• Hank Aaron

  From Stat Geek Baseball's, the Best Ever Book.
  
  Who was better, Aaron or Mays? Now that's a debate that's been going round and round since they both took their first swings in the early 1950s. Yes, Mays was the more flashy player, patrolling the outfields of the Polo Grounds and Candlestick Park like a graceful football player with a fantastic glove. But Aaron was the more consistent, never deviating from his steady man, stat producing season batter from Milwaukee to Atlanta as the Braves traversed the nation. So it becomes a little ironic that the two men who were so compared to each other during their career should sit right next to each other in the Best Ever rankings, with this time Hank taking a higher spot at #4. And they were only 15 PEVA points apart.
  
  When Hank Aaron hit the Home Run that bested the record of Ruth, it was national news, and news that even surpassed the game itself. For most fans of baseball, Hank Aaron not only has the record for most Runs Batted In All-Time, actually the better record if you think about, but he still has the Home Run Record. And whether that record ever gets an asterick next to it post steroid ball days or not, the point is likely moot to most. Aaron slugged his way into the record books on pure guts and determination and it was a pleasure to watch both.
  
  Hank was not the most selective hitter, which might account for the reason his ranking isn't a notch or two higher. He was productive and durable. In the end, that's what a team wants, someone to be counted on, day after day after day, to help win games. That's certainly what Aaron was all about from Milwaukee to Atlanta to Cooperstown.

Notes: Photo Credits: Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb; Library of Congress. Hank Aaron; Wikipedia Commons.

HOF/HOFP - Hall of Fame player. PEVA - Player Rating for Season or Career. PEVA per Year - Average Player Rating per season. Seasons include all seasons played with no monimum.

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