Smith is without a doubt the greatest defensive infielder of all time and possibly at any position. He won 13 consecutive Gold Glove Awards throughout the 80's and into the early 90's. He was also selected to the All Star team an amazing 15 times, starting in eleven of them.
In a 19-year career with the St. Louis Cardinals, he had a .262 average, 28 home runs, 793 RBI's, 1257 runs scored, 2460 base hits and 580 stolen bases. He was also a great leader and big winner as he helped lead the Cardinals to the World Series three times, winning one in 1982. Finally, he was one of the best people in baseball and he won the Roberte Clemente Award in 1995.
4. Ernie Banks
Banks is a great power hitter, as he ranks 21st all time in total home runs with 512. In a 19-year career with the Chicago Cubs, he had a .274 average, 1636 RBI's, 1305 runs scored, 2583 base hits and 50 stolen bases. He was selected to the All Star team 14 times, starting at shortstop for six of them.
He also won back-to-back MVP awards in the 1958 and 1959 seasons. His best season came in 1958 as he had a .313 average, 47 home runs, 129 RBI's, 119 runs scored and 193 base hits. He was a solid defensive player and he won a Gold Glove in 1960. However, he never won a championship with Cubs.
3. Cal Ripken Jr.
Ripken was nicknamed the "Iron Man" because he played 2,632 straights games. He had a .276 average, 431 home runs, 1695 RBI's, 1647 runs scored, 3184 base hits and 603 doubles. He won the Rookie of the Year Award in 1982 and was selected to the All Star team an amazing 19 times, starting at shortstop in 13 of them.
He won eight Silver Slugger Awards and was a good defensive player as he won two Gold Glove awards in the early 90's. Ripken won two MVP awards and had his best season in 1991 when he had a .323 average, 34 home runs, 114 RBI's, 99 runs scored and 210 base hits. Finally, he led the Orioles to a championship in the 1983 season.
2. Honus Wagner
Wagner is one of the greatest hitters of all time. In his 21-year career for the Louisville Colonels and Pittsburgh Pirates, he had a .327 average, 101 home runs, 1732 RBI's, 1736 runs scored, 3415 base hits (eighth all-time) and 722 stolen bases. He won eight batting titles, four on base percentage titles and six slugging percentage titles. He wasn't selected to an All Star team as the All-Star did not exist in his time.
He was also a good leader and big winner as he led the Pirates to two World Series appearances, winning one of them in the 1909 season. Finally, he finished in the top six in MVP voting three times and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1936.
1. Alex Rodriguez
ARod is likely to end up as the greatest player of all time. So far in his 15-year career for the Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers, and New York Yankees, he has a .306 average, 553 home runs, 1606 RBI's, 1605 runs scored, 2404 base hits and 283 stolen bases and he still is on contract for NINE MORE seasons. He has been selected to the All Star team 12 times, starting at shortstop in four of them.
He has also won nine Silver Slugger Awards throughout the 90's and 2000's. He has also won five home run titles, two RBI titles and five runs titles. He also was an above average defensive player as he won back-to-back Gold Gloves in the early 2000's and three MVP awards. He has had a 40-40 season and eight 40-plus home runs seasons along with two 50-plus homer seasons.
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