Rickey knows history

Ed's very cool post on drafting a historical team got me thinking a bit more about players from the past and how some of them would have been valued in a modern-day draft. I'm a stats guy (the anti-John Kruk, really) and analyzing numbers from the greatest players of all-time is exciting. Erotically so.

After looking at some numbers, and speaking in strictly fantasy terms, I think Ed's biggest omission from his team was not Hank Aaron, but Rickey Henderson. Eckersley was a great closer for the A's and had a few absurd years, but closers are always overvalued (unless you want to trade for one of mine right now) and it's easier to find a decent closer than a guy who puts up the sheer numbers that Rickey did. Check out these two seasons from Rickey, using the standard VUFSA categories:

1982: .398 OBP, 119 R, 51 RBI, 10 HR, 130 SB
1985: .419 OBP, 146 R, 72 RBI, 24 HR, 80 SB

His 1985 has to be the greatest fantasy season ever, right? People will draft Juan Pierre now for 40-50 stolen bases, which is a huge value, but Pierre contributes nothing in the other categories. Rickey would have been a top-30 pick in 1985 without the 80 swipes, and when you consider that there are three homers for every stolen base in major leagues, he becomes infinitely more valuable.

The point here is not to harp on Ed, as much as we all love doing so. I tried to go out and find the greatest seasons ever by players, by position. I'm sure that I've missed some guys here, but it's still a good representation of some pretty amazing stats.

So, here's the team, using our standard offensive positions:

Catcher: Mike Piazza (1997)
.431 OBP, 104 R, 124 RBI, 40 HR, 5 SB
These days, we're thrilled to get 20 homers and 80 RBIs from a catcher. This one was the easiest pick, without a doubt.

First base: Lou Gehrig (1931)
.431 OBP, 163 R, 184 RBI, 46 HR, 17 SB
At an purely offensive position, this was the toughest to pick out. But it's hard to ignore those run and RBI numbers, which put him above just about any other first baseman I was able to find.

Second base: Rogers Hornsby (1922)
.459 OBP, 141 R, 152 RBI, 42 HR, 17 SB
I know, you were probably expecting Neifi Perez's 2002 season with the Kansas City Royals, but I have to give the edge to Rogers here.

Shortstop: Alex Rodriguez (2002)
.392 OBP, 125 R, 142 RBI, 57 HR, 9 SB
Bill Simmons hates me for this pick, but no other shortstop has put up numbers like this in history. I opted for this instead of his 1998 season, where he stole 46 bases, but had significant drops in the other four categories.

Third baseman: Mike Schmidt (1980)
.380 OBP, 104 R, 121 RBI, 48 HR, 12 SB
For a so-called "corner power position," there isn't a whole lot of historical greatness at third base. Schmidt comes the closest, as any one of us would still take his 1980 numbers. Oddly enough, Adrian Beltre's 2004 season featured the EXACT same number of runs, homers and RBIs -- which is downright creepy. I gave the edge to Schmidt because he didn't make some sort of deal with Satan to get it done.

Outfielder: Rickey Henderson (1985)
.419 OBP, 146 R, 72 RBI, 24 HR, 80 SB
For reasons stated above. This is just silly.

Outfielder: Barry Bonds (2001)
.515 OBP, 129 R, 137 RBI, 73 HR, 13 SB
As much as all of hate the man, this season is just incredible. One of the best of all time. In light of that, it should be noted that Bonds had a .609 OBP in 2004, which was briefly considered.

Outfielder: Hugh Duffy (1894)
.502 OBP, 160 R, 145 RBI, 18 HR, 48 SB
Never heard of Hugh? That's OK. He died in 1954. But those numbers speak well for themself (if numbers can speak).

Utility: Babe Ruth (1921)
.512 OBP, 177 R, 171 RBI, 59 HR, 17 SB
Don't worry, I didn't forget the Babe. Barry can't touch this.

Major apologies to Hack Wilson (1930), Tony Gwynn (1987), Jimmie Foxx (1932), Honus Wagner (1905).

I didn't bother with pitching, and maybe I will another time. The difference between modern day pitchers and pre-1940s pitchers is just too great; plus, pitching stats are a little more clearly defined. However, if we had to pick one season -- ever -- to lead a fantasy staff, Charley Radburn's 1884 season would be a good pick:

Radburn: 59 wins, 441 Ks, 1.38 ERA, 0.92 WHIP.

And since Radburn's ERA and WHIP were accumulated over the course of 678 innings that season, a team would have only need one more starter, which would suit Baron very well.

Anyway, if I'm missing certain seasons by guys, let me know. I'd be interested to know what I missed, since I'm sure I missed a few notable seasons.