Wade Johnston was the starting left fielder for the Detroit Stars from 1928-1931. (Photo credit: Wikipedia.com)In recent posts, I have integrated Detroit Stars players into the all-time Detroit major league position lists.  The difficulties involved in ranking Negro League players are discussed in the Detroit Stars all-star team post.  The complete list of position ranks is shown below: Catchers  ..read more

 First baseman Edgar Wesley's 213 OPS+ in 1925 was the best in Detroit history. (Photo credit: Seamheads.com)In recent posts, I have integrated Detroit Stars players into the all-time Detroit major league position lists:  shortstopscenter fieldersThis week, I am looking at first basemen.  Before Negro League data was so conveniently available at Seamheads.com, I listed the top ten first basemen ..read more

Bill Riggins was a fixture at shortstop for seven years with the Detroit Stars.In a recent post, I examined Detroit Stars' outfielders "Turkey" Stearnes and Pete Hill and compared them to the Tigers top center fielders throughout history.  I also discussed some of the challenges in evaluating Negro League players.  In this post, I will look at the Detroit shortstopsBefore it was announced that ..read more

 Detroit Stars outfielder "Turkey" Stearnes was inducted into Baseball's Hall of Fame in 2001(Photo Credit: Detroit Free Press)Near the end of 2020, Major League Baseball announced that it would now officially recognize seven professional Negro Leagues that operated between 1920-1948 as major leagues.  Historians have long considered baseball played in these leagues as comparable in quality to ..read more

 I always begin any Hall of Fame discussion with a reminder that long-time Tigers second basemen Lou Whitaker has the highest career Wins Above Replacement among 20th Century position players not in the Hall and not connected to steroids or gambling.  Whitaker will likely get another shot in the future, but was not on any of the ballots this year, so let's turn our attention to the upcoming ..read more

In 1990, first baseman Cecil Fielder became the first MLB player in 13 years to hit 50 home runs in a season.(Photo credit: Julian H. Gonzalez, Detroit Free Press)This week, I present the Detroit Tigers All Star team for the 1990-1999 decade.  All Star teams for previous decades are found below:1901-19091910-19191920-19291930-19391940-19491950-19591960-19691970-19791980-1989Detroit Stars: 1919 ..read more

 The quartet of Lance Parrish, Lou Whitaker, Alan Trammell and Chet Lemon was the heart of the 1980s Tigers.(Photo credit: Mary Schroeder, Detroit Free Press) This week, I present the Detroit Tigers All Star team for the 1980-1989 decade.  All Star teams for previous decades are found below:1901-19091910-19191920-19291930-19391940-19491950-19591960-19691970-1979Detroit Stars: 1919-1930In each ..read more

 Mark "The Bird" Fidrych grooming the mound during his remarkable rookie season in 1976.(Photo credit: New York Times)This week, I present the Detroit Tigers All Star team for the 1970-1979 decade.  All Star teams for previous decades are found below:1901-19091910-19191920-19291930-19391940-19491950-19591960-1969Detroit Stars: 1919-1930In each decade, I select nine position players, one for each ..read more

Pitcher Mickey Lolich jumps into the arms of catcher Bill Freehan in celebration of the 1968 World Series win in game seven.  (Photo credit: MLive.com)This week, I present the Detroit Tigers All Star team for the 1960-1969 decade.  All Star teams for previous decades are found below:1901-19091910-19191920-19291930-19391940-19491950-1959Detroit Stars: 1919-1930In each decade, I select nine ..read more

The Detroit Stars were a charter member of the Negro National League in 1920(Photo Credit: MLBemuseum.com) On December 16, Major League Baseball announced that it will now officially recognize seven profession Negro Leagues that operated between 1920-1948 as major leagues.  Historians have long considered baseball played in these leagues as comparable in quality to the White major leagues.  It is ..read more