Post by Captain America on Aug 16, 2015 1:40:38 GMT -5
Less than a month ago during the real life 2015 MLB All-Star Game festivities, each team's "Franchise Four" was revealed before the All-Star Game itself. Earlier in the season, fans were asked to vote for the 4 best players in each team's franchise history out of 8 nominees. This inspired me and got me thinking...what would each BBSBL team's Franchise Four look like at this point?
Thus, I went through the site and CATO extensively to search through every team's history and see who their 4 best players were that had the biggest impact on the given team for a long period of time. I'll then show what they did for their team(s) to show what kind of impact they had. Players can be eligible for multiple teams as long as they played for 3 full seasons, but if they spent a significant portion of their careers with 1 team, I will try to not consider them as part of another team as well. Longevity with the same team will be valued quite a bit here. I'll also provide 4 additional players per team as honorable mention nominees to make it look like an 8-nominee fan ballot like it was in reality.
Next up are the AL Atlantic teams.
Boston Red Sox
SS Nomar Garciaparra (1997-2007, 2010-2013)
- Red Sox career leader in average, hits, runs, doubles, triples, home runs, RBI, walks and strikeouts
- Led AL in average twice (2001, 2004), slugging once (2004), OPS once (2004), hits twice (2001, 2004) and doubles 3 times (1999, 2001, 2004) with Red Sox
- Led the Red Sox to 9 postseason appearances, including 3 AL pennants in 1997, 1999 and 2011
- Made 9 trips to the All-Star Game as a member of the Red Sox (1998-2002, 2004-2005, 2007, 2010)
SP Chris Gissell (2007-2013)
- Red Sox career leader in wins, strikeouts, games started and complete games
- Helped lead the Red Sox to 6 consecutive postseason appearances between 2008-2013, including 2 AL pennants in 2009 and 2011
- Made 4 All-Star appearances with Red Sox in 2008, 2010, 2011 and 2012
SP Buddy Groom (1996-2001)
- Won 114 games with the Red Sox over 6 seasons, with a 3.02 ERA
- Led AL with 24 wins in 1998
- Helped lead the Red Sox to 6 consecutive postseason appearances from 1996-2001, including 2 AL pennants in 1997 and 1999
- Made 3 consecutive trips to the All-Star Game with the Red Sox (1997-1999)
SP Pedro Martinez (1998-2003, 2005, 2008)
- Won 3 consecutive AL Cy Young Awards between 1998-2000
- Won 115 games over parts of 8 seasons with the Red Sox, with a 2.61 ERA
- Led the Red Sox to 5 postseason appearances, including 2 AL pennants in 1997 and 1999
- Went to 2 All-Star Games with the Red Sox in 1999 and 2000
Honorable Mentions: Mike Adams, Jeremy Affeldt, Manny Ramirez, Jason Varitek
Montreal Expos
C Robert Fick (1999-2006)
- Expos career leader in home runs, RBI and walks
- Helped lead the Expos to their World Series championship in 2004
- Made 2 trips to the All-Star Game in 2001 and 2003
SP Mike Lincoln (2004-2006)
- Expos career leader in ERA
- Won 78 games over 3 seasons with Expos, with a 2.07 ERA
- Led the Expos to their World Series championship in 2004
- Made 3 consecutive All-Star Game appearances between 2004-2006
SP Gil Meche (1997-2003)
- Expos career leader in wins, strikeouts and games started
- Won a career high 22 games in 1998, with a 3.72 ERA and 307 strikeouts
- Was an All-Star in 1998
2B Alfonso Soriano (1999-2003)
- Won 1999 NL Rookie of the Year Award with Expos
- Hit .291 as an Expo, with 963 hits, 581 runs, 269 doubles, 132 home runs, 434 RBI, 254 walks, 220 stolen bases and an .858 OPS
- Made 3 All-Star teams with Expos in 1999, 2001 and 2002
Honorable Mentions: Carlos Lee, Eric Milton, Leon Sabin, Jose Vidro
New York Mets
3B Aaron Boone (1997-2008)
- Mets career leader in hits, runs, doubles, home runs and RBI
- Helped lead the Mets to consecutive postseason appearances in 2004 and 2005
- Made 2 All-Star Game appearances with Mets in 2004 and 2008
SP Mike Kusiewicz (2000-2008)
- Mets career leader in wins, ERA, strikeouts, games started, complete games and shutouts
- Led the Mets to consecutive postseason appearances in 2004 and 2005
- Was selected to the 2007 All-Star team as a Met
SP Jake Peavy (2002-2008)
- 2nd in Mets career ranks in wins, ERA and games started; 3rd in strikeouts and shutouts
- Helped lead the Mets to consecutive postseason appearances in 2004 and 2005
- Had his best season with Mets in 2005, with 22 wins, a 2.34 ERA, 198 strikeouts and 5 shutouts
1B Carlos Pena (2001-2008)
- Mets career leader in OBP, OPS and walks
- Helped lead the Mets to consecutive postseason appearances in 2004 and 2005
- Won 3 consecutive NL Gold Glove Awards between 2006-2008 with Mets
Honorable Mentions: Endy Chavez, Wil Cordero, Dicky Gonzalez, Scott Proctor
New York Yankees
2B Robinson Cano (2011-present)
- Yankees career leader in hits, runs, doubles, and RBI
- Helped lead the Yankees to 6 consecutive postseason appearances between 2012-1027, including a World Series championship in 2012
- Has made 3 All-Star teams with Yankees in 2012, 2013 and 2017
SP Will Cunnane (1999-2004)
- Yankees career leader in ERA; 2nd in wins and shutouts
- Helped lead the Yankees to 3 consecutive AL East titles from 2001-2003
- Made 2 All-Star teams with Yankees in 2001 and 2003
SP Justin Duchscherer (1999-2006)
- Yankees career leader in wins and games started
- Helped lead the Yankees to 3 consecutive AL East titles from 2001-2003
- Made the 2002 All-Star team with Yankees
SS Kolten Wong (2014-2017)
- Yankees career leader in average
- Led AL in hits 3 times (2015-2017) and stolen bases twice (2016-2017)
- Made 4 consecutive All-Star Game appearances between 2014-2017
Honorable Mentions: Carlos Delgado, Carlos Guillen, Andy Pettitte, Mariano Rivera
Philadelphia Phillies
RF Jay Buhner (1997-2002)
- Phillies career leader in slugging and RBI
- Hit .277 across 6 seasons with 750 hits, 445 runs, 152 home runs, 487 RBI and 317 walks
- Helped lead the Phillies to an NL East division title in 1998
SP Adam Eaton (2001-2009)
- Phillies career leader in strikeouts
- Won 91 games over 9 seasons with a 3.49 ERA and 1691 strikeouts
SP Mike Grace (1996-2005)
- Phillies career leader in wins, games started and shutouts
- Led the Phillies to an NL East division title in 1998
- Made 2 All-Star appearances in 1996 and 1998
- Won an NL Gold Glove Award in 2005
CF Reggie Sanders (1997-2002)
- Phillies career leader in home runs
- Helped lead the Phillies to an NL East division title in 1998
- Made All-Star team with Phillies in 1999
- Won consecutive NL Gold Glove Awards with Phillies in 1999 and 2000
Honorable Mentions: Bret Boone, Hideki Irabu, John Olerud, Jose Valverde
AL South teams coming up next!
