Ranking the 9 greatest center fielders in MLB history

Best Season: 2005 - .263/.347/.575 with 51 home runs, 128 RBIs, 64 walks, .922 OPS, 5.1 offensive WAR, 2.0 defensive WAR and 7.9 fWAR
Career Summary: .254/.337/.486 with 434 home runs, 1,289 RBIs, 1,933 hits, 891 walks, .823 OPS, 111 OPS+, 39.8 offensive WAR, 24.4 defensive WAR and 62.7 bWAR

Because he didn't keep himself in great shape, Jones, a five-time All-Star, may never be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. However, you'd be hard-pressed to find someone that doesn't believe Jones was a Hall of Fame-caliber player during his peak with the Atlanta Braves. It's not hyperbolic to say Jones is one of the greatest fielders in MLB history - between 1998 and 2007, Jones won 10 straight Gold Glove Awards and graded out as the best fielder in baseball at any position. On top of his fielding prowess, Jones hit 34 or more home runs six times in his career, peaking at 51 in 2005. You could make a case that contemporaries like Carlos Beltrán or Kenny Lofton were better in the totality of their careers, but Jones' peak was so dominant that he had to be on this list.

Best Season: 1953 - .336/.419/.627 with 42 home runs, 126 RBIs, 82 walks, 1.046 OPS, 8.6 offensive WAR, 0.6 defensive WAR and an 8.8 fWAR
Career Summary: .295/.380/.540 with 407 home runs, 1,333 RBIs, 2,116 hits, 971 walks, .919 OPS, 140 OPS+, 70.1 offensive WAR, -5.9 defensive WAR and 63.5 fWAR

Snider was one of the most complete players of his era, leading the league in hits, runs, home runs, RBIs, walks, on-base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS at least once. An eight-time All-Star, FanGraphs says that Snider was the fourth-most valuable offensive player in terms of WAR in the 1950s, trailing only Mickey Mantle, Stan Musial and Willie Mays.

Best Season: 1941 - .357/.440/.643 with 30 home runs, 125 RBIs, 76 walks, 1.083 OPS, 8.6 offensive WAR, 0.7 defensive WAR and a 9.8 fWAR
Career Summary: .325/.398/.579 with 361 home runs, 1,537 RBIs, 2,214 hits, 790 walks, .977 OPS, 155 OPS+, 74.5 offensive WAR, 3.2 defensive WAR and 83.1 fWAR

DiMaggio was so dominant, that despite losing his age-28-30 seasons to military service, he cracked a list that multiple Hall of Famers fell short of. DiMaggio made 13 All-Star teams in 13 major league seasons, won two batting titles and three American League MVP Awards. Oh, and he won nine World Series titles as well. The owner of the longest hit streak in MLB history would have come in much higher on this list if not for World War II, but that he was so prolific in 13 years that he still managed to be on this list is a testament to his greatness.

Best Season: 1997 - .304/.382/.646 with 56 home runs, 147 RBIs, 76 walks, 1.028 OPS, 7.6 offensive WAR, 1.6 defensive WAR and a 9.0 fWAR
Career Summary: .284/.370/.538 with 630 home runs, 1,836 RBIs, 2,781 hits, 1,312 walks, .907 OPS, 136 OPS+, 84.6 offensive WAR, 2.2 defensive WAR and 77.7 fWAR

One of the most popular players in MLB history, Griffey Jr. was the second most valuable offensive player of the 1990s, trailing only Barry Bonds. Despite being limited to just 72 games in 1995, Griffey Jr. averaged over 43 home runs per season between 1993 and 2000. In some senses, Griffey Jr.'s career leaves you feeling like it could have been even better, as injuries limited him to just 554 of a possible 972 games between 2001 and 2006. If he had better luck health wise during that stretch, it's possible he could have chased the all-time home run record. Still, "The Kid" is seventh in MLB history with 630 career home runs, making him one of the most dominant offensive players that the league has ever seen.

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Best Season: 2016 - 2013 - .323/.432/.557 with 27 home runs, 97 RBIs, 110 walks, .988 OPS, 9.9 offensive WAR, 1.1 defensive WAR and a 10.2 fWAR
Career Summary: .305/.419/.583 with 310 home runs, 816 RBIs, 865 walks, 1,419 hits, 1.002 OPS, 76.2 offensive WAR, 2.2 defensive WAR and 77.8 fWAR (stats current as of January 2022)

Trout is only 30 years old and already has numbers that would make him a lock for the Baseball Hall of Fame if he never played another game. In Trout's first eight full seasons, he won three American League MVP Awards, while finishing as the runner-up for the honor three other times. The lowest he finished in American League MVP Award voting during his first eight seasons came in 2017, when he finished fourth in voting, despite only playing 114 games. Trout was limited to just 36 games in 2021, which you hope isn't a sign of things to come. But regardless of what the future holds, Trout has secured his place as one of the greatest center fielders in baseball history.

Best Season: 1956 - .353/.464/.705 with 52 home runs, 130 RBIs, 112 walks, 1.169 OPS, 10.6 offensive WAR, 0.5 defensive WAR and an 11.5 fWAR
Career Summary: .298/.421/.557 with 536 home runs, 1,509 RBIs, 2,415 hits, 1,733 walks, .977 OPS, 172 OPS+, 116.2 offensive WAR, -9.6 defensive WAR and 112.3 fWAR

How great of a player was Mantle? Between 1950 and 1999, the only players that graded out as more valuable than Mantle in terms of fWAR were Willie Mays and Hank Aaron. "The Mick" was one of the most complete offensive players in the history of baseball, winning the Triple Crown in 1956. That was the only batting title Mantle ever won, but he led baseball in runs scored, total bases, home runs, walks, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS and OPS+ three or more times.

Best Season: 1912 - .386/.464/.567 with 10 home runs, 90 RBIs, 82 walks, 1.031 OPS, 9.2 offensive WAR, 0.4 defensive WAR and a 10.6 fWAR
Career Summary: .345/.428/.500 with 117 home runs, 1,531 RBIs, 3,514 hits, 1,381 walks, .928 OPS, 158 OPS+, 124.4 offensive WAR, 2.5 defensive WAR and 130.6 fWAR

Babe Ruth is the most notable superstar that the Boston Red Sox organization allowed to leave, but trading Speaker to the Cleveland Indians after the 1915 season because of a salary dispute went down as one of the worst transactions in MLB history. All Speaker did the next season was hit .386. When the .345 career hitter was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1937, he went into Cooperstown as an Indian, as he ultimately spent 11 seasons in Cleveland. Speaker was teammates with a teenage Babe Ruth for parts of the 1914 and 1915 season in Boston. Oh, what could have been...

Best Season: 1917: .383/.444/.570 with six home runs, 106 RBIs, 61 walks, 1.014 OPS, 10.6 offensive WAR, 0.2 defensive WAR and an 11.5 fWAR
Career Summary: .366/.433/.512 with 117 home runs, 1,944 RBIs, 4,189 hits, 1,249 walks, .944 OPS, 168 OPS+, 151.2 offensive WAR, -10.8 defensive WAR and 149.3 fWAR

There's a variety of reasons why players in Cobb's era didn't hit home runs at the same clip that they do today, but "The Georgia Peach" still managed to drive in more runs during his illustrious career than Jimmie Foxx, Eddie Murray, Willie Mays, Mel Ott, Ted Williams, Ken Griffey Jr., Rafael Palmeiro, Manny Ramirez, Frank Robinson and David Ortiz, among other members of the 500 home run club. We'll never know for sure, but with an MLB-record .366 career batting average, Cobb probably could have thrived in any era.

Best Season: 1965 - .317/.398/.645 with 52 home runs, 112 RBIs, 76 walks, 1.043 OPS, 9.6 offensive WAR, 1.6 defensive WAR and a 10.7 fWAR
Career Summary: .302/.384/.557 with 660 home runs, 1,903 RBIs, 3,283 hits, 1,464 walks, a .941 OPS, a 156 OPS+, 136.6 offensive WAR, 18.2 defensive WAR and 149.9 fWAR

In 22 major league seasons, Mays hit .302, slugged 660 home runs and won 12 Gold Glove Awards. The author of the most famous catch in MLB history also led baseball in stolen bases four times, making him arguably the most complete player that the sport has ever seen. Mays won a Rookie of the Year Award, an MVP Award, a batting title and made 24 All-Star teams. With how much Mays accomplished as a player, you'd never know that he had to deal with unthinkable racism as one of the first Black stars in the history of the sport.