Posted By:
Scott Forrest...at least read the last paragraph. Maybe I'm just not communicating.
The argument as to who was more of a team player is NOT a black and white issue. Cobb did a lot of things for his team and I never said that he played for stats - in fact, I don't really believe that.
But creating disruption on a team causes BIG problems - if you don't believe me, look at the 1915 New York Giants - their wives started arguing, team morale dropped, and they lost badly, despite having basically the same team they had the year before.
Cobb's antics, fights with team-mates, racism, etc., surely had a detrimental effect on his team that partially offset the positive effects of his talent.
If this isn't true, why did the Tigers try to trade Cobb straight up for Elmer Flick, and why did Cleveland refuse?
(BTW - I normally hate people to play "Devil's Advocate", so I apologize - personally, I would take Cobb)