First under appreciated player that pops into your head

[G1911]

Originally Posted by BioCRN

Stan Hack.

Hell of a hitter (.301/.394/.397 over 16 seasons, 8509 PA) and an above average defender at 3rd (great glove, not as great arm).

Even among Cubs fans he's mostly an "oh yeah, that guy was pretty good" afterthought even though he played his entire career with them and coached/managed in the Cubs system for many years following his playing career.

Hack was a huge collector of Cubs memorabilia, too.

This is a really good one.

I think most of the most underrated are 1) players who made the Hall but are almost universally panned for being in the Hall and there historical reputation becomes ‘that guy who is in the Hall but should not be’, and they never get credit for being very very good players in actual merit, or 2) players like Hack who just miss the Hall debates and have faded into complete and total obscurity even though they were very very good players as well.