As the two of us have been mercifully spared the ravages of intelligence, I can only say thank you Cliffy, for showing us the way. Your wisdom on these matters is a beacon in an otherwise dull and pedestrian haze of an existence. I shall indeed pour myself another brown (Jack this time), and await your liver lashings upon my arrival in Mecca.

Okay, I’ve caught my breath again. For that that aren’t aware, in addition to having the most hits, Pete Rose is also #1 all-time in games played, plate appearances, and at-bats. He should be lauded for these accomplishments, don’t get me wrong - but they indicate nothing more than “most durable of all-time”… as well as “lucky to have not played during any wars… all-time”. And they provide ample context for his ability to end up with the most hits of all-time, and explain why he’s clearly not the best hitter of all-time.

Most reasonable (i.e. sober) people can agree that with some reasonable minimum in place (call it 10, 12 or 15 seasons… or 5000, 7500, or 10,000 plate appearances), determining “best hitter” should be an analysis of *rate* statistics. So… let’s take a look. Rose’s career BA is .303. For comparison, Tony Gwynn’s career BA is .338. Um… if I need a basehit, I think I’d rather have Tony Gwynn at the plate (among a calvery of others) than Dirtbag… er, Pete Rose. Actually, let me provide some even better perspective: Pete Rose has the same career batting average as Mike Greenwell. Look it up. Then tell me again how Greenwell… er, Rose is the best hitter of all-time.

Rose’s career OPS is 784 (OPS+ of 118). Tony Gwynn’s OPS+ is 132. I won’t further embarass Rose by comparing him to the countless other all-time players that are head-and-shoulders above him in the hitting department - not cuz I’m concerned with his (or BA’s) feelings, but just cuz… well, I’ve got better things to do.

Put another way, in BA’s world, Phil Niekro is a better pitcher than Pedro Martinez and Sandy Koufax cuz he had far more career wins. Um… yeah. Gotcha. Have another shot of the Makers, my friend. Actually, better make it a double… rather than risk sobriety and the start realization that you’ve (again) made an utter ass of yourself.

It’s Pete Rose, hands down in my book (shocking, I know). And gambling when he was a manager didn’t inflate the numbers one bit. C’mon. Gwynn makes your list? Are you gay for dingers, too? Hitters, now power hitters… WTF?

However, if we are talking about best ALL AROUND/MOST TALENTED player ever, there is Ruth, and then everyone else - he HR’d several TEAMS during his heyday and of course, his pitching prowess makes him second to none, IMHO…