Top 5: Born in Arkansas
Thomas Holmes, MS
Baseball Writer | Baseball Historian | Sports Management Expert |Veteran
Here is another installment of my Top 5 list. Today’s list focuses on players born in the state of Arkansas. Arkansas is mostly known for its intercollegiate sports, specifically football and men’s basketball. The Natural State produced noteworthy baseball players. Here is my list of the Top 5 ball players born in the state of Arkansas. Please feel free to disagree and comment.
1. Brooks Robinson – Brooks Robinson played baseball for 23 years and all of them with the Baltimore Orioles. With the nickname of the “Human vacuum cleaner” he is arguably the greatest defensive third basemen the game has ever seen. His superior fielding produced 16 consecutive Gold Glove Awards. In addition, Robinson holds the record for the most played games in his position with 2,870. The 18-time all-star was voted mid-summer classic MVP in 1966 and won his first World Series Championship later that same year. In 1970 Robinson won his second and was named MVP. Robinson played 39 postseason games and batted .303 with five HRs and a remarkable 22 RBIs. Brooks Robinson was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1983.
2. Lou Brock – After research I decided to place Lou Brock second. Brock has the fourth highest WAR of the five players on this list. But this is not a list of WAR ratings. I found more value in his accomplishments over the others. Let us begin going over these accolades. Brock is mostly known for breaking Ty Cobb’s record of stolen bases in 1977. This record held in place until 1991. Lou was a six-time all-star and player of the year in 1974. His star shined the brightest during the World Series. Lou batted an amazing .391 in 21 World Series games, winning rings in 1964 and 1967. He finished his career with 3,023 hits and a batting average of .293. These are Hall of Fame numbers without including his 938 stolen bases. Brock was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1985.
3. Dizzy Dean – Born Jay Hanna Dean, Dizzy is the only pitcher on the list. He was a dominating pitcher of his time. During his playing career (1930-1941), Dean was a four-time all-star (1934-1937). Dean had his best season in 1934 when he would be a 30-game winner, named National League MVP, and won the World Series Championship. In 1947, after his retirement, St Louis Browns signed Dean to a one game contract as a publicity stunt to draw fans to the ballpark. Dean ended his career with a record of 150-83, a remarkable 64% winning percentage. He secured his place in the Hall of Fame in 1953.
4. Arky Vaughn – This slick fielding infielder was born Joseph Floyd Vaughan. His family moved to California while Vaughan was an infant. Somehow Vaughan grew up with a strong Arkansas accent which created his nickname “Arky.” Vaughn was selected to the all-star team in nine straight seasons. In his 14-year career, Vaughan spent majority of his years in Pittsburgh until he was traded to the Brooklyn Dodgers. His clashes with manager Leo “The Lip” Durocher caused Vaughn to sit-out for three seasons (1944-1946). He returned to the team in 1947 and had his only World Series appearance. In three games, Arky hit a double in two official at-bats with a walk. The career .318 hitter was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1985.
5. Travis Jackson – Little known Travis Jackson was an infielder with the NY Giants from 1922-1936. The Giants dominated baseball during this time. Baseball was a different game back then and it was referred to as the “dead ball” era. Records show Jackson was selected to only one all-star game (1934). This misleading fact fails to tell the true story. All-star games were not established until 1933. Ironically, Jackson won his only World Series in 1933. How many all-star games could he have been part of if it existed earlier? Jackson was selected to the Hall of Fame in 1982.
Notable mentions: Hall of Famer George Kell, Torii Hunter, and Cliff Lee.
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