I've got to go with Nellie, but it is incredibly close. Yes, Hack Wilson has the RBI record, but while 191 RBIs is a huge number, people routinely drove in 160 + back then. I mean, in 1930, six guys drove in over 150: Wilson's 191, Gehrig had 173, Chuck Klein 170, Al Simmons 165, Jimmie Foxx 156, and Babe Ruth 153. Gehrig drove in 185 in 1931.
Nellie certainly didn't have Hack's power, but he blows him away with the glove. Wilson's best season, defensively, he was a replacement level player with a 0.0 dWAR. Nellie had seasons with a dWAR of 2.6, 2.2, 2.1, 1.9, 1.8, 1.6, 1.4, 1.3 and 1.3. And has there ever been a tougher guy to strike out? Fox never struck out 20 times in a season, even though he routinely had over 700 plate appearances. 14 seasons into his career, he was a .297 lifetime hitter.
If I'm building a baseball team, Nellie Fox is the kind of player I'd love to have. A second baseman with a spectacular glove that hits .300 and never strikes out. If he'd been a Yankee, songs would have been written about the guy. Don't get me wrong, Gil McDougal was a fine second baseman, but Nellie Fox would have scored 150 runs every year in his prime with Mick, Yogi and Bauer hitting behind him.
Plus, Nellie's '53 Bowman is one of my favorite cards of the decade.
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12-03-2015, 09:53 AM
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