The All-80's Team - American League Lineup

Finally. That's all I have to say at this point. The TMS All-80's Teams are complete. The voting output was a little stronger for the AL, mostly because of our general increase in traffic. Anyway, here's a recap of the AL team.


CATCHER

Carlton Fisk
Boston Red Sox (1980), Chicago White Sox (1981-89)

Nickname: Pudge
Hall of Fame: Inducted in 2000
All-Star: 1980-82, 1985
Silver Sluggers: 1981, 1985, 1988
Postseason: 1983 ALCS

Notes: The original Pudge was known more for his slugging rather than his glove. Fisk made 4 All-Star teams in the decade. His 174 home runs is only second to Lance Parrish for catchers in the 80's.





FIRST BASE

Don Mattingly
New York Yankees (1982-89)

Nickname: Donnie Baseball
All-Star: 1984-89
Awards: 1985 AL MVP
Gold Gloves: 1985-89
Silver Sluggers: 1985-87
League Leader: 1984 Hits, Doubles, AVG, 1985 RBI, 1986 SLG, Hits, Doubles

Notes: I'll argue Donnie Baseball's case for the HOF any day of the week. Screw the naysayers who claim he didn't play long enough. Don played plenty and his accomplishments speak for themselves. Like Bill James said, Don is "100% Ballplayer, 0% Bullshit".



SECOND BASE

Lou Whitaker
Detroit Tigers (1980-89)

Nickname: Sweet Lou
All-Star: 1983-87
Gold Gloves: 1983-85
Silver Sluggers: 1983-85, 1987
Postseason: 1984 WS, 1987 ALCS

Notes: Part of the legendary Trammell-Whitaker middle infield, the lifelong Tiger is considered one of the premier second basemen of the decade. In 1985 Lou forgot his uniform for the All-Star Game, leaving him to wear a uni that was put together from items purchased at the ballpark. Trammell and Whitaker are one of only nine 2B/SS duos to win Gold Gloves in the same year. Only Vizquel/Alomar and Renteria/Viña have done it since then.


THIRD BASE

George Brett
Kansas City Royals (1980-89)

Nickname: Mullet
Hall of Fame: Inducted in 1999
All-Star: 1980-88
Awards: 1980 AL MVP, 1985 ALCS MVP
Gold Gloves: 1985
Silver Sluggers: 1980, 1985, 1988
Postseason: 1980 WS, 1981 ALDS, 1984 ALCS, 1985 WS
League Leader: 1980 AVG, OBP, SLG, 1983 SLG, 1985 SLG

Notes: Well before Kenny Rogers came along, Brett was part of the real "Pine Tar Incident". Brett apparently is the guy that coined the term "the Mendoza Line". He is also good friends with Rush Limbaugh, who stood up with him at his wedding.


SHORTSTOP

Cal Ripken
Baltimore Orioles (1981-89)

Nickname: Iron Man
Hall Of Fame: Undoubtedly in 2007
All-Star: 1983-89
Awards: 1982 AL Rookie of the Year, 1983 AL MVP
Silver Sluggers: 1983-86, 1989
Postseason: 1983 WS
League Leader: 1983 Hits, Runs, Doubles

Notes: Obviously we all know about this guy. Cal was a freakin' cyborg, playing in 2,632 consecutive games. He will no doubt be elected into the Hall of Fame this next year. But honestly, can you be considered one of the greatest of the 80's without ever having donned a moustache? Fascist.



LEFT FIELD

Rickey Henderson
Oakland A's (1980-84, 1989), New York Yankees (1985-89)

Nickname: The Man of Steal
All-Star: 1980, 1982-88
Awards: 1989 ALCS MVP
Gold Gloves: 1981
Silver Sluggers: 1981, 1985
Silver Sluggers: 1981 ALCS, 1989 WS
League Leader: Runs (1981, 85, 86, 89), BB (1982, 83, 89), Stolen Bases (1980-86), (1988-89)

Notes: The only player I know that has a section in their Wikipedia entry entitled "Malapropisms" which lists various quotes and anecdotes of him speaking in the third-person. My personal favorite being that he's known to take practice swings in front of a mirror fully nude while saying "Rickey's the best! You tha man, Rickey!"


CENTER FIELD

Kirby Puckett
Minnesota Twins (1984-89)

Hall of Fame: Inducted in 2001
All-Star: 1986-89
Awards: 1989 ALCS MVP
Gold Gloves: 1986-89
Silver Sluggers: 1986-89
Postseason: 1987 WS
League Leader: 1987 Hits, 1988 Hits, 1989 Hits & AVG

Notes: One of the most prolific hitters of his era, Kirby was also a whiz in the field too, earning as many Gold Gloves in the 80's as he did Silver Bats. Kirby is credited as having given the nickname "Donnie Baseball" to Don Mattingly.




RIGHT FIELD

Dave Winfield
New York Yankees (1981-88)

Hall of Fame: Inducted in 2001
All-Star: 1980-89 (1980 with the Padres)
Gold Gloves: 1980, 1982-85, 1987 (1980 with the Padres)
Silver Sluggers: 1981-85
Postseason: 1981 WS

Notes: One of the hardest hitters in baseball, many opponents have said that Winfield could crush line drives greater than anyone. Dave was a great all-around athlete and was drafted out of the University of Minnesota by the San Diego Padres, the Minnesota Vikings, the Atlanta Hawks and the Utah Stars, making him the only person to be drafted by 4 different pro leagues. Dave didn't even play football in college. Winfield obviously chose baseball and never played a single game in the minors, being promoted immediately to the majors by the Padres.


DESIGNATED HITTER

Reggie Jackson
New York Yankees (1980-81), California Angels (1982-86), Oakland A's (1987)

Nickname: Mr. October
Hall of Fame: Inducted in 1993
All-Star: 1980-84
Silver Sluggers: 1980, 1982
Postseason: 1980 ALCS, 1981 WS, 1982 ALCS, 1986 ALCS
League Leader: Home Runs 1980 & 1982

Notes: Most remember Reggie for his postseason heroics with the New York Yankees, but in the 1980's, Jackson spent most of his time with the California Angels. Towards the end of his career his reputation was mired by his assassination attempt against the Queen.


STARTING ROTATION

Roger Clemens
Boston Red Sox (1984-89)

Nickname: The Rocket
All-Star: 1986, 1988
Awards: 1986 AL Cy Young, 1987 AL Cy Young, 1986 AL MVP
Postseason: 1986 WS, 1988 ALCS
League Leader: 1986 ERA, Wins, 1987 Wins, Shutouts, 1988 Strikeouts, Shutouts

Notes: Well most of you should know this guy. Roger was the man in Boston for the latter half of the 1980's. While it's still purely speculative, many believe he is in fact, the antichrist.





Jack Morris
Detroit Tigers (1980-89)

All-Star: 1981, 1984, 1985, 1987
Postseason: 1984 WS, 1987 ALCS
League Leader: 1981 Wins, 1986 Shutouts

Notes: Jack has a devout core of fans that are pushing for his entry into the HOF. Morris was a postseason stud. In 1984 he pitched two complete game wins for the Tigers to help them defeat the Padres in the World Series. He'd later top that with his effort in 1991 with the Twins. Morris posted a winning record in 9 of his 10 seasons in the decade including two 20-win years.





Bret Saberhagen
Kansas City Royals (1984-89)

All-Star: 1987
Awards: 1985 AL Cy Young, 1985 WS MVP, 1989 AL Cy Young
Gold Gloves: 1989
Postseason: 1984 ALCS, 1985 WS
League Leader: 1989 ERA, Wins

Notes: Saberhagen was an absolute ace for the Royals. In 1985 at the age of 21, Bret won the Cy Young Award as well as the World Series MVP after winning two games against the Cardinals including a complete game shutout. Bret would also have an outstanding Cy Young season in 1989 where he went
23-6 with a 2.16 ERA.



Bert Blyleven
Cleveland Indians (1981-85), Minnesota Twins (1985-88), California Angels (1989)

All-Star: 1985
Postseason: 1987 WS
League Leader: Shutouts 1985 & 1989

Notes: Blyleven is one of those pitchers that gets arguments from both sides of the fence on whether he should or should not be in the Hall of Fame. I think he should, but I'm also pretty liberal with everyone I'd like to see in. One thing's for sure. Bert's broadcasting skills probably aren't getting him a Ford Frick Award any time soon.





Dave Stewart
Texas Rangers (1983-85), Oakland A's (1986-89)

Nickname: Smoke
All-Star: 1989
Awards: 1989 WS MVP
Postseason: 1988 WS, 1989 WS
League Leader: 1987 Wins, 1988 Complete Games

Notes: Not to be confused with this Dave Stewart, the man known as Smoke was signed in 1986 by Oakland following what had been a pretty lackluster major league career so far. Stewart proceeded to rattle off 4 straight 20 win seasons and became the ace of the Oakland staff.





CLOSER

Dan Quisenberry
Kansas City Royals (1980-88)

Nickname: Quiz
All-Star: 1982-84
Rolaids Relief: 1980, 1982-85
Postseason: 1980 WS, 1981 ALDS, 1984 ALCS, 1985 WS
League Leader: Saves 1980, 1982-85

Notes: Quiz was one of the top American League closers of the 1980's. Best known for his submarine-style delivery, Dan was mostly a ground ball pitcher and was extremely effective, leading the league in saves 5 times.







So there you have it. Your TMS All-80's American League lineup. So what should the batting order be? Here's what I came up with.

1 - Rickey Henderson (Right)
2 - Don Mattingly (Left)
3 - Kirby Puckett (Right)
4 - Reggie Jackson (Left)
5 - George Brett (Left)
6 - Dave Winfield (Right)
7 - Cal Ripken (Right)
8 - Lou Whitaker (Left)
9 - Carlton Fisk (Right)

Feel free to post your own order in the comments. Also be sure and vote on which team you think would win in a best of seven series. The NL or AL?

The All-80's Team - AL Relief Pitcher

Astroturf, powder blue uniforms, wearing batting helmets in the field to protect your jheri curl, hitting 25 homers and being considered a legitimate slugger, big-league hair, that horrible gum from packs of baseball cards.... who doesn't love baseball from the 80's? Over the next several weeks I will be looking at the best players of the decade as we assemble the TMS All-80's Team. We've finished with the National League and now we'll tackle the American. To meet the criteria a player will have to have played in at least 4 seasons in the 1980's and they must have played the bulk of their games at a certain position during that time to qualify there. Included will be a poll on the left sidebar, so our faithful readers can weigh in on this great debate. But remember, we're focusing on a player's contributions in just the 1980's. What they did in the decades before and/or after are not being considered in this.

This is it. We've come to the final position, AL Relief Pitcher. It seems like yesterday that we were just starting this thing with NL Catcher (Christ, that was in August!). Actually it probably feels more like this damn feature has drug out longer than it probably should've, but oh well.

AMERICAN LEAGUE RELIEF PITCHERS

Dennis Eckersley
Boston Red Sox (1980-84), Oakland A's (1987-89)

Nickname: Eck
Hall of Fame: 2004
All-Star: 1982, 1988
Awards: 1988 ALCS MVP
Rolaids Relief: 1988
Postseason: 1988 WS, 1989 WS
League Leader: 1988 Saves


Notes: When Eck came to Oakland in 1987 he had pretty much become a middle of the rotation starter at best. But Tony LaRussa had other plans for him. Using him at first as a middle reliever, Eck was eventually thrusted into the closer role when Jay Howell got injured. The move proved successful and Eck redefined his career as one of the best closers of his time.


Rollie Fingers
Milwaukee Brewers (1981-82, 1984-85)

Hall of Fame: Inducted in 1992
All-Star: 1981, 1982
Awards: 1981 AL MVP, 1981 AL Cy Young
Rolaids Relief: 1981
Postseason: 1981 ALDS
League Leader: 1981 Saves

Notes: Rollie was nearing the end of his career in the early 80's, but that didn't stop him from posting some great numbers. In the strike-shortened 1981 season, Rollie led the league in saves with 28 and posted a 1.08 ERA, en route to winning both the AL MVP and Cy Young Award. Rollie's moustache is also an inaugural inductee of the Sports Hair Hall of Fame.



Rich Gossage
New York Yankees (1980-83, 1989)

Nickname: Goose
All-Star: 1980-82, (1984, 1985 with Padres)
Postseason: 1980 ALCS, 1981 WS
League Leader: 1980 Saves

Notes: Goose was an outstanding reliever for New York in the early 80's and is widely considered the pioneer of the modern-day closer role. Recently snubbed by the latest Hall of Fame voting, Goose looks to probably be the most likely inductee in 2008.






Tom Henke
Texas Rangers (1982-84), Toronto Blue Jays (1985-89)

Nickname: The Terminator
All-Star: 1987
Postseason: 1985 ALCS, 1989 ALCS
League Leader: 1987 Saves

Notes: Tom was a dominate closer for the Jays in the latter half of the decade. His blazing fastball and imposing 6' 5" frame helped dub him "The Terminator". But looking at that baseball card, maybe "Sloth" would've been a better nickname. Yeesh, he looks like one of the family members from The Burbs.





Willie Hernandez
Detroit Tigers (1984-89)

All-Star: 1984-86
Awards: 1984 AL MVP, 1984 AL Cy Young
Postseason: 1984 WS, 1987 ALCS

Notes: Willie had a solid three-year span with the Tigers from 1984-86. '84 was his best season as he pitched over 140 innings of relief, saved 32 games, struck out 112 batters, and posted a 1.92 ERA. Like Rollie Fingers in 1981, he also won the AL MVP and Cy Young in the same season.







Dan Quisenberry
Kansas City Royals (1980-88)

Nickname: Quiz
All-Star: 1982-84
Rolaids Relief: 1980, 1982-85
Postseason: 1980 WS, 1981 ALDS, 1984 ALCS, 1985 WS
League Leader: Saves 1980, 1982-85

Notes: Quiz was one of the top American League closers of the 1980's. Best known for his submarine-style delivery, Dan was mostly a ground ball pitcher and was extremely effective, leading the league in saves 5 times.







Dave Righetti
New York Yankees (1980-89)

Nickname: Rags
All-Star: 1986, 1987
Awards: 1981 AL Rookie of the Year
Rolaids Relief: 1986, 1987
Postseason: 1981 WS
League Leader: 1986 Saves

Notes: Originally winning the ROY as a starting pitcher, Righetti was eventually converted to a closer to take over for Goose Gossage who went to San Diego. He went on to close for 8 seasons, notching 24 or more saves each time.






Bob Stanley
Boston Red Sox (1980-89)

Nickname: Stanley Steamer
All-Star: 1983
Postseason: 1986 WS, 1988 ALCS

Notes: Hell, I don't even know why Bob is on here. His accolades are lacking compared to the others. But he did have a decent nickname.









Be sure and vote for your choice of AL Relief Pitcher for the TMS All-80's Team. Check out the poll in the left sidebar.

The All-80's Team: AL Starting Pitchers

Astroturf, powder blue uniforms, wearing batting helmets in the field to protect your jheri curl, hitting 25 homers and being considered a legitimate slugger, big-league hair, that horrible gum from packs of baseball cards.... who doesn't love baseball from the 80's? Over the next several weeks I will be looking at the best players of the decade as we assemble the TMS All-80's Team. We've finished with the National League and now we'll tackle the American. To meet the criteria a player will have to have played in at least 4 seasons in the 1980's and they must have played the bulk of their games at a certain position during that time to qualify there. Included will be a poll on the left sidebar, so our faithful readers can weigh in on this great debate. But remember, we're focusing on a player's contributions in just the 1980's. What they did in the decades before and/or after are not being considered in this.

In a close race, Reggie Jackson narrowly edged out Harold Baines to be named starting AL DH. Now we move on to starting pitchers.

AMERICAN LEAGUE STARTING PITCHERS

Bert Blyleven
Cleveland Indians (1981-85), Minnesota Twins (1985-88), California Angels (1989)

All-Star: 1985
Postseason: 1987 WS
League Leader: Shutouts 1985 & 1989

Notes: Blyleven is one of those pitchers that gets arguments from both sides of the fence on whether he should or should not be in the Hall of Fame. I think he should, but I'm also pretty liberal with everyone I'd like to see in. One thing's for sure. Bert's broadcasting skills probably aren't getting him a Ford Frick Award any time soon.






Mike Boddicker
Baltimore Orioles (1980-88), Boston Red Sox (1988-89)

All-Star: 1984
Awards: 1983 ALCS MVP
Postseason: 1983 WS, 1988 ALCS
League Leader: 1984 ERA, Wins, 1983 Shutouts

Notes: Boddicker was a stud early in his career, winning 20 games for the Orioles in 1984. In 1988 he was traded to the Boston Red Sox for a couple unknown young guys named Brady Anderson and Curt Schilling.






Roger Clemens
Boston Red Sox (1984-89)

Nickname: The Rocket
All-Star: 1986, 1988
Awards: 1986 AL Cy Young, 1987 AL Cy Young, 1986 AL MVP
Postseason: 1986 WS, 1988 ALCS
League Leader: 1986 ERA, Wins, 1987 Wins, Shutouts, 1988 Strikeouts, Shutouts

Notes: Well most of you should know this guy. Roger was the man in Boston for the latter half of the 1980's. While it's still purely speculative, many believe he is in fact the antichrist.





Ron Guidry
New York Yankees (1980-1988)

Nickname: Gator, Louisiana Lightning
All-Star: 1982, 1983
Gold Gloves: 1982-86
Postseason: 1980 ALCS, 1981 WS
League Leader: 1985 Wins

Notes: One of the most feared lefties in the early 80's, Gator had 2 of his 3 20-win seasons in this decade. Guidry was also known for his great glovework, winning 5 straight Gold Gloves. By the late 80's arm troubles had taken their toll and he officially retired in 1989.





Teddy Higuera
Milwaukee Brewers (1985-89)

All-Star: 1986

Notes: Milwaukee's answer to Fernandomania, this wily Mexican busted onto the scene in the latter half of the decade. Teddy went 78-44 during 5 seasons in the 80's and averaged 171.2 strikeouts per season. He quickly flamed out in the 90's and was last seen running a car wash in East Los Angeles.









LaMarr Hoyt
Chicago White Sox (1980-84)

All-Star: 1985 (with the Padres)
Awards: 1983 AL Cy Young
Postseason: 1983 ALCS
League Leader: Wins 1982, 1983

Notes: Often mistaken for a member of Lynyrd Skynyrd, Dewey LaMarr Hoyt's short career peaked in 1982 and 1983 where he won 43 games for the Sox over that span. LaMarr loved pitching, but not as much as he loved cocaine. Hoyt's drug problems would push him out of baseball before the end of the decade.





Jimmy Key
Toronto Blue Jays (1984-89)

All-Star: 1985
Postseason: 1985 ALCS, 1989 ALCS
League Leader: 1987 ERA

Notes: For nine seasons, Jimmy Key was top pitcher for the Blue Jays, helping them make the playoffs twice but never winning the World Series. Then in 1993 he signed with the Yankees and Toronto went on to.....doh!








Mark Langston
Seattle Mariners (1984-89)

All-Star: 1987
Gold Gloves: 1987, 1989
League Leader: Strikeouts 1984, 1986, 1987

Notes: Talk about squandered talent. Langston spent his best years pitching for a horrible Seattle club that never had a winning record while he was there. Despite that, Langston still managed to have some solid seasons, including going 19-13 in 1987. Mark struck out over 200 batters in 5 different seasons in the 1980's, leading the league three of those times.






Jack Morris
Detroit Tigers (1980-89)

All-Star: 1981, 1984, 1985, 1987
Postseason: 1984 WS, 1987 ALCS
League Leader: 1981 Wins, 1986 Shutouts

Notes: Like Blyleven, Jack has a devout core of fans that are pushing for his entry into the HOF. Morris was a postseason stud. In 1984 he pitched two complete game wins for the Tigers to help them defeat the Padres in the World Series. He'd later top that with his effort in 1991 with the Twins. Morris posted a winning record in 9 of his 10 seasons in the decade including two 20-win years.





Bret Saberhagen
Kansas City Royals (1984-89)

All-Star: 1987
Awards: 1985 AL Cy Young, 1985 WS MVP, 1989 AL Cy Young
Gold Gloves: 1989
Postseason: 1984 ALCS, 1985 WS
League Leader: 1989 ERA, Wins

Notes: Saberhagen was an absolute ace for the Royals. In 1985 at the age of 21, Bret won the Cy Young Award as well as the World Series MVP after winning two games against the Cardinals including a complete game shutout. Bret would also have an outstanding Cy Young season in 1989 where he went
23-6 with a 2.16 ERA.



Dave Stewart
Texas Rangers (1983-85), Oakland A's (1986-89)

Nickname: Smoke
All-Star: 1989
Awards: 1989 WS MVP
Postseason: 1988 WS, 1989 WS
League Leader: 1987 Wins, 1988 Complete Games

Notes: Not to be confused with this Dave Stewart, the man known as Smoke was signed in 1986 by Oakland following what had been a pretty lackluster major league career so far. Stewart proceeded to rattle off 4 straight 20 win seasons and became the ace of the Oakland staff.





Dave Stieb
Toronto Blue Jays (1980-89)

Nickname: Sir David
All-Star: 1980, 1981, 1983-85, 1988
Postseason: 1985 ALCS, 1989 ALCS
League Leader: 1982 Shutouts, 1985 ERA

Notes: Stieb was a horse for the Blue Jays throughout the decade. He also made more All-Star teams in the 80's than any other pitcher on this list. Stieb was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2005.







Frank Viola
Minnesota Twins (1982-89)

Nickname: Sweet Music
All-Star: 1988
Awards: 1987 WS MVP, 1988 AL Cy Young
Postseason: 1987 WS
League Leader: 1988 Wins

Notes: Viola was a major fan-favorite in Minnesota. In 1987, Frank won the World Series MVP as helped the Twins defeat the St. Louis Cardinals. He would then follow that up with a phenomenal season in '88, going 24-7 with 193 K's and a 2.64 ERA. The Twins would trade him to the Mets the following season.




Pete Vuckovich
Milwaukee Brewers (1981-86)

Awards: 1982 AL Cy Young
Postseason: 1981 ALDS, 1982 WS
League Leader: 1981 Wins

Notes: From Wikipedia: "Vuckovich developed a reputation for bizarre, hyper-competitive behavior during his eleven season career. He would fidget, twitch, pace, and convulse while on the mound. He was known to cross his eyes and stick his tongue out at batters. He would spit in his glove, scream at umpires while in the stretch, and sometimes step to the back of the mound and dry heave. His colorful personality made him a fan favorite." Never mind all that though. Aside from sporting a sweet man-perm, Pete is best known as Clue Haywood from the movie "Major League".


Mike Witt
California Angels (1981-89)

All-Star: 1986, 1987
Postseason: 1982 ALCS, 1986 ALCS

Notes: Witt was one of the best pitchers for the Angels in the mid-1980's. In 1984, Mike threw only the 11th perfect game in baseball history. The wheels came off his career in 1987 when he began to lose his overpowering stuff. His strikeout numbers began to decline and by age 32 was out of the league.








Be sure and vote for your choices for AL Starting Pitchers for the TMS All-80's Team. Check out the poll in the left sidebar. NOTE: You can vote for multiple players.

The All-80's Team: AL Designated Hitters

Astroturf, powder blue uniforms, wearing batting helmets in the field to protect your jheri curl, hitting 25 homers and being considered a legitimate slugger, big-league hair, that horrible gum from packs of baseball cards.... who doesn't love baseball from the 80's? Over the next several weeks I will be looking at the best players of the decade as we assemble the TMS All-80's Team. We've finished with the National League and now we'll tackle the American. To meet the criteria a player will have to have played in at least 4 seasons in the 1980's and they must have played the bulk of their games at a certain position during that time to qualify there. Included will be a poll on the left sidebar, so our faithful readers can weigh in on this great debate. But remember, we're focusing on a player's contributions in just the 1980's. What they did in the decades before and/or after are not being considered in this.

After an extended holiday break, we're back to bring you the AL DH finalists. Dave Winfield won the RF poll and will be the starter on the American League team.

AMERICAN LEAGUE DESIGNATED HITTERS

Harold Baines
Chicago White Sox (1980-89), Texas Rangers (1989)

All-Star: 1985-87, 1989
Silver Sluggers: 1989

Notes: Not that anyone is going to really count and call me out on this but Baines technically shouldn't be here since he played more games in the outfield than at DH in the 80's. It wasn't until 1987 that Harold became utilized as a DH majority of the time. Baines was a great slugger for the White Sox throughout the decade. In 1989 he was traded to the Rangers for Sammy Sosa and a couple other guys. The Sox retired his number after his departure, only to have it un-retired twice as Harold came back to play for them a couple more times.




Don Baylor
California Angels (1980-82), New York Yankees (1983-85), Boston Red Sox (1986-87), Minnesota Twins (1987), Oakland A's (1988)

Silver Sluggers: 1983, 1985, 1986
Postseason: 1982 ALCS, 1986 WS, 1987 WS, 1988 WS
League Leader: 1984-87 Hit By Pitch

Notes: Prior to his career as a mediocre manager, Baylor was a big slugging DH for a whole gaggle of ballclubs in the 80's. Baylor is 4th all-time for HBP. During his career, Don was beaned 267 times. Baylor also played in three consecutive World Series with three different ballclubs.





Reggie Jackson
New York Yankees (1980-81), California Angels (1982-86), Oakland A's (1987)

Nickname: Mr. October
Hall of Fame: Inducted in 1993
All-Star: 1980-84
Silver Sluggers: 1980, 1982
Postseason: 1980 ALCS, 1981 WS, 1982 ALCS, 1986 ALCS
League Leader: Home Runs 1980 & 1982

Notes: Most remember Reggie for his postseason heroics with the New York Yankees, but in the 1980's, Jackson spent most of his time with the California Angels. Towards the end of his career his reputation was mired by his assassination attempt against the Queen.



Hal McRae
Kansas City Royals (1980-1987)

All-Star: 1982
Silver Sluggers: 1982
Postseason: 1980 WS, 1981 ALDS, 1984 ALCS, 1985 WS
League Leader: 1982 Doubles & RBI

Notes: Hal originally started out as an outfielder for the Cincinnati Reds. He was a mediocre outfielder at best and eventually found his niche as a solid hitting DH for the Royals. While many DH's hit for power with a low AVG, McRae provided some pop while posting .300 seasons. Hal's son, Brian played a couple seasons with the Cubs at CF. In fact Brian could probably play CF right now better than any of the other options the team has.



Ken Singleton
Baltimore Orioles (1980-84)

All-Star: 1981
Postseason: 1983 WS

Notes: Ken was primarily an outfielder at the start of the decade, but eventually took on the full-time DH gig in his final three seasons. Ken is no relation to the former ballplayer and current White Sox radio color commentator, Chris Singleton. Ken is a commentator himself for the YES Network.








Andre Thornton
Cleveland Indians (1981-87)

All-Star: 1982, 1984
Silver Sluggers: 1984

Notes: Of all the certainties through the 80's, one of the most ironclad givens was that the Cleveland Indians were shitty, finishing no better than 5th in the AL East throughout the decade. Wasting away on those dismal teams was the sweet hitting of Andre Thornton. Thornton had a handful of solid seasons as the Indians DH, including his 1982 season where he finished with 32 home runs and 116 RBI's. A fairly disciplined hitter at the plate, Andre finished his career with more BB's than K's.




Be sure and vote for your choice of AL Designated Hitter for the TMS All-80's Team. Check out the poll in the left sidebar.

The All-80's Team - AL Right Field

Astroturf, powder blue uniforms, wearing batting helmets in the field to protect your jheri curl, hitting 25 homers and being considered a legitimate slugger, big-league hair, that horrible gum from packs of baseball cards.... who doesn't love baseball from the 80's? Over the next several weeks I will be looking at the best players of the decade as we assemble the TMS All-80's Team. We've finished with the National League and now we'll tackle the American. To meet the criteria a player will have to have played in at least 4 seasons in the 1980's and they must have played the bulk of their games at a certain position during that time to qualify there. Included will be a poll on the left sidebar, so our faithful readers can weigh in on this great debate. But remember, we're focusing on a player's contributions in just the 1980's. What they did in the decades before and/or after are not being considered in this.

Things are starting wind down here. Kirby Puckett easily won last week's poll and will be the starting center fielder for the American League.

AMERICAN LEAGUE RIGHT FIELDERS

Tony Armas
Oakland A's (1980-82), Boston Red Sox (1983-86), California Angels (1987-89)

All-Star: 1981, 1984
Silver Sluggers: 1984
Postseason: 1981 ALCS, 1986 WS
League Leader: 1981 HR, 1984 HR, RBI

Notes: Not to be confused with the oft-injured pitcher for the Nationals, Tony Armas Sr. was the oft-injured outfielder who was a major slugger in the early half of the decade. Tony won the home run title two different seasons, including in 1984 when he hit 43 homers with the Red Sox. The next closest player to him was Dave Kingman with just 35.




Jesse Barfield
Toronto Blue Jays (1981-89), New York Yankees (1989)

All-Star: 1986
Gold Gloves: 1986-87
Silver Sluggers: 1986
Postseason: 1985 ALCS
League Leader: 1986 HR

Notes: Barfield was a hard-hitting outfielder in Toronto for most of the 80's. His best season was 1986, when he led the league in home runs and finished 5th in the MVP voting. His son, Josh, plays 2B for the Cleveland Indians.






Jose Canseco
Oakland A's (1985-89)

All-Star: 1986, 1988-89
Awards: 1986 AL Rookie of the Year, 1988 AL MVP
Silver Sluggers: 1988
Postseason: 1988 WS, 1989 WS
League Leader: 1988 SLG, HR, RBI

Notes: What can we really say about the trainwreck that is Jose Canseco's life that hasn't already been said. Jose put up the best admittedly "enhanced" stats in baseball history. If only the guy wasn't a complete idiot, maybe his tell-all book would be taken a little more seriously.






Dwight Evans
Boston Red Sox (1980-1989)

Nickname: Dewey
All-Star: 1981, 1987
Gold Gloves: 1981-84
Silver Sluggers: 1981, 1987
Postseason: 1986 WS, 1988 ALCS
League Leader: Home Runs (1981), BB (1981, 85, 87), Runs (1984), OBP (1982)

Notes: Dewey was a fan favorite in Boston and was a major offensive force for the Red Sox throughout the 80's. Only Carl Yastrzemski has played more games in a Boston uniform than Evans.





Ruben Sierra
Texas Rangers (1986-89)

Nickname: El Caballo
All-Star: 1989
Silver Sluggers: 1989
League Leader: 1989 SLG, Triples, RBI

Notes: Ruben emerged as a great young slugger in the late 80's, a time when, according to his baseball card, they played ball with foam trucker hats, later to be an inspiration for Fred McGriff in the Tom Emanski Video commercial. Once the 90's rolled around, Ruben got fat and couldn't hit any more and eventually fell off the face of the earth, later to emerge as a solid DH and pinch hitter.





Dave Winfield
New York Yankees (1981-88)

Hall of Fame: Inducted in 2001
All-Star: 1980-89 (1980 with the Padres)
Gold Gloves: 1980, 1982-85, 1987 (1980 with the Padres)
Silver Sluggers: 1981-85
Postseason: 1981 WS

Notes: One of the hardest hitters in baseball, many opponents have said that Winfield could crush line drives greater than anyone. Dave was a great all-around athlete and was drafted out of the University of Minnesota by the San Diego Padres, the Minnesota Vikings, the Atlanta Hawks and the Utah Stars, making him the only person to be drafted by 4 different pro leagues. Dave didn't even play football in college. Winfield obviously chose baseball and never played a single game in the minors, being promoted immediately to the majors by the Padres.



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