Jurrjens made 115 starts in the big leagues before his age-26 season, going 50-33 with a 3.40 ERA in 702.1 innings, and he was an All-Star in 2011 when he went 13-6 with a 2.96 ERA in 152 innings. After averaging 147 games played over his first five seasons,a shoulder injury that he suffered in 1936 bogged down his career after that, and he would play in more than 100 games only once before calling it quits. A homegrown star before Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau came along, Koskie made good as a 26th-round pick in the 1994 draft. We throw around words like ballplayers toss around a baseball during pregame warm-ups in the outfield. The deal to acquire Guillen from the Seattle Mariners prior to the 2004 season in exchange for Ramon Santiago and Juan Gonzalez (not that one) is one of the best trades in Tigers history. Who came up with that idea. Johnson was one of them, and Carroll captured how underrated "Indian Bob" truly was: Consistency may be the hobgoblin of little minds, but it can also make certain ballplayers nigh unto invisible. A foot injury suffered while running the bases derailed his career, but for a short time, Wang was one of the best starters in the American League. Except the umpire missed Gruber's tag and ruled Sanders safe. Seriously? Dave Parker, Does he belong in the Hall of Fame? From his first full season in the MLB rotation in 2006 through the 2013 season, he was one of the most durable pitchers in baseball, making at least 30 starts and working at least 180 innings . Is Lance Berkman leaning on a beat up old Ford in the Astrodome parking lot? This project has primarilybeen about identifying players who look underrated in the historic rear view. A five-time All-Star, Cash was a smooth fielding first baseman who was the first player to hit a ball out of Tiger Stadium, clearing the roof on June 11, 1961. The No. Id like to see more focus on what Bonds did over his first 13 seasons, 1986 through 1998, before its generally assumedhe began taking steroids. He hit .313/.374/.489 while averaging 39 doubles, 16 home runs and 73 RBI during that six-year span, hitting alongside Vladimir Guerrero in the Montreal Expos lineup. He finished in the top five in NL Cy Young voting five times in his first six MLB seasons, and went 163-102 with a 3.36 ERA and 1,852 strikeouts in 2,245.1 innings in 13 years in the big leagues. Had Jim Wynn not spent 11 years of his 15-year career playing in the Houston Astrodome, one of the more pitching friendly parks in the history of the game, chances are that he'd have approachedor surpassedthe 400 home run mark for his career. Not bad considering that neither shortstop or second base had really evolved to the slugging positions we've grown accustomed to over the past 15 years. Its a crime that Abreu has only received 5.5 and 8.7 percent of the vote in his two years on the Hall of Fame ballot. A seven-time All-Star and one of the smoothest fielding third basemen of the 1940s, Ken Keltner almost single-handedly ended Joe DiMaggios 56-game hitting streak in 1941. Originally a Yankee, Hal Morris was sent to Cincinnati in 1989 in exchange for Tim Leary in a perfect example of how George Steinbrenner used to run the club; trading prospects for veterans. While his power numbers increased in each of his four seasons with the Tigers, from four home runs in 1974 to 21 round-trippers in 1977, Oglivie still wasn't given a chance to start everyday. To qualify for the All-Underrated Team, a player must have: Zero All-Star selections Here are the 30 most unsung, under-the-radar, underrated pitchers in major league history. Corey Maggette 10. Bonds qualifies here because the steroid-addled caricature he created for himself in his final seasons obscures everything he was before. Later in his career, he settled in as a platoon standout against left-handed pitching. Bob Watson not only played in relative obscurity for 13 seasons with the Astros but also had his home-run total reduced by the cavernous Houston Astrodome. He failed to replicate that level of production, but settled in as a solid middle-of-the-order producer, averaging 25 home runs and 88 RBI per 162 games during his nine years with the team. The 1953 National League batting champion with a .344 mark, Furillo was an important part of two World Series championship winning teams in 1955 and 1959. Get caught up:1960s, 70s, and 80s|1930s, 40s, and 50s|1900s, 10s, and 20s. He hit at least 20 home runs in nine consecutive seasons from 1933 through 1941, and drove in at least 100 runs for seven straight seasons, from 1935 through 1941. Ron Artest 4. All stats courtesy of Baseball Reference and FanGraphs. Much like the Orioles are doing in 2012, the 1979 team made a habit of posting late-game comebacks en route to taking home the American League pennant. He won 80 games and posted a 3.66 ERA in 1,163.1 innings in his first years in the big leagues, but multiple Tommy John surgeries limited him to just 49 innings after his age-27 season. He resurfaced with Team Netherlands in the 2017 World Baseball Classic, posting a 2.38 ERA in 11.1 innings over two starts. Ibanez began his MLB career with five forgettable seasons as a part-time player with the Mariners before breaking out in Kansas City. On July 17, 1941, the Indians were playing the New York Yankees. In 2010, as a member of the Padres, Eckstein went 113 consecutive games without committing an error as a second baseman, a record that stood until this past August when the Cubs' Darwin Barney tied it and later broke it. It's time to unveil the 2022 MLB All-Underrated Team. It's easy to go overlooked when you can call Duke Snider, Roy Campanella, Jackie Robinson, Pee Wee Reese and Gil Hodges teammates during your career. For many, nostalgia remains the driving force behind baseball card collecting, and thats how we arrived at the idea of One-Sheet Collections. When 22-year-old Bert Campaneris made his major league debut in 1964, he took Twins starter Jim Kaat deep in his first major league at-bat. A key contributor on three World Series-winning Boston Red Sox teams in the 1910s, Dutch Leonard largely played in the shadow of Babe Ruth and "Smoky" Joe Wood. We use cookies to help personalize content, tailor and measure ads, and provide a safer experience. His hit tool should be remembered with Ichiro, Miggy, Pujols, Vladdy, and its beginning to look like Trout will go down in that group as well. The Most Underrated NBA Players of the 2000s Hide 11. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Your email address will not be published. Copyright 2023, Beckett Collectibles, LLC. Hernandez made his mark as a rookie during the Florida Marlins 1997 World Series run, but his best work came as a member of the Expos and Nationals. Part of the Impossible Dream Sox team that won the 1967 American League pennant in one of the closest races in history, Petrocelli hit two home runs in Game 6 of the World Series, forcing a Game 7 that the Sox ultimately lost to Bob Gibson and the Cardinals. Career Stats: 1,190 G; .256/.346/.317; 14 HR; 254 RBI; 821 H; 339 R; 35-for-68 SB. Weve looked over the past few days at the1960s, 70s, and 80s, the1930s, 40s, and 50sand the1900s, 10s, and 20s. I truly believe Todd Helton is one of the most grossly underrated players of our generation. He won another ring 13 years later when he captured World Series MVP honors as a member of the San Francisco Giants. Graig Nettles and Darrell Evans came up in yesterdays post. From 1903 to 1909, he averaged 29 wins per season, leading the NL three times in . He has two 20/20 seasons on his resume and fell three home runs short of adding three more to his collection. From 1980 through 1990, Stieb failed to win at least 11 games only once, posting an average season of 14-10 with a 3.29 ERA and 1.22 WHIP and nine complete games. But enough procrastinating. The youngest player to play in an MLB game in 2019 was Elvis Luciano a 19-year-old pitcher Al Oliver. He would spend nine seasons with the Brewers, making three All-Star teams and leading the American League in home runs with 41 in 1980. Most underrated MLB players entering 2022 season #5 Julio Urias - Los Angeles Dodgers Julio Urias pitches against the Atlanta Braves Julio Urias won 20 MLB games in his first full season. Tim Wallach could play both corner-infield and outfield positions, and even took the mound twice for the Expos, in 1987 and 1989. Hisle was a solid all-around player who never really got his due, largely in part to being overshadowed by his more heralded Hall of Fame teammates with the Twins, Rod Carew and Harmon Killebrew. That's the response we set out to elicit with our rundown of each MLB team's most underrated player of the past 20 years. He slugged 107 home runs and made two All-Star appearances in four years with the South Siders. During the 1990s and 2000s, Jones was consistently one of the best hitters in MLB. Hecostthe Astros one defensive run for the decadewhile providing offense that surely totaledmore aggregate value than a slick-gloved infielder with no bat. In Game 2 of the 1992 World Series against the Braves, David Justice was at-bat with runners on first and second. Eckstein would reach the World Series a second time as a member of the Cardinals in 2006. Youre correct. Honorable mention: Craig Biggio, who willbe lambasted as one of the worst defensive Hall of Famers when his 3,000 hits get himenshrined. Hell likely get into Cooperstown on the writers ballot, thanks to a late career renaissance with the Rangers that has pushed him near 3,000 hits and a .300 lifetime batting average. A nine-time All-Star and five-time Gold Glove Award winner during his 15 major-league seasons, Santo wasn't elected to the Hall of Fame until nearly 40 years after his retirementand tragically, one year after his death. A two-time All-Star, White became one of the most popular Yankees during the 1970s with his no-nonsense style of play and remains a fan favorite to this day. The best they can generally hope for is a belated nod from the Veterans Committee. He was also a phenomenal defensive second baseman as well and one of the best at turning the double play, yet he never received a Gold Glove Award due to the presence of two other second basemen who were equally as adept with the glove: the Royals' Frank White and the Tigers' Lou Whitaker. Over the next three games, Eckstein hit .615/.643/.846 with eight hits, three doubles, three runs scored and four RBIa run that not only led the Cardinals to the World Series championship but one that won him World Series MVP honors. You've read the headline. But in reality, Jeff McNeil has been lighting it up at the plate this year, hitting an amazing. He was also named MVP of the 1980 American League Championship Series when he hit .545 with a home run, three RBI and three runs scored as the Royals swept the Yankees in three games. He is the only player to debut with the Marlins in 1993 and play for both of their World Series teams, in 1997 and 2003. It wasn't until he made his way to the Minnesota Twins in November of 1972, however, that his career really began to flourish. The rate stats matter most with Mize. Phillies baseball in the early 2000s was a time to forget. He was the team's everyday shortstop for three seasons, earning MVP votes in 2008 and an All-Star nod in 2009 when he hit .320/.389/.490 for a 132 OPS+ and 6.2 WAR in 137 games. Sievers has the "honor" of being the first man with 300 lifetime home runs not to be elected to baseballs Hall of Fame. Lind hit .305/.370/.562 for a 141 OPS+ with 46 doubles, 35 home runs and 114 RBI in what looked like a breakout age-25 season in 2009. He continued to shuffle roles effectively the next two years before the wheels fell off, but he was a 9.1-WAR player in his first four seasons in the big leagues for some contending Texas teams. Career Stats: 2,243 G; .277/.362/.464; 342 HR; 1,331 RBI; 35-for-76 SB. Forgive me if Im wrong, but I believe Hornsby is the only MLB player to hit 40+ homers and bat .400 in the same season. Renteria made his MLB debut in 1996 at the age of 19, finishing runner-up in NL Rookie of the Year voting. His ability to play anywhere and everywhere on the field made him one of the more valuable players that Whitey Herzog ever had at his disposal. 10. Yes, the Chicago "Black Sox" threw the World Series, but everybody believes that if Shoeless Joe and Co. had tried, they . He finished a close second to teammate George Brett for the American League batting crown in 1976, losing out by less than .001 after Brett went 2-for-4 in the final game of the season to barely squeak past McRae. 1980-89: Dwight Evans. I find that to be an amazing statistic. With six 30-homer seasons, six 100-RBI seasons and a career 144 OPS+, Berkman was one of the most feared sluggers of the 2000s. Duchscherer is not often mentioned in the same breath as Dennis Eckersley or John Smoltz, but he pulled off the rare feat of being named an All-Star as both a starter and a reliever. Leonard had a career record of 139-133 with a 2.76 ERA, and in 1914, he led the American League with a remarkable 0.96 ERA, the major league record for lowest ERA among pitchers who threw at least 150 innings in the same season. Forget the Coors Effect. Playing the bulk of his career with the Cardinals, White was a five-time All-Star, a seven-time Gold Glove Award winner at first base and one of only a handful of players to hit over .300 and drive in 100 runs in three consecutive seasons. I should clarify. At the time he retired in 1985, his .980 career fielding percentage was the highest career mark for any shortstop, though that's since been surpassed by seven players, including Jimmy Rollins and Troy Tulowitzki, the new record holder. Had he spent the bulk of his career elsewhere, Watson is probably pushing 300 home runs, if not more. After an inauspicious start to his career as a member of the Indians, Brian Giles found himself traded to the Pirates prior to the 1999 season. Seemingly every baseball generation has its underrated third basemen. He also managed the Angels to their first-ever postseason appearance in 1979 (serving as Ryan's manager) and is still regarded as one of the most popular Angels of all time. Closers Brian Wilson, Santiago Casilla and Sergio Romo received the bulk of the attention in the Giants bullpen during their impressive run to three World Series titles in five years. the first player to ever bat as a designated hitter. Graig Nettles and Darrell Evans came up in yesterday's post. He reminds me a bit of Reggie Smith, another eternally underrated outfielder. He led the NL in batting average (.336), OPS+ (174), hits (199) and doubles (50) in 2005, adding 46 home runs, 107 RBI and 7.7 WAR. Career Stats: 1,350 G; .300/.359/.522; 242 HR; 898 RBI; 1,550 H; 809 R; SB Data Not Known. Babe Ruth also hit .393 with 41 homers in 1923. While phenoms came, collected their MVP trophies, and faded, he just kept plodding along hitting .300, with a couple dozen homers and a hundred "ribbies" year after yearlike a guy punching a time clock. Most of the names you would expect: Andrew McCutchen, Dustin Pedroia, Matt Holliday, Robinson . I also count him as one of the few players 25 and under who already hasa shot at Cooperstown. But that overshadowed what was a wonderful career on the field, and especially when fielding his position. Watson is underrated due to his immense contributions to the sport. Acquired from the New York Mets in exchange for Mike Bordick at the 2000 trade deadline, Mora went on to rack up 29.1 WAR in 10 seasons with the Orioles while playing all over the field defensively. He is currently the leader amongst active. There's also Buddy Bell, Ron Santo, Ken Boyer and a range of other third basemen who hit respectably and offered superb, if under-appreciated, defensive value. Thanks for another fun article. He went 19-6 with a 3.63 ERA in 218 innings to finish runner-up in AL Cy Young voting in 2006, and followed that up with a 19-7 record and 3.60 ERA in 199.1 innings the next year before he was sidelined midway through the 2008 campaign. Career Stats: 1,754 G; .273/.336/.450; 235 HR; 901 RBI; 87-for-157 SB. We saw the ends of the Terry Francona and Larry Bowa eras . Giles finished his career with more than 300 more walks than strikeouts, and while he was never the same player in San Diego as he was in Pittsburgh, Giles was one of the most popular Padres during his time with the club. Four times he hit over .300, three times he slugged more than 20 home runs and only once did he break the 100 RBI mark. He has Rookie Cards in 1997 Bowman, Bowman Chrome and Topps Stars. Career Stats: 2,583 G; .271/.332/.442; 304 HR; 1,167 RBI; 2,548 H; 1,443 R; 320-for-438 SB. When Jose Oquendo broke into the majors with the Mets in 1983 as a 19-year-old shortstop, he became the first player in franchise history who was younger than the franchise itself. In 1978, he finished third in the AL MVP voting behind the Yankees' Ron Guidry and the eventual winner, Boston's Jim Rice. Whether it was Nomar Garciaparra, Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez or Miguel Tejada, Vizquel was always an afterthought when it came to talking about the best shortstops in the game. Barry Sanders. A four-time All-Star, Bando led the A's in RBI three times and was the second third baseman in American League history to hit 200 home runs in their career. The best shortstop of the 1970s, Dave Concepcion paired with Joe Morgan to form one of the great double-play combinations in the history of the game. Underrated: Jeff McNeil, Mets When you think of the 2022 Mets, the first players to come to mind are likely Pete Alonso, Max Scherzer, Jacob deGrom, and/or Francisco Lindor. Your email address will not be published. A 20-homer, 20-steal player in 2007 and 2008, Hart also had a 31-homer, 102-RBI campaign in 2010 when he earned his second All-Star selection. Shareef Abdur-Rahim 8. His batting average fell 64 points (from .289 to .225) and his OPS dropped 79 points (from .863 to .784), yet his average exit velocity (91 mph), hard-hit percentage (46.7 percent), expected SLG (.542) and barrel percentage (16 percent) were all excellent, and his 7.9 percent walk rate was the best of his career.