MLB History: Top Fifty Players in Baseball History
By David Hill
50. Duke Snider
During the early part of the 1950’s, New York was home to three of the greatest center fielders in MLB history, with Duke Snider, Willie Mays and Mickey Mantle patrolling the outfield. While Mays and Mantle easily come to mind amongst the greatest outfielders in history, Snider tends to be the forgotten part of that trio.
That is truly unfortunate, as Snider deserves to be in the conversation with the greats in MLB history. One of the premier power hitters of his day, Snider hit forty or more home runs five times, including a league leading 43 in 1956. He was an eight time All-Star, and finished in the top ten in the MVP ballot six times.
In his stellar career, Snider produced a .295/.380/.540 batting line with 407 home runs. As the best hitter in those Dodger lineups, he frequently ranked among the league leaders in walks, as the opposition pitched around him, not wanting Snider to defeat them with his bat. Even though the information from the first eight years of his career is missing, Snider is still among the leaders in intentional walks in his career. Even then, he ranked tenth all time in home runs when he retired.
Yet, Snider was more than just a stellar hitter. He was one of the best defensive center fielders of his time, although he was once again overshadowed by Mays. However, he typically ranked in the top five in putouts and assists in his prime, and is currently 36th in putouts and 37th in assists for a center fielder in MLB history.
One of the more overlooked players in baseball history, Duke Snider was one of the true greats of the game. Perhaps if he played in a different city, or at a different time, he would have received the appreciation he deserved.
Next: A black mark stains his legacy