Baseball's Best Years?
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I was curious to know which year saw the most Hall of Famers play in the major leagues. So, I did a spread sheet and came up with the answer. Not surprisingly, the answer dates back 70 years ago. In both 1928 and 1930, a total of 54 Hall of Famers played in the major leagues. The following Hall of Fame players appeared in both years:
Pete Alexander, Dave Bancroft, Jim Bottomley, Mickey Cochrane, Eddie Collins, Earle Combs, Joe Cronin, Kiki Cuyler, Bill Dickey, Red Faber, Jimmie Foxx, Frankie Frisch, Lou Gehrig, Charlie Gehringer, Goose Goslin, Burleigh Grimes, Lefty Grove, Chick Hafey, Jesse Haines, Gabby Hartnett, Harry Heilmann, Rogers Hornsby, Waite Hoyt, Carl Hubbell,
Travis Jackson, George Kelly, Chuck Klein, Tony Lazzeri, Fred Lindstrom, Al Lopez, Ted Lyons, Heinie Manush, Rabbit Maranville, Mel Ott, Herb Pennock, Sam Rice, Eppa Rixey, Red Ruffing, Babe Ruth, Joe Sewell, Al Simmons, George Sisler, Bill Terry, Pie Traynor, Dazzy Vance, Lloyd Waner, Paul Waner, and Hack Wilson.
In addition to these players, Max Carey, Ty Cobb, Stan Coveleski, Edd Roush, Ray Schalk, and Tris Speaker all played during the 1928 season. Luke Appling, Earl Averill, Dizzy Dean, Rick Ferrell, Lefty Gomez, and Hank Greenberg played in 1930. Of course, most of the players named above were right in the prime of their careers. Some who appear were at the tail end of their careers, such as Cobb and Speaker. Others, like Appling and Dean, were just beginning their careers. No doubt, though, that these were the two best years for baseball if you look at the number of Hall of Famers who played in these two respective seasons.
In doing my spread sheet, I found some interesting trends. From 1923 to 1937, no less than 40 Hall of Famers appeared in each of those seasons - highlighted by the 1928 and 1930 seasons. This perhaps was the greatest era for baseball based upon the number of Hall of Famers which graced major league diamonds. The first great era of baseball looks to be the years of 1904 to 1909, when no less than 31 Hall of Famers played in the major leagues. The years of 1912 to 1917 also saw no less than 30 Hall of Famers in big league uniforms.
The last great era of baseball (according to my research) was from 1953 to 1975. Between 30 and 38 Hall of Famers appeared each year during that time span. Of course, these players included the likes of Mickey Mantle, Hank Aaron, Ted Williams, Stan Musial, Willie Mays, Warren Spahn, and others during their prime. As the 1970s dawned, men like Johnny Bench, Rod Carew, Tom Seaver, Nolan Ryan, Steve Carlton and others were hitting their prime years. I also noticed a predictable downward trend during the 1940s when World War II was in full swing. Players like Ted Williams, Warren Spahn, Bob Feller, and Hank Greenberg all lost significant years while serving their country in WWII. So, it's not surprising to see that the number of Hall of Famers during these years took a plunge. When you consider that professional ballplayers are very physically fit not only for the diamond but for the battlefield, it makes sense that most of them went to war.
Basically, if you think about it, the era of 1953 to '75 represents three generations of baseball fans. Those who grew up during World War II saw Williams and Musial wind down their careers as they taught their kids to hit like Mantle and pitch like Spahn. Those same kids who grew up watching "The Mick" saw their kids grow up to be fans of Bench. Maybe four generations are actually represented in this era - those who grew up idolizing the likes of Robin Yount, George Brett, or Dave Winfield. After all, Brett's and Winfield's rookie year was in 1973 while Yount's was 1974.
Some explanations and notes about my research are in order. First, I only considered those Hall of Famers who were inducted as players, except in the case of Al Lopez, who I believe should be in the Hall of Fame as a player - not as a manager. Also, I did not consider negro league players except in the case of men like Satchell Paige, who played major league baseball for a short while. Upon request, I can e-mail anyone with my spread sheet providing you have the capability to read Microsoft Excel spreadsheet data. Just send an e-mail request to: [email protected]. Maybe you can't read my spreadsheet, but if you're interested enough, we can try it! Besides that... it's totally free with nothing to purchase (sounds like a TV ad, doesn't it?)
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