They could be legends

[Topnotchsy]

There was a recent thread that discussed players who will go down as all-time legends. It included guys like Pujols and Cabrera.

Looking at the careers of Pujols and Canrera there is something interesting about Canrera. Before his last couple of seasons he was a great player and likely future HOFer, but it did not seem like he would have been viewed as a true legend (unlike Pujols who was viewed that way almost from day 1). A couple of monster seasons changed that. Now while a couple of monster seasons would make anyone look good, it was because of Miggy's past that he now looks to be one of the great hitters in baseball history.

On that note I've been thinking about other players who, if they had a couple of monster seasons, could really raise their profile. These would be players who have been borderline great players for years but never got crazy attention but who with a couple of huge seasons would have people looking at their whole career and saying, "he's an all-time great."

I'm not by my computer so I'll hold off with the guys I have in mind until I can dig up some stats but I thought it would be a fun discussion.

 

[Topnotchsy]

Got a chance to get back to a computer, so I'll share what I mean:

Joe Mauer

To this point Mauer has somewhat quietly put up some of the better numbers of any catcher in history. He's won an MVP, lead the league in batting 3 times (lifetime .323 batting average), walks more than he K's, has a career OBP of over .400 and has done all this as one of the best defensive catchers in baseball.

With a move to 1st base it is unlikely that he will be considered the greatest hitting catcher of all time, but at around 1500 hits at age 31, and moving to a less taxing position, there is a chance he could approach 3000 hits and wind up with some pretty gaudy career numbers. He's not a legend at the moment (although I think he has a legit HOF shot) but if he would put up a couple of monster seasons I could see people viewing him in a whole different light.

Robinson Cano

Cano is similar to Mauer in that he has put up some of the best number of all-time at a position not known for hitting, and he does so while being great with the glove as well. Over his last 5 years in the Majors he has averaged 195 hits per season. He won the Silver Slugger each of the last 4 seasons and has finished 6th or better in the MVP race each season. He already is more than halfway to 3000 hits, and has more than 200 homers along with 375 doubles at the key-stone. While like Mauer I believe he has a solid shot at the Hall, if he would put up a couple of huge years, say finishing in the top 1-2 in MVP voting each season, I could see people bringing his name up in the discussion for best hitting 2nd base man of all time, and it could do wonders to his legacy. Of course he just left NY which won't help shine the spotlight on him.

Anyone else have any guys?

 

[Super Mario]

Michael Wacha hopefully.