History UsefulNotes / HistoricalPeopleToKnowInMLB

* '''Hank Aaron''' broke Babe Ruth's career home run record, and was popularly known as 'Hank the Hammer' or 'Hammerin' Hank' in recognition of his hitting power. Being African-American, he quite naturally had to deal with a little bit of intolerance as he approached the record. However, Aaron holds many records such as Total Bases earned, a record he was particularly proud of until his passing in 2021 since he considered it more indicative of how much he contributed to his team. He also holds the career record for runs batted in with 2,297, and had 3,771 total hits. (Anyone who gets close to 3,000 is considered a shoo-in for the Hall of Fame.) Aaron was a model of consistency; he never hit 50 homers in a season, but he hit 40 or more eight times, 30 or more 15 times, and had a streak of 19 straight years in which he hit at least 24 homers. Aaron also holds two longevity records relating to the All-Star Game--he was on an All-Star roster in 21 of his 23 seasons (missing only his first and last), and appeared in 25 All-Star Games.[[note]]No, this isn't a misprint. From 1959–1962, MLB held two [=ASGs=] in each season. Aaron appeared in all eight [=ASGs=] in that period.[[/note]] Finally, he was the last former Negro Leagues player to be on a regular MLB roster.[[note]]The very last Negro Leagues player to appear in an MLB game was Minnie Miñoso, who appeared in two 1980 games with the White Sox as a publicity stunt.[[/note]] He is one of the leading candidates for the title of best baseball player ever. With the Cleveland Indians changing their name to the Guardians in 2021 following the rise of racial tensions after the murder of George Floyd (following Washington's changing of Redskins to Football Team and eventually the Commanders), fans in Atlanta are holding out hope the Braves would change their controversial name to the Atlanta Hammers to honor Hank's legacy which has grown stronger in recent years after Hank's passing.[[note]]Despite the fact that A: the current ownership have no interest in dropping the Braves name or brand, seeing as it was endorsed by the MLB commissioner following the 2021 World Series win. B: Braves, unlike the Redskins and Indians (which are both the most racist thing you can call a Native American), but more similar to the Chiefs and Warriors is considered a double standard name (with brave even being a part of America's motto of Land of the Free, Home of the Brave). C: It would be considered a slight disrespect to Hank's legacy to have the name adopt his Hammerin nickname without his family's approval.[[/note]]

* '''David Ortiz''' (also known by his nickname "Big Papi") was a first baseman and designated hitter, first with the Minnesota Twins from 1997–2002 and most notably with the Boston Red Sox from 2003 until his retirement at the end of the 2016 season. While he wasn't always the Bosox' best statistical player in any given season, he was certainly their most recognizable and famous player throughout his time in Boston, similar to Derek Jeter being the heart and soul of the Yankees. He's somewhat of a rarity among designated hitters in that he almost never played in the field- most American League teams, if they even employ a single full-time DH rather than rotating the position among several different players, will have them also play plenty of games (at least 20-30ish) as a non-DH. And with most of the other full-time DH's, they hardly ever play in the field either because they're really old, have suffered injuries that robbed their fielding ability but not their hitting, or both (Jim Thome, for example). While Ortiz retired just before turning 41, he never even played a substantial amount of games in the field even when he was younger (generally just no-DH games in National League stadiums), simply because he's an epically terrible fielder. Still, he was an amazing hitter, and his 50-homer season in 2006 remains the only 50 HR season by a Designated Hitter. In 2013, Ortiz won the World Series MVP Award for his excellent play during the championship games and the postseason as whole, including hitting a clutch grand slam during the 8th inning of Game 2 against the Detroit Tigers in the ALCS. Big Papi went out in 2016 with a big bang, by several statistical measures having the most productive swan song for a hitter since at least Ted Williams' last season of 1960, and also setting new records for the most homers and RBI by a player in his final season. Unlike Edgar Martínez, who had to wait until his very last chance (at least with the writers) to get into the Hall of Fame, Big Papi got in on his first chance in 2022.[[note]] That said, Ortiz's induction wound up being very controversial due to the voters' previous treatment of players connected to [=PEDs=]. Ortiz tested positive in 2003 (though he denies using any) much like other notable players such as Sammy Sosa. Many fans, players, and writers pointed out it was hypocritical of the voters to allow Ortiz to enter the Hall of Fame while other players such as Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, and Sosa continued to be blacklisted until they fell off the ballot.[[/note]]

* '''Hank Aaron''' broke Babe Ruth's career home run record, and was popularly known as 'Hank the Hammer' or 'Hammerin' Hank' in recognition of his hitting power. Being African-American, he quite naturally had to deal with a little bit of intolerance as he approached the record. However, Aaron holds many records such as Total Bases earned, a record he was particularly proud of until his passing in 2021 since he considered it more indicative of how much he contributed to his team. He also holds the career record for runs batted in with 2,297, and had 3,771 total hits. (Anyone who gets close to 3,000 is considered a shoo-in for the Hall of Fame.) Aaron was a model of consistency; he never hit 50 homers in a season, but he hit 40 or more eight times, 30 or more 15 times, and had a streak of 19 straight years in which he hit at least 24 homers. Aaron also holds two longevity records relating to the All-Star Game--he was on an All-Star roster in 21 of his 23 seasons (missing only his first and last), and appeared in 25 All-Star Games.[[note]]No, this isn't a misprint. From 1959–1962, MLB held two [=ASGs=] in each season. Aaron appeared in all eight [=ASGs=] in that period.[[/note]] Finally, he was the last former Negro Leagues player to be on a regular MLB roster.[[note]]The very last Negro Leagues player to appear in an MLB game was Minnie Miñoso, who appeared in two 1980 games with the White Sox as a publicity stunt.[[/note]] He is one of the leading candidates for the title of best baseball player ever.

* '''Harry Caray''' is pretty much regarded as one of the most colorful {{Large Ham Announcer}}s of all time. He's best remembered for calling Chicago Cubs games on WGN-TV in the 1980s and '90s, although the first and longest part of his career was spent broadcasting for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1945 to 1969, and he worked for the St. Louis Browns, Oakland Athletics, and Chicago White Sox at various points too. Caray, who brought a boisterous, fanlike enthusiasm into the booth with him, remains highly quotable to this day, with his signature calls of "Holy Cow!" and "It might be... it could be... it is! A home run!" He received the Ford C. Frick Award from the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1989, and continued to call Cubs games right up until his death just prior to spring training in 1998. Apparently his talent was InTheBlood, as shown by both his son (longtime Atlanta Braves broadcaster Skip Caray, now also deceased) and his grandsons (Cubs/Braves broadcaster Chip Caray and AAA Braves broadcaster Josh Caray). Younger fans may be most familiar with him from Creator/WillFerrell's impressions of him on ''Series/SaturdayNightLive''.

* '''Ty Cobb''', nicknamed "The Georgia Peach," was a superlative player in the early part of the 20th century, leading the American League in batting average twelve times and setting 90 MLB records during his career. His most notable were the all-time record for most career base hits at 4,191 (until it was broken by Pete Rose; Rose and Cobb remain the only players to have accumulated over 4,000 hits in the MLB), held the record for career stolen bases until it was broken by Lou Brock (and subsequently by Rickey Henderson), and had a career batting average of .366 and a combined runs scored/RBI total of 4,095, records that still stand today. Despite that, he's also one of the most likely players in the game's history to be portrayed as a villainous or outright evil person, due mostly to sportswriter Al Stump and other biographers [[VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory sensationalizing him as a murderous, racist criminal]] in the years after his death. His indisputable skill at the game made him CrazyIsCool at best for several decades, but since the turn of TheNewTens his legacy has been subject to reappraisal and [[http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-knife-in-ty-cobbs-back-65618032/ most]] [[https://imprimis.hillsdale.edu/who-was-ty-cobb-the-history-we-know-thats-wrong/ modern]] [[https://www.mlb.com/news/ty-cobb-history-built-on-inaccuracies-c178601094 evaluations]] of his character and history claim he suffered from a HistoricalVillainUpgrade. While he did have extremely thin skin and frequently got into fights with hecklers and others who he felt were treating him poorly, resulting in at least one guilty plea to a charge of assault, his competitive and aggressive nature seems mostly [[FreudianExcuse the result of his father constantly hounding him for]] [[WellDoneSonGuy not being good enough]]. His reputation for dirty play was also somewhat exaggerated, largely based on him doing things that would be considered dirty today but that were [[FairForItsDay relatively common practices at the time.]] On the inaugural Baseball Hall of Fame Ballot in 1936, Cobb received the most votes, more than Babe Ruth, Honus Wagner, or Cy Young; his percentage of votes was 98.2%, which remained the highest percentage of votes for any Hall of Fame inductee until Tom Seaver in 1992.

* '''Joe Buck''' served as the primary play-by-play commentator for Fox Sports' national television coverage of both MLB baseball and NFL football from the mid-1990s (1994 for the NFL, 1996 for MLB) through 2021, after which he moved over to ESPN to become their new play-by-play voice for ''Series/MondayNightFootball''. As Fox has held the exclusive TV rights to the World Series since 2000, this means that Buck is probably the one sportscaster who most every baseball fan has heard, having covered every World Series in the 21st century through 2021 (as well as in 1996 and 1998). He has not always been the most well-liked broadcaster, however, with fans of both baseball and football criticizing him for his seeming lack of excitement during big moments and for what they perceive as bias in favor of certain teams (leaning into this, Buck's Twitter bio once started with [[DeadpanSnarker "I love all teams EXCEPT yours"]]). The son of the late Cardinals broadcaster Jack Buck (who also spent a number of years calling MLB and NFL games for a national audience on CBS radio and TV), Joe has proved that broadcasting runs in his family. His often-used catchphrase of "We'll see you tomorrow night",[[note]]originally uttered by Jack in response to Kirby Puckett's walk-off homer in Game 6 of the 1991 World Series[[/note]] in response to a Game 6 outcome forcing a Game 7 to decide a seven-game series, was a regular feature of October play.

* '''Mariano Rivera''', a pitcher who spent his entire career with the New York Yankees, most of it as their closer, is baseball's all-time saves leader with 652 saves and believed by many to be the best relief pitcher in baseball history. He is particularly known for his many clutch postseason performances, often working up to two innings for a save. (Saves lasting more than one inning had become extremely rare by the time Rivera began pitching.)[[note]]Rivera had 14 two-inning postseason saves—more than ''all other relievers combined'' during his career.[[/note]] Just to give you an idea of his postseason dominance, more men have walked on the moon than scored an earned run on him in the playoffs. [[note]]12 men walked on the moon during the Apollo Missions, Rivera allowed 11 earned runs in his entire playoff career, though he also allowed 2 unearned runs.[[/note]] His signature pitch, the cut fastball or "cutter" (a fastball thrown with a slightly off-center grip to give it extra lateral movement), has been compared by opposing batters to a {{chainsaw|Good}}, because its late, fast movement breaks bats off in batters' hands. A torn ACL early in the 2012 season could have brought his career to an end, but he said that he didn't want his career to end like this and would try his best to recover in time for the 2013 season. He then announced he would retire at the end of the 2013 season, and came back as if he hadn't had a day off, much less a year. In his final All-Star Game appearance in 2013, he was named MVP. As noted above, he is also the last player ever to wear jersey number No. 42 in MLB. Unquestionably his greatest accolade came when he was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2019—Rivera became the first player ever to be unanimously elected by the writers.

* '''Ken Griffey''' (Jr.) was one of the best (arguably ''the'' best) players of TheNineties. Well-marketed (even having his own series of baseball games made by Creator/{{Nintendo}} for the [[UsefulNotes/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem SNES]] and the UsefulNotes/Nintendo64) and excelling in all facets of the game, he led the previously pathetic Seattle Mariners out of obscurity and enjoyed tremendous popularity. He's also the first of two players in history (Tim Raines Jr. joining him in 2001) to play on the same team with his father (of the same name), who was a successful if not Hall-of-Fame caliber outfielder. After many good years with the Mariners, he requested a move to his hometown Cincinnati Reds,[[note]]While he was actually born in Donora, Pennsylvania—Stan Musial's hometown—Junior grew up in Cincinnati and graduated from high school there. Incidentally, he was born on Musial's 49th birthday—Bill James once joked that Griffey was the "[[OverlyNarrowSuperlative second-best left-handed hitting outfielder ever born on November 21st in Donora, Pennsylvania]]"—and his father Griffey Sr. was a member of the Big Red Machine squad back in TheSeventies.[[/note]] where he would mostly spend the next nine years and last years of baseball injuring his hamstring. Still, he became the 6th player to hit 600 home runs (and, some argue, the first since Hank Aaron to do so legitimately, since the 4th and 5th [Barry Bonds and Sammy Sosa, respectively- see below] were both linked to performance-enhancing drugs). Elected to the Hall of Fame at his first chance in 2016, getting what was then the highest percentage of votes ever from the writers. He was also the first #1 draft pick inducted into the Hall of Fame. Still, many fans consider there to be an element of WhatCouldHaveBeen to his career, because for years he seemed destined to break Aaron's all-time home run record, and if not for constant injuries nagging him for those seasons on the Reds he may well have done so. (His time in Seattle may have been part of the problem—the Kingdome, where the M's then played, was infamous for its concrete-hard artificial turf.) May have had the most beautiful swing in history during his prime. Most recently, he became a part-owner of the M's in 2021. One darker and lesser-known fact about Junior is that he has on occasion been an advocate for suicide/depression awareness, himself having attempted suicide (and nearly succeeding) early in his minor league career.

* '''Ted Williams''' is one of the best hitters in history, and was the last person to have a batting average (hits divided by at-bats) of over .400 in a season, batting .406 in 1941. (No player since 2000 has hit over .372, and no player since that time who had enough at-bats to qualify for a league title has had a .400 average at any point after late May.) Well loved in Boston (where he played) and his hometown of San Diego, and there are highways named for him in both cities. After he died in 2002, he received a lot of media attention over the bizarre battle that took place within his surviving family; his son and daughter claimed that the three of them were to be cryogenically frozen together. At Fenway Park, there is a single seat in the right field bleachers painted red to mark the landing spot of one of his home runs, the longest in the park's history. The home run ball actually hit the guy sitting in the seat while he was taking a nap, and broke his straw hat. [[RidingIntoTheSunSet Hit a home run in the last at-bat of his career.]] Oh yeah, and he had his incredible career while serving his country ''twice'' (WWII & Korea) as a ''combat pilot'' in the ''[[SemperFi United States Marines]]''. He was somewhat of an ArrogantKungFuGuy with an almost unhealthy focus on just being the best hitter in history (Mickey Mantle had a story of trying to have an ordinary conversation with Williams, but Williams was only interested in talking about hitting styles), and had a reputation of seemingly not appreciating the fans (he held a serious grudge against them and the local media for booing him and saying less than pleasant things early in his career). He did get over it though, with a truly heartwarming moment at the 1999 All-Star Game where he tipped his cap to the Fenway crowd, an act he had refused to do almost his entire playing career. In his Hall of Fame induction speech he called for Negro League greats to be inducted into the Hall, regardless of whether they had met the "10 years in the majors" rule since many failed that standard solely because Major League Baseball had been segregated. He managed the Washington Senators and Texas Rangers for a few years after his career ended, but his managerial record wasn't nearly as accomplished as his playing record- by most accounts he was so naturally gifted at hitting that he struggled to explain how he did it to others, and couldn't effectively coach anyone who didn't have his insanely good eyesight or hand-eye coordination.
* '''Stan "The Man" Musial''' played his entire career for the St. Louis Cardinals and is considered not only the greatest Cardinal of all time, but also one of the greatest men ever to play the game. Not just as a player, but as a person. He was a 3-time MVP, 3-time World Series Champion, 24-time All-Star, and had a .331 lifetime batting average, 3,630 hits[[labelnote:*]]In one of the most remarkable statistical oddities in MLB history, Musial had exactly the same number of hits at home and away (1,815).[[/labelnote]], 475 home runs, and 1,951 [=RBIs=], but he also gave away more autographs than any other player and became an iconic civic figure in the city of St. Louis. He was so nice and kind--he cheered up everyone he met (from sick children in hospitals to ordinary adults) and aged into a CoolOldGuy with a harmonica. A proud son of Polish (father) and Rusyn[[note]]an ethnic group in the Carpathian region, whose historic homeland straddles Poland, Slovakia, and Ukraine. They're largely [[UsefulNotes/OrthodoxChristianity Eastern Catholics]] and speak a language that is nigh-indistinguishable from (western dialects of) Ukrainian. The most famous Rusyn person in history is probably Creator/AndyWarhol--who was also from Pittsburgh[[/note]] (mother) immigrants who settled in Western Pennsylvania (near UsefulNotes/{{Pittsburgh}}), he made trips to Poland to help popularize baseball there, and became good friends with [[UsefulNotes/ThePope Pope John Paul II]] in the process; they eventually named a stadium after him and gave him Poland's highest civilian honor. He was just about the best and least-controversial example of a SacredCow there ever was. Hank Aaron has said of him, "I didn't just like Stan Musial. I wanted to ''be'' like him." Even Ty Cobb said that Stan was the closest there'd be to a perfect player. Oh, and he once found out on a family trip that he had [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff fans in Australia and Tahiti]]. Stan the Man ranks among the greatest of the greats, but he's not often talked about because he was never a Yankee or a Dodger. In fact, sportswriter Jayson Stark wrote in 2007, "I can't think of any all-time great in any sport who gets left out of more who's-the-greatest conversations than Stan Musial." But when he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1969, then-Commissioner Ford Frick said, "Here stands baseball's perfect warrior. Here stands baseball's perfect knight." Those words were etched into The Man's statue at Busch Stadium, which has been covered in flowers and memorabilia since he passed away on January 19, 2013, at age 92. Before his death, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the U.S.'s highest civilian honor, from President UsefulNotes/BarackObama in December 2011, thanks to a grassroots petition campaign conducted by members of Cardinal Nation.[[note]]Fun fact: During Musial's high school days in Pennsylvania, one of his baseball and basketball teammates was Buddy Griffey, father and grandfather of the baseball-playing Ken Griffeys. Musial and his white basketball teammates once threatened to forfeit a major tournament because a hotel restaurant wouldn't seat Buddy in the main dining room.[[/note]]

* '''Chipper Jones''', during his 19-year career, was typically considered the best switch-hitter in the game and one of the best of all time. Among his many accolades, he's the only switch hitter to finish his career with a .300 batting average and over 400 homers. Plus the only switch hitter with 5,000 or more at bats with a .300 batting average, .400 on-base percentage, and .500 slugging percentage. And one of only two players with 5,000 or more at bats to have hit .300 from both sides of home plate, the other being Hall of Famer Frankie Frisch. And one of only two overall #1 draft picks to finish his career batting over .300 (along with Joe Mauer, in the "Catchers" folder of this page). He spent his entire career with the Atlanta Braves, at one point even re-working his contract with them so they would have more money to spend on other players. However, he was never that great of a power hitter, despite consistently putting up solid numbers over the past decade and a half. Given that he was hitting in the era of players such as Bonds, [=McGwire=] and later Pujols, and that the '90s Braves teams he played for were spearheaded by their fearsome starting rotation of Glavine, Maddux, and Smoltz, he's basically a case of OvershadowedByAwesome. He retired at the end of the 2012 season, and was easily elected to the Hall of Fame on his first try in 2018, making him the second #1 overall pick in Cooperstown (preceded by Ken Griffey Jr. [in the "Outfielders" folder of this page], and followed in 2019 by Harold Baines and 2024 by Joe Mauer [in the "Catchers" folder]).

* '''Chipper Jones''', during his 19-year career, was typically considered the best switch-hitter in the game and one of the best of all time. Among his many accolades, he's the only switch hitter to finish his career with a .300 batting average and over 400 homers. Plus the only switch hitter with 5,000 or more at bats with a .300 batting average, .400 on-base percentage, and .500 slugging percentage. And one of only two players with 5,000 or more at bats to have hit .300 from both sides of home plate, the other being Hall of Famer Frankie Frisch. And one of only two overall #1 draft picks to finish his career batting over .300 (along with Joe Mauer, in the "Catchers" folder of this page). He spent his entire career with the Atlanta Braves, at one point even re-working his contract with them so they would have more money to spend on other players. However, he was never that great of a power hitter, despite consistently putting up solid numbers over the past decade and a half. Given that he was hitting in the era of players such as Bonds, [=McGwire=] and later Pujols, and that the '90s Braves teams he played for were spearheaded by their fearsome starting rotation of Glavine, Maddux, and Smoltz, he's basically a case of OvershadowedByAwesome. He retired at the end of the 2012 season, and was easily elected to the Hall of Fame on his first try in 2018, making him the second #1 overall pick in Cooperstown (preceded by Ken Griffey Jr., in the "Outfielders" folder of this page, and followed in 2019 by Harold Baines).

* '''Adrián Beltré''' was a third baseman who played for four teams in a 21-season career, retiring after the 2018 season. One of the longest-tenured players in baseball before his retirement, he came up with the Dodgers as a 19-year-old in 1998. Though he was generally well-regarded for his solid offense and great defense earlier in his career with the Dodgers, Mariners, and Red Sox, he didn't really hit his stride until he joined the Texas Rangers in 2011, and generally excelled for them for the rest of his career. Even with his ups-and-downs earlier in his career, he still has some very impressive career statistics, and he got his 3000th hit in 2017. Despite his impressive career statistics, he only has 4 all-star appearances, on account of his inconsistencies early in his career and [[OvershadowedByAwesome having to share the spotlight with a lot of other great third basemen]] late in his career. He also never won an MVP award, although he was in contention for one a few times; notably, in 2004, his last year with the Dodgers, he put up numbers that would ordinarily be easily good enough to win the award, had Barry Bonds not been producing statistics that were utterly insane at the same time. A renowned bad-ball hitter, Beltré was frequently known to swing very hard at low pitches, sometimes falling on one knee during his follow-through while he hits the ball well over the fence. A very strong candidate for the Hall of Fame in 2024, he was also considered among the nicest and friendliest players in the game, and in his final years as a player was well known for his epic bromance with Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus. Does not like being touched on the top of his head.

* '''Ken Griffey''' (Jr.) was one of the best (arguably ''the'' best) players of TheNineties. Well-marketed (even having his own series of baseball games made by Creator/{{Nintendo}} for the [[UsefulNotes/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem SNES]] and the UsefulNotes/Nintendo64) and excelling in all facets of the game, he led the previously pathetic Seattle Mariners out of obscurity and enjoyed tremendous popularity. He's also the first of two players in history (Tim Raines Jr. joining him in 2001) to play on the same team with his father (of the same name), who was a successful if not Hall-of-Fame caliber outfielder. After many good years with the Mariners, he requested a move to his hometown Cincinnati Reds,[[note]]While he was actually born in Donora, Pennsylvania—Stan Musial's hometown—Junior grew up in Cincinnati and graduated from high school there. Incidentally, he was born on Musial's 49th birthday—Bill James once joked that Griffey was the "[[OverlyNarrowSuperlative second-best left-handed hitting outfielder ever born on November 21st in Donora, Pennsylvania]], his father Griffey Sr. was a member of the Big Red Machine squad back in TheSeventies."[[/note]] where he would mostly spend the next nine years and last years of baseball injuring his hamstring. Still, he became the 6th player to hit 600 home runs (and, some argue, the first since Hank Aaron to do so legitimately, since the 4th and 5th [Barry Bonds and Sammy Sosa, respectively- see below] were both linked to performance-enhancing drugs). Elected to the Hall of Fame at his first chance in 2016, getting what was then the highest percentage of votes ever from the writers. He was also the first #1 draft pick inducted into the Hall of Fame. Still, many fans consider there to be an element of WhatCouldHaveBeen to his career, because for years he seemed destined to break Aaron's all-time home run record, and if not for constant injuries nagging him for those seasons on the Reds he may well have done so. (His time in Seattle may have been part of the problem—the Kingdome, where the M's then played, was infamous for its concrete-hard artificial turf.) May have had the most beautiful swing in history during his prime. Most recently, he became a part-owner of the M's in 2021. One darker and lesser-known fact about Junior is that he has on occasion been an advocate for suicide/depression awareness, himself having attempted suicide (and nearly succeeding) early in his minor league career.

* '''Ichiro Suzuki''', an outfielder who was most famous during his time with the Mariners but also played for the Yankees and Marlins, is the first Japanese position player (i.e., non-pitcher) to have a protracted, successful career in the American majors. After many years of being one of the NPB's biggest stars, including 3 MVP awards, he came to America in 2001, signing a contract with the Mariners. He immediately became one of Major League Baseball's best players, hitting .350 and stealing 56 bases that year, helping the Mariners win a record-tying 116 regular-season games, and winning both the AL Rookie of the Year and MVP Awards. He continued to play at an elite level for the next decade, with a record 10 straight seasons with at least 200 hits from 2001 to 2010. In 2004, his best season, he collected 262 hits, breaking the major league record for hits in a single season. He went into a steady age-related decline from 2011 on, going from perennial all-star to okay player to backup outfielder, but was still good enough to play in the big leagues despite his age. By the end of his playing career, he was the oldest position player in the major leagues by around 5 years, and he long stated that he wanted to keep playing until at least 50. He rejoined the Mariners in 2018 after spending the previous five and a half years elsewhere, but got off to a fairly bad start and moved from the field to the front office in May, though he hadn't yet officially retired. That would come after the second game of the M's 2019 season-opening series in Tokyo. Ichiro had been signed to a minor-league contract and placed on the active roster for the Tokyo series.[[note]]When MLB has held season-opening series outside North America, it has allowed the teams involved to have 28-player rosters. At that time, the normal limit was 25; from 2020, the limit is 26 normally and 27 for scheduled neutral-site games.[[/note]] He is well-known for his unusual hitting style–rather than try to always hit the ball as hard as he could, Ichiro preferred to "slap" the ball into gaps where no fielder was standing (even when the ball ''did'' go towards an infielder, he would often make it on base anyways, thanks to a combination of sheer speed and his swing being designed to put his body into the perfect position/posture to instantly book it towards first). Despite not appearing in the majors until he was 27, he reached 3,000 MLB hits while playing for the Marlins in 2016, even though by then he was no longer a regular starter due to age-related decline. If you combine the 1200+ hits that he got in Japan with his MLB totals, he has more hits than Pete Rose, leading to an intense debate over whether Ichiro should be considered baseball's hit king instead of Rose. Ichiro is considered a lock for the Hall of Fame once he becomes eligible in 2025. He is also an apparent victim of MemeticMutation.

* '''Joe Mauer''' retired during the 2018 offseason after spending his entire 15-season MLB career with the Minnesota Twins. He's considered one of the best-hitting catchers in MLB history, having led the American League in batting average 3 times (2006, 2008, 2009), the most batting titles won by any catcher—in fact, it's just one fewer than the ''total'' number of batting titles won by every catcher in history who isn't Joe Mauer. He also won the 2009 AL MVP, a year when he had one of the best seasons any catcher has ever had at the plate, including the highest batting average by any catcher in the modern era (.365). He was often thought of as the second-best player in baseball (after Albert Pujols) when he was in his mid-20s. Due to injuries sustained from catching, the Twins moved him to playing full-time first base in 2014; unfortunately, he was a shell of his former self ever since he went down with a concussion in 2013, although he enjoyed something of a resurgence since 2017. However, he missed more than 30 games after another concussion in 2018, and in the end decided to call it a career. The Twins, anticipating his retirement, treated their final game in 2018 (which was at home) as a farewell to Mauer—capped off by moving him to catcher to start the 9th inning (he was subbed out after one pitch). He ended his career as one of only two overall #1 draft picks to hit over .300 for a career, with Chipper Jones as the other. Mauer is also the 22nd MVP to have played a career of 15 or more seasons with only one team. The 21 who preceded him are all in the Hall of Fame. Also notable for being something of a hometown hero, as he grew up in the Twin Cities. Was one of the most marketable players in his prime, having been in commercials for Head & Shoulders and Sony's MLB ''The Show'' series. Well played, Mauer.

* '''Hank Aaron''' broke Babe Ruth's career home run record. Being African-American, he quite naturally had to deal with a little bit of intolerance as he approached the record. However, Aaron holds many records such as Total Bases earned, a record he was particularly proud of until his passing in 2021 since he considered it more indicative of how much he contributed to his team. He also holds the career record for runs batted in with 2,297, and had 3,771 total hits. (Anyone who gets close to 3,000 is considered a shoo-in for the Hall of Fame.) Aaron was a model of consistency; he never hit 50 homers in a season, but he hit 40 or more eight times, 30 or more 15 times, and had a streak of 19 straight years in which he hit at least 24 homers. Aaron also holds two longevity records relating to the All-Star Game—he was on an All-Star roster in 21 of his 23 seasons (missing only his first and last), and appeared in 25 All-Star Games.[[note]]No, this isn't a misprint. From 1959–1962, MLB held two [=ASGs=] in each season. Aaron appeared in all eight [=ASGs=] in that period.[[/note]] Finally, he was the last former Negro Leagues player to be on a regular MLB roster.[[note]]The very last Negro Leagues player to appear in an MLB game was Minnie Miñoso, who appeared in two 1980 games with the White Sox as a publicity stunt.[[/note]] He is one of the leading candidates for the title of best baseball player ever.

* '''Harry Caray''' is pretty much regarded as one of the most colorful {{Large Ham Announcer}}s of all time. He's best remembered for calling Chicago Cubs games on WGN-TV in the 1980s and '90s, although the first and longest part of his career was spent broadcasting for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1945 to 1969, and he worked for the St. Louis Browns, Oakland Athletics, and Chicago White Sox at various points too. Caray, who brought a boisterous, fanlike enthusiasm into the booth with him, remains highly quotable to this day, with his signature calls of "Holy Cow!" and "It might be...it could be...It is! A home run!" He received the Ford C. Frick Award from the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1989, and continued to call Cubs games right up until his death just prior to spring training in 1998. Apparently his talent was InTheBlood, as shown by both his son (longtime Atlanta Braves broadcaster Skip Caray, now also deceased) and his grandsons (Cubs/Braves broadcaster Chip Caray and AAA Braves broadcaster Josh Caray). Younger fans may be most familiar with him from Creator/WillFerrell's impressions of him on ''Series/SaturdayNightLive''.

* '''Joe Buck''' served as the primary play-by-play commentator for Fox Sports' national television coverage of both MLB baseball and NFL football from the mid-1990s (1994 for the NFL, 1996 for MLB) through 2021, after which he moved over to ESPN to become their new play-by-play voice for ''Series/MondayNightFootball''. As Fox has held the exclusive TV rights to the World Series since 2000, this means that Buck is probably the one sportscaster whom most every baseball fan has heard, having covered every World Series in the 21st century through 2021 (as well as in 1996 and 1998). He's not always been the most well-liked broadcaster, however, with fans of both baseball and football criticizing him for his seeming lack of excitement during big moments and for what they perceive as bias in favor of certain teams (leaning into this, Buck's Twitter bio once started with [[DeadpanSnarker "I love all teams EXCEPT yours"]]). The son of the late Cardinals broadcaster Jack Buck (who also spent a number of years calling MLB and NFL games for a national audience on CBS radio and TV), Joe has proved that broadcasting runs in his family. His often-used catchphrase of "We'll see you tomorrow night",[[note]]originally uttered by Jack in response to Kirby Puckett's walk-off homer in Game 6 of the 1991 World Series[[/note]] in response to a Game 6 outcome forcing a Game 7 to decide a seven-game series, was a regular feature of October play.

Organized UsefulNotes/{{baseball}} is one of the oldest professional sports in the world (the National League having been founded in 1876), and so Major League Baseball has produced a large number of noteworthy players, as well as announcers, coaches, and team owners. Listed below are the most (in)famous among those. Also listed are a number of greats who never got their chance in MLB because of the vile "gentlemen's agreement" that excluded Black Americans from the Majors until 1947.