Simply one of the best players of his era.  Clemente hit for average, had gap-power (he was a doubles and triples machine), had great speed and instincts, and was one of the greatest fielders of all-time.  More important, he was leader, and the first Latin American player to emerge as a superstar in baseball.  His statistics and achievements are very similar to Honus Wagner’s, the other player that I strongly considered here.  I chose Clemente over Wagner for two reasons: the difference in eras, especially the challenge of hitting modern pitchers, and his legacy as a hero.  Having written that, Wagner is absolutely deserving and was one of the greatest players of the early days of baseball. 
Pitcher: Babe Adams, 1909-1925
The Pirates are surprisingly thin at pitcher.  Vic Willis is their lone Hall of Fame pitcher, but he only played 4 years in Pittsburgh.  Bob Friend, Doug Drabek, Roy Face, and Sam Leever all had moments of glory.  But I picked Babe Adams because he was the longest tenured quality pitcher that the team has had.  And his 1909 World Series, where the Pirates defeated Ty Cobb and the Tigers was fantastic.  He threw 3 complete game victories, surrendering just four runs.  If you have someone better, I’d love to hear it. 

    St. Louis Cardinals

Batter: Stan Musial, 1941-1963
There is a statue of Stan the Man in front of the ballpark in St. Louis.  Why?  3 WS titles, 3 MVP awards, 7 batting titles, 6 times leading the league in total bases, 7 times in OPS.  Perhaps most important, it can be argued that no player in baseball history, not even Hank Aaron played at a higher level for a longer period of time than Musial.  Now, with the Cardinals one of the finest, most successful franchises in history, extremely honorable mentions go to Rogers Hornsby, Albert Pujols, Ozzie Smith, and Joe Medwick.
Pitcher: Bob Gibson, 1959-1975
A fearsome competitor, Gibson was also one of the smartest players ever to play baseball, and was the leader of the great Cardinals’ dynasty of the 1960’s.  A 9-time all star, and 2 time MVP winner, his fans debate what was his greatest accomplishment: his 1968 season (22-9, 1.12!! ERA) (Go to baseball-reference.com or retrosheet.com and look at the linescores of Gibson’s games to figure out how he lost 9 games.  It’s fascinating.) or his performance in the 1967 World Series (3-0 with all complete games wins and 10 strikeouts in the clincher at Fenway Park). 

    San Diego Padres

Batter: Tony Gwynn, 1982-2001
Gwynn’s career average of .338 is the highest of any player who’s played primarily in the last 50 years.  He also won 8 batting titles, including 4 straight towards the end of his career in the late 1990’s.  Gwynn has become a San Diego icon, as he went to college at San Diego St., and now coaches the Aztecs.  There aren’t very many players who are more associated with a city than Tony Gwynn. 
Pitcher: Trevor Hoffman, 1993-present

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