The Mt. Rushmore of active first basemen
By Bill Felber
There is no shortage of candidates to be one of the four faces carved onto a current MLB first baseman’s Mt. Rushmore.
More than a third of the current first basemen could present credentials that would legitimize such an honor. Alphabetically, a ‘short list’ would include the following:
Jose Abreu, Pete Alonso, Brandon Belt, Freddie Freeman, Paul Goldschmidt, Yuli Gurriel, Eric Hosmer, Max Muncy, Matt Olson, Albert Pujols, Anthony Rizzo, Carlos Santana, and Joey Votto.
The kind of immortality that comes with a Rushmore carving requires some criteria for selection. We have several, beginning with this basic one: The player being considered must be projected to be his team’s starting first baseman in 2021.
Sorry Miguel Cabrera and Cory Bellinger, that lets you guys out.
He must also have as many as possible of the following:
- An established reputation, reflecting at least five seasons – ideally 10 – as a regular.
- Significant post-season experience, ideally including at least one World Series ring.
- Recognition as an MVP, Rookie of the Year, Gold Glover, Silver Slugger and/or All Star selection, the more frequently the better.
- A consistent record of excellence in two basic performance categories, OPS+ and WAR.
- Although it isn’t an absolute requirement to Rushmore-level status, it also helps if a first baseman is a one-team lifer.
Let’s begin with the obvious candidates for inclusion on an MLB first baseman’s Mt. Rushmore, then proceed to sort out the closer calls.