In 1999, the Major League Baseball All-Century Team was chosen by popular vote of
fans. To select the team, a panel of experts first compiled a list of the 100 greatest
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...
(MLB) players from the 20th century. Over two million fans then voted on the players using paper and
online
In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed "on line" ...
ballots.
The top two vote-getters from each position, except outfielders (nine), and the top six pitchers were placed on the team. A select panel then added five legends to create a thirty-man team:
[—Warren Spahn (who finished #10 among pitchers), Christy Mathewson (#14 among pitchers), Lefty Grove (#18 among pitchers), Honus Wagner (#4 among shortstops), and Stan Musial (#11 among outfielders).][
The nominees for the All-Century team were presented at the 1999 MLB All-Star Game at ]Fenway Park
Fenway Park is a baseball stadium located in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, near Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the home of the Boston Red Sox, the city's American League baseball team, and Boston Braves (baseball), since 1953, i ...
. Preceding Game 2 of the 1999 World Series, the members of the All-Century Team were revealed. Every living player named to the team attended.
Selected players
Pete Rose controversy
There was controversy over the inclusion in the All-Century Team of Pete Rose, who had been banned from baseball for life 10 years earlier. Some questioned Rose's presence on a team officially endorsed by Major League Baseball, but fans at the stadium gave him a standing ovation. During the on-field ceremony, which was emceed by Hall of Fame
A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actual halls or muse ...
broadcaster Vin Scully, NBC Sports
NBC Sports is an American programming division of the broadcast network NBC, owned and operated by NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal and subsidiary of Comcast. The division is responsible for sports broadcasts on the network, and its ...
' Jim Gray questioned Rose about his refusal to admit to gambling on baseball. Gray's interview became controversial, with some arguing that it was good journalism, while others objected that the occasion was an inappropriate setting for Gray's persistence. After initially refusing to do so, Gray apologized a few days later. On January 8, 2004, more than four years later, Rose admitted publicly to betting on baseball games in his 2004 autobiography '' My Prison Without Bars''.
See also
*Major League Baseball All-Time Team The Major League Baseball All-Time Team was chosen in 1997 to comprise the top manager and top player in each of 13 positional categories across Major League Baseball history. The team, announced by Classic Sports Network in conjunction with the ...
, a similar team chosen by the Baseball Writers' Association of America in
* Latino Legends Team
* ''DHL'' Hometown Heroes (2006): the most outstanding player in the history of each MLB franchise, based on on-field performance, leadership quality and character value
*
* List of MLB awards
* Team of the century
*National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball ...
References
External links
The MLB All-Century Team
from ESPN.com
All-Century Team DVD
from Amazon.com
All-Century Team Information
from Baseball Almanac
{{DEFAULTSORT:All-Century Team
1999 Major League Baseball season
Major League Baseball trophies and awards
History of Major League Baseball
Awards established in 1999
1999 establishments in the United States