The most powerful-hitting middle infielders of all time
Okay, stop me if you’ve heard this one before: “Until Cal Ripken came along, no one believed it was possible to have a big, strong power hitter play shortstop. Ripken changed the paradigm, and since then we’ve seen a dramatic increase in the prevalance of muscular power hitters handling middle infield positions.”
Sound familiar? If you’re like me, if you’ve come across this assertion (or something close to it) once, you’ve come across it a hundred times. My reaction to it is invariably a sputtering, “But … but … what?!? Haven’t you ever heard of Ernie Banks? Or Vern Stephens? Or, for crying out loud, Rogers (expletive deleted) Hornsby or Honus (expletive deleted) Wagner?!?”
And the response to that is generally something to the effect of, well, they were really exceptional; Ripken may not have been exactly the first, but he was the one who marked the beginning of the new modern trend of having lots of big power guys at shortstop and second base.
So, all right then. Is it indeed true that in the current day we see significantly more power hitters in the middle infield than in the past? And to the extent that it is, just how accurate is this idea of Ripken’s example stimulating the change?
How about we see if we can find out.
In this exercise I’m not interested in identifying middle infielders with just pretty good power, or fine power “for a middle infielder.” I’m interested in testing the assumption about middle infielders who generate serious power, the type of power production found in the middle of the lineup on a good-hitting team. And I’m also interested in power per se, not necessarily all-around good offense. How high or low a guy’s batting average is and/or how many or few walks he draws are completely irrelevant here. We’re talking about the long ball, the serious long ball, and nothing but the serious long ball.
So here’s what I’ve done. I’ve gone back to 1893, the season in which the pitching rubber was moved to the 60-foot-six-inch distance, and baseball truly assumed its recognizably modern form. And beginning in that season and every season since, I’ve identified every player who:
{exp:list_maker}Had at least one-half of his defensive appearances at shortstop and/or second base
Played frequently enough to qualify for his league’s batting rate stat leaderboard
Produced an Isolated Power (SLG minus BA) figure at least 50 percent greater than the park-adjusted Isolated Power average for his league {/exp:list_maker}I’ve dubbed this comparison between a hitter’s Isolated Power (ISO) and the park-adjusted league average (which is simply ISO divided by LG ISO) as “ISO+.”
Let’s see how many of these serious-slugger middle infielders there’ve been.
The most powerful-hitting middle infielders, 1893-1919
Year Player Team Age Pos AB 2B 3B HR OPS+ ISO LG ISO ISO+ 1894 Bill Dahlen CHC 24 SS 502 32 14 15 136 .209 .133 1.57 1896 Bill Dahlen CHC 26 SS 474 30 19 9 156 .201 .102 1.97 1897 George Davis NYG 26 SS 519 31 10 10 144 .156 .097 1.61 1898 Nap Lajoie PHI 23 2B 608 43 11 6 137 .137 .077 1.78 1899 Bobby Wallace STL 25 SS 577 28 14 12 120 .159 .089 1.79 1900 Nap Lajoie PHI 25 2B 451 33 12 7 140 .173 .092 1.88 1901 Nap Lajoie PHA 26 2B 544 48 14 14 200 .217 .099 2.19 1901 Bobby Wallace STL 27 SS 550 34 15 2 136 .127 .083 1.53 1901 George Davis NYG 30 SS 491 26 7 7 130 .125 .082 1.52 1902 Nap Lajoie PHA-CLE 27 2B 352 35 5 7 175 .187 .097 1.93 1903 Honus Wagner PIT 29 SS 512 30 19 5 161 .163 .085 1.92 1903 Nap Lajoie CLE 28 2B 485 41 11 7 169 .174 .092 1.89 1904 Honus Wagner PIT 30 SS 490 44 14 4 187 .171 .076 2.25 1904 Nap Lajoie CLE 29 2B 553 49 15 6 205 .176 .079 2.23 1905 Honus Wagner PIT 31 SS 548 32 14 6 174 .142 .082 1.73 1906 Honus Wagner PIT 32 SS 516 38 9 2 168 .120 .071 1.69 1906 Nap Lajoie CLE 31 2B 602 48 9 0 169 .110 .071 1.55 1907 Honus Wagner PIT 33 SS 515 38 14 6 186 .163 .069 2.36 1908 Honus Wagner PIT 34 SS 568 39 19 10 205 .188 .071 2.65 1909 Honus Wagner PIT 35 SS 495 39 10 5 176 .150 .075 2.00 1909 Larry Doyle NYG 22 2B 570 27 11 6 140 .117 .074 1.58 1909 Nap Lajoie CLE 34 2B 469 33 7 1 151 .107 .069 1.55 1910 Nap Lajoie CLE 35 2B 591 51 7 4 199 .130 .073 1.78 1911 Larry Doyle NYG 24 2B 526 25 25 13 154 .217 .102 2.13 1911 Honus Wagner PIT 37 SS 473 23 16 9 156 .173 .103 1.68 1911 Heinie Zimmerman CHC 24 2B 535 22 17 9 124 .155 .101 1.53 1912 Honus Wagner PIT 38 SS 558 35 20 7 144 .172 .101 1.70 1914 Del Pratt SLB 26 2B 584 34 13 5 130 .128 .078 1.64 1915 Honus Wagner PIT 41 SS 566 32 17 6 126 .148 .086 1.72 1916 Del Pratt SLB 28 2B 596 35 12 5 121 .124 .077 1.61 1916 Larry Doyle NYG-CHC 29 2B 479 29 11 3 126 .125 .083 1.51 1917 Rogers Hornsby STL 21 SS 523 24 17 8 169 .157 .081 1.94 1918 Rogers Hornsby STL 22 SS 416 19 11 5 136 .135 .075 1.80 1919 Larry Doyle NYG 32 2B 381 14 10 7 136 .144 .083 1.73
Right away we see a couple of things very clearly. First, of course, is the fact that in this era, very few home runs were hit. Power hitters in those days distinguished themselves by delivering doubles and triples in copious quantities, but homers were a rarity.
And second, we see that serious power-producing middle infielders were a regular feature on the landscape from the get-go. Superstar shortstops Bill Dahlen, George Davis and Bobby Wallace (the latter two in the Hall of Fame, and all three in the Hall of Merit) were all producing ISO+ figures of at least 1.50 in the 1890s. And by the first decade of the 20th century, two big-and-burly middle infielders, second baseman Nap Lajoie and some shortstop named Wagner, were putting up power figures as impressive as those by any slugger at any position, year in and year out.
In the 1910s, as Lajoie and Wagner finally faded (though Wagner was still producing one of these seasons as a 41-year-old shortstop; how astounding was he?), a couple of new second basemen, Larry Doyle and Del Pratt, were delivering big-time power. And another guy, Heinie Zimmerman, was primarily a third baseman, but makes this list as a power-hitting second baseman in 1911. And late in the decade a very young Cardinals shortstop by the name of Hornsby was beginning to make his mark with the long ball.
One guy who I expected to make the list but didn’t was Boston Beaneaters second baseman Bobby Lowe, who smacked 14 home runs in 1893 and 17 in 1894; neither of those seasons was quite exceptional enough against the league norm to qualify.
An important issue to consider with regard to this period is that the position of second base didn’t occupy exactly the same place on the defensive spectrum then that it does now. A combination of factors, including rudimentary gloves and historically high rates of stealing and bunting, rendered double plays much more rare in these years than they would soon become. This meant that teams were able to get by with a second baseman less quick on the DP pivot than in later decades, and also that teams needed to have quicker and nimbler third basemen and first basemen than in later decades; therefore second base was a bit more of an offense-first position than it’s since become.
Nevertheless, this list is hardly dominated by second basemen; of the 34 player-seasons that qualify for inclusion in this period, 16 were produced by second basemen, and 18 by shortstops. And the shortstop position’s placement on the defensive spectrum was exactly the same then as it has been ever since: the most challenging and crucial of all the positions behind the pitcher, demanding range, agility, soft hands and a strong and accurate arm.
The most powerful-hitting middle infielders, 1920-1939
Year Player Team Age Pos AB 2B 3B HR OPS+ ISO LG ISO ISO+ 1920 Rogers Hornsby STL 24 2B 589 44 20 9 185 .189 .090 2.10 1921 Rogers Hornsby STL 25 2B 592 44 18 21 191 .242 .111 2.18 1922 Rogers Hornsby STL 26 2B 623 46 14 42 207 .321 .115 2.79 1923 Rogers Hornsby STL 27 2B 424 32 10 17 188 .243 .113 2.15 1923 Marty McManus SLB 23 2B 582 35 10 15 117 .172 .114 1.51 1924 Rogers Hornsby STL 28 2B 536 43 14 25 222 .272 .113 2.41 1925 Rogers Hornsby STL 29 2B 504 41 10 39 210 .353 .129 2.74 1926 Tony Lazzeri NYY 22 2B 589 28 14 18 108 .187 .116 1.61 1926 Travis Jackson NYG 22 SS 385 24 8 8 129 .167 .110 1.52 1927 Rogers Hornsby NYG 31 2B 568 32 9 26 175 .225 .110 2.05 1927 Travis Jackson NYG 23 SS 469 29 4 14 125 .168 .110 1.53 1928 Rogers Hornsby BSN 32 2B 486 42 7 21 200 .245 .120 2.04 1928 Tony Lazzeri NYY 24 2B 404 30 11 10 146 .203 .120 1.69 1929 Rogers Hornsby CHC 33 2B 602 47 8 39 178 .299 .139 2.15 1929 Tony Lazzeri NYY 25 2B 545 37 11 18 160 .207 .126 1.64 1929 Charlie Gehringer DET 26 2B 634 45 19 13 139 .193 .129 1.50 1932 Tony Lazzeri NYY 28 2B 510 28 16 15 138 .206 .131 1.57 1933 Arky Vaughan PIT 21 SS 573 29 19 9 146 .164 .101 1.62 1933 Tony Lazzeri NYY 29 2B 523 22 12 18 135 .192 .121 1.59 1935 Arky Vaughan PIT 23 SS 499 34 10 19 190 .222 .123 1.80 1937 Alex Kampouris CIN 24 2B 458 21 4 17 111 .175 .114 1.54 1938 Joe Gordon NYY 23 2B 458 24 7 25 108 .247 .142 1.74 1939 Joe Gordon NYY 24 2B 567 32 5 28 123 .222 .137 1.62 1939 Charlie Gehringer DET 36 2B 406 29 6 16 139 .219 .141 1.55
With the sudden arrival of high-scoring, home run-friendly conditions in the 1920s, the frequency of double plays dramatically increased, and the defensive spectrum assumed the form it’s held ever since: It was now critical for the second baseman to be nimble on the pivot. Yet it was a second baseman, the robustly strong Hornsby (now shifted over from shortstop), who emerged in the early ’20s as the most devastating power hitter in the National League; to this day he remains one of just three second basemen to produce a 40-homer season.
The name appearing second-most frequently on the list in this period is that of another second baseman, Tony Lazzeri. This surprised me; I figured Lazzeri would be a contender to qualify, but I hadn’t realized just how unusual his extra-base power was for the period. And I was also surprised to discover that a guy I thought would definitely be on this list multiple times never made it at all: shortstop Joe Cronin, who came quite close several times, but didn’t qualify.
Indeed, of the 24 player-seasons making the list in this 20-year span, only four were from shortstops (two each by Travis Jackson and Arky Vaughan). Besides Cronin, the only other shortstops who threatened to make it were Glenn Wright and Eric McNair, but no cigar.
Overall, the decade of the 1930s saw fewer middle infielders reaching the 1.50 ISO+ mark than any of the preceding three. Would it be the case in the years to follow that the incidence of power-hitting shorstops and second basemen would continue to dwindle?
The most powerful-hitting middle infielders, 1940-1976
Year Player Team Age Pos AB 2B 3B HR OPS+ ISO LG ISO ISO+ 1940 Joe Gordon NYY 25 2B 616 32 10 30 121 .230 .142 1.62 1942 Joe Gordon NYY 27 2B 538 29 4 18 155 .169 .105 1.61 1942 Bobby Doerr BOS 24 2B 545 35 5 15 128 .165 .108 1.53 1943 Vern Stephens SLB 22 SS 512 27 3 22 142 .193 .098 1.97 1943 Joe Gordon NYY 28 2B 543 28 5 17 126 .164 .098 1.67 1944 Bobby Doerr BOS 26 2B 468 30 10 15 165 .203 .097 2.09 1944 Vern Stephens SLB 23 SS 559 32 1 20 129 .169 .100 1.69 1945 Vern Stephens SLB 24 SS 571 27 3 24 134 .184 .096 1.92 1945 George Stirnweiss NYY 26 2B 632 32 22 10 144 .167 .096 1.74 1945 Eddie Miller CIN 28 SS 421 27 2 13 89 .166 .103 1.61 1946 Bobby Doerr BOS 28 2B 583 34 9 18 116 .182 .118 1.54 1947 Joe Gordon CLE 32 2B 562 27 6 29 135 .224 .113 1.98 1948 Joe Gordon CLE 33 2B 550 21 4 32 134 .227 .121 1.88 1948 Bobby Doerr BOS 30 2B 527 23 6 27 131 .220 .124 1.77 1948 Vern Stephens BOS 27 SS 635 25 8 29 113 .202 .124 1.63 1949 Vern Stephens BOS 28 SS 610 31 2 39 138 .249 .126 1.98 1949 Eddie Joost PHA 33 SS 525 25 3 23 137 .190 .121 1.57 1950 Bobby Doerr BOS 32 2B 586 29 11 27 116 .225 .145 1.55 1955 Ernie Banks CHC 24 SS 596 29 9 44 144 .301 .155 1.94 1956 Ernie Banks CHC 25 SS 538 25 8 28 136 .233 .152 1.53 1957 Ernie Banks CHC 26 SS 594 34 6 43 149 .294 .147 2.00 1958 Ernie Banks CHC 27 SS 617 23 11 47 156 .301 .150 2.01 1959 Ernie Banks CHC 28 SS 589 25 6 45 155 .292 .147 1.99 1959 Woodie Held CLE 27 SS 525 19 3 29 114 .214 .135 1.59 1960 Ernie Banks CHC 29 SS 597 32 7 41 145 .283 .140 2.02 1961 Ernie Banks CHC 30 SS 511 22 4 29 122 .229 .151 1.52 1964 Denis Menke MLN 23 SS 505 29 5 20 136 .196 .128 1.53 1966 Dick McAuliffe DET 26 SS 430 16 8 23 148 .235 .137 1.72 1969 Rico Petrocelli BOS 26 SS 535 32 2 40 167 .292 .133 2.20 1970 Rico Petrocelli BOS 27 SS 583 31 3 29 114 .212 .140 1.51 1973 Dave Johnson ATL 30 2B 559 25 0 43 143 .276 .132 2.09 1973 Joe Morgan CIN 29 2B 576 35 2 26 154 .203 .125 1.62 1974 Joe Morgan CIN 30 2B 512 31 3 22 159 .201 .117 1.72 1975 Joe Morgan CIN 31 2B 498 27 6 17 169 .181 .119 1.52 1976 Joe Morgan CIN 32 2B 472 30 5 27 187 .256 .113 2.27
Well, the answer is yes and no. Or to put it more accurately, no and yes.
It’s “no” in the sense that the 1940s witnessed a booming rebound of power-hitting middle infielders. At the vanguard was Lazzeri’s replacement as the Yankees’ second baseman, Joe Gordon, who had already put up qualifying seasons in 1938 and ’39, and then logged five more in the ’40s. Gordon was particularly famed for his rare combination of acrobatic defensive work around the second base bag and home run production at the plate.
Two other American League middle infielders in those years also delivered outstanding home run power: second baseman Bobby Doerr and shortstop Junior Stephens, who became teammates with the Red Sox in 1948 and in that season presented the only ballclub in history with both keystone partners surpassing the 1.50 ISO+ barrier.
But the answer to the question is “yes” in the sense that following the 1940s the power-hitting middle infielder became rare again. As the Gordon-Doerr-Stephens trio declined in the early 1950s, there was no younger cohort to replace them. The four-season span of 1951 through 1954 produced no qualifiers for the list, the longest drought since we began keeping track in 1893. Just a couple of guys in those years came somewhat close: Eddie Joost in ’51 and ’52, and Daryl Spencer in 1953.
The burst into superstardom by Ernie Banks in 1955 broke up the shutout. Yet as stupendous a power-hitting shortstop as Banks was, those who maintain that he was highly atypical for his era have an excellent point; there was just no one else like Banks at the time. Aside from a lone season from Woodie Held in 1959, Banks is the lone qualifier on this list between 1950 and 1964. The 1950s genuinely was a decade in which light-hitting middle infielders were the norm as never before, and thus Banks’ consistently lusty hitting becomes all the more extraordinary in context.
In the early 1960s, several younger shortstops emerged who hit with some authority. I anticipated that at least a couple among Eddie Bressoud, Ron Hansen, Leo Cardenas, Tom Tresh, Zoilo Versalles and Jim Fregosi would have qualifying seasons, but none did. The only middle infielders of the era who made the list were Denis Menke and Dick McAuliffe.
Late in the decade a home run-hitting shortstop of historic proportions suddenly emerged in Rico Petrocelli. His peak would prove to be brief, but it was towering: Petrocelli’s ISO+ of 2.20 in 1969 was higher than any produced by Banks, and indeed to this day remains higher than that from any shortstop in history except Honus Wagner.
A few years later another freakish performance occurred, as 30-year-old Dave Johnson came out of nowhere to join Hornsby as the second 40-dinger second baseman in history, and Johnson’s ISO+ also surpassed the stratospheric 2.00 level. And then the mid-1970s was the setting for Joe Morgan’s phenomenal sustained peak, capped by the staggering 1976 display in which Morgan’s ISO+ of 2.27 was the highest by any second baseman in history except Rogers Hornsby (and, of course, Little Joe was meanwhile stealing 60 bases and winning a Gold Glove—you might say he was pretty good).
Yet like those of Banks, all these performances must be understood as quite exceptional for their era. Like the 1950s, the 1960s and ’70s remained a period in which high-grade power hitting by middle infielders was very rare.
Bringing us to the question of what’s happened since then.
The most powerful-hitting middle infielders, 1977-2007
Year Player Team Age Pos AB 2B 3B HR OPS+ ISO LG ISO ISO+ 1979 Bobby Grich CAL 30 2B 534 30 5 30 145 .243 .136 1.79 1979 Dave Lopes LAD 34 2B 582 20 6 28 128 .199 .129 1.54 1980 Robin Yount MIL 24 SS 611 49 10 23 130 .226 .128 1.77 1981 Bobby Grich CAL 32 2B 352 14 2 22 164 .239 .117 2.04 1982 Robin Yount MIL 26 SS 635 46 12 29 166 .247 .135 1.83 1982 Cal Ripken BAL 21 SS 598 32 5 28 115 .211 .138 1.53 1984 Ryne Sandberg CHC 24 2B 636 36 19 19 140 .206 .124 1.66 1984 Cal Ripken BAL 23 SS 641 37 7 27 145 .206 .133 1.55 1985 Ryne Sandberg CHC 25 2B 609 31 6 26 132 .199 .133 1.50 1987 Juan Samuel PHI 26 2B 655 37 15 28 116 .230 .152 1.51 1989 Lou Whitaker DET 32 2B 509 21 1 28 133 .211 .122 1.73 1989 Ryne Sandberg CHC 29 2B 606 25 5 30 134 .207 .128 1.62 1990 Ryne Sandberg CHC 30 2B 615 30 3 40 140 .253 .138 1.83 1991 Cal Ripken BAL 30 SS 650 46 5 34 162 .243 .132 1.84 1991 Barry Larkin CIN 27 SS 464 27 4 20 143 .204 .131 1.56 1991 Lou Whitaker DET 34 2B 470 26 2 23 141 .210 .136 1.54 1992 Ryne Sandberg CHC 32 2B 612 32 8 26 146 .206 .124 1.66 1996 Barry Larkin CIN 32 SS 517 32 4 33 154 .269 .153 1.76 1996 Alex Rodriguez SEA 20 SS 601 54 1 36 160 .273 .168 1.63 1998 Jeff Kent SFG 30 2B 526 37 3 31 142 .258 .152 1.70 1998 Nomar Garciaparra BOS 24 SS 604 37 8 35 140 .261 .162 1.61 1998 Alex Rodriguez SEA 22 SS 686 35 5 42 136 .250 .159 1.57 1999 Alex Rodriguez SEA 23 SS 502 25 0 42 134 .301 .167 1.80 1999 Jay Bell ARI 33 2B 589 32 6 38 131 .268 .169 1.59 2000 Alex Rodriguez SEA 24 SS 554 34 2 41 162 .290 .164 1.77 2000 Jeff Kent SFG 32 2B 587 41 7 33 162 .262 .167 1.57 2001 Alex Rodriguez TEX 25 SS 632 34 1 52 160 .304 .164 1.85 2001 Bret Boone SEA 32 2B 623 37 3 37 153 .247 .157 1.57 2002 Alex Rodriguez TEX 26 SS 624 27 2 57 158 .323 .165 1.96 2002 Jeff Kent SFG 34 2B 623 42 2 37 147 .252 .153 1.65 2002 Mark Bellhorn CHC 27 2B 445 24 4 27 133 .254 .155 1.64 2002 Alfonso Soriano NYY 26 2B 696 51 2 39 129 .247 .161 1.53 2003 Alex Rodriguez TEX 27 SS 607 30 6 47 147 .302 .169 1.79 2003 Bret Boone SEA 34 2B 622 35 5 35 140 .241 .157 1.54 2004 Jose Valentin CHW 34 SS 450 20 3 30 92 .257 .165 1.56 2005 Chase Utley PHI 26 2B 543 39 6 28 132 .249 .163 1.53 2005 Alfonso Soriano TEX 29 2B 637 43 2 36 109 .244 .161 1.52 2006 Bill Hall MIL 26 SS 537 39 4 35 125 .283 .171 1.65
Here we see the environment into which our powerful friend Mr. Ripken arrived.
And we see that while it’s true that the late ’70s/early ’80s period was certainly on the lean side regarding power-hitting middle infielders, they weren’t unknown. There had been a two-year drought in 1977-78 (half as long as the four-year absence of qualifiers that preceded Ernie Banks), but by Ripken’s rookie season of 1982, big-and-strong second baseman Bobby Grich had presented two heavy-slugging years in a three-year span (including a tremendous 2.04 ISO+ in the strike-interrupted 1981 season), and little-but-strong second baseman Dave Lopes had chipped in one of his own in 1979.
Moreover, in Ripken’s outstanding Rookie of the Year season, his league’s MVP was a fellow shortstop, Robin Yount, putting up his second heavy-slugging year in a three-year span.
And in Ripken’s big MVP season of 1984, his counterpart MVP in the National League was a big strong second baseman, Ryne Sandberg, whose ISO+ exceeded Ripken’s. Big Cal would go on to post another big slugging season in 1991, but Sandberg would outdo him with four additional years on this list.
It does seem that the frequency of serious power-hitting middle infielders was greater in the 1980s and ’90s, and on into the current decade, than it had been in the preceding 20 or 30 years. But the raw magnitude of names on the list might be deceptive, because due to expansion there are significantly more teams in the modern era. Let’s take a look at how many middle infielders qualified for the list in each decade as a proportion of team-seasons:
Years Teams Qualifiers Q/T 1893-99 84 5 .060 1900-09 160 17 .106 1910-19 160 12 .075 1920-29 160 16 .100 1930-39 160 8 .050 1940-49 160 17 .106 1950-59 160 7 .044 1960-69 198 5 .025 1970-79 246 8 .033 1980-89 260 10 .038 1990-99 278 12 .043 2000-07 240 14 .058
Here we see that while the frequency of big-slugging middle infielders did indeed increase in the ’80s over the ’70s, it was only ever-so-slightly. And their abundance in the 1990s was only about equal to what it had been in the Banks-and-almost-nobody-else 1950s. It’s only been in the 2000s that the proportion has crept higher than it was in the 1930s, and it remains barely over half of what it was in the 1940s or 1920s.
Thus while there is some truth to the notion that things have changed since Ripken’s arrival, the fact is that what may appear as an explosion of power-hitting from middle infielders in the current era is largely an illusion fostered by the twin effects of (a) just so many more teams and players than in the past, and (b) the high-slugging conditions that pervade overall. Indeed, when setting out to research this issue, I fully anticipated several names to qualify,
such as Miguel Tejada, Rich Aurilia, Hanley Ramirez and Dan Uggla, but at least through 2007 they didn’t quite make it: their raw numbers have been gaudy, but in comparison with park-adjusted league-wide power-hitting, not that exceptional. (Ramirez and Uggla are on pace to qualify in 2008, which would allow them to match Vern Stephens and Bobby Doerr of the 1948 Red Sox as qualifying keystone teammates.)
Understanding this, we’re able to appreciate the genuinely exceptional power-hitting middle infielders of the modern era as the great producers they’ve truly been. This applies mostly, of course, to Alex Rodriguez, legitimately one of the greatest power-hitting middle infielders in history (until some team got the brilliant idea to remove him from the middle infield). But we should also recognize in particular those others who’ve made multiple appearances on this list: Lou Whitaker, Barry Larkin, Jeff Kent, Bret Boone and Alfonso Soriano. Also, Chase Utley is on a 2008 pace that will allow him to achieve repeat qualifier status.
So, sorry, Cal
Alas the idea that Ripken alone stimulated a dramatic change in the prevalence of power-hitting middle infielders isn’t supported by the facts. It’s more accurate to say that Ripken himself was part of a trend, and a gradual trend at that.
And, incidentally, regarding the related notion that Ripken’s size itself was unprecedented for a middle infielder, and has as well opened the gates for many more king-sized middle infielders to follow, there isn’t a whole lot to that either. Yes, Ripken (listed at 6-foot-4 and 225 pounds in bb-ref.com) is perhaps the biggest middle infielder of all time, but there had been others before him who were almost as big: Mike Andrews (6-3, 195), Ron Hansen (6-3, 200), Andre Rodgers (6-3, 200), Tony Kubek (6-3, 191), Roy Smalley Sr. (6-3, 190) and Don Kolloway (6-3, 200) all come to mind.
Nor has there been a long list of Ripken-sized middle infielders in his wake: A-Rod (listed at 6-3, 225 on ESPN.com) is the biggest of the guys on this list following Ripken, and no one else here approaches that size. After A-Rod, the biggest middle infielders in the current era have probably been Hanley Ramirez (6-3, 200) and Derek Jeter (6-3, 195); there just aren’t a lot of guys that big playing shortstop or second base, even post-Ripken.
The top 50
So, one last round of applause for the best there’ve ever been: the top 50 ISO+ performances by middle infielders.
Year Player Team Age Pos AB 2B 3B HR OPS+ ISO LG ISO ISO+ 1922 Rogers Hornsby STL 26 2B 623 46 14 42 207 .321 .115 2.79 1925 Rogers Hornsby STL 29 2B 504 41 10 39 210 .353 .129 2.74 1908 Honus Wagner PIT 34 SS 568 39 19 10 205 .188 .071 2.65 1924 Rogers Hornsby STL 28 2B 536 43 14 25 222 .272 .113 2.41 1907 Honus Wagner PIT 33 SS 515 38 14 6 186 .163 .069 2.36 1976 Joe Morgan CIN 32 2B 472 30 5 27 187 .256 .113 2.27 1904 Honus Wagner PIT 30 SS 490 44 14 4 187 .171 .076 2.25 1904 Nap Lajoie CLE 29 2B 553 49 15 6 205 .176 .079 2.23 1969 Rico Petrocelli BOS 26 SS 535 32 2 40 167 .292 .133 2.20 1901 Nap Lajoie PHA 26 2B 544 48 14 14 200 .217 .099 2.19 1921 Rogers Hornsby STL 25 2B 592 44 18 21 191 .242 .111 2.18 1929 Rogers Hornsby CHC 33 2B 602 47 8 39 178 .299 .139 2.15 1923 Rogers Hornsby STL 27 2B 424 32 10 17 188 .243 .113 2.15 1911 Larry Doyle NYG 24 2B 526 25 25 13 154 .217 .102 2.13 1920 Rogers Hornsby STL 24 2B 589 44 20 9 185 .189 .090 2.10 1944 Bobby Doerr BOS 26 2B 468 30 10 15 165 .203 .097 2.09 1973 Dave Johnson ATL 30 2B 559 25 0 43 143 .276 .132 2.09 1927 Rogers Hornsby NYG 31 2B 568 32 9 26 175 .225 .110 2.05 1981 Bobby Grich CAL 32 2B 352 14 2 22 164 .239 .117 2.04 1928 Rogers Hornsby BSN 32 2B 486 42 7 21 200 .245 .120 2.04 1960 Ernie Banks CHC 29 SS 597 32 7 41 145 .283 .140 2.02 1958 Ernie Banks CHC 27 SS 617 23 11 47 156 .301 .150 2.01 1957 Ernie Banks CHC 26 SS 594 34 6 43 149 .294 .147 2.00 1909 Honus Wagner PIT 35 SS 495 39 10 5 176 .150 .075 2.00 1959 Ernie Banks CHC 28 SS 589 25 6 45 155 .292 .147 1.99 1947 Joe Gordon CLE 32 2B 562 27 6 29 135 .224 .113 1.98 1949 Vern Stephens BOS 28 SS 610 31 2 39 138 .249 .126 1.98 1896 Bill Dahlen CHC 26 SS 474 30 19 9 156 .201 .102 1.97 1943 Vern Stephens SLB 22 SS 512 27 3 22 142 .193 .098 1.97 2002 Alex Rodriguez TEX 26 SS 624 27 2 57 158 .323 .165 1.96 1955 Ernie Banks CHC 24 SS 596 29 9 44 144 .301 .155 1.94 1917 Rogers Hornsby STL 21 SS 523 24 17 8 169 .157 .081 1.94 1902 Nap Lajoie PHA-CLE 27 2B 352 35 5 7 175 .187 .097 1.93 1903 Honus Wagner PIT 29 SS 512 30 19 5 161 .163 .085 1.92 1945 Vern Stephens SLB 24 SS 571 27 3 24 134 .184 .096 1.92 1903 Nap Lajoie CLE 28 2B 485 41 11 7 169 .174 .092 1.89 1900 Nap Lajoie PHI 25 2B 451 33 12 7 140 .173 .092 1.88 1948 Joe Gordon CLE 33 2B 550 21 4 32 134 .227 .121 1.88 2001 Alex Rodriguez TEX 25 SS 632 34 1 52 160 .304 .164 1.85 1991 Cal Ripken BAL 30 SS 650 46 5 34 162 .243 .132 1.84 1990 Ryne Sandberg CHC 30 2B 615 30 3 40 140 .253 .138 1.83 1982 Robin Yount MIL 26 SS 635 46 12 29 166 .247 .135 1.83 1935 Arky Vaughan PIT 23 SS 499 34 10 19 190 .222 .123 1.80 1999 Alex Rodriguez SEA 23 SS 502 25 0 42 134 .301 .167 1.80 1918 Rogers Hornsby STL 22 SS 416 19 11 5 136 .135 .075 1.80 2003 Alex Rodriguez TEX 27 SS 607 30 6 47 147 .302 .169 1.79 1979 Bobby Grich CAL 30 2B 534 30 5 30 145 .243 .136 1.79 1899 Bobby Wallace STL 25 SS 577 28 14 12 120 .159 .089 1.79 1910 Nap Lajoie CLE 35 2B 591 51 7 4 199 .130 .073 1.78 1898 Nap Lajoie PHI 23 2B 608 43 11 6 137 .137 .077 1.78