Ranking Derek Jeter's Career Among the 10 Greatest MLB Shortstops of All Time
The end of the 2014 MLB regular season is here, and with it comes the end of one of the greatest playing careers of this generation, as Derek Jeter gets ready to don the Yankee pinstripes one final time on Sunday in Boston.
From his postseason heroics as a 22-year-old back in 1996 to his walk-off single earlier this week in his final at-bat in Yankee Stadium—and everything in between—Jeter has been a superstar in every sense of the word over the course of his 20-year playing career.
He's a surefire first-ballot Hall of Famer when he becomes eligible for the first time in 2020, but where does Jeter rank all-time among the greatest shortstops to ever play the game?
What follows is one writer's best attempt to answer that question, with the 10 greatest MLB shortstops of all time.
The Next 10 (listed alphabetically)
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Luis Aparicio (.262 BA, .653 OPS, 2,677 H, 394 2B, 83 HR, 791 RBI, 1,335 R, 55.8 WAR)
Lou Boudreau (.295 BA, .795 OPS, 1,779 H, 385 2B, 68 HR, 789 RBI, 861 R, 63.0 WAR)
Bill Dahlen (.272 BA, .740 OPS, 2,461 H, 413 2B, 84 HR, 1,234 RBI, 1,590 R, 75.2 WAR)
George Davis (.295 BA, .767 OPS, 2,665 H, 453 2B, 73 HR, 1,440 RBI, 1,545 R, 84.7 WAR)
Barry Larkin (.295 BA, .815 OPS, 2,340 H, 441 2B, 198 HR, 960 RBI, 1,329 R, 70.2 WAR)
Pee Wee Reese (.269 BA, .743 OPS, 2,170 H, 330 2B, 126 HR, 885 RBI, 1,338 R, 66.3 WAR)
Joe Sewell (.312 BA, .804 OPS, 2,226 H, 436 2B, 49 HR, 1,054 RBI, 1,141 R, 53.7 WAR)
Vern Stephens (.286 BA, .815 OPS, 1,859 H, 307 2B, 247 HR, 1,174 RBI, 1,001 R, 45.4 WAR)
Alan Trammell (.285 BA, .767 OPS, 2,365 H, 412 2B, 185 HR, 1,003 RBI, 1,231 R, 70.4 WAR)
Omar Vizquel (.272 BA, .688 OPS, 2,877 H, 456 2B, 80 HR, 951 RBI, 1,445 R, 45.3 WAR)
10. Luke Appling (1930-50)
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Career Stats/SS Ranks
| Stats | .310 | .798 | 2,749 | 440 | 45 | 1,116 | 1,319 | 74.5 |
| SS Rank | 5th | 12th | 7th | 14th | 79th | 15th | 14th | 8th |
*SS ranks reflect standing among players with at least 1,000 career games played at the position.
Career Overview
Luke Appling spent all 20 of his big league seasons playing for the Chicago White Sox, and longevity as much as productivity earn him the No. 10 spot on this list, edging out Alan Trammell, Barry Larkin and Joe Sewell, among others.
Appling did not establish himself as an everyday player until his age-25 season but quickly became one of the best in the business from there, hitting .300 or better in 10 of his first 12 seasons as a regular. He won the AL batting title in 1936 (.388) and 1943 (.328).
Military service cost him the 1944 season and all but 18 games of the 1945 season; otherwise, he likely would have been a member of the 3,000-hit club. Still, he did more than enough to earn his Hall of Fame induction.
9. Joe Cronin (1926-45)
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Career Stats/SS Ranks
| Stats | .301 | .857 | 2,285 | 515 | 170 | 1,424 | 1,233 | 66.4 |
| SS Rank | 8th | 6th | 21st | 6th | 17th | 6th | 19th | 15th |
Career Overview
Joe Cronin split the bulk of his playing career between the Washington Senators and the Boston Red Sox, but he was a star for both teams, providing rare run production from a position that was largely defense-oriented during that time.
His eight 100-RBI seasons are a record for shortstops (Alex Rodriguez had just seven before moving to the hot corner), and he is also one of just 59 players with 500 career doubles.
On top of his impressive play on the field, Cronin also served as a player/manager for the final 13 seasons of his career. He led the Senators to an AL pennant as a 26-year-old in 1933 and turned in a losing record just three times during that span.
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8. Robin Yount (1974-93)
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Career Stats/SS Ranks
| Stats | .285 | .772 | 3,142 | 583 | 251 | 1,406 | 1,632 | 77.0 |
| SS Rank | 23rd | 19th | 4th | 3rd | 6th | 7th | 5th | 5th |
Career Overview
Robin Yount actually wound up playing more games in the outfield during his 20-year career, but he put together 11 impressive seasons that included the 1982 AL MVP before finally moving away from shortstop prior to his age-29 season.
Yount hit .331/.379/.578 with 46 doubles, 12 triples, 29 home runs and 114 RBI during the 1982 season, good for a 10.5 WAR, as he helped the Milwaukee Brewers to the only World Series appearance in franchise history.
He would capture the AL MVP again in 1989 when he hit .318/.384/.511 with 38 doubles, 21 home runs and 103 RBI, but he accomplished that while manning center field.
All told, he piled up 3,142 hits in his impressive career, good for 18th on the all-time list, and while he slides down a few places due to moving from the position, he is undoubtedly one of the best shortstops of all time.
7. Arky Vaughan (1932-43, 47-48)
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Career Stats/SS Ranks
| Stats | .318 | .859 | 2,103 | 356 | 96 | 926 | 1,173 | 72.9 |
| SS Rank | 2nd | 4th | 32nd | 31st | 42nd | 24th | 26th | 9th |
Career Overview
Arky Vaughan played just 12 full seasons in the big leagues, so he does not have the counting numbers that some of the other guys on this list do, but based on his time with the Pittsburgh Pirates there is little question he was one of the best to ever play the position.
In his 10 seasons in Pittsburgh, he hit .324/.415/.472 and piled up 64.0 WAR, putting up a WAR over 6.0 an impressive six different times.
He was traded to the Brooklyn Dodgers before the 1942 season, and his production dropped off significantly from there, but he did enough in the prime of his career to earn a place in this conversation.
In fact, baseball historian Bill James pegged Vaughan as the second-greatest shortstop of all-time in The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract, ranking him behind only Honus Wagner.
6. Alex Rodriguez (1994-Present)
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Career Stats/SS Ranks
| Stats | .299 | .942 | 2,939 | 519 | 654 | 1,969 | 1,919 | 116.0 |
| SS Rank | 10th | 1st | 5th | 5th | 1st | 2nd | 2nd | 2nd |
Career Overview
His reputation is in shambles at this point, but it's hard to argue that Alex Rodriguez has been one of the most productive players the game has ever seen.
He will finish his career with more games played at third base, but for the first 10 seasons of his career he was a shortstop, arguably the most productive offensive shortstop the game has ever seen.
All told, he hit .308/.382/.581 with 345 home runs and 990 RBI during those 10 seasons, stringing together six straight seasons with 40-plus home runs, winning a batting title and claiming AL MVP honors in 2003.
Looking at his career as a whole, his 116.0 career WAR is the 17th-highest total among all players. He ranks in the top 10 in runs scored (1,919, 10th), RBI (1,969, sixth), home runs (654, fifth) and total bases (5,480).
The cloud of performance-enhancing drugs keeps him out of the top five, but what he's done over his 20-year career can't simply be ignored when it comes to the conversation of the greatest shortstops of all time.
5. Ozzie Smith (1978-96)
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Career Stats/SS Ranks
| Stats | .262 | .666 | 2,460 | 402 | 28 | 793 | 1,257 | 76.5 |
| SS Rank | 63rd | 78th | 13th | 21st | 97th | 35th | 17th | 6th |
Career Overview
Anything Ozzie Smith achieved with a bat in his hands was simply icing on the cake, as he was the greatest defensive shortstop ever to play the game.
A whopping 13 Gold Gloves and a career 43.4 dWAR don't tell the whole story though, as you had to watch him man the position to truly appreciate just how good he was.
He was by no means a liability at the plate either, piling up 2,460 career hits and ranking 22nd on the all-time list with 580 career stolen bases.
He also hit one of the most memorable home runs in St. Louis Cardinals history when he walked off in Game 5 of the 1985 NLCS. Making that moment even more improbable, it was the first time the switch-hitting Smith had ever homered left-handed, as he had gone without one in his first 3,009 at-bats as a lefty.
In the words of legendary announcer Jack Buck: "Go crazy folks! Go crazy!"
4. Ernie Banks (1953-71)
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Career Stats/SS Ranks
| Stats | .274 | .830 | 2,583 | 407 | 512 | 1,636 | 1,305 | 67.5 |
| SS Rank | 35th | 7th | 11th | 20th | 2nd | 4th | 15th | 14th |
Career Overview
"Mr. Cub" would go on to play first base later in his career, and he actually played more games there (1,259) than he did at shortstop (1,125) during his 19 seasons in the league, but he was in the prime of his career when he was still playing short.
Over a four-year span from 1957-60, he averaged 44 home runs, 123 RBI and posted a .948 OPS. He managed to take home back-to-back NL MVP awards in '58 and '59, despite the fact that the Cubs finished with a losing record both years.
His 2,528 games played are tops among players to never appear in the playoffs, but even without any postseason heroics on his resume, there is little doubt he was one of the best shortstops to ever play the game.
3. Derek Jeter (1996-2014)
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Career Stats/SS Ranks
| Stats | .309 | .817 | 3,464 | 544 | 260 | 1,310 | 1,923 | 71.7 |
| SS Rank | 6th | 8th | 1st | 4th | 5th | 8th | 1st | 10th |
Career Overview
A strong case can be made for putting Derek Jeter in the No. 2 spot on this list, and I fully expect many of you to argue that case in the comments section below, but for me "The Captain" belongs here in the No. 3 spot.
He'll finish his storied career sixth on the all-time hits list and 10th in runs scored, but it really goes beyond the numbers with Jeter. He has been one of the faces of the sport seemingly since breaking into the league, someone who has been respected league-wide, regardless of rooting interests.
Postseason production alone would be enough to earn him a place on this list, as his star always shined brightest on the biggest stage.
With 158 playoff games to his credit, he essentially played another full season in October. In 650 at-bats, he hit .308/.374/.465 with 32 doubles, 20 home runs and 61 RBI while helping lead the Yankees to seven AL pennants and five World Series titles.
Other great shortstops and great leaders will emerge in the years to come, but there will never be another Derek Jeter.
2. Cal Ripken Jr. (1981-2001)
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Career Stats/SS Ranks
| Stats | .276 | .788 | 3,184 | 603 | 431 | 1,695 | 1,647 | 95.5 |
| SS Rank | 32nd | 15th | 3rd | 2nd | 3rd | 3rd | 4th | 3rd |
Career Overview
Cal Ripken Jr. will forever be remembered as baseball's Iron Man, appearing in 2,632 consecutive games during his 21-year career, but he was more than just a durable player.
The 6'4" Ripken ushered in an era of bigger, stronger power-hitting shortstops, revolutionizing the position while hitting alongside Eddie Murray in the middle of a good Baltimore Orioles lineup in the 1980s.
He was a star from the get-go, winning AL Rookie of the Year honors in 1982 and claiming AL MVP the following season when he helped lead the Orioles to a World Series title as a 22-year-old.
Ripken would eventually shift to third base down the stretch in his career, but he was one of the better defensive shortstops around in his prime, and his 34.6 dWAR trails only Ozzie Smith (43.4) and Mark Belanger (39.4) all-time at the position.
1. Honus Wagner (1897-1917)
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Career Stats/SS Ranks
| Stats | .328 | .858 | 3,420 | 643 | 101 | 1,733 | 1,739 | 131.0 |
| SS Rank | 1st | 5th | 2nd | 1st | 38th | 2nd | 3rd | 1st |
Career Overview
There is little argument as to who the best shortstop in baseball history is, as Honus Wagner is simply in a league of his own as far as production at the position is concerned.
His 131.0 career WAR ranks 10th on the all-time list and seventh among position players, as he was the premier player of the 1900s and remained productive throughout his 21-year career.
He took home eight batting titles and led the league in RBI five different times despite never hitting more than 10 home runs in a season. The 3,420 hits he racked up throughout his career rank eighth all-time, and on top of all his offensive accomplishments he was also a plus defender with a 21.3 dWAR for his career.
The "Flying Dutchman" was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1936 as part of the inaugural class, tying with Babe Ruth for the second-highest vote total at 95.1 percent.
Unless otherwise noted, all standard and advanced stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com.
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