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Who is the best baseball player of all time? Who is the best baseball player of all time?
Babe Ruth is the greatest baseball player ever Babe Ruth is the greatest baseball player ever
Hank Aaron is the greatest baseball player ever Hank Aaron is the greatest baseball player ever
Barry Bonds is the greatest baseball player ever Barry Bonds is the greatest baseball player ever
Willie Mays is the greatest baseball player ever Willie Mays is the greatest baseball player ever
Other eligible greatest baseball players ever Other eligible greatest baseball players ever
Babe Ruth's records are unbeatable Babe Ruth's records are unbeatable
Babe Ruth is the most influential and widely known baseball player of all time Babe Ruth is the most influential and widely known baseball player of all time
Babe Ruth kickstarted the most successful major sports franchise of all time Babe Ruth kickstarted the most successful major sports franchise of all time
Hank Aaron is an unparalleled statistical phenomenon Hank Aaron is an unparalleled statistical phenomenon
Hank Aaron is the most consistent player over a baseball career as long as his Hank Aaron is the most consistent player over a baseball career as long as his
Barry Bonds, accompanied by his many other skills, is the greatest hitter of all time Barry Bonds, accompanied by his many other skills, is the greatest hitter of all time
Barry Bonds, even without a bat, would rank as one of the best ever Barry Bonds, even without a bat, would rank as one of the best ever
Both Willie Mays' hitting and center fielding performances are historically great Both Willie Mays' hitting and center fielding performances are historically great
Ted Williams Ted Williams
Lou Gehrig Lou Gehrig
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Who is the best baseball player of all time?
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Babe Ruth is the greatest baseball player ever

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Babe Ruth's records are unbeatable

Babe Ruth's incredible feats of athleticism and control over the game have not been surpassed in almost 90 years, and it doesn't seem like they will be anytime soon.
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The Argument

Babe Ruth is the greatest baseball player of all time because his records will never be beaten. Ruth's slugging percentage (which measures total bases earned over total at-bats) clocks in at .690, while the next best slugging percentage came from Ted Williams at .634 - a full 5.6% differential. Additionally, the top 3 sluggers of all time are the only players on the list to average a .63+ percentage over their careers. Two of his other major statistical records (OPS and OPS+) take into account his on-base percentage (total times on base over total at-bats), adding his on-base percentage to his slugging percentage. Babe significantly outranks Ted Williams in these categories as well at 1.164 and 206, separated from him by 0.05 and a whopping 16 (both incredible statistical differentials). Perhaps the most important milestone the Bambino achieved from 1914 to 1935 was his unmatched wins above replacement (the number of wins he contributed over a replacement player) at 182.5! No one has even come close since his retirement, the second mark being Walter Johnson at 164.5, the third Cy Young at 163.8. The closest anyone came to Ruth's WAR was Barry Bonds at 162.8, who retired in 2007. [1]

Counter arguments

Babe Ruth's statistical records do not automatically make him the greatest of all time. Yes, stats like slugging percentage and wins above replacement are important in any player's overall career, but they are not the MOST important numbers for individual performance. Babe Ruth does not have all-time records for stats like RBI or home runs, which are arguably as important as the criteria listed here. Records that have stood for more than 100 years have been broken recently (like the Chicago Cubs' 108-year World Series title drought), so why not those standing for more than 80? The arbitrary delegation of some statistics as more important than others and the belief that individual records lasting for a long time are insurmountable possesses many flaws.

Framing

Statistical analysis dictates a player's historical value as an individual and to their team. Many statistical records can be broken each baseball season, but the marginal dominance Babe Ruth reached has never been approached in the almost 90 years since he played. SLG%, OPS, OPS+, and WAR are all essential statistics in any MLB career, and, since Ruth has been so far ahead of his peers for so long, he earns his spot as the greatest to ever do it.

Premises

[P1] Records lasting more than eight decades with incredibly large margins of victory (Ruth's SLG%, OPS, OPS+, and WAR) can never be broken. [P2] Unbreakable statistical records in fundamental gauges of player value are the most important factors in determining historical greatness. [P3] Therefore, Babe Ruth is the greatest baseball player of all time.

Rejecting the premises

[Rejecting P1] Long-lasting records can be broken. [Rejecting P2] Some statistics are not more important than others in determining greatness.

References

  1. https://www.baseball-reference.com
This page was last edited on Wednesday, 6 May 2020 at 06:06 UTC

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