The 100 Greatest in 100 Days: #86 Hank Greenberg

At #86 on the list is The Hebrew Hammer Hank Greenberg. Like his fellow masher Johnny Mize, Greenberg missed a huge chunk of his peak serving in WWII. For Greenberg the cost was even more substantial as he would miss 4.5 seasons, limiting his career to just 1,394 career games, or the equivalent of 8.5 seasons worth of games. All Greenberg did during his short time in the league was put together one of the most extraordinary stretches in MLB history. Greenberg led the league in HRs, RBIs, and extra-base hits four times, total bases and walks twice, and slugging %, OPS, and runs one time each. He’s 6th all-time in slugging %. His 184 RBIs in 1937 are the 3rd highest single-season total in history and his 63 doubles in 1934 are the fourth most in history. He won the American League MVP in 1935 and 1940 and finished third in 1937 and 1938. Greenberg is one of only five players in history with three seasons of at least 150 RBIs. He’s the only player in history with a 50 home run season and a 60 double season. He’s also the only player in history with a 180 RBI season and a season of at least 58 home runs. It’s wild to think what Greenberg’s career would’ve looked like with the 2,200 at-bats he lost to the war.

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Hi (hopefully) awesome reader! I welcome your comments. However, please be aware that I make all of my arguments using facts, statistics, and logic. Unfortunately, the average comment on a top-100 list goes something like this:

"UR StooPid. (Insert player) is trash. I've watched (pick a sport) for (pick a number of years) and (pick a player) is better than everyone. UR DUMB. HAHA6969."

–Some Jabroni

As cognitively stimulating as this species of comment is, it ends up being a missed opportunity to share a nuanced perspective. I reply to all comments that show even the most basic levels of thought and humility. The people who make the comments like the example above are under the assumption that the three seconds of thought that popped into their brains after reading the list is more than the 1000s of hours that I put into creating and maintaining the lists. I would be happy to defend any placement, or make an adjustment if one is warranted. If you are a jabroni, like the one above, then your comment will die in the lonely void of the unpublished comments section.

For everyone else, I look forward to your comments!

P.S. The theme of this site and the top-100 lists is that athletes from previous generations have historically been grossly overrated by sports publications in a way that is statistically improbable. Click on the "About" dropdown menu to see just how badly the average top-100 list disproportionately favors athletes from older generations when leagues were smaller, race quotas existed, and globalization wasn't a thing. Also, please consider reading "The History" section of the sport you are commenting on.

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