In 1999, the Major League Baseball All-Century Team was chosen by popular vote of
fans
Fan commonly refers to:
* Fan (machine), a machine for producing airflow, often used for cooling
** Hand fan, an implement held and waved by hand to move air for cooling
* Fan (person), short for fanatic; an enthusiast or supporter, especially wit ...
. 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 (AL), ...
(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" or ...
ballot
A ballot is a device used to cast votes in an election and may be found as a piece of paper or a small ball used in secret voting. It was originally a small ball (see blackballing) used to record decisions made by voters in Italy around the 16t ...
s.
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
The 1999 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 70th playing of the midsummer classic between the all-stars of the American League (AL) and National League (NL), the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was held on July 13 ...
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 since 1953, its only Major League Base ...
. Preceding Game 2 of the 1999 World Series
The 1999 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1999 season. The 95th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the defending American League (AL) and World Series champion New York Y ...
, 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
Peter Edward Rose Sr. (born April 14, 1941), also known by his nickname "Charlie Hustle", is an American former professional baseball player and manager. Rose played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1963 to 1986, most prominently as a membe ...
, 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 Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...
broadcaster Vin Scully
Vincent Edward Scully (November 29, 1927 – August 2, 2022) was an American sportscaster. He was best known for his 67 seasons calling games for Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers, beginning in 1950 (when the franchise was located ...
, 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 d ...
' 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
''My Prison Without Bars'' is Pete Rose's autobiography, published by Rodale Press in Emmaus, Pennsylvania on January 8, 2004.
In the book, Rose finally admitted publicly to betting on baseball games and other sports while playing for and manag ...
''.
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 e ...
, a similar team chosen by the Baseball Writers' Association of America
The Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) is a professional association for journalists writing about Major League Baseball for daily newspapers, magazines and qualifying websites. The organization was founded in 1908, and is known fo ...
in
*Latino Legends Team
The Latino Legends Team was an all-time all-star baseball team selected in 2005 to honor the history of Latin American players in Major League Baseball. The players were chosen by fan voting. Ballots were available both online at MLB.com and at ...
* ''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
In team sport, team of the century and team of the decade are hypothetical best teams over a given time period. For the century team, it can be either 100 years, or for a century (always the 20th). Similarly the team of the decade can be for 10 ...
*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-r ...
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