Rickey Henderson

Where is his place in history? Where does he rank among baseball's all-time best?

He's about to set the all-time record for runs scored. That's a significant, venerable record that dates all the way back to Ty Cobb. He's also about to get 3000 hits. Add those accomplishments to his other records, like career walks, stolen bases in a season, steals in a career, and leadoff home runs. Ten all-star appearances. An MVP award. And he's won championships in Oakland and Toronto.

Rickey might be conceited. Rickey might not hit for much power, or have much of an outfield arm. Rickey might talk about Rickey in the third person. There might be little-to-no hype surrounding his chase of Cobb's mark or his pursuit of 3,000 hits. But can't the argument be made that he is one of the greatest players (no just the acknowledged greatest leadoff hitter) of all time? I see all-century, all-time, etc. teams listed often, and he's almost never mentioned. I would argue that, even without great power numbers, he has put together a unique career that measures up with the best players to ever play the game.

Incidentally, I like the idea that Cobb, a grade-A racist, would have his record broken by a black man.