Montana – Dave McNally
No contest. Especially if you consider that only 24 Montanans ever played in the majors. Heck, we could invite them all over for a cookout.
Just to give you a little better idea though … McNally won 184 games. His next closet rival won 41 (and lost 53). McNally had a WAR of almost 26. The next closest? John Lowenstein … who just couldn’t quite make it into double figures, at 9.95.
Not to pour it on, but here are a few more points in McNally’s favor:
- 4 straight 20-win seasons
- 3 All Star selections
- Finishing in the top 5 for the Cy Young award 3 times
- A 7-4 record (and 2.49 ERA) in the post-season
McNally was born in Billings, the largest city in the state. Except for playing baseball, McNally never really left it. The minor league team there has a pretty cool statue of him:
Nebraska – Grover Cleveland Alexander
Sorry, Bob Gibson. Sorry, Wade Boggs. Sorry, Sam Crawford. This guy’s only got 373 wins (3rd all time), a 2.65 lifetime ERA, and a 642 winning percentage. He’s also considered the 12th best player of all time (Sporting News), is in the Hall of Fame, led the NL in WAR 6 years running, won 3 triple crowns, blah, blah, blah …
Alexander was born in tiny Elba (population 215), kind of in the center of the state. He would be buried in the nearby – and almost as dinky – St. Paul.
Nevada – Bryce Harper
So, this guy is only 26 years old and already has the second highest WAR of any native Nevadan. Give it a year or two, and he’ll surpass #1 Barry Zito easily. I mean, he’s already nabbed a Rookie of the Year, an MVP, and 6 All Star berths in his 7 years. A genuine multi-tool player, the sky is still the limit for him.
Harper is from Las Vegas, and starred at Las Vegas High. He later attended the College of Southern Nevada, in nearby Henderson, where he now lives in this nice little $3M cottage:
New Hampshire – Arlie Latham
Chris Carpenter has a slight better WAR, but Arlie Latham leads all Granite Staters in pretty much every offensive category, and by a long shot. I’m talking about 1481 runs to 942, 1836 hits to 1394, and the ridiculous 742 stolen bases to 98. Finally, Latham may have had one of the greatest nicknames ever, “The Freshest Man on Earth.”
Latham is from Lebanon, on the White River and right on the border with Vermont. Other well-known Lebanese include Mormon founder Joseph Smith as well as famous brain injury survivor Phineas Gage.
New Jersey – Mike Trout
Yeah, Derek Jeter does have a better WAR, but his 72 was over 20 years. Trout’s 64 was in a mere 8. If Trout gets 20 years, he may set an all-time record. During those 8 years, he also just so happened to collect a Rookie of he Year award, 2 MVPs, and 7 All Star selections. Another multi-tool player like Harper, Trout may end up being one of the greatest players of all time.
Trout was born in Vineland, in the southern part of the state. He would attend high school in neighboring Millville. And that’s where his nickname the “Millville Meteor” – echoing Mickey Mantle’s “Commerce Comet” – would come from. Trout lives on a 300-acre estate somewhere in the same rough area, though in this extremely ordinary house:
New Mexico – Ralph Kiner
Poor Ralph Kiner. If only he had played for someone other than the lowly Pirates of the late ‘40s and early ‘50s, he’d probably be a lot more well known. All the Hall of Famer did was lead the NL in homers 7 years in a row. It’s probably not too surprising that he also was the Pirates’ (often sole) representative in the All Star game for 6 of those years.
Kiner was born in Santa Rita, which is interestingly enough now a ghost town. The site of a huge copper mine, when the copper ran out, the town shut down.
Not his boyhood home – just one of the few buildings left
New York – Lou Gehrig
The Empire State certainly has their fair share of Hall of Famers – Spahn, Koufax, Eddie Collins, Yaz, Hank Greenberg, Whitey Ford … It just goes on and on and on. A-Rod is actually the best candidate – #1 in runs, homers & RBIs – but then there are all those darn PEDs.
I think the Iron Horse is a pretty good sub though. I’m talking 2 MVPs, that incredible games played streak, a lifetime OPS over 1000, setting the AL record for RBIs with 185, winning the triple crown, being elected to the All Star team 7 times in a row … It just goes on and on. He also seems to have been a great person as well.
Gerhig was born in Manhattan and never really left the New York City area. After a stint at Columbia, it was 17 years in the Bronx. He’s buried in Westchester.
Yorkville, where Gehrig was born, was known as Little Germany
North Carolina – Gaylord Perry
My home state! And, I believe, pretty well represented by Gaylord Perry.
Perry racked up 2 Cy Young awards, 300 wins, and 3500+ strikeouts. He also played until age 45 and was a 5-time All Star. He’s probably most famous, though, for his spitter. His autobiography is, in fact, called Me and the Spitter.
Perry was born in Williamston, in the eastern part of the state and home to 5,000 Tar Heels. Born to a family of tenant farmers, Perry was plowing behind a mule at age 7. He currently lives in Spruce Pine, up in the mountains.
Gaylord Perry Park, Williamston NC
North Dakota – Darin Erstad
North Dakota has produced 3 native sons with double figures in WAR – Erstad, Travis Hafner, and Rick Helling. That’s not too bad actually, considering only 17 North Dakotans have ever made it to the majors. Erstad, though, leads the group – in WAR, at bats, runs, hits, and stolen bases. He was also a 2-time All Star and 3-time Golden Glover.
Erstad was born in Jamestown, also home of Travis Hafner, writer Louis L’Amour, singer Peggy Lee, and UFC fighter Ronda Rousey. Jamestown has a little over 15,000 and is about equidistant between state capital Bismark and Fargo, MN. Erstad would leave Jamestown for Nebraska, where he would be the punter on the Huskers’ 1994 National Championship team and is now the baseball coach.
Ohio – Cy Young
It’s one thing to win a Cy Young award. It’s quite another to have it named after you.
There’s a reason, though, why the award for the best pitcher in either league was named for this guy. Though he played over 100 years ago, he still holds the all-time records for wins, complete games, games started, and innings pitched. A true control artist, he led the league 14 times in walk rate, and 11 in walk/strikeout ratio. The second all-time leader in WAR (behind some guy named Ruth), Young was also a member of the inaugural class at Cooperstown.
Denton True Young was born in tiny Gilmore, south of Canton. A farm boy, he would quit school after 6th grade. After baseball, he would retire in the same area, passing away at the farm of some friends, where he was a boarder:
Oklahoma – Mickey Mantle
Mickey Mantle leads all Sooners in runs, HRs, and WAR. The Hall of Famer also earned 3 MVPs, was an All Star for 16 of his 18 years in the bigs, and was a triple crown award winner. A complete multi-tools player, his starring for the Yankees during the golden era of baseball probably made him one of the most famous baseball players ever.
Hard to believe, but the “Commerce Comet” was actually born in Spavinaw (but then grew up in Commerce). Both towns are in the far northeast corner of the state, an area known for its zinc and lead mines (and where Mantle’s father worked). Here’s his boyhood Commerce home:
Oregon – Dale Murphy
Interestingly, Oregon has no Hall of Famers. In my mind at least, a real honest-to-goodness candidate for that honor would have to be Dale Murphy.
Leading all Oregonians in runs, hits, and RBIs, the Murph also collected 2 MVPs, 5 Golden Gloves, 4 Silver Slugger awards, and 7 All Star nods. He was also one of the nicest guys around, earning a Lou Gehrig award, Roberto Clemente award, Bart Giamatti Community Service Award, and induction into the World Sports Humanitarian Hall of Fame. That said, playing for the woeful Atlanta Braves of the 1980s isn’t exactly going to help his chances of getting into Cooperstown any.
Murphy was born in Portland, hipster capital of the world – but a pretty normal town back when Murphy was born, in 1956. He attended high school there, then came east for his career in the majors. He came back west after retirement, and currently lives in Alpine UT.
Murphy was drafted out of Portland’s Woodrow Wilson High
Pennsylvania – Stan Musial
There’s some serious competition here – Wagner, Mathewson … - but Stan the Man surpasses them all. Indeed, he leads all Pennsylvanians in runs, hits, RBIs, games, and All Star game berths (24!). The Hall of Famer was also a 3-time MVP, 7-time league leader in average, 6 times leader in hits and also total bases, and 9 times leader in run created (to throw in a little Sabermetrics on ya).
Musial was born in Donora – along with Ken Griffey and Ken Griffey Jr.! It’s just a small steel mill town near Pittsburgh, but somehow managed to generate 2 Hall of Famers.
Boyhood home (I don’t think those dishes were there then though)
Rhode Island – Nap Lajoie
Tiny Little Rhodie actually has 3 Hall of Famers – Gabbie Hartnett, Hugh Duffy, and Napoleon Lajoie. The little “Frenchman” led ‘em all, however, in WAR (by a factor of 2), games, hit, RBIs, and batting average. He was also a 5-time league leader in batting, 4-time leader in hits, and once won the triple crown as well. Lajoie was also an excellent second baseman, was famous for being difficult to strike out, and had some success as a manager as well.
Lajoie was born in the wonderfully named Woonsocket. Said town is right on the border with Massachusetts, and was famous for its textile mills. Many of the millworkers were – like Lajoie – French-Canadians. Even today, well over half of the city of 40,000 is of French descent.
Lajoie Field, Woonsocket, RI
South Carolina – Jim Rice
Though Rice is actually 5th in WAR among South Carolinians, he also leads them in runs, hits, homers, and RBIs. Rice led the league in homers 3 times and total bases 4, and was also an 8-time All Star. He had one incredible year, 1978, where he led the league in homers (46), hits (213), RBIs (139), triples (15), games (163), at bats (677), plate appearances (746), slugging (600), and OPS (970). And that was good enough for an MVP. Rice is one of only of two South Carolinians in Cooperstown.
Jim Ed was born in Anderson, in the upstate. Though I have a brother-in-law who lives there, there is no truth to the rumor that one of my ancestors founded the town.
South Dakota – Mark Ellis
Mark Ellis? Hmm, I don’t recall seeing his plaque at Cooperstown.
Indeed, there are no South Dakotans in the Hall (I’m not including manager Sparky Anderson here). In fact, of the 39 natives who made it to the bigs, only 2 have career WARs in double figures (pitcher Floyd Bannister’s the other guy). Poor Mark led the league in fielding 2 years … and that’s about that. Actually, his 991 lifetime fielding average is the 5th best all time for 2nd baseman.
Ellis was born in Rapid City, the most populous city in the state (with all of 69,000 inhabitants). He was on the American Legion team from there that won the national title.
Tennessee – Todd Helton
Here’s a true Volunteer. Born in Knoxville, Todd Helton would later quarterback UT’s football team, as well as win the Dick Howser award for best college baseball player there. A 5-time All Star, 4-time Sliver Slugger award winner, and 3-time Gold Glover, he somehow missed getting the MVP, in 1999, when he hit 372, and had 147 RBIs, 216 hits, and 42 homers (all but the last one league leaders). He holds the Tennessee state records for homers and RBIs, and the Rockies’ records for hits, home runs, RBIs, and games.
Helton would retire in Colorado, then return to Knoxville as player development director at UT.
Former home in Colorado
Texas – Rogers Hornsby
Boy, the Lone Star state sure does have its share of superstars – Tris Speaker, Greg Maddux, Frank Robinson, Joe Morgan, Nolan Ryan … That said, Rogers Hornsby was one of the greatest players of all time. He was a 2-time MVP, 7-time batting average leader, 5-time runs leader, 4-times hit and RBI leader, and 2-tme triple crown winner. He also finished his career with a 358 batting average (2nd only to Ty Cobb) and a 1010 OPS.
The “Rajah” was born on a ranch near the tiny town of Winters, smack dab in the center of the state. His family would move to Ft. Worth when Hornsby was four. Having gambled away most of his earnings, Hornsby would coach and manage the rest of his life, constantly moving around.
He would return to Texas, though, to be buried in the family cemetery near Austin (the Hornsbys were early settlers of the Lone Star state). The cemetery’s an interesting place (I've been there) – down an old country lane that’s little more than a path, lost in the middle of the woods, and surrounded by a high chain link fence with razor wire:
Utah – Bruce Hurst
Kind of surprisingly, Utah has only two players with career WARs in double figures. Even more surprisingly, the second guy is Duke Sims, a light-hitting catcher who only got 400 at bats once in his career.
Bruce Hurst, on the other hand, has almost 3 times Sims’ WAR. That said, he’s no Cy Young … though he did come in 5th for the Cy Young award one year. His only other major award is an All Star nod. League leadership includes once for shutouts, once for complete games, and 3 times for fielding.
Hurst was born in the very Mormon St. George, in the far southwest corner of the state (and the northeast corner of the Mojave Desert). After some international travel promoting and coaching baseball around the world, he would retire to the Phoenix area. St. George did, however, name the ball field for the local university (Dixie State) after him"
Vermont – Carlton Fisk
Though born in Bellows Falls VT, Carlton Fisk actually grew up in Charlestown NH. Both are on the Connecticut River, the border line between the two states. Bellows Falls just so happened to be where the nearest hospital was. That said, Fisk remains Vermont’s only Hall of Famer.
“Pudge” was also Rookie of the Year, an 11-time All Star and 3-time Silver Slugger winner, and set the record for catchers with 24 years behind the mask. He’ll probably be always remembered, though, for waving his home run fair to win probably the greatest World Series game ever.
Bellows Falls? A small town of 3,000, it’s quintessentially New England. Charlestown is actually almost twice as big these days. It also has its own hospital too now.
Yup, that says “New Hampshire native” (Fisk made the Red Sox change it)
Virginia – Justin Verlander
No, he’s not in the Hall (Eppa Rixey is the only Virginian who is), but it’s only a matter of time. After 12 years, he’s already got over 200 wins and is pushing 3000 strikeouts. He’s got a Rookie of the Year, Cy Young, and MVP in his trophy cabinet. In addition to that kind of triple crown, he also’s one of the real kind as well (wins, strikeouts, and ERA). Oh, let’s not forget the 2 no hitters.
Verlander is from the incredible weirdly named Manakin-Sabot, which is actually really just a suburb of Richmond. He would attend the just as weirdly named Goochland High, then graduate from Old Dominion University. Today, he lives in this nice little Beverly Hills love nest with model wife Kate Upton:
Washington – Ryne Sandberg
Ron Santo gives him a run for the money, but “Ryno” has 10 All Star berths, 9 Gold Gloves, 7 Silver Slugger awards, and 1 MVP. He also leads all Washingtonians in runs and hits.
Ryne’s from Spokane, where his dad was a mortician. Spokane is in other part of the state, in the drier, flatter, considerably less hip west. It actually has 200,000 people, and is the 2nd largest city in the state and the 101st in the US. Other than Sandberg, it’s got its fair share of famous sons and daughters – Big Crosby, David Lynch, Hillary Swank, Clyfford Still, Mark Rypien … (well, maybe not that famous).
“Ryno” would, however, elect to retire in this relatively modest house in the Windy City, the city where he spent almost his whole career:
West Virginia – George Brett
Though born in tiny Glen Dale, on the Ohio and in the little northern panhandle that shoots up between OH and PA, Brett would move to sunny Southern California early in life. The Brett family would also bring 3 other brothers, with all 3 playing professional baseball and one, Ken, making the bigs as well.
Brett earned enshrinement in Cooperstown with over 3000 hits, 300 homers, 1500 RBIs, and a career batting average of 305. A 1-time MVP, he was also a 13-time All Star and 3-time batting leader (once hitting an incredible 3900).
Brett would play his entire career with the Royals, then continue to work for them to this very day. Currently he lives in KC, in this massive pile:
Wisconsin – Kid Nichols
Who? Though he played well over 100 years ago, Charles Augustus Nichols has twice the lifetime WAR of the next best Cheesehead (Al Simmons). The Hall of Famer also finished with 362 wins (the youngest to reach 300 ever) and a 2.96 ERA. He also won 30 games 7 times. That’s who!
Nichols was born in Madison, the state capital and home to 255,000. His family would move to Kansas City, though, while Nichols was young. There, he would retire, die, and be buried:
Wyoming – Tom Browning
Not too surprisingly, the smallest state in the union also has the fewest number of natives who’ve made the bigs. A 1-time 20-game winner and 1-time All Star, Browning would finish with a 123 wins, a 577 winning percentage, and 1000 strikeouts right on the dot. And let’s not forget that perfect game!
Tom was born in Casper, but grew up in upstate New York (where he also went to college). He now lives in Union, not too far from Cincinnati, where he played most of his career.
Tom Browning is also an artist who specializes in Western
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