Top 106 Baseball Players: #45 - David Ortiz

David Ortiz

David Ortiz was the greatest designated hitter in the history of baseball, and his contributions to the Red Sox turned around the franchise's fortunes.

Ortiz spent the first 6 years of his career with the Minnesota Twins, where he was splitting time between the minors and the majors. Just when he was starting to show some promise, the Twins released him, and he signed a single-season deal with the Red Sox that was guaranteed only if he made the team.

He made the team, but hardly played in the first two months of the season, until he was finally given the chance to be the team's regular DH, and he responded with a .288 average, 31 home runs, and 101 RBI, which got him fifth place in the AL MVP voting and a new contract.

In 2004, he finished second in the league in both home runs and RBI, and he and Manny Ramirez became the first pair of AL teammates in 73 years to bat .300, hit 40 home runs, and reach 100 RBI, the previous pair being Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig. In that season's playoffs, the Red Sox went down 3-0 to the Yankees, but battled back to win the series behind Ortiz's brilliance, specifically game-winning hits in extra innings in games 4 and 5. He was awarded the ALCS MVP after batting .387 with 11 RBI in the series, and the Red Sox won their first World Series in over 80 years just weeks later.

In 2005 he led the league in RBI's with 148 and set a new career high with 47 home runs, finishing second in the MVP voting to Alex Rodriguez. The next year, he was easily the best batter in the AL, leading the league with 54 home runs, 137 RBI, and 119 walks, but only finished #3 in the MVP voting after the Red Sox missed the playoffs.

He had another great year in 2007, leading the league in walks again and setting his career high with a .332 average. The Red Sox returned to the World Series that year, with Ortiz batting .714 in the ALDS, and they again swept the World Series, this time over the Rockies, earning Big Papi his second championship.

For the next few years he struggled after sustaining a wrist injury and an Achilles injury, and people started to wonder if his career might be over. However, in 2013, he showed some signs of his previous greatness, and the Red Sox reached the World Series again. This time, Ortiz totally dominated the Cardinals, batting .688 with 6 RBI, and he tied the World Series record by reaching base 9 times in a row, all of which earned him the World Series MVP and his third title.

Late in the 2015 season, Ortiz hit his 500th home run, and shortly thereafter announced that he would play one final season before retiring. That final season was a memorable one, as he led the league with 48 doubles and 127 RBI, which was a fitting end to a great career.

Ortiz is one of only 4 players in history with 500 home runs and 600 doubles, along with Barry Bonds, Hank Aaron, and Albert Pujols. He also hit more home runs (38) in his final season than any other player in history, and hold the career record for World Series batting average, at .455. Even with the slow start to his career, he ended up as the best DH ever, and he was absolutely amazing in each of Boston's 3 championship runs during his time there, which makes him an easy choice to be a part of the top 50 players of all time.

Top 106 Baseball Players: #53 - Bert Blyleven

Bert Blyleven

Bert Blyleven was a pitcher known for his curveball, and he threw it with such consistency that he was able to play for 22 years and pitch nearly 5000 innings.

Blyleven was called up to the Minnesota Twins in 1970, when he was just 19 years old, after only half a season in the minors. By 1973, he led the league in shutouts with 9, and earned Cy Young votes for the first of 4 times in his career.

After two more seasons in Minnesota, he grew unhappy with his salary, so the Twins traded him to Texas. He pitched for the Rangers for a year and a half, and in his final start of the 1977 season he pitched a no-hitter just two weeks after returning from a groin injury. The team, however, objected to a rude gesture he made to the camera during the game and traded him after the season, making him the first player ever to be traded immediately after a no-hitter.

His next stop was Pittsburgh, where in 1979 he was able to reach his first World Series. He gave up only 2 runs in 10 innings of work, easily the best in the series, and won his first championship. Just a season later, however, he grew tired of the Pirates, and again demanded a trade, this time heading to Cleveland.

After an elbow injury cost him most of the 1982 season, he struggled in 1983 upon returning, but was finally at full strength in 1984, when he recorded a 2.87 ERA and finished 3rd in the Cy Young voting, his first time being considered for the award in more than a decade.

Even with him pitching well, the Indians were struggling, so he again asked for a trade, and this time he was sent back to Minnesota, and he had a great season, leading the league with 206 strikeouts, 5 shutouts, and 24 complete games, which is a number no pitcher has approached since.

He passed 3000 strikeouts in 1986, then returned to the World Series in 1987. He won two games in the ALCS, then picked up another win in the World Series, finishing with 12 strikeouts and a 2.77 ERA as he earned his second championship.

He led the league in losses in 1988, and was released as a result. He went to play for the Angels, where he flipped his record, going from 17 losses to 17 wins, which earned him the Comeback Player of the Year award and a 4th-place finish in the Cy Young voting at age 38.

It took 14 years for Blyleven to get voted into the Hall of Fame, and before he was elected he was the only member of the 3000 strikeout club not in the Hall. He never won a Cy Young, and only received votes 4 times, but he was a very effective pitcher for a very long time, and pitched very well in both of his World Series appearances, which has earned him a spot among the best baseball players of all time.

Top 106 Baseball Players: #55 - Paul Molitor

Paul Molitor

Paul Molitor was a great hitter and baserunner for a long time, and after overcoming the injuries that slowed him early in his career, he became one of the best players in the league late in his career.

Molitor first played for the Brewers in 1978, but injuries kept him from becoming a star very quickly. Between 1980 and 1986 he spent time on the DL 6 times, mostly with elbow and hamstring injuries, but he showed great promise when healthy. In his first full healthy season in 1982, he got 201 hits and led the league with 136 runs scored, and he got the team to the World Series, where they lost to the Cardinals in 7 games, despite his .355 average.

In 1987, Molitor was in the national spotlight as he embarked on a long hitting streak, eventually hitting safely in 39 straight games, the longest by anybody since Pete Rose reached 44 in 1978, and a number no player has reached since. Late in the streak, a columnist jokingly said that the most amazing thing about the streak wasn't that he had hit in 33 straight games, but that he had played in 33 straight games.

Molitor had one of his strongest seasons in 1991, when he led the league in runs, hits, and triples, but when he hit free agency a year later, the Brewers wanted him to take a pay cut, so he left to join the defending champion Blue Jays, who offered him a nice raise.

The 1993 season was a special one for him. He led the league in hits again, with 211, but he also had 111 RBI's, making him the oldest player ever to reach 100 for the first time in his career, being 37 at the end of the season. The Blue Jays returned to the World Series that year, and Molitor had an historic series. He tied series records with 10 runs scored and a .500 average, and became the first player ever to record 2 doubles, 2 triples, and 2 homers in the Series, and he won the MVP for his efforts.

He was having a career year in 1994 before the season was cut short by strike, but struggled in 1995 when baseball returned, and he was not resigned. He joined his hometown Twins for the 1996 season, and he ended up leading the league in hits with 225, becoming only the second 40-year-old to reach 200.

Thanks to his late-career surge and that World Series MVP, Molitor was able to shake off an injury-ridden start to his career to become one of the all-time greats. He is one of only 5 players with 3000 hits, 500 stolen bases, and a .300 average, and he is the only one of those 5 to reach 200 home runs. He may have played in smaller markets and out of the spotlight for much of his career, but he deserves to be a part of this list.