Ask most baseball fans to name a player whos had the honor to be enshrined at Cooperstown and theyre likely to mention an undisputable legend like Babe Ruth or Ted Williams, a recent inductee like Rickey Henderson or Craig Biggio, or a personal favorite from their hometown team. But there are dozens of lesser-known but very accomplished players with plaques on the walls of the Hall of Fame who have been largely forgotten by modern fans. Some of these players set records that are unlikely to ever be broken. Meet the all-time leader in triples, the home run king of the pre-Babe Ruth era, the man who couldnt strike out, and the 19th century speedster who shares a name with one of todays rising stars. Here are some of baseballs greats you may never have heard of.
10. Tris Speaker
Who He Was: Played 1907 to 1928 for the Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians, Washington Senators, and Philadelphia Athletics While Tris Speaker may be the least obscure player on this list, hes still not well-known to most modern fans. Speakers most important hitting achievement is probably his all-time best 792 doubles. A fine batter is all respects, he also boasted a .345 average, 3514 hits, and 1531 runs batted in. But Speakers most impressive accomplishment might be defensive rather than offensive. His 449 outfield assists is a record unlikely to ever be matched. To put this in perspective, since defensive stats get far less attention than hitting numbers, the active leader in outfield assists is Carlos Beltran, with 134.
Aaron Smith is a writer who can't stick to one genre. He's written horror, mystery, fantasy, and espionage novels and short stories, including new tales of Sherlock Holmes. A lifelong fan of movies, comics, good books, obscure trivia, and the New York Yankees, he lives in northern New Jersey.
