most underrated mlb players of 2000s

From 2000-06 the team won 85 games five times but never made the playoffs. He reminds me a bit of Reggie Smith, another eternally underrated outfielder. He went 19-6 with a 3.63 ERA in 218 innings to finish runner-up in AL Cy Young voting in 2006, and followed that up with a 19-7 record and 3.60 ERA in 199.1 innings the next year before he was sidelined midway through the 2008 campaign. Aside from his Topps flagship rookie, he also has Rookie Cards in 1993 Fleer Final Edition and Ultra. Closers Brian Wilson, Santiago Casilla and Sergio Romo received the bulk of the attention in the Giants bullpen during their impressive run to three World Series titles in five years. He has six seasons with at least 16 wins and he has at least an ERA under 3.30. Joel is a National MLB Columnist at Bleacher Report who has spent the last decade as a full-time MLB writer. Along with his Bowman and Bowman Chrome rookies, he also has a Rookie Card in 2000 SPx and Upper Deck Victory, along with a jersey patch rookie in 2000 Black Diamond Rookie Edition. Career Stats: 2,024 G; .285/.347/.443; 214 HR; 1,071 RBI; 1,982 H; 870 R; 54-for-83 SB. _______________________________________________________. He was a multi-inning bullpen weapon in 2005 (65 G, 5 SV, 2.21 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 85.2 IP) and an excellent starter in 2008 (22 GS, 10-8, 2.54 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 141.2 IP) in what was his only year as a full-time member of the rotation. Otis had power, played excellent defense and had speed, leading the American League with 52 stolen bases in 1971 while also becoming the first player since 1927 to steal five bases in one game. The Baseball Hall of Fame was established in 1936 to honor the very best players in MLB, America's oldest organized sport. (When I know more about 19th century baseballthan the cursory amount that I do, Ill write something. Its a crime that Abreu has only received 5.5 and 8.7 percent of the vote in his two years on the Hall of Fame ballot. There have been just 12 position players worth three or more WAR in each of the last four seasons. A foot injury suffered while running the bases derailed his career, but for a short time, Wang was one of the best starters in the American League. The 1953 National League batting champion with a .344 mark, Furillo was an important part of two World Series championship winning teams in 1955 and 1959. A member of the Tigers' 1968 World Series championship team, Cash's single in the bottom of the seventh inning of Game 7 with two outs started a three-run rally that propelled the Tigers to their first championship in 23 years. His 5.5 WAR this season is seventh-best in the majors. His only Rookie Cards are in the 1995 Bowman and Bowmans Best releases. Leonard had a career record of 139-133 with a 2.76 ERA, and in 1914, he led the American League with a remarkable 0.96 ERA, the major league record for lowest ERA among pitchers who threw at least 150 innings in the same season. Now, when anyone mentions Bonds, its to marvel over the freakishstats he offered from 2001 through 2004 or, conversely, to denounce his Hall of Fame candidacy. His 1985 season saw him earn his only All-Star berth and finish fifth in the MVP voting, after setting career highs in multiple categories including RBI, with 110 driven in on the season. Youre correct. Think about Dennis Johnson of the 1980sthe dude was a five-time All-Star and a Finals MVP. Bob Watson not only played in relative obscurity for 13 seasons with the Astros but also had his home-run total reduced by the cavernous Houston Astrodome. I also count him as one of the few players 25 and under who already hasa shot at Cooperstown. Furillo finished his career needing only one hit to raise his career average to .300. Abreus quietly wrapping up his career as we speak, his best years a distant memory. Hernandez made his mark as a rookie during the Florida Marlins 1997 World Series run, but his best work came as a member of the Expos and Nationals. Get caught up:1960s, 70s, and 80s|1930s, 40s, and 50s|1900s, 10s, and 20s. In fact, some of Alou's season-best numbers are quite impressive. In his second go-around with the team, he hit .291/.354/.477 for a 120 OPS+ while averaging 23 home runs, 98 RBI and 3.0 WAR over five seasons. Originally drafted as a catcher, Walker posted a 114 OPS+ while averaging 29 doubles, 16 home runs, 70 RBI and 2.7 WAR in six seasons as the everyday second baseman with the Pirates. *Caught stealing totals are incomplete per Baseball-Reference.com. DeCinces wouldn't have the same kind of memorable moments with the Angels as he did with the Orioles, but he was a solid contributor to the Angels success nonetheless. The Opening Day starter twice during his time in Cleveland, Westbrook eclipsed 200 innings three years in a row from 2004 to 2006. Jim Abbot underrated because he had one hand.His best season came two years later with the Angels in 1991, when he went 18-11 with a 2.89 ERA, finishing third in the American League Cy Young Award voting. He was a two-time All-Star and also won a Silver Slugger. Interestingly enough, Finley could have had multiple 20/20 and 30/30 seasons, but the speed that he exhibited early in his career wasn't quite the same when his power finally developed. Career Stats: 1,190 G; .256/.346/.317; 14 HR; 254 RBI; 821 H; 339 R; 35-for-68 SB. He generated down-ballot MVP support three different times, and was an All-Star in 2012 when he hit .324/.394/.540 for a 149 OPS+ with 32 doubles, 16 home runs and 68 RBI in a 4.6-WAR season. From 1999 through the 2004 season, Vidro was unquestionably one of the most productive second basemen in the game. While his accomplishments with the Pirates were overshadowed by the exploits of Barry Bonds, Bobby Bonilla, Andy Van Slyke and even manager Jim Leyland, Bell established himself as one of the better shortstops in the game during his time with the Pirates, overcoming his limited range by putting himself in the right position, depending on the batter. Forget the Coors Effect. He finished a close second to teammate George Brett for the American League batting crown in 1976, losing out by less than .001 after Brett went 2-for-4 in the final game of the season to barely squeak past McRae. We saw the ends of the Terry Francona and Larry Bowa eras . The best shortstop of the 1970s, Dave Concepcion paired with Joe Morgan to form one of the great double-play combinations in the history of the game. During Guillen's five-year heyday with the Tigers (2004-2008), he hit .308 with an .870 OPS and 128 OPS+. That's the response we set out to elicit with our rundown of each MLB team's most underrated player of the past 20 years. His 18.1 total WAR in a Royals uniform ranks 24th in franchise history. He led American League third basemen four times inassists, five times indouble plays, and twice infielding percentage. Acquired from the New York Mets in exchange for Mike Bordick at the 2000 trade deadline, Mora went on to rack up 29.1 WAR in 10 seasons with the Orioles while playing all over the field defensively. A six-time All-Star with the Angels, Fregosi formed one of the most capable double-play combinations in the game with second baseman Bobby Knoop from 1964 until the midway point of the 1969 season. Among pitchers to start at least 220 games in . Adrian Beltre played 21 seasons in the majors, most of which came in the 2000s, so it'd be impossible to leave him off our list. Copyright 2023, Beckett Collectibles, LLC. A two-time All-Star and five-time Gold Glove award winner, Finley was an integral part of the Diamondbacks team that won the 2001 World Series, batting .368/.478/.526 with one home run, two RBI and five runs scored. A five-time All-Star, Doc Cramer patrolled center field for four different teams over a 20-year-career, one that saw him hit .300 eight times and break the 200-hit barrier on three different occasions. While he began his major league career in 1968, it wasn't until 1969 that a 22-year-old center fielder named Larry Hisle got a chance to play on a daily basis, and he rewarded the Phillies with a solid campaign that resulted in a fourth place finish in the Rookie of the Year voting. 6. Across 15 MLB seasons, he tallied 2,096 hits, 316 home runs, 1,220 RBI and 44.5 WAR. He finished in the top five in NL Cy Young voting five times in his first six MLB seasons, and went 163-102 with a 3.36 ERA and 1,852 strikeouts in 2,245.1 innings in 13 years in the big leagues. Calling Evans "one of the most underrated players in baseball history" James wrote: Dwight Evans is the very unusual player who had all of his best years in his thirties. The No. Some might wonder how someone who is enshrined in the Hall of Fame could possibly be underrated, but without a doubt Ron Santo is arguably the most underrated player to ever play the game. Johnson was one of them, and Carroll captured how underrated "Indian Bob" truly was: Consistency may be the hobgoblin of little minds, but it can also make certain ballplayers nigh unto invisible. Morris hit .340 in his first full season with the Reds and was an instrumental part of the team that upset the heavily favored Oakland Athletics in the 1990 World Series. Shareef Abdur-Rahim 8. White chased the ball down and caught it while crashing full speed into the walla play some have said was more impressive than "The Catch" by Willie Maysthen threw a strike to Blue Jays' second baseman Roberto Alomar. Were going with the same concept for this one, but jumping forward to the 2000s. SP Christy Mathewson: (236-112, 1.98 ERA, 1.035 WHIP, 1,799 K, 2,996.2 IP) 3. In those seasons alone, Bonds accomplished more than many players in Cooperstown: those three MVPs, 76.1 Wins Above Replacement and 112 defensive runs saved (second-best in baseball for those years behind, get this, Sammy Sosa.) SP Cy Young:. Career Stats: 1,902 G; .265/.338/.398; 151 HR; 706 RBI; 1,726 H; 844 R; 76-for-116 SB. He had three straight seasons with at least 200 innings pitched, including a 2007 campaign where he went 16-6 with a 3.73 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 218 strikeouts in 231.2 innings to finish fourth in NL Cy Young voting. Money pitcher. Most underrated Hall of Famers - MLB.com He then returned to Seattle in 2004 after a three-year run with the Royals and put together some of the best years of his career. Career Stats: 1,998 G; .277/.343/.425; 193 HR; 1,007 RBI; 2,020 H; 1,092 R; 341-for-434 SB. Not only would he help the Red Sox win the American League Pennant in 1946, he did everything that he could to win the 1946 World Series, hitting .417 against the St. Louis Cardinals in what wound up being a Cardinals' sweep. Dating back to the year 2000, we've seen 40 different players win Rookie of the Year Awards. Career Stats: 2,963 G; .272/.336/.352; 80 HR; 950 RBI; 404-for-571 SB. Career Stats: 1,286 G; .264/.362/.379; 93 HR; 418 RBI; 1,203 H; 718 R; 200-for-305 SB. From the archive: Outrage when the Yankees sold to CBS, The most underrated players in baseball history | HardballTalk, Maury Wills: Barnstorming with Jackie Robinson and Luke Easter, Analyzing Maury Wills impact on baseball through stolen base opportunities, The most-deserving players not in the Hall of Fame: Right fielders, The most-deserving players not in the Hall of Fame: Center fielders, Does he belong in the Hall of Fame? In February 2012, godfather of baseball stats Bill James wrote an open letter for Grantland arguing Dwight Evans' case for the Hall of Fame. "The Hal McRae Rule" requires that runners slide into second base when trying to break up a double play, doing away with McRae's favorite movethe cross-body check, something he terrorized American League middle infielders with for years. I just read an article on Tim Raines being the second best leadoff man from his generation due to his elite OBP (career .385) and SB skills. Throw in four seasons of at least 100 RBI, and you've got yourself a pretty complete player. While he hit the first-ever home run at Veterans Stadium as a member of the Phillies, it wasn't until Don Money was traded to the Brewers following the 1972 season that he enjoyed the most success of his career. Underrated teams. A five-time All-Star, Cash was a smooth fielding first baseman who was the first player to hit a ball out of Tiger Stadium, clearing the roof on June 11, 1961. It was an era in baseball defined by power. Tim Wallach Career Stats: 1,311 G; .280/.345/.355; 35 HR; 392 RBI; 123-for-168 SB. Andrei Kirilenko 7. After starting his career with three years of limited playing time in Cleveland, Jay Bell was dealt to the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1989, where he became the everyday shortstop for the team that went to the NLCS in three consecutive seasons. The Most Underrated MLB Players of All Time - Borgata Sports Online The Big Puma was a six-time All-Star and he finished his career with 366 home runs and 1,234 RBI, yet he was a one-and-done on the Hall of Fame ballot with just 1.2 percent of the vote in 2019. A three-time All-Star with six .300 seasons under his belt, Hal McRae was named the Designated Hitter of the Year on three separate occasions by both The Sporting News and the Associated Press. Required fields are marked *. Most of the names you would expect: Andrew McCutchen, Dustin Pedroia, Matt Holliday, Robinson . A six-time All-Star with the Yankees, Willie Randolph was one of the best second basemen in the game for more than a decade. All rights reserved. Winner of seven consecutive Gold Glove awards in center field and a three-time All-Star, Devon White was one of the more underrated players of the past 20 years. Originally a Yankee, Hal Morris was sent to Cincinnati in 1989 in exchange for Tim Leary in a perfect example of how George Steinbrenner used to run the club; trading prospects for veterans. Victimized by a lack of run support for most of his career, largely because he was the best pitcher on some awful teams, Stieb's numbers are even more impressive. Underrated throughout his career, his 60.2 WAR speaks to star-level production. After a 31-homer, 21-steal season for the World Series winning Marlins in 2003, Lee was traded to the Cubs where he was a two-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glove winner in seven seasons. Injuries would take their toll andultimatelyend his career in 1985 after only 38 innings of work. DeCinces took Tigers' reliever Dave Tobik deep into the night, leading the Orioles to a comeback 6-5 victory on what has been called "the night Oriole Magic was born." The right-hander pitched just 215 innings over the next four years before he called it quits at the age of 30.