Since the days of Babe Ruth, people have drooled about power hitters. Home runs bring stadiums to their feet. And a special long ball can get a player’s name trending on social media.
That’s how it’s always been.
But if you want to win in the big leagues, you must have guys who can field and throw. Some of baseball’s most iconic figures have played in the outfield, but most have been lauded for their dominant hitting rather than their fielding wizardry. (Some of the most special are even considered “5 Tool Players.”)
In this article, we’re going to try and recognize the players who stood in the outfield year after year, ready to run, catch, and throw from deep, doing whatever it took t help the team win.
How to Measure Outfield Defense in Baseball
But how do you really measure outfield defense in baseball? No one has cracked the code yet, and it’s more than just comparing things like Gold Glove and Platinum Glove awards.
Each year stats are updated and tweaked to give us a better way of understanding the game. Still, it never tells the whole story of what’s happening on that diamond.
There are putouts, assists, dWAR, DRS (defensive runs saved), TZR (total zone runs), UZR (ultimate zone rating), OAA (outs above average), boring old fielding percentage, and then the old faithful eyeball test.
What do we do?
We take these stats, throw them together, and argue. Frankly, this is what internet comments section fights are built on. Below is a list of exceptional outfielders with relevant statistics making a case for each player’s greatness.
Rather than start a digital dumpster fire by ranking them, we’ve identified 21 outfielders who were the greatest in their era of baseball history. Of course, every period had peculiarities, affecting how outfielders played the game. So we need to acknowledge that even though we wouldn’t want to watch them today, some of these players were filthy good back in their time.
First, a few metric explanations.
- A putout is any time a player gets a runner out, like a catch or a tag
- An assist is when a player throws the ball to another fielder who gets the runner out
- Range is putouts+assists, and range is usually divided into per game and per 9 innings.
- Total Zone Runs (TZR) calculates “the number of runs above or below average the player was worth based on the number of plays made” (Baseball Reference)
- Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) is another modern metric that considers multiple factors to determine how many runs the player saved through his direct defensive contributions.
And without further ado, our list of the greatest defensive outfielders of all time, sorted by era:
- Tris Speaker (1907-1928)
- Ty Cobb (1905-1928)
- Fielder Jones (1896-1908)
- Harry Hooper (1909-1925)
- Max Carey (1910-1929)
- Taylor Douthit (1923-1933)
- Sam West (1927-1942)
- Dom Dimaggio (1940-1953)
- Jim Piersall (1950-1967)
- Richie Ashburn (1948-1962)
- Willie Mays (1951-1973)
- Roberto Clemente (1955-1972)
- Al Kaline (1953-1974)
- Paul Blair (1964-1980)
- Jesse Barfield (1981-1992)
- Garry Maddox (1972-1986)
- Devon White (1984-1995)
- Andruw Jones (1996-2012)
- Barry Bonds (1986-2007)
- Brian Jordan (1992-2006)
- Ichiro Suzuki (2001-2019)
Dead Ball Era (1900-1919)
Here are a bunch of guys you’ve probably never heard of…and Ty Cobb. During this period, pitchers could do whatever they wanted to the ball (spitball, anybody?), and the ballparks were massive. I mean “video game funny” like 560 feet to the fence.
That made life much harder for hitters and made stat-padding easier for the outfielders. Don’t get me wrong, these guys were great, but there’s a reason why most of them have such high putout and assist stats.
- Tris Speaker
- Ty Cobb
- Fielder Jones
- Harry Hooper
Live Ball Era (1920-1941)
The live ball era was the time of Babe Ruth and the beginning of the true boom of baseball in America. The parks were still big, and there was still a hangover effect from the Deadball era in terms of play style…
But the balls were better, and the pitchers couldn’t make them impossible to hit. With bigger and longer hits came more excitement but not as many famous outfielders. Still, we can find some fielders who stand out, even if you haven’t heard of them.
- Max Carey
- Taylor Douthit
- Sam West
Integration Era (1942-1960)
In this period, the US was rocked by a World War and civil rights reform. War interrupted baseball as many of its stars served in the military during the war. Then post-war Jackie Robinson’s explosion into the sport led the way for racial integration across the entire league. Quality wavered throughout this period, but to be sure great fielders emerged from this time as well.
- Dom Dimaggio
- Jim Piersall
- Richie Ashburn
Expansion Era (1961-1976)
This was undoubtedly the golden era for outfielders for both offense and defense. Four teams were added to the league requiring teams to travel across the country to play.
The season increased to 162 games, and the first iteration of the playoffs was introduced. The sport was growing, and it had never been more exciting.
- Willie Mays
- Roberto Clemente
- Al Kaline
- Paul Blair
Free Agent Era (1977-1993)
It’s amazing to think that there was a time (well, a lot of time actually) where baseball didn’t have free agents, especially given the fact that free agent talk is always in seasons nowadays.
Read More: Baseball Positions Ranked by Difficulty
This year we have Aaron Judge in the middle of a historic home run pace, and half the stories seem to be about his impending free agency.
Anyway, let’s take a look at some of the special gloves (and arms) to grace the diamond soon after Curt Flood made free agency possible for all of baseball.
- Jesse Barfield
- Garry Maddox
- Devon White
Steroid Era (1994-2005)
To be honest, who knows who was any good during this era? But if everyone was using PEDs then, users or not, these guys stood out as the best outfielders. I’m also of the mindset that sure steroids make you stronger, but many of the game’s most skilled players of the time could have done plenty without them.
- Andruw Jones
- Barry Bonds
- Brian Jordan
Moneyball Era (2006-Present)
The game has never been as meticulously analyzed as it is today. You can make a case for any number of players by picking whatever stat delights you the most. What’s also tricky is comparing players that just finished or haven’t finished their careers yet.
There’s only one player I would put in the pantheon from this era at the moment, and that is…
Ichiro.
Eight games into his rookie season in Seattle, Ichiro Suzuki announced himself as an outfielder to be feared when he threw out Terrance Long at third base from deep right field in Oakland. It was outrageous. He had no business throwing a ball like that soon into his career. And yet, he did it with an elegant explosion that I’m sure was heard back in his home of Japan.
The Japanese press nicknamed it “The Throw,” and Ichiro quickly rose to superstardom. Baseball’s all-time hit leader was metronomically excellent throughout his 19-year career, saving his team between 100-136 runs from the outfield.
He also impressibly recorded the 20th highest amount of putouts from the outfield. A class act throughout his career, Ichiro ended his extraordinary run back in Seattle, where the future Hall of Famer began his one-of-a-kind baseball career.
And with that, there you have it. The 21 best defensive outfielders in baseball history. While social media blows up with power hitters, those who appreciate the whole game can join me in honoring these guys who gave their all to help their teams win from the outfield.
But wait! What about…..?
Ken Griffey Jr: The first half of his career was legendary. Defensively, the second half wasn’t. So, he ends up as an above-average fielder.
Torii Hunter: This one hurt. Watching him fly through the air, robbing home runs game after game, was incredible, including one from Barry Bonds in the All-Star game. But numbers don’t lie; while he was brilliant, others outshone him in team contributions.
Mickey Mantle: It’s hard to gauge arguably the most talented player in history when he was so riddled by injuries.
Joe Dimaggio: Dimaggio was Gold Glove-caliber before WWII and below average after it. And statistically, he was the third-best outfielder in the Dimaggio family.
