Fame: From Yaz to Mo

Part II of our countdown of the 50 Most Famous Baseball People of the last half-century.

OK, here’s Part II of our countdown of the 50 most famous baseball folks of the last 50 years. You might remember that months ago I put together a math-challenged formula that ranked the players using various factors, including All-Star votes, pop-culture references and the number of times they were on the cover of Sports Illustrated. I then asked Brilliant Readers to play a baseball game that gave me their list.

For the most part, our lists were pretty closely aligned, but there were a few big differences, some of which you will start seeing today.

Just your daily reminder: This is the last week that you can preorder a signed and personally inscribed WHY WE LOVE FOOTBALL from Quail Ridge Books. If you do preorder, you can send me the receipt, and I’ll send you a super-early PDF of the introduction!

No. 39: Carl Yastrzemski

“Yaz”

“I know all about you. Look, kid, don’t ever let anyone monkey with your swing.” —Ted Williams

Quiet and unassuming Fenway Park legend who cracked 3,492 hits over a 23-year career. Carried the Impossible Dream Red Sox to the 1967 pennant with a Triple Crown season that ranks as one of the greatest individual years in baseball history. Maestro of the Green Monster.

Where you ranked him: 34th.