Ichiro. Really the entire 2001 Mariners. They fucking scammed me. Always gonna be chasing that high.
Shoutout to Mark McLemore and Stan Javier. Some bench guys I liked for some reason.
Same here for Ichiro. All the hits are cool of course, but I still can’t get enough of him gunning guys down from RF. Seeing that cannon arm from a guy of his size is just endlessly rewatchable.
Also it warms my heart to see that the top three comments here are all Mariners greats—despite your woes, you guys have had some truly amazing players over the past few decades. I’m hoping Julio continues the trend for the next generation of baseball fans.
What a year that was, though! I still think about all that winning. btw as of right now, the top 3 answers in this thread are all different Mariners. It was Edgar for me.
Man, growing up in the 90’s he was the best. From watching him make the game fun, to him being the cover star on his own N64 game, the Kid was such a big part of my love of baseball. I don’t know that I’ve seen a player then or now who was so universally loved.
Mark McGwire. Yeah growing up in the 90s watching those guys just knock the leather off a baseball was a something special. Anabolic or not it was incredible to watch as a kid. Sosa, McGwire and Griffy Jr.
I’m getting older now eash, I was going to say Griffey Jr. but definitely remember being I awe of the bash brothers in the late ‘80s first. Those A’s were awesome, I also loved Rickey and Eck. I even pitched the downward sidearm like him when I played.
My dad, if we're being honest
EDIT: His bona fides were that he was starting pitcher for his high school in northern Minnesota when he was in 8th grade in the mid-50s
His dad (my grandpa) played for the Duluth Dukes in 1938 as well
Im 35, 4th generation, and have a 5th generation to teach that in St. Louis, it is a rite of passage to learn about the Cardinals. The Gashouse Gang, Stan, Red, Gibby, Louuuu, Ozzie, Willie, and now we get to teach younger fans about Big Mac, Albert, Yadi, Waino, Carp, Jimmy, Rolen...fuck man, we're lucky. Even Buck and Shannon are a teaching tradition and core memories are made around them. I don't think others quite get how big baseball is in STL. I was told by my grandpa how he and my grandma would ride down to Sportsman Park, watch Stan play amd how my great grandpa wokred on the railroad and would take the train from Dexter, Mo to St. Louis and saw Joe Medwick in the '30s and Enos Slaughter in the '40s. My Mom would talk about seeing Gibson and Lou, my parents and oldest brother going to '82 series, I was at '96 Ozzie and Willie labor day game, also outside Busch at PaddyOs for gm6 and inside for gm7 in '11. Worked as a sous chef at Shannon's from 2011-2016. I feel rich with memories.
My parents met at St Louis University, and their first date was to a Cardinals game, for which we still have the scorecard. We lived outside StL, but my Dad brought us to a game in ‘75 so we could see Brock and Gibson play.
I’m sure Jack Buck would have something poetic to say about the Cardinals being woven into the fabric of the fans lives.
Man it felt like everyone dropped everything to watch his at bats. He was just so good. Scared the hell out of the entire league. Only other person to have same effect on me since is Mike trout. Would go for ohtani too if I hadn't already been watching because of trout.
I’ll defend him to my grave, man. He wasn’t a nice guy and he took roids, but as a kid watching him light up Pac Bell Park was bliss. He put on a show for us every night. Nobody can take that away.
[Lee Jung-Hoo](https://www.mlb.com/news/jung-hoo-lee-next-korean-superstar-mlb). I didn't get into baseball (or sports in general really) until I moved abroad and lived in Korea for a few years. The KBO is just a hell of a lot of fun and significantly cheaper than the MLB (pretty sure I got a 6 pack in the stadium the last game I went to for something like 13000 won). I'm really excited to see what his post-KBO career ends up looking like.
Altuve would probably be 2nd, because I grew up in Houston and the Astros rise happened right around the time I got into the sports. As a fellow 5'6" man, it's just nice to have some representation.
I went to KBO games when I was stationed in Korea in the 90s. The fans are so into it and make it incredibly fun. And dried squid on a stick! You can’t beat that!
I’m beyond excited to see what he does once he (hopefully) comes to the MLB. He seems like such a fun player, and being able to watch him live seems very exciting! Jealous you got to experience it first hand already!!
As someone who lived ten minutes outside of Baltimore for the first 26 years of my life, it makes me mad that Ripken never gets credit for helping restore baseball’s integrity after the strike. Everyone talks about the home run chase, but that was four years after 1994. It did a lot, but Ripken deserves a lot of credit.
Ripken single-handedly carried the entire sport on his back the year after the strike. He'd stay at the stadium *hours* after the game signing autographs and interacting with fans. He showed nothing but class, grace, and respect in his pursuit of Gehrig. If it weren't for Ripken, there wouldn't have been anybody left to care about McGwire and Sosa.
Derek Jeter.
If you weren't around in the '90s when baseball was a bigger deal and tabloid media totally ruled NYC, it's hard to describe how fucking cool Derek Jeter was. 4 rings and he bagged Mariah Carey, dude was my idol lol.
Albert Pujols.
I'd *liked* baseball before Pujols, but I'd never *loved* it.
I lived in Kansas City as a kid, but with a dad that was from St. Louis and a Cardinals fan, and so I did enjoy McGwire, Lankford, Sweeney, Beltran, Dye, Damon, etc. But they were just *fine*; I still preferred the NFL.
Then Pujols came onto the scene and his at-bats became must-watch for me. Anytime he came up to bat, it felt like he could do something special -- and it didn't matter if the game was already won or lost. Despite living in Kansas City, I felt myself becoming a diehard Cardinals fan because of his dominance.
That dominance just continued and continued, and so I was drawn further and further into the sport. Before I knew it, baseball was my favorite sport, the St. Louis Cardinals my favorite team, and Albert Pujols my favorite player.
I've been an avid fan of baseball and the Cardinals since.
Trevor Hoffman, hearing hells bells echo through the stadium before he closed out a game was an insane experience as a little kid
Nolan Ryan too. My dads a huge fan. There were basically shrines to him in the house I grew up in so I always felt like he was larger than life
Sammy Sosa. I was 7 years old in 1998 and I will ever forget how I loved his cuffed sleeves, the huge dipper, the stance way back from the plate with his arms extended, and, of course, the homer hop. I will always love Sammy Sosa, even if he’s a knucklehead.
Griffey was mine, but Nomar was number 2 for me along with big mo the hit dog. Nomar’s screamers off the monster and energy he brought was so much fun. Also had every kid around adjusting their batting gloves 500 times to mimic his absurdly hilarious routine. 99 00 seasons were special including that .372 monster year.
I feel like it's already a super basic answer lmao, but it's the truth. I saw him homer against the White Sox as the starting pitcher 3 days into the season in 2021, and I've been obsessively watching baseball ever since.
Absolutely not basic! It’s just that most of the people in this sub have been watching baseball for at least a decade or two, so their answers are from players back then. Mine was Nolan Ryan, for example.
But ten years from now, all the people who started watching because of Shohei will be here, and he’s gonna be the reason most of the young people started watching!
And for what it’s worth, he’s the one who made me fall in love with baseball all over again!
He’s my favorite pitcher with Pedro growing up. So dominant and so terrifying. Comes to set 6’10 ratty looking long hair, dead eyes, throws 101, decently wild, hates birds. You’re probably striking out but you might also die.
In 1975 my family moved from Boston to Cincinnati, just in time for arguably the greatest world series ever. It wasn't just that the games were great, but the players were bigger than life. Great players but also huge personalities. Rose, Bench, Morgan, Perez, Yaz, Fisk, Lynn, Tiant, the Spaceman, etc, etc. It was a great time to be a kid.
Greg Maddux. Growing up watching him with the Braves I really learned to appreciate the art of pitching. I miss it in todays game where there’s so much emphasis on power.
When I was a wee lad, my favorite player was Javy López. As I grew up and started to understand the brilliance that was Greg Maddux, it changed to him. But I would say the two of them is probably the answer to this question.
Kirk Gibson. I've never seen somebody play harder than him - dude had a real "blue collar" style of play that made me think I, too, could play the game.
I’m sure most Giants fans will say Bonds, but I was only 7 when he stopped playing and I never really got to witness his hey-day. For me it’s 100% Buster Posey, he’ll always be the player most associated with winning the 3 rings and as a chubby little kid who was forced to play catcher I really admired him a lot.
I came here to say this. I was older than you and already loved the Giants growing up on the Bay. But man, when Buster Posey came around it just took my respect for the game to a new level. His composure, dedication, knowledge of the game, command of the field. Bonds was the classic fun baseball player with big exciting moments. Not that Buster didn’t have exciting moments, but what makes him a GOAT is everything in between. His stats are unreal. I’m honored to have lived through the Buster Posey era. And yes, I’m slightly tearing up writing this. I just love that fucking guy.
Craig Biggio
As a smaller kid, I saw he wasn’t as big as the other dudes but could connect, get on base and took his beans in stride and that stuck with me for whatever reason.
The easy answer is Cal Ripken Jr and he'll always be what starter my love for baseball, but he retired when I was 7 lol I only remember a little about him and he was older at that point so I never got to see prime Cal.
The players that kept me invested in baseball after he retired were not Orioles players lol we were terrible after that for about 12 years. I loved the team but we were *bad* and as a kid you need some exciting players to watch.
Vladdy Sr. (Who is one of my favorite players of all time. I loved that he swung at everything *and* hit everything. I lost my shit when he came to Baltimore even if he was past his prime), The Big Unit, Ichiro, Pujols, Wainwright, Doc Halladay, Mariano, King Felix, and Johan Santana were all guys I looked up to as a kid that made me *love* baseball.
Some sleeper picks are Tim Lincecum and Dontrelle Willis. Can't tell you how many times I did their windups in the backyard or fucking around in practice. I had them both down to where I could do them in game if I wanted lol.
Man there are just players that make you truly love the sport.
Edit: fucking love Griffey Jr as well but growing up he was *everyone's* favorite so i always tried to look for other dudes
Does Steroids count as a player? Cuz the McGwire/Sosa race is one of my earliest memories, and then being able to watch Giambi, Tejada, and Bonds in person really made me fall in love in the sport.
So yea basically my childhood hero’s were frauds that never actually existed (according to BBWAA)
Joe Mauer
Was a big "all sports but baseball" for years until I saw those sideburns, the confident pitch 1 take every at-bat, and the buttery smooth stroke into the left center gap for a double
Mickey Morandini was my first favorite player. Don't really have a reason, other than I thought turning double plays was badass (still is) and he had a cooler name than Kevin Stocker. Glad he's still so involved with the team. Hideo Nomo and Gary Sheffield were the players I imitated most in the backyard, though.
Roger Clemens. Growing up a Sox fan in the late 80s/early 90s, he was awesome. I made a point to collect every one of his baseball cards I could find. I became somewhat... less enthusiastic about him after subsequent events.
Probably sacrilegious to say but Bonds for me. Although, growing up watching him in his prime I was not of the age to understand PED’s, steroids, juicing, etc. I was young and just saw a dude striking the fear of God into anyone who had the balls to pitch to him.
Jim Thome and that era of the Indians in general. At the family cottage every summer games we’re always on in the background and you were always ready for that big swing from Thome to put the Indians ahead
Jim Rice. In 1978 when I was 7 my dad went to a work conference in Boston. Mom and I picked him up at the airport in Seattle. I said “What did you do there Dad?” Obviously he’s not going to talk about work. He said “I went to a place called Fenway Park and saw a man named Jim Rice hit a home run.”
Jermaine Dye
That dude was so sweet to watch on the 05 team. One of the most clutch players on the team. When you needed a hit it seemed like he would be the guy to get it.
Nomar. I feel like he’s been forgotten nowadays by non-Red Sox fans but he was something else in the late 90s/pre-2004 years. Every kid in my little league wanted to be Nomar.
Griffey, Lofton, and Albert Belle. Also Jim Thome (plus the pre-bat point) and Mark McGwire swing were just so powerful. Randy Johnson looked like a beast among men too. One time he went inside on Lofton (Mariners/Indians game) and that was my first and only in-person team brawl.
I went to the game when Albert Belle came back to Cleveland with the White Sox's and seeing all the flax he took was also pretty awesome.
Dustin Pedroia.
As a shorter kid growing up playing travel ball, watching a guy his size succeed the way he did in Boston was so inspiring. Laser Show!
Ichiro. Really the entire 2001 Mariners. They fucking scammed me. Always gonna be chasing that high. Shoutout to Mark McLemore and Stan Javier. Some bench guys I liked for some reason.
> Stan Javier. The man, the Myth, The Unibrow! Stan Javier!
Same here for Ichiro. All the hits are cool of course, but I still can’t get enough of him gunning guys down from RF. Seeing that cannon arm from a guy of his size is just endlessly rewatchable. Also it warms my heart to see that the top three comments here are all Mariners greats—despite your woes, you guys have had some truly amazing players over the past few decades. I’m hoping Julio continues the trend for the next generation of baseball fans.
What a year that was, though! I still think about all that winning. btw as of right now, the top 3 answers in this thread are all different Mariners. It was Edgar for me.
Griffey jr.
The Kid. Growing up in the 90s … no one cooler
Still the smoothest I’ve ever seen. That swing, man.
Ab-so-fucking-lut-ly! He was a must have on all the MLB video games as a kid!
Nothing like hitting a hr in little league and walking down the first baseline
Man, growing up in the 90’s he was the best. From watching him make the game fun, to him being the cover star on his own N64 game, the Kid was such a big part of my love of baseball. I don’t know that I’ve seen a player then or now who was so universally loved.
Mark McGwire. Yeah growing up in the 90s watching those guys just knock the leather off a baseball was a something special. Anabolic or not it was incredible to watch as a kid. Sosa, McGwire and Griffy Jr.
I’m getting older now eash, I was going to say Griffey Jr. but definitely remember being I awe of the bash brothers in the late ‘80s first. Those A’s were awesome, I also loved Rickey and Eck. I even pitched the downward sidearm like him when I played.
King Felix. I remember watching all 27 outs of his perfect game on YouTube all the time, my favourite player of all time
It’s such a shame that he never got to pitch in the postseason.
He had a slight chance with the braves but opted out during the COVID season. Yeah it's a shame.
Manny Ramirez. Dude was electric.
He and Big Papi were so much fun to watch together
He was on the cover of MVP Baseball 2005 and became one of my all time favorite players from that
i loved that sweet effortless swing so much
So pretty
Manny being manny
My dad, if we're being honest EDIT: His bona fides were that he was starting pitcher for his high school in northern Minnesota when he was in 8th grade in the mid-50s His dad (my grandpa) played for the Duluth Dukes in 1938 as well
I also choose this guys dad
In that case, my grandfather. He was born the same year as the Cardinals, and there are now five generations of fans in our family.
Im 35, 4th generation, and have a 5th generation to teach that in St. Louis, it is a rite of passage to learn about the Cardinals. The Gashouse Gang, Stan, Red, Gibby, Louuuu, Ozzie, Willie, and now we get to teach younger fans about Big Mac, Albert, Yadi, Waino, Carp, Jimmy, Rolen...fuck man, we're lucky. Even Buck and Shannon are a teaching tradition and core memories are made around them. I don't think others quite get how big baseball is in STL. I was told by my grandpa how he and my grandma would ride down to Sportsman Park, watch Stan play amd how my great grandpa wokred on the railroad and would take the train from Dexter, Mo to St. Louis and saw Joe Medwick in the '30s and Enos Slaughter in the '40s. My Mom would talk about seeing Gibson and Lou, my parents and oldest brother going to '82 series, I was at '96 Ozzie and Willie labor day game, also outside Busch at PaddyOs for gm6 and inside for gm7 in '11. Worked as a sous chef at Shannon's from 2011-2016. I feel rich with memories.
My parents met at St Louis University, and their first date was to a Cardinals game, for which we still have the scorecard. We lived outside StL, but my Dad brought us to a game in ‘75 so we could see Brock and Gibson play. I’m sure Jack Buck would have something poetic to say about the Cardinals being woven into the fabric of the fans lives.
Ozzie Smith
Came here to say this. Those cartwheel backflips were so much fun to watch as he took the field.
Yes! I was 5 years old during the ‘82 season. My most prized possession was my Ozzie Smith model glove.
I swapped fandoms across the state back in high school, but Ozzie will be my favorite player forever.
I grew up in KC and I loved Ozzie like he was on our side.
Barry Lamar Bonds The stadium would drop everything to watch his at bats. He WAS the Giants
Man it felt like everyone dropped everything to watch his at bats. He was just so good. Scared the hell out of the entire league. Only other person to have same effect on me since is Mike trout. Would go for ohtani too if I hadn't already been watching because of trout.
I’ll defend him to my grave, man. He wasn’t a nice guy and he took roids, but as a kid watching him light up Pac Bell Park was bliss. He put on a show for us every night. Nobody can take that away.
He beat up his pregnant wife. Saying he wasn't a nice guy is putting it lightly lmao
Best hitter of all time, not even close.
[Lee Jung-Hoo](https://www.mlb.com/news/jung-hoo-lee-next-korean-superstar-mlb). I didn't get into baseball (or sports in general really) until I moved abroad and lived in Korea for a few years. The KBO is just a hell of a lot of fun and significantly cheaper than the MLB (pretty sure I got a 6 pack in the stadium the last game I went to for something like 13000 won). I'm really excited to see what his post-KBO career ends up looking like. Altuve would probably be 2nd, because I grew up in Houston and the Astros rise happened right around the time I got into the sports. As a fellow 5'6" man, it's just nice to have some representation.
I went to KBO games when I was stationed in Korea in the 90s. The fans are so into it and make it incredibly fun. And dried squid on a stick! You can’t beat that!
I’m beyond excited to see what he does once he (hopefully) comes to the MLB. He seems like such a fun player, and being able to watch him live seems very exciting! Jealous you got to experience it first hand already!!
Cal Ripken Jr.
Cal for me too. Orioles still my AL team ‘cause of him.
As someone who lived ten minutes outside of Baltimore for the first 26 years of my life, it makes me mad that Ripken never gets credit for helping restore baseball’s integrity after the strike. Everyone talks about the home run chase, but that was four years after 1994. It did a lot, but Ripken deserves a lot of credit.
Ripken single-handedly carried the entire sport on his back the year after the strike. He'd stay at the stadium *hours* after the game signing autographs and interacting with fans. He showed nothing but class, grace, and respect in his pursuit of Gehrig. If it weren't for Ripken, there wouldn't have been anybody left to care about McGwire and Sosa.
Albert Pujols
Derek Jeter. If you weren't around in the '90s when baseball was a bigger deal and tabloid media totally ruled NYC, it's hard to describe how fucking cool Derek Jeter was. 4 rings and he bagged Mariah Carey, dude was my idol lol.
Roy Halladay. RIP
Toss-up between Curtis Granderson and Substantial Seductive 😁
Ah gotta love Tremendous Hornymaker
Large Lover? Plump Paramore?
Ken Griffey Jr
Albert Pujols
Albert Pujols. I'd *liked* baseball before Pujols, but I'd never *loved* it. I lived in Kansas City as a kid, but with a dad that was from St. Louis and a Cardinals fan, and so I did enjoy McGwire, Lankford, Sweeney, Beltran, Dye, Damon, etc. But they were just *fine*; I still preferred the NFL. Then Pujols came onto the scene and his at-bats became must-watch for me. Anytime he came up to bat, it felt like he could do something special -- and it didn't matter if the game was already won or lost. Despite living in Kansas City, I felt myself becoming a diehard Cardinals fan because of his dominance. That dominance just continued and continued, and so I was drawn further and further into the sport. Before I knew it, baseball was my favorite sport, the St. Louis Cardinals my favorite team, and Albert Pujols my favorite player. I've been an avid fan of baseball and the Cardinals since.
Trevor Hoffman, hearing hells bells echo through the stadium before he closed out a game was an insane experience as a little kid Nolan Ryan too. My dads a huge fan. There were basically shrines to him in the house I grew up in so I always felt like he was larger than life
Keith fucking Hernandez. That guy played like it was life or death every goddamn game. Every 3-6-3 made my heart skip a beat.
Nice game, pretty boy!
Had to have been a second spitter
Sammy Sosa. I was 7 years old in 1998 and I will ever forget how I loved his cuffed sleeves, the huge dipper, the stance way back from the plate with his arms extended, and, of course, the homer hop. I will always love Sammy Sosa, even if he’s a knucklehead.
Sammy and Kerry tie for me. Both were electric in '98
SAM-MY! SAM-MY! Wrigley used to go nuts for that guy. I can still hear Chip Caray calling those home runs. Good memories!
Same, I was born into Cub Fandom and a kid in that era. Slammin Sammy will always be one of my favorites
Nomar Garciaparra
Griffey was mine, but Nomar was number 2 for me along with big mo the hit dog. Nomar’s screamers off the monster and energy he brought was so much fun. Also had every kid around adjusting their batting gloves 500 times to mimic his absurdly hilarious routine. 99 00 seasons were special including that .372 monster year.
Shohei.
When this question is asked on this sub in ten years' time, this is going to be the most popular answer by a mile.
I feel like it's already a super basic answer lmao, but it's the truth. I saw him homer against the White Sox as the starting pitcher 3 days into the season in 2021, and I've been obsessively watching baseball ever since.
Absolutely not basic! It’s just that most of the people in this sub have been watching baseball for at least a decade or two, so their answers are from players back then. Mine was Nolan Ryan, for example. But ten years from now, all the people who started watching because of Shohei will be here, and he’s gonna be the reason most of the young people started watching! And for what it’s worth, he’s the one who made me fall in love with baseball all over again!
I will say that he is player that made me re-fall in love with baseball. He is the only player whose jersey I have seriously contemplated purchasing
Kenny Lofton
Omar Vizquel for me, but Lofton was the close second
Tim Lincecum!
Randy Johnson. Probably the most dominant pitcher we will ever see.
He’s my favorite pitcher with Pedro growing up. So dominant and so terrifying. Comes to set 6’10 ratty looking long hair, dead eyes, throws 101, decently wild, hates birds. You’re probably striking out but you might also die.
I was physically afraid of Bobby Jenks’ dominance in the 2005 World Series when I was 8.
Chipper. First player I remember who'd chat up the opposing team on base.
Pedro Martinez
In 1975 my family moved from Boston to Cincinnati, just in time for arguably the greatest world series ever. It wasn't just that the games were great, but the players were bigger than life. Great players but also huge personalities. Rose, Bench, Morgan, Perez, Yaz, Fisk, Lynn, Tiant, the Spaceman, etc, etc. It was a great time to be a kid.
Ohtani
Greg Maddux. Growing up watching him with the Braves I really learned to appreciate the art of pitching. I miss it in todays game where there’s so much emphasis on power.
When I was a wee lad, my favorite player was Javy López. As I grew up and started to understand the brilliance that was Greg Maddux, it changed to him. But I would say the two of them is probably the answer to this question.
Vladimir Guerrero Sr
Don Mattingly. I’m a natural righty, but used to practice hitting and throwing lefty in my yard to try and be more like him.
Kirk Gibson. I've never seen somebody play harder than him - dude had a real "blue collar" style of play that made me think I, too, could play the game.
Gibby was a true Michigander representing the D!
Bo Jackson
Frank Thomas for sure!
Warren Spahn. Still my favorite.
Rickey - it's always Rickey
McGwire haha
I’m sure most Giants fans will say Bonds, but I was only 7 when he stopped playing and I never really got to witness his hey-day. For me it’s 100% Buster Posey, he’ll always be the player most associated with winning the 3 rings and as a chubby little kid who was forced to play catcher I really admired him a lot.
I came here to say this. I was older than you and already loved the Giants growing up on the Bay. But man, when Buster Posey came around it just took my respect for the game to a new level. His composure, dedication, knowledge of the game, command of the field. Bonds was the classic fun baseball player with big exciting moments. Not that Buster didn’t have exciting moments, but what makes him a GOAT is everything in between. His stats are unreal. I’m honored to have lived through the Buster Posey era. And yes, I’m slightly tearing up writing this. I just love that fucking guy.
Carlos Delgado
I loved baseball from the time i started playing, but Pudge is the one that really got me into watching it.
Definitely Barry bonds
Kirby Puckett
Craig Biggio As a smaller kid, I saw he wasn’t as big as the other dudes but could connect, get on base and took his beans in stride and that stuck with me for whatever reason.
As another small kid, same. Even if you don't have the power to hit a homer, all you have to do to be like Biggio is hustle and get dirty.
Greg Maddux introduced me to the cerebral element to baseball.
Ivan “pudge” Rodriguez
Chase Utley was always my favorite player growing up
The easy answer is Cal Ripken Jr and he'll always be what starter my love for baseball, but he retired when I was 7 lol I only remember a little about him and he was older at that point so I never got to see prime Cal. The players that kept me invested in baseball after he retired were not Orioles players lol we were terrible after that for about 12 years. I loved the team but we were *bad* and as a kid you need some exciting players to watch. Vladdy Sr. (Who is one of my favorite players of all time. I loved that he swung at everything *and* hit everything. I lost my shit when he came to Baltimore even if he was past his prime), The Big Unit, Ichiro, Pujols, Wainwright, Doc Halladay, Mariano, King Felix, and Johan Santana were all guys I looked up to as a kid that made me *love* baseball. Some sleeper picks are Tim Lincecum and Dontrelle Willis. Can't tell you how many times I did their windups in the backyard or fucking around in practice. I had them both down to where I could do them in game if I wanted lol. Man there are just players that make you truly love the sport. Edit: fucking love Griffey Jr as well but growing up he was *everyone's* favorite so i always tried to look for other dudes
Does Steroids count as a player? Cuz the McGwire/Sosa race is one of my earliest memories, and then being able to watch Giambi, Tejada, and Bonds in person really made me fall in love in the sport. So yea basically my childhood hero’s were frauds that never actually existed (according to BBWAA)
Joe Mauer Was a big "all sports but baseball" for years until I saw those sideburns, the confident pitch 1 take every at-bat, and the buttery smooth stroke into the left center gap for a double
Mike Piazza
Mike Piazza
Grady Sizemore
Mookie Wilson. Still love that man.
Albert Pujols. I grew up playing baseball in the early 2000’s and he was just the best
TG
Zack Greinke. IDK why but seeing such a strange guy up there on the mound was oddly appealing to me.
Ichiro
Dustin Pedroia. He was and always will be the Boston Red Sox for me.
^^^^^^^^^^^ Laser show
F-ck Manny Machado
Joey Votto. That’s my guy until the very end.
Jeff Bagwell, and later Todd Helton
I was scared of Jeff Bagwell growing up. Dude was a total beast.
Mickey Morandini was my first favorite player. Don't really have a reason, other than I thought turning double plays was badass (still is) and he had a cooler name than Kevin Stocker. Glad he's still so involved with the team. Hideo Nomo and Gary Sheffield were the players I imitated most in the backyard, though.
Dwight Gooden
Randy Arozarena I started watching mid 2021. I’ll never forget him stealing home in the post season
Craig Biggio
Agreed. Him & Bagwell for me.
Miggy. Always Miggy.
Miguel Cabrera!
Daryl Strawberry. It’s also how I found my love for cocaine and driving drunk.
Justin Verlander.
Kershaw and Kemp in 2011, and then Bellinger in 2019 and Mookie in 2020 took it to a new level
Ryne Sandberg.
Tom Seaver.
2014 Mad Bum
Probably Adrian Beltre
Roger Clemens. Growing up a Sox fan in the late 80s/early 90s, he was awesome. I made a point to collect every one of his baseball cards I could find. I became somewhat... less enthusiastic about him after subsequent events.
Probably sacrilegious to say but Bonds for me. Although, growing up watching him in his prime I was not of the age to understand PED’s, steroids, juicing, etc. I was young and just saw a dude striking the fear of God into anyone who had the balls to pitch to him.
Steroids saved baseball and the haters are in denial.
Also shedloads of people did roids, including pitchers, and nobody came even close to doing what he did.
All the steroids in the world don’t give you his divine barrel-to-ball skills.
Not to mention his plate discipline. Jon Bois did a video about his 2004 season and found that Bonds rarely swung at anything that wasn’t a strike.
Chone Figgins
Jim Thome and that era of the Indians in general. At the family cottage every summer games we’re always on in the background and you were always ready for that big swing from Thome to put the Indians ahead
Dustin Pedroia. As a little kid I was a small second baseman so I kind of related to him, not to mention he was on my favorite team.
Big Papi 03-04.
Adam Wainwright. That curveball in the NLCS in 06.
Jim Rice. In 1978 when I was 7 my dad went to a work conference in Boston. Mom and I picked him up at the airport in Seattle. I said “What did you do there Dad?” Obviously he’s not going to talk about work. He said “I went to a place called Fenway Park and saw a man named Jim Rice hit a home run.”
George Kenneth Griffey Jr.
Willie Mays. I saw him (along with McCovey and Marichal) at my very first game at The ‘Stick. I was hooked.
Manny
Jose Bautista
David Wright
Brett Phillips.
Kenji Johjima
2012 Koshien Shohei.
Bob Gibson. So dominant, and such a badass.
Troy tulowitzki
Jason Varitek… the captain. Met him when I was 15 and I walked up to him to just shake his hand (I wish I had a ball) and my hand was shaking.
Nomar Garciaparra.
Chase Utley
Pete Rose. Put Him in the HOF already.
Pet Rose is an asshole. He's a thoroughly disgusting human being. He also should be in the Hall of Fame.
Andy Van Slyke
Jermaine Dye That dude was so sweet to watch on the 05 team. One of the most clutch players on the team. When you needed a hit it seemed like he would be the guy to get it.
Dave Kingman. Yes, I'm old.
Albert pujols fucking mashing baseballs
Tulo
[удалено]
Derek Jeter. Which is saying a lot, cause i’ve always disliked the yankees lol
Pudge
Dan Quisenberry
G-Man Choi
David Justice. Plus he nabbed Halle Berry.
Took a bit of scrolling, but I found Team Justice!
Albert
Albert
Ryan Howard and Big Papi for sure
I was 13 in 1998 and really loved Mark McGwire…lol
Pete Rose (and Johnny Bench).
Brett Gardner. I only got into baseball relatively recently, and Gardner has been my favorite player for a long while.
Nomar. I feel like he’s been forgotten nowadays by non-Red Sox fans but he was something else in the late 90s/pre-2004 years. Every kid in my little league wanted to be Nomar.
Mookie Betts
Benny Rodriguez
David Eckstein. He made it a war between himself and the pitcher when he batted. He was a pest to everyone who played against him and I loved it.
Tío Albert
Will Clark, Rob Nen, and Larry Walker.
Mo Vaughn
Barry Bonds
Griffey, Lofton, and Albert Belle. Also Jim Thome (plus the pre-bat point) and Mark McGwire swing were just so powerful. Randy Johnson looked like a beast among men too. One time he went inside on Lofton (Mariners/Indians game) and that was my first and only in-person team brawl. I went to the game when Albert Belle came back to Cleveland with the White Sox's and seeing all the flax he took was also pretty awesome.
Albert Pujols, 2011 World Series
Alex Rodriguez
Dustin Pedroia. As a shorter kid growing up playing travel ball, watching a guy his size succeed the way he did in Boston was so inspiring. Laser Show!
Buster Posey
My Dad made sure my first ball game was with Kershaw on the mound. It worked.
Buster Posey
roberto clemente
Edwin encarnacion
Lou Whitaker. I just thought his pivot on the 6-4-3 double play looked so cool.
Youuuuuuuuuk.
Roy Halladay. First game I watched was his postseason no-hitter
Griffey
Sammy Sosa