Major League Baseball All-Century Team

Chosen by popular vote of fans

In 1999, the Major League Baseball All-Century Team was chosen by popular vote of fans. To select the team, a panel of experts first compiled a list of the 100 greatest Major League Baseball (MLB) players from the 20th century. Over two million fans then voted on the players using paper and online ballots.[1]

The top two vote-getters from each position, except outfielders (nine), and the top six pitchers were placed on the team. A select panel then added five legends to create a thirty-man team:[1]—Warren Spahn (who finished #10 among pitchers), Christy Mathewson (#14 among pitchers), Lefty Grove (#18 among pitchers), Honus Wagner (#4 among shortstops), and Stan Musial (#11 among outfielders).[1]

The nominees for the All-Century team were presented at the 1999 MLB All-Star Game at Fenway Park.[2] Preceding Game 2 of the 1999 World Series, the members of the All-Century Team were revealed. Every living player named to the team attended.[3]

## Selected players

[edit]

Lou Gehrig received the most votes of any player. Key  *  | 'Legends' chosen by select panel

|

**  | Player still active in 1999
ö  | Player is deceased
†  | Elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame
Player | Position | Votes

|
|

Nolan Ryan† | Pitcher | 992,040
Sandy Koufax† | Pitcher | 970,434
Cy Young†ö | Pitcher | 867,523
Roger Clemens** | Pitcher | 601,244
Bob Gibson†ö | Pitcher | 582,031
Walter Johnson†ö | Pitcher | 479,279
Warren Spahn†ö* | Pitcher | 337,215
Christy Mathewson†ö* | Pitcher | 249,747
Lefty Grove†ö* | Pitcher | 142,169
Johnny Bench† | Catcher | 1,010,403
Yogi Berra†ö | Catcher | 704,208
Lou Gehrig†ö | First baseman | 1,207,992
Mark McGwire** | First baseman | 517,181
Jackie Robinson†ö | Second baseman | 788,116
Rogers Hornsby†ö | Second baseman | 630,761
Mike Schmidt† | Third baseman | 855,654
Brooks Robinson†ö | Third baseman | 761,700
Cal Ripken Jr.†** | Shortstop | 669,033
Ernie Banks†ö | Shortstop | 598,168
Honus Wagner†ö* | Shortstop | 526,740
Babe Ruth†ö | Outfielder | 1,158,044
Hank Aaron†ö | Outfielder | 1,156,782
Ted Williams†ö | Outfielder | 1,125,583
Willie Mays†ö | Outfielder | 1,115,896
Joe DiMaggio†ö | Outfielder | 1,054,423
Mickey Mantle†ö | Outfielder | 988,168
Ty Cobb†ö | Outfielder | 777,056
Ken Griffey Jr.†** | Outfielder | 645,389
Pete Roseö | Outfielder | 629,742
Stan Musial†ö* | Outfielder | 571,279

## Pete Rose controversy

[edit]

There was controversy over the inclusion in the All-Century Team of Pete Rose, who had been banned from baseball for life 10 years earlier. Some questioned Rose's presence on a team officially endorsed by Major League Baseball, but fans at the stadium gave him a standing ovation. During the on-field ceremony, which was emceed by Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully, NBC Sports' Jim Gray questioned Rose about his refusal to admit to gambling on baseball.[4] Gray's interview became controversial, with some arguing that it was good journalism,[5] while others objected that the occasion was an inappropriate setting for Gray's persistence.[6] After initially refusing to do so, Gray apologized a few days later.[7] On January 8, 2004, more than four years later, Rose admitted publicly to betting on baseball games in his 2004 autobiography My Prison Without Bars.

## See also

[edit]

* Major League Baseball Centennial All-Time Teams
* Major League Baseball All-Time Team, a similar team chosen by the Baseball Writers' Association of America in 1997
* Latino Legends Team
* DHL Hometown Heroes (2006): the most outstanding player in the history of each MLB franchise, based on on-field performance, leadership quality and character value
* Baseball awards § United States
* List of MLB awards
* Team of the century
* National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c "All Century Team". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved November 28, 2011.
2. ^ "All-Century team ballot". The Tribune. July 14, 1999. p. B3. Retrieved March 18, 2025 - via Newspapers.com.
3. ^ Sullivan, T. R. (October 24, 1999). "Greatest of the Greats". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. p. 5C. Retrieved March 18, 2025 - via Newspapers.com.
4. ^ Schultz, Brad (2005). Pete Rose transcript with Jim Gray. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9780240807317. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
5. ^ "Top 10 Most Embarrassing TV/Radio Interview Moments". Sports Illustrated. August 6, 2004. Archived from the original on August 14, 2004.
6. ^ Everson, Darren (October 27, 1999). "Chad Shows No Curtis-y To Gray After Game-winner". New York Daily News. Retrieved March 18, 2025.
7. ^ Solomon, George; Sheinin, Dave (October 27, 1999). "Gray's Apology Is Not Enough for Players". Washington Post. p. D1.

## External links

[edit]

* The MLB All-Century Team
* All-Century Team Vote Totals from ESPN.com
* All-Century Team DVD from Amazon.com
* All-Century Team Information from Baseball Almanac

* v
* t
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Major League Baseball All-Century 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

Infielders|

* Lou Gehrig
* Mark McGwire
* Jackie Robinson
* Rogers Hornsby
* Mike Schmidt
* Brooks Robinson
* 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

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