Era’s best first basemen
Albert Pujols dominates the rankings, with Jeff Bagwell as the runner-up
The greatest first baseman of the Modern Era isn’t in the Hall of Fame, but give him time.
Albert Pujols retired after the 2022 season, which means he won’t be eligible for Cooperstown’s plaque gallery until 2028. His first-ballot induction in that distant year is a certainty.
Pujols finished his 22-year career with the St. Louis Cardinals and Los Angeles Angels with a total of 703 home runs. That’s the fourth-highest sum for any player in major-league history and the very highest for anybody who was primarily a first baseman.
His impressive power was a major factor in Pujols’s victory in my rankings of all 165 big leaguers who made more than 2,500 plate appearances and played at least 40 percent of their games as first basemen during the Modern Era, the period from 1961 to the present.
Pujols topped his 164 competitors in wins above replacement (101.7), runs generated (3,429), and hits (3,384). He was the only first basemen in the era to achieve the trifecta of a batting average above .295, a slugging percentage better than .540, and a ratio of bases per out (BPO) higher than .920.
Three of the 10 leaders in today’s rankings are already ensconced in Cooperstown: No. 2 Jeff Bagwell, No. 5 Jim Thome, and No. 7 Eddie Murray. Three others are still active (and hence, like Pujols, ineligible at the moment): No. 6 Miguel Cabrera, No. 8 Paul Goldschmidt, and No. 10 Joey Votto.
Nagging questions have kept the remaining members of the top 10 out of the hall. Rafael Palmeiro and Mark McGwire have been accused of using performance-enhancing drugs (a charge that McGwire has admitted). And Todd Helton’s impressive stats have been downgraded by critics because he spent his entire career in Denver’s hitting-friendly environment.
Today’s ratings of first basemen were determined by a 10-part formula that took each player’s full body of work into consideration, including the stats that he accumulated at other positions. (Click here to learn more about the 10 components.)
Pujols was assigned a score of 1,000 points, the sum that is automatically granted to the top-rated player at any given position. The bottom-rated candidate was assigned zero points, and the scores for everybody else were based on their relative performances.
It’s important to remember that the rankings are limited to the 1961-2022 span, cutting off any seasons prior to 1961. The focus here is solely on results from the Modern Era.
This is the second story in my weekly review of the era’s greatest players. Last Thursday’s installment focused on catchers. Statistical breakdowns for the Modern Era’s top five first basemen can be found below, followed by a list of the next 15.
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1. Albert Pujols (2001-2022)
Score: 1,000 points
WAR: 101.7 total, 3.9 per 500 PA, -4.1 defensive
Averages: .296 BA, .544 SLG, .921 BPO
Scoring: 3,429 R generated, 131 per 500 PA
Totals: 3,080 G, 3,384 H
Notes: Pujols was stunningly good during his first hitch with the St. Louis Cardinals, batting .328 with 445 home runs between 2001 and 2011. He was named the National League’s Most Valuable Player three times in that span. His subsequent stretch with the Los Angeles Angels was unimpressive by comparison, yet Pujols still finished his career with outstanding stats, notably his 703 homers and 3,384 hits.
2. Jeff Bagwell (1991-2005)
Score: 871 points
WAR: 79.9 total, 4.2 per 500 PA, -7.2 defensive
Averages: .297 BA, .540 SLG, 1.028 BPO
Scoring: 2,597 R generated, 138 per 500 PA
Totals: 2,150 G, 2,314 H
Notes: Bagwell burst onto the big-league scene with the Houston Astros in 1991, winning the NL’s Rookie of the Year Award. He added an MVP trophy to his collection three years later. Bagwell hit more than 30 home runs in nine different seasons, and he reached triple digits in RBIs on eight occasions.
3. Todd Helton (1997-2013)
Score: 838 points
WAR: 61.8 total, 3.3 per 500 PA, -5.0 defensive
Averages: .316 BA, .539 SLG, 1.011 BPO
Scoring: 2,438 R generated, 129 per 500 PA
Totals: 2,247 G, 2,519 H
Notes: Helton posted a batting average of .316 in 17 seasons with the Colorado Rockies, easily the best career mark for any first baseman in the Modern Era. He topped runner-up Miguel Cabrera by eight points. Denver’s mile-high altitude undoubtedly padded his stats, but even so, it’s impossible to ignore his three seasons above .345, peaking at .372 in 2000.
4. Rafael Palmeiro (1986-2005)
Score: 781 points
WAR: 71.9 total, 3.0 per 500 PA, -10.6 defensive
Averages: .288 BA, .515 SLG, .898 BPO
Scoring: 2,929 R generated, 122 per 500 PA
Totals: 2,831 G, 3,020 H
Notes: Palmeiro’s outstanding career was eclipsed by his 2005 suspension for using performance-enhancing drugs. He claimed that his failed test resulted from a tainted sample, though Hall of Fame voters didn’t buy the explanation. Palmeiro topped 35 home runs 10 times in 20 seasons with the Texas Rangers, Baltimore Orioles, and Chicago Cubs.
5. Jim Thome (1991-2012)
Score: 774 points
WAR: 73.1 total, 3.5 per 500 PA, -16.4 defensive
Averages: .276 BA, .554 SLG, 1.035 BPO
Scoring: 2,670 R generated, 129 per 500 PA
Totals: 2,543 G, 2,328 H
Notes: Thome bounced around to six teams in 22 seasons. He spent the majority of that span (13 years) with the Cleveland Indians, and he posted the best numbers of his career for them. Thome walloped 241 homers and drove home 643 runs with the Indians from 1997 through 2002. He finished with 612 homers, putting him eighth on the all-time list.
Next 15
6. Miguel Cabrera (2003-2022)
7. Eddie Murray (1977-1997)
8. (tie) Mark McGwire (1986-2001)
8. (tie) Paul Goldschmidt (2011-2022)
10. Joey Votto (2007-2022)
11. Lance Berkman (1999-2013)
12. Will Clark (1986-2000)
13. John Olerud (1989-2005)
14. Keith Hernandez (1974-1990)
15. Dick Allen (1963-1977)
16. Tony Perez (1964-1986)
17. Carlos Delgado (1993-2009)
18. Freddie Freeman (2010-2022)
19. Willie Stargell (1962-1982)
20. Mark Teixeira (2003-2016)