old in 1926. Choosing Ott's best year is tough because he had many that are very similar to each other but I'll go with 1938 when he was at .311/.442/.583 with 116 runs & 116 RBI.

Ott is the Giants all time leader in RBI with 1860 (to Willie Mays' 1859.)

How many other team's all time outfield has three players with 500+ home runs? I'm willing to go out on a limb and say zero.

Starting Pitcher - Christy Mathewson (372 Wins, 2.12 ERA, 136 ERA+)

Mathewson played almost his entire career with the New York Giants. He won 372 games with the Giants and 1 with Cincinnati in 1916 (mid season trade.)

Mathewson played from 1900 to 1916. His numbers of 372 wins and a 2.12 ERA are overpowering although when you adjust for the era his ERA isn't as astounding (check the 136 ERA+) Mathewson is a legendary early pitcher of the game and is a shoe in for this all time Giants starting rotation. His best year was 1908 when he was 37-11 with 11 shutouts and a 1.43 ERA. He pitched 390.7 innings. I'm pretty sure they weren't counting his pitches.

Starting Pitcher - Carl Hubbell (253 Wins, 2.98 ERA, 130 ERA+)

Hubbell pitched his entire career from 1928 to 1943 with the New York Giants. Hubbell won two MVP awards which is quite impressive for a pitcher. His first MVP came in 1933 and I select this as his supreme season. In '33 Hubbell went 23-12 with a 1.66 ERA and 10 shutouts.

Starting Pitcher - Juan Marichal (238 Wins, 2.84 ERA, 124 ERA+)

Marichal is the Giants all time leader in strikeouts to walk ratio at 3.31 and he had a career WHIP of 1.10 only slightly behind Mathewson's 1.06 career WHIP. His best year is tough to choose due to many great seasons that are very similar but I'll go with his career low ERA year of 1969 when he went 21-11 with 8 shutouts and a 2.10 ERA. He pitched for the San Francisco Giants from 1960 through 1973.

Starting Pitcher - Gaylord Perry (134 Wins, 2.96 ERA, 118 ERA+)

Although Perry actually had his single best season winning the Cy Young award with the Indians in 1972 he pitched his first 10 seasons with the San Francisco Giants from 1962 through 1971.

Perry had poor run support through most of his stay with the Giants as evidenced by his 16-15 record in 1968 when he had a 2.44 ERA, his lowest during his years with the Giants.

Relief Pitcher - Robb Nen (206 Saves)

Nen only pitched 5 years with the Giants (from '98 through '02) but is still the Giants all time saves leader with 206. His best year came in 2000 when he finished 4th in the Cy Young Award voting with 41 saves and a 1.50 ERA.

Have your own say on the Giants All Time Team at the San Francisco Giants Baseball Forum.

Labels: All Time Team, San Francisco Giants

Who is the greatest Yankee of all time at each position?

Well first let's set the criteria. I'm only going to consider what a player did with the Yankees. For example Alex Rodriguez's seasons with the Mariners and the Rangers don't come into play when considering his place among the all time great Yankees.

The New York Yankees All Time Team (With Stats As A Yankee)

First Base - Lou Gehrig (.340 AVG, 493 HR, 1995 RBI, .447 OBP, 632 SLG)

This is no a brainer. Gehrig is arguably the greatest first baseman to ever play the game. He played his entire career with the Yankees. He was nicknamed the "Iron Horse" because of playing in 2,130 consecutive games. This was the major league record for over 50 years until Cal Ripkin broke it in the 1990s.

Choosing Gehrig's greatest season is difficult because he had so many great years but I have to go with 1927 as Gehrig's greatest. In 1927 he won the MVP over Babe Ruth with a .373 batting average and a .765 slugging percentage.

Gehrig was a Yankee from 1923 to 1939. 17 Seasons. He won 6 World Series with the Yankees. In 34 World Series games he hit .361 with 10 home runs and a .731 slugging percentage.

Second Base - Tony Lazzeri (.293 AVG, 169 HR, 1154 RBI, .379 OBP, .467 SLG)

Lazzeri had his best season in 1929 when he hit .354 with 18 home runs. Lazzeri was a Yankee from 1926 to 1937. 12 Seasons. He won 5 World Series with the Yankees.

I also considered Willie Randolph for this position. Randolph had a .275 batting average for the Yankees while playing in the 10th most games in Yankees history with 1694. Randolph is also second in Yankees history with 251 stolen bases.

Shortstop - Derek Jeter (.317 AVG, 183 HR, 863 RBI, .388 OBP, .462 SLG)

Jeter has become a modern legend of Yankees baseball. He is rapidly climbing the all time Yankee leader board in multiple categories. His greatest season so far was 1999 when he hit .349 with 24 home runs and a .552 slugging percentage.

Jeter has been a Yankee his entire career which began with a short stint in 1995. This year is his 13th in the major leagues. He's won 4 World Series titles with the Yankees. He's hit .302 in the 6 World Series he has been a part of.

Third Base - Alex Rodriguez (.301 AVG, 127 HR, 378 RBI, .398 OBP, .560 SLG)

Yes this is based on the three years (and the helluva start he's had this year) A-Rod has played for the Yankees. 3B has not been a very strong position for the Yankees compared to the other positions. In fact if it wasn't A-Rod I might have gone with Wade Boggs here who is of course much more known for his work with the Red Sox. Boggs did hit .313 in 2600 plate appearances for the Yankees.

Rodriguez's best season with the Yankees so far has been 2005 when won the MVP hitting .321 with 48 home runs. Although many Yankees fans seemed to immediately forget how good he was all year due to his poor post season.

This is Rodriguez's 4th year with the Yankees, as is well known among New Yorkers he has yet to appear in the World Series. Although he is well known for his post season failures, his career post season batting average of .280 isn't that bad. It's his recent lack of success going 3 for 29 combined in the '05 and '06 postseasons that has hurt his reputation.

Outfield - Babe Ruth (.349 AVG, 659 HR, 1975 RBI, .484 OBP, .711 SLG)

Well this was a really difficult selection? Babe Ruth's numbers speak for themselves. He holds many Yankees records and as you probably know he even "built" Yankee Stadium.

Ruth's best year stat wise was probably his first with the Yankees in 1920. He took advantage of Polo Grounds with an .849 slugging percentage which stood as the single season record for 81 years until Barry Bonds broke it in 2001. He also broke his own record for home runs in a season with 54, this record would only last until next season when he would break it again with 59 home runs. Finally in 1927 he would break the record again with 60 home runs. This record stood until another Yankee Roger Maris broke it in 1961 with 61.

Just to add to his ridiculous resume he also won 5 games without a loss as a pitcher with the Yankees.

Ruth played 15 seasons with the Yankees from 1920 to 1934. He won 4 World Series with the Yankees. He hit .344 with 15 home runs in the 7 World Series he played in for the Yankees. (He also won three World Series with Boston in 1915, 1916, and 1918 before the Red Sox wisely sold him to the Yankees.)

Outfield - Mickey Mantle (.298 AVG, 536 HR, 1509 RBI, .421 OBP, .557 SLG)

Mantle played his entire career with the Yankees. He won 3 MVP awards with his best seasons coming in 1956 & '57. '61 was a really good one too although that year he finished second in the MVP voting to his teammate Roger Maris.

Mantle played 18 seasons from 1951 to 1968. Mantle played in 12 World Series for the Yankees and won 7. He hit 18 World Series home runs.

Outfield - Joe DiMaggio (.325 AVG, 361 HR, 1537 RBI, .398 OBP, .579 SLG)

DiMaggio also played his entire career for the Yankees. His best year statistically was probably 1939 when he hit .381 with 30 home runs but his most famous season is 1941 when he hit safely in 56 consecutive games which is of course still the record today for longest hitting streak.

DiMaggio was out of action from 1943 to 1945 because of World War II. He was in the prime of his career at the time.

DiMaggio won an astounding 9 World Series championships in his 13 seasons with the Yankees.

Catcher - Yogi Berra (.285 AVG, 358 HR, 1430 RBI, .348 OBP, .483 SLG)

Berra won 3 MVP awards but his best offensive season came in 1950 when he finished 3rd in the voting. In 1950 he hit .322 with 28 home runs and 124 RBI.

Berra played all but 4 games of his career for the Yankees. In '65 he played 4 games for the Mets. His career for the Yankees spanned from 1946 to 1963 for a total of 18 seasons. During that period he played in an incredible 14 World Series and won 10. He hit 12 World Series home runs during his career.

DH - Don Mattingly (.307 AVG, 222 HR, 1099 RBI, .358 OBP, .471 SLG)

Mattingly only played 76 games as a DH, I am including him at this position because I think he's the most deserving Yankee hitter that I was not able to include among the "regular" positions.

Mattingly played his entire career for the Yankees. His best year was either 1985 when he hit 35 home runs and had 145 RBI or 1986 when he hit .352 with 31 home runs. He won the MVP in '85 and finished second in '86.

Mattingly played 14 seasons from 1982 to 1995. The Yankees did not make it to the World Series during these years.

Other Yankee hitters I considered for this position include Earle Combs, Bill Dickey, Bob Meusel, Paul O'Neil, Bernie Williams, Ricky Henderson, and Reggie Jackson.

Starting Pitcher - Whitey Ford (236 Wins, 2.75 ERA)

Ford's best years came in 1963 (24-7, 2.74) & 1964 (17-6, 2.14) or perhaps 1958 when he had a 2.01 ERA. Maybe most impressive is that he won his only Cy Young award in 1961 when he had one of his highest single season ERAs at 3.21, in fact the only year he was higher than that was his last full season in the majors in 1965 when he had a 3.24 ERA. When your career worst single season ERA is 3.24 you know you are a good pitcher. He has the 3rd highest career winning % of any pitcher in the modern era with at least 100 wins at .690.

Ford was a Yankee for his entire 16 year career from 1950 to 1967. He missed two seasons in '51 and '52 due to military service in Korea.

Ford pitched in 11 World Series, the Yankees winning 6 of them. He went 10-8 with a 2.71 ERA in his World Series career.

Starting Pitcher - Lefty Gomez (189 Wins, 3.34 ERA)

Gomez's best year came in 1934 when he went 26-5 with a 2.33 ERA.

He spent his entire career except for one game he started for Washington in 1943 with the Yankees. He pitched for the Yankees for 13 seasons from 1930 to 1942.

He won 5 World Series with the Yankees and went 6-0 with a 2.86 ERA in 7 World Series starts.

Starting Pitcher - Red Ruffing (231 Wins, 3.47 ERA)

Ruffing was with the Yankees from 1930 to 1946. He had four 20+ win seasons and they were right in a row from 1936 to 1939. His best season coming in 1939 when he went 21-7 with a 2.93 ERA.

He won 6 World Series with the Yankees and went 7-2 with a 2.63 ERA in 10 World Series starts. Had 8 complete games in those 10 starts.

Starting Pitcher - Mel Stottlemyre (164 Wins, 2.97 ERA)

Stottlemyre's best year came in 1968 when he went 21-12 with a 2.45 ERA along with 19 complete games and 6 shutouts.

Stottlemyre pitched his entire 11 year career with the Yankees. He played from 1964 to 1974. The Yankees only went to the World Series one time during that period, his rookie season in 1964. The Yankees lost that World Series to the St. Louis Cardinals. Stottlemyre was 1-1 with a 3.15 ERA in 3 World Series starts.

Starting Pitcher - Spud Chandler (109 wins, 2.84 ERA)

Chandler won the MVP (the only Yankee pitcher to ever do so) in 1943 with a 20-4 record and a 1.64 ERA

Chandler was with the Yankees for his entire career which was from 1937 to 1947. Chandler turned 30 years old during his rookie season because he went to college and then spent 5 years in the minor leagues. He missed most of 1944 and 1945 due to joining the army to fight in World War II. His best three seasons were '42, '43 and '46 so one has to wonder what great years he missed in '44 and '45. Those missed seasons along with his very late start makes Chandler an interesting "What If?" As he seemingly could have had a hall of fame career if things had worked out a little differently.

Chandler holds the record for the highest career winning percentage of all time for any pitcher with more than 100 wins.

He won three World Series with the Yankees. He had a 2-2 record with a 1.61 ERA in World Series play.

Relief Pitcher - Mariano Rivera (413 Saves, 2.31 ERA)

Rivera has spent his entire 13 year career with the Yankees from 1995 to present day. His best year so far was in 2005 when he had a minuscule 1.38 ERA to go along with 43 saves. His high year for saves came in 2004 with 53. Rivera has been one of the few relief pitchers in the history of baseball who has been able to perform consistently over a long period.

He's won 4 World Series with the Yankees and his overall post season stats are incredible. He has 34 post season saves with a 0.80 post season ERA.

Labels: All Time Team, New York Yankees