Major League Baseball All-Century Team

In 1999 Mastercard sponsored the Major League Baseball All-Century Team. To select the team, a panel of experts compiled a list of the 100 greatest players from the last 100 years. Then fans voted on the greatest players.

The top 2 players from each position (except for outfielders, where there were 9 total) and the top 6 pitchers were placed on the team. There were some notable omissions, and an oversight committee included an additional five players who did not garner enough initial votes. (For this reason, some positions have more than their alotted number of players.)

The Team

Pitchers

• Nolan Ryan
• Sandy Koufax
• Cy Young
• Roger Clemens
• Bob Gibson
• Walter Johnson
• Warren Spahn*
• Christy Mathewson*
• Lefty Grove*

Catchers

• Johnny Bench
• Yogi Berra

First Basemen

• Lou Gehrig
• Mark McGwire

Second Basemen

• Jackie Robinson
• Rogers Hornsby

Third Basemen

• Mike Schmidt
• Brooks Robinson

Shortstops

• Cal Ripken, Jr.
• Ernie Banks
• Honus Wagner*

Outfielders

• Babe Ruth
• Hank Aaron
• Ted Williams
• Willie Mays
• Joe DiMaggio
• Mickey Mantle
• Ty Cobb
• Ken Griffey, Jr.
• Pete Rose
• Stan Musial*

(* indicates player added later by panel)

Controversy

With the announcement of the team, there was controversy over the inclusion of Pete Rose, who had been banned from baseball for life ten years earlier. Many questioned Rose's presence on a team officially endorsed by Major League Baseball. But fans at the stadium during the introduction of the team were supportive, giving him a standing ovation. Following the on-field ceremony (which was emceed by Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully), an aggressive negative interview by NBC Sports' Jim Gray resulted in further public sympathy for the disgraced Rose.

Some fans were unhappy that no Latino players had been elected, in particular Roberto Clemente, who had finished 10th among outfielders, just missing the cut. However, Barry Bonds and Rickey Henderson, also omitted, had even stronger cases for the outfield (as did Stan Musial, who was added to the squad by the oversight committee). Even so, baseball tried to assuage these fans' complaints in 2005, by announcing its "Latino Legends Team."

No Negro League stars were chosen for the team; Satchel Paige, 9th among the voting for pitchers, received the most electoral support.

Several other notable players did not make the team. Some worth mentioning are Steve Carlton, Tom Seaver, Greg Maddux, Jimmie Foxx, George Brett, Tris Speaker and Joe Morgan. Others weren't even listed on the original ballot, including active players Ivan Rodriguez, Barry Larkin, Frank Thomas, and Mike Piazza. Pedro Martinez and Randy Johnson are both considered in the upper pantheon of pitchers now, but this wasn't fully clear until after the 20th Century (and the voting period) had ended.

Four active players made the roster: Roger Clemens, Cal Ripken, Jr., Ken Griffey, Jr. and Mark McGwire. Subsequent events have made Griffey's and McGwire's selections more disputable. At the time of his induction, Griffey was 29 years old, in his prime, and appeared headed towards all-time stardom. However, Griffey's meteoric ascent was subsequently derailed by a series of injuries; from 2001-2005, he missed around 370 games. McGwire's accomplishments were fresh in public memory, having just broken Roger Maris' single-season home run record the previous season. However, McGwire has since become entangled in the ongoing steroid controversy, and some now question the validity of his career numbers.

External links

• All-Century Team Votes from ESPN.com
• All-Century Team DVD from Amazon.com
• National Baseball Hall of Fame