The 100 Greatest in 100 Days: #19 Stan Musial

Swattin’ into the list at #19 is Cardinals legend Stan “The Man” Musial. Musial’s career was magnificent for a number of reasons but the most remarkable is his presence on the all-time leaderboard in virtually every major offensive statistic. Musial is second all-time in total bases, third in runs created, doubles and intentional walks, 4th in hits, 7th in offensive WAR, 8th in RBIs, 10th in runs, 13th in OPS and walks, 16th in slugging percentage, 19th in triples, 23rd in on-base percentage, 30th in batting average and 32nd in home runs. He is the only player in history in the top-35 of each category. Musial’s hit/power tool and plate discipline are arguably the best ever as he is the only player in history with 3,600 career hits and a .559 slugging %. He’s also the only player in history with more than 1,500 career walks and fewer than 700 strikeouts. Stan “The Man” led the league in runs created nine times, doubles eight times, and extra-base hits seven times; all are the most in history. Musial had five seasons of at least 80 walks, 40 or fewer strikeouts, and at least 30 home runs which are the most in history. He’s the only player in history with 420 total bases and fewer than 35 strikeouts in the same season.  Stan’s three MVPs are tied for the 2nd most all-time as are his seven top-2 MVP finishes. Musial led the Cardinals to three World Series titles and four appearances.  

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