Best Ballplayer of All-Time

    As I sit here and watch the University of Michigan get their heads kicked in by Oregon, I just got through a conversation with one of my buddies about whom I think is the greatest ballplayer of all-time.  My friend is insistent that Barry Bonds is the clear #1.  But for me, is it Barry Bonds?  No.  As you can see by the photo I went with the old reliable:  Babe Ruth.  And sadly as much as I'll probably make the case for Ruth, I'll bring up my reasons for why Bonds cannot honestly be put in the discussion.
    Babe Ruth has been the consensus #1 ballplayer of all-time since before he even retired, and his stat line really does back it up.  His major career stats look a little something like this:

• 714 career home runs
• 2217 career runs batted in
• 2873 career hits
• 1.164 career OPS

Oh and the pitching stats:

• 94 career wins
• 488 career strike outs
• 2.28 career ERA

Add to the fact that Ruth reached his historic record of 714 home runs in 8398 at bats while Bonds took roughly 9300, and Hank Aaron took in the neighborhood of 11288.  Not to diminish either of those 2, and their accomplishments but merely to point out that Ruth's at bats per home run ratio of 11.80 is pretty **** amazing.
    Add all of those reasons into the fact that Ruth helped baseball recover after the 1919 Black Sox did their thing and it honestly should not be a very close argument.  As a player and as an attraction Ruth is/was/will be the most important, and best overall baseball player ever.
    Now to all you who may think Mays, Mantle, Williams, Cobb, or even Bonds is the greatest.  I respectfully disagree.  Especially with Barry Bonds.  And before I launch into this all me to say:  I don't "hate" Barry Bonds and I'm not against him.  I just think people forget the pre-73 home runs.  But Bonds cannot be the #1 player of all-time for me and not because I KNOW he cheated and got all roided up, but merely because I don't know.  And everyone can say that the clear and the creme didn't help him become the player that his is and things like that, allow me to make one point.  Who was putting Barry Bonds on the lists of best player ever or best hitter ever before the 2000 season?  Answer - NOBODY.  Every knew he was an amazing player, a sure fire first ballot hall of famer.  But nobody outside of Barry himself thought of him as the best baseball player of all-time.
    Honestly think about it.  Before 2000 Bonds was thought of as a great player, but if someone said he was better than Mays you'd look at them as if they were insane.  Here is just as a small example: let's just go back to 1999.  All-Star game at Fenway Park, Major League Baseball ran a promotion for the MLB All-Century Team.  In which a panel of "experts" compiled a list of the 100 greatest players from the last 100 years. Then fans voted on the greatest players.  Now you'd think that the panel and fans could agree that even without hitting 73 home runs or anything like that Bonds was certainly one of the best outfielders of all-time, right?  Wrong.  Barry only managed 173,279 votes for the All-Century outfield.  While a player like Ken Griffey Jr., who everyone at the time thought was on his way to getting the "best of all-time" title received 645,389 votes.  Now is this absolute proof that Bonds is NOT the best ballplayer of all-time?  No.  But to me it's just one of many examples that proves to me that it's impossible to separate Barry Bonds and the line of thinking that steroids or performance enhancing drugs helped Bonds reach that next level.  From going from one of the top players of this generation to becoming in some peoples eyes the best player ever.
    I hate that I've pretty much knocking Bonds down more than showing my work for why I chose Ruth, but in today's world EVERYONE knows Ruth's work and what he meant to the game.  Disagree?  Think I'm totally biased against Barry?  Feel free to post a comment on your choice for the greatest ballplayer ever, or to just rip me a new one.  Either way leave some feedback.  But don't bring race into this discussion because I know that's usually where these discussions go.
    Thanks for reading -- GO SOX!