Top 5 List: Top 5 Baseball Players

This list challenge of Top 5 Baseball players was given to me by my daughter, and she would not really put parameters around it.  So, I went with my Top 5 Baseball players I would have watched in my lifetime.  So here is the list:  

1.  Greg Maddux

2.  Mark Grace

3.  Dave Winfield

4.  Jack Morris

5.  Anthony Rizzo

It is a tough list to make because as I'm typing I keep thinking Wade Boggs, Ken Griffey Jr., Frank Thomas, Mitch Williams, Brett Saberhagen, Ozzie Smith, Alan Trammel, Ichiro, Charlie Hough, Tim Wakefield, Will Clark, etc.  It really isn't fair, but that's my list!  Greg Maddux is by far my top pitcher and player.  Even though I saw him lose many games, I always knew the Cubs or Braves had a great chance to win when he was on the mound.  He was a pitcher that didn't rely on the heat, but rather he relied on cunning and outsmarting the hitter with amazing movement.  You rarely saw Maddux shaken on the mound and late in his career, I enjoyed watching him in the dugout mentoring young pitchers.  

Mark Grace and Anthony Rizzo have protected first base at Wrigley field the majority of my time as a Cubs Fan.  They both are amazing at defense and while Grace is an overall better hitter, in my opinion, I like their approach at the plate.  Grace was more about the extra-base hit where Rizzo is more about putting the ball in play with an eye to helping the ball exit the park.  

Dave Winfield was just impressive.  Besides being a great guy with a great attitude, he was an amazing athlete.  Coming out of college in Minnesota he was one of six players to ever be drafted by three major professional sports teams (Minnesota Vikings NFL, Atlanta Hawks NBA, San Diego Padres MLB).  I liked Winfield's presence on the field and his home run hitting power.  He was also aided in longevity in the league because of the designated hitter rule.  Winfield lasted a long time and slowly crept up many statistical record lists.  

Jack Morris was an amazing pitcher.  I will never forget the pitching performance he made in game 7 of the World Series for Minnesota.  He pitched a 10 inning complete game to close it out for the Twins.  He was the kind of pitcher who didn't look for the best ERA or pitching stats.  Morris wanted to put his team in a position to win a game.  It didn't ever seem to matter to him whether it was a 1-0 win or a 11-10 win.  He pitched to keep his team in it.  

So, there you have it!  The first Top 5 in my Top 5 series.  What do you think?  Who are your Top 5 Baseball players?  Do you have some other Top 5 topics you would like me to rank?  Leave a comment.