I remember vividly as a youngster listening to my great- grandfather. He was a baseball fanatic and one of the greatest experts in the game. He told me numerous times, hands down, the greatest ever was ty cobb.

Willie Mays. Although I grew up a Yankee fan and idolized Mickey, Mays was simply the best.

Gave this some more thought and my answer is Alex Rodriguez. Pujols and Bonds would be right behind but I think A-Rod's defense puts him over top of the other two.

Tabe

Bonds. You can talk about steroids all you want, but he was so much better than everyone else, even the other juicers, that it wasn't even close.

the greatest player i have ever seen is ozzie "the wizard" smith i had seen him play in person and he was so graceful on defense the greatest shortstop in my oppion

Given the limitations of the question, I cannot list TED WILLIAMS because I only saw him play a few times and exclusively on a grainy, black and white 1950's TV whose horizontal hold often failed.

So, for hitters I would go with Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Mickey Mantle and Ken Griffey, Jr. Had A-Rod not been involved with steroids, he would get my nod because (especially) when he was younger, he was talented and hustled on everything . At DH, none has equalled Edgar Martinez.

Among pitchers, Sandy Koufax in his prime was virtually unbeatable but Warren Spahn remained great twice as long as Koufax. Today, Cliff Lee reminds me very much of Koufax. I never saw Bob Feller but he was still pretty good twenty years after his retirement. In the end, I'll go with Spahnie!

I say Clemente.


Lou

Mattingly
 

I am most likely taking someone like Pujols for granted. But growing up in the 70's and 80's, the only baseball I got to see all the time here in Jersey was Met and Yankee games. As a fan of the NL in general, and a Yankee hater in particular, it pains me greatly to admit this. But the best player I ever saw was Donnie Baseball circa 1984-1988. I am sure there were a bunch of others during this time, I just did not see them often enough to say they are the best "I ever saw".

To me, Mattingly was the only player I have ever seen that would make me stop whatever I was doing because he was at the plate.

Tom C

The Impaler . . .
 

During his prime I don't think I saw anyone swing the bat or field the way Vlad did. What an arm on that guy. If only his back had held up and he didn't waste all those years up north.

I saw Ted Williams play (at Yankee Stadium and on TV) from 1947 - 1960. As a Yankee fan, I still got a thrill when Ted would hit a HR
into the RF upper deck at the Stadium. After all it didn't really matter, as the Yankees would win the Pennant, anyhow.


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I saw Satchell Paige pitch (when the Yankees played Cleveland or the St Louis Browns) from 1948 to 1953. He was certainly exciting
to watch. It's too bad we didn't see more of him.


1949 LEAF......(one of the top 10 cards in my collection)

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I saw Mickey play many times at Yankee Stadium (and on the TV) from 1951 - 1968. He was the best there was in the post-WWII era.
What I consider really amazing about Mickey is.....he was a shy teenager from a small town that arrived in the "Big City"; and, stepped
into the footprints of a tremendous Yankee legend....and, succeeded beyond all expectations.

I can think of only one other ballplayer in the modern era with that distinction....Can you name him ?



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TED Z

Yaz
 

Left fielder right after ted no ted but pdg.

Peter....you got it right
 

Yaz grew up in a small potato farming town way out in Suffolk County, Long Island, NY. He stepped into Ted Williams footprints in LF,
and the rest is BB history.

I met him briefly up in Cooperstown in 1989 at his HOF celebration event. A really fine gentleman.

TED Z

I was always amazed with the skill of Eric Davis.

Best pitcher I ever saw would have to be Greg Maddux or Pedro Martinez

the best...
 

The best I've seen growing up was Brooks Robinson. You guys may have seen the '70 WS, or highlights, but that was normal play for him. He just had the opportunity w/in that series to display his glovework, but that's the way he played day in...day out. I haven't seen a better thirdbaseman than Brooks or any fielder for that matter. He was definitely a clutch hitter as well along w/hitting behind the runner...etc.

I thought Bench was a great catcher and one of the best ever!

Gotta love Roberto in the outfield!

Really there are so many GREAT players it's hard to name just one!!:D

The best
 

My dad only took me to Tiger games, but I'll never forget the day I saw Mantle it a homer in Detroit. He was the best I ever saw in person.

Second best Mariano Rivera.

Joe

greatest
 

hank aaron---saw him play a number of time.
interestingly, i was fortunate to teach his daughter when she was in prep school in atlanta. She brought me a signed baseball, addressed to me personally and an autographed picture of Hank's homerun which surpassed
ruth's lifetime record.
man, i loved that job.
best,
barry

Watching since the late '50's:
 

Barry Bonds on steroids. He was in another league.

Ditto for Sandy Koufax, for those 5-6 years.

Koufax pitched the first game I ever saw in person. It was his last year in the majors and I was five years old. I had no clue what what happening, but I remember watching all those Giants batters flailing away and hitting nothing but air. He went 9 innings and pitched a shutout. It was awesome, I was hooked, and he was my hero from then on out. He still is.

Until Barry Bonds came along, I never thought I would see anyone who approached Willie Mays as an all around baseball player. Bonds was better. Steroids or not, he was so good it was scary.

Kenny Cole

my best list
 

I was lucky enough to see Hank Aaron play towards the end of his career. He tops my list.

I also had the opportunity to watch Robin Yount play on numerous occasions. He is my hometown pick. More hits than any other player in the 80s. 2 MVPs at different positions. He flew so far under the radar because he played in Milwaukee, that when he won his second MVP in 89 he didn't even make the All Star team.

You can't discount the steroids considering he was on it for possibly the last 8 - 10 years of his career. How good would Willie Mays have been all doped up? Hit 1000 hrs.? 3000 rbi's.? Who knows? What we do know is Bonds was a cheat and every stat and record he owns should be expunged from the MLB records along with all the other cheaters: Palmeiro, McGwire, Clemens, A-Rod, Sosa etc. Let me leave you with this, if Bonds was so good, why did he have to cheat 1/2 of his career?

Spare me the self-righteous indignation about steroids. I don't care. If you do, power to you. Engaging in that discussion is an absolute waste of time.

Regardless of the reason, Bonds was simply the most feared player in the game, and rightfully so. I also guess we need to discount all of Mays stats because he took greenies, right?

Pitcher: Bob Gibson Living in a minor league town, we only got to St. Louis once every other year or so to see a game in person. In 67 I was finally on my own and drove to St. Louis a few time just to watch him pitch.

Batter: Most explosive home run I have ever seen came from Barry Bonds. We were at spring training in Scottsdale and he hit one that got to fence faster than I have ever witnessed before. The whole crowd just went silent for a moment after that shot.

Charlie Hustle...
 

Pete Rose. I grew up watching him and the Big Red Machine play. I was at the game on Sept. 11th, 1985 when he broke Cobb's record. My ears still hurt.

Hitter - George Brett
Pitcher - Roger Clemens
Althlete - Bo Jackson

Greenies didn't blow your body up to 2x it's normal size, give you the head the size of a basketball or turn you into a rage driven prick. Choose to ignore the fact that what these guys did certainly effected they're performance 10 fold. Jimmie Foxx and Ted Kluszewski cut their uniform sleeves off because of hard work not needles. "Engaging in that discussion" is NOT a waste of time as long as you don't idolize or respect the accomplishments of cheaters and drug addicts. By the way, if you don't care, why respond? Bonds was feared because he was an abnormal freak, no one ever talked of not pitching to him when he weighed 180 lbs.

I'm not sure, but Bonds led the league in intentional walks basically every year from 1992 forward. Here is a picture of him in 1992, doesn't look all that big.
He was easily the best player in baseball from 1990 until he retired. I couldn't care less if he or any of the steroid users get in the HOF, but there is no denying he was the best player in baseball before and after steroid use.

In 7 years Bonds hit .275 for Pittsburgh and his best HR season was 34. He was the best in baseball at the time???

If you read my post I said from 1990, which would include his final three years in Pittsburgh.

Tony,

I responded, because you had first responded to my post. I don't care if you like my selection or not. And discussing steroids is a waste of time as far as I'm concerned. Do you really think that your rant about what you believe on that issue, stated as if its the only viewpoint that can possibly exist, matters to me at all? If you do, you are very much mistaken.

The question you asked was who was the best player you ever saw, not who was the best player you ever saw who you can unequivocally state didn't cheat. My answer was Bonds. That's still my answer. The fact that you don't seem to like my answer changes nothing.

Ken Griffey, Jr. in his prime
 

Having a prime seat just north of Seattle, I had opportunity to see Ken Griffey, Jr., many times in person and on TV. He was awesome - except for his dogging it down to first base after a ground-out.

Edgar Martinez was the best DH - a real, professional batsman. He could hit the ball wherever announcer Ron Fairly would frequently indicate it ought to go - given the situation.

I saw Ted Williams (on TV) in his final AB, so must follow the rules and not pick my favorite all-time hitter, and I never saw Mays, Musial, Aaron, Clemente, Mantle or a handful of others post-1960 enough to really have a legitimate opinion of them. All-around, I'd guess Mays or Griffey, Jr. were the best I've seen but, strictly speaking (given the parameters), KGJr. is #1.

I also will go with subcategories
 

Hitter: Barry Bonds
Pitcher: Nolan Ryan or Greg Maddux
All around: The great one, Roberto Clemente.

Interesting though, while giving this some thought, I honestly kept coming back to Dave Parker. I know you can't look at his whole body of work, but I don't think I would be out of line saying that for a short period in the late
70s, he was or was close to the most feared hitter and best all around baseball player in the game.

I am not a Bonds fan. But, he was unbelievable to watch. Had he retired in 1998 I'm confident he still would have been a first ballot HOF. He was the best I ever saw play.

Kenny, I just responded to your original comment, you are the one who got all defensive and jumped me. Seems that it's always the steroid defenders never want to answer any questions ever posed. I asked 2 simple questions in my original response to which you answered neither then became belligerent. After looking at your responses, looks like you are the one who is only entitled to an opinion. This will be my last post on this issue.
Thanks for sharing!

Tony,

Excellent. Tell you what, the next time I want your opinion, I'll ask you for it. You can do the same for me. That way we don't have to waste each other's time. Have a nice day.

Being a Reds fan, I definitely remember Brooks Robinson's exploits in the '70 World Series, it seemed that everything down the 3rd base line was an out for the Redlegs. It was a great series for him and I'm sure those that had the opportunity to watch him every day came to expect those types of performances.

He didn't disappoint!

RC

My vote is for ...
 

Grew up in the Chicago area and spent a lot of time at Wrigley from the late 50s to the mid 80s (still get back to Chicago for a game or two every year). I will never forget sitting behind home plate and watching Sandy Koufax pitch. He was amazing from that vantage point.

best player or players
 

These are the best I saw live, the Sey Hey Kid (Mays),Mantle & Seaver.

Best BB player I ever saw...
 

I'd have to go with Griffey for a position player and Nolan Ryan as my pitcher. If not for the steroids (and that's a big if), I'd almost go with Bonds and Clemens. Barry changed the way games were played - but I don't beleive he did it without some help.

Edgar Martinez
 

I've been hearing a lot of talk about Martinez lately, particularly naming him the best DH ever. It's kind of silly to me. His only job was to hit the ball, and he was never an all time great as far as hitters go IMO. Assuming that he was the best DH ever....that doesn't mean much to me. He was just a better hitter than the other guys that also couldn't play defense.

The best pure hitter I've seen in my lifetime has to be Rod Carew. He could flat stroke the ball where ever / whenever he wanted to.

A lot of people have mentioned Bo Jackson and I can remember seeing him in Cleveland in his rookie season playing for the Royals. He struck out first three time up to bat and looked pretty bad in the process, but you could just see the power in his swing as he whiffed pitch after pitch. After he struck out for the third time I leaned over to my friend I was at the game with and told him that if he ever connected the ball was going to travel a long way. The fourth time up he did connect, hitting a screaming line drive that the short stop jumped and just missed catching. The ball landed well over the left center field wall (in old Cleveland Municiple Stadium) and just missed making the bleachers (which was a heck of a poke). The short stop just missed catching it and neither the center or left fielders moved - just turned their heads and watched it go.

Hmm...for pure talent Puljos and Maddux and Carlton and Schmidt.

For pure toughness and a player who played hard...Mickey Hatcher. He played with limited talent (although more than 99.9 % of the population) but with great drive and desire and intelligence. That makes a great player to me.

Mickey Hatcher was standing on second when a small looping single was hit into left. As he rounded third, he started shouting "Cut, Cut" and the third baseman thinking it was the pitcher calling it, cut the throw off and Hatcher scored. SMART baseball.


"I would rather be the worst player in the major leagues than never play in the majors at all" --Mickey Hatcher

I'm still relatively young at 31 and from Cleveland, so I might seem a bit biased. I've seen alot of games. Frank Thomas was great. Ripken was my all time favorite, but not the greatest. Seen all the modern greats come in and out of Cleveland to play against the Indians. Used to go to at least 1 Pirates game a year back in the late 80's-early 90's. Bonds and the early 90's Bucs were fun to watch.. All that being said, honestly, watching the mid-90's Indians teams were more that I could've ever asked for. Well, a World Series Championship would've been nice. Manny, Thome, Murray, the Alomar Brothers, Lofton, Vizquel, Winfield, Matt Williams and Jeff Kent(half-season), Albert Belle, Hershiser, Dennis Martinez, Jack Morris, this could go on forever..

Anyways, Robbie Alomar was just beautiful to watch play, and probably the best all-around player. Vizquel and Alomar as a combo might be the greatest defensive duo ever.

I also wanna add, as brain dead as Manny can be at times, you just can't beat watching him bat in the play-offs(especially when he was with Boston). It didn't matter what count, what pitch, what game situation, nothing fazed the guy. I guess it was just his idiocy, and he didn't know any better, but you just couldn't put any pressure on the guy. I honestly think the guy could be swinging a broomstick, while you have a defense full of naked centerfolds shooting guns at him, and pitching a golf ball at 100 mph, he'd still get a hit.

Best Player
 

Probably Mantle...one of my favorites.

Barry Bonds
 

The answer is Bonds plain and simple. Cheating has and always will be part of baseball. We dont seem to hold it against all the greenie users. We talk about the Prewar guys like their immortals, when they only played against a percentage of the countries best athletes and essentially none from around the world. Also I saw Bonds play A LOT in Pittsburgh and to say that pitchers didnt fear him then is total B.S. revisionist crap. He was a jerk yes did he do roids yes. but guess what the rules stated you couldn't use them but also gave no punishment for using them so was it even really cheating? Where do you draw that line? Andro? Creatine? Protien Powder? Hell lifting in general all are performance enhancing that's why their done. I would hold it against Bonds if I did not think the overwhelming majority of Pros including many Good guys, see Andy Pettite, used the stuff. Should kids idolize him hell no, they shouldn't have before he ever injected anything, but the guy could flat out play. And you can even make the argument he was a better player, all around player that is, before he bulked up.

I 100% agree and couldn't have said it better! Along with Canseco, Vladimir Guerrero was the best player I have ever seen.

I narrowed it down to someone who I actually saw on tv and play live...pre roid Barry Bonds...his first year as a SF Giant..wow...he hit for power, avg, ran like a deer...great at cutting off balls in the outfield..and though not a great arm...he was pretty accurate thrower.. I did get to see Willie Mays, play but unfortunately he was at the end of his career...

someone I wish I could have seen play...Babe Ruth, Ted Williams and Stan Musial. :)