The 100 Greatest Everyday Players of the 1990s

Hey Everyone, and Happy Thanksgiving, While we all have plenty to be thankful for, health, family and friends, I figured I would show my appreciation to all of you from the blog and the great people I have met though this wonderful game and blog site. Peter has been rolling out his All Decade teams of the last decade and it got me thinking about (of course) what the 1990s Cleveland Indians all decade team would look like due to the late 90s success they had. Many discussions with Peter later we stumbled upon an article from bleacher report ranking the top 100 everyday players of the 1990s. Now this seemed like a fun and daunting task to take on, I embraced it and went all in. I put every player into my spreadsheet and got to work, Now before I get into the cards, I would like to discuss my process that I was using to determine which season to use per player. 

My Process:
Listing each player was the easy part, I opened a second tab and had Peters chart calculations open as well and a third tab with fangraphs of each years top 300 batters on base rankings. I went through each individual players pages looking at which year was the best season that they had. For many, the process stopped there and I would take that seasons statistics and generate the players card. If that particular season had been made by all the talented people we have or if it was the 1999 season, which the 2000 set was based upon, I would pick a different season that they had success in, while a few that season was so good I had to just remake it for a higher quality card. If your favorite season of a player didn't make it in, I apologize but man these cards are going to be fun to add in to some showdown slug fests.

My plan in this article is if we made a different version of a player that made the list from the 90s, I am going to try to include that card as well so this is going to be a loaded post with tons of cards for you to print out and add to your collections. It is also funny to look at some of my original cards and how terrible the cutouts were, and to look back at Peters original posts with his initial style of card before Bob blessed us all with the original showdown templates.

MLB SHOWDOWN 2019 SET -- Chicago Cubs

With 33% of the poll the Chicago Cubs are todays team to be released. The Cubs were an above average team with a 84-78 record and I feel like they will play that way in a full league. Much like the Red Sox and Indians they have the talent to hang around but I don't think the pieces will all fit to take down the power houses that we have seen from this set, and haven't seen yet. Looking towards a draft, I can see most of this teams starting lineup being rostered and playing prominent roles on a Showdown Cup Championship team.

MLB SHOWDOWN 2019 SET -- Cleveland Indians

Are you surprised that with me doing the team write ups that it took me this long to get the Cleveland Indians posted?? I been enjoying doing the polls and was excited to see that they won today so I can enlighten you all with my Cleveland Indians viewing experiences this past season. The Indians just missed out on a wild card spot this year going 93-69 an impressive record for a team to not make the playoffs so this team will be very competitive to play against some of the better 2019 teams, but the lack of high OB players shows why they are just on the outside looking in. Various injuries hurt the team this year as well, the well documented Carlos Carrasco's battle with leukemia kept him from getting a card this season, as well as Corey Kluber missing most of the season takes away two of the teams top pitching options. A nice stock of young arms helped carry the team into a playoff chase. Offensively Francisco Lindor missed about the first month of the season, and Jose Ramirez missed almost the last month before his triumphant return towards the last week of the season.  All of these injuries made if difficult for them to stay in the division race.

Could this be the last  Francisco Lindor Indians Card we get? This is also my current phone background

MLB SHOWDOWN 2019 SET -- Toronto Blue Jays

Today's winner is the 2019 Toronto Blue Jays, and another team thats future releases will probably be 100x more fun to play with as the second generation trio continues to grow. The team struggled in the stacked AL East and finished with a 67-95 record and most of the blame would be on the pitching staff that you will see this team present. Trading Marcus Strowman doesn't help any in the way this rotation looks as well. Hopefully they develop the rotation and bullpen to go along with the young offensive studs that they are building around.

(Since Biggio and Bichette made the all decade team, I went with Vladdy)

MLB SHOWDOWN 2019 SET -- Philadelphia Phillies

Much like the San Diego Padres the Phillies spent a lot of money leading into the 2019 season, snagging Bryce Harper in free gency, also adding Andrew McCutchen and JT Realmuto. The signs pointed to this being a fun team with a weak pitching staff as the point of weakness. They finished with an even 81-81 record showing to the difficult division that they played in and how injuries really hurt the Phillies chances of making a run towards the wild card or division crown.

MLB SHOWDOWN 2019 SET -- San Diego Padres

The San Diego Padres spent the money this past off season to land Manny Machado for 300 million dollars. He didn't return that value as expected this season but some young guys that they have paired with him can make for a fun run in the future. The 2019 Padres finished last in their division with a 70-92 record and this team is pretty rough. They tied the Indians in my twitter poll for which team to release today, and figured you guys could wait on some Indians content. Pay attention to my twitter page @mlbshowdowncup for more polls as I want to do a vote each day for who gets released next of the teams that I created. I had high hopes for the Padres this season but the Tatis injury hurts, and another season of developing the young talent leaves me hopeful for what we may see in 2020.

(Bring on the UPS Drivers)

MLB SHOWDOWN 2019 SET -- Chicago White Sox

The White Sox made some news today in the signing of catcher Yasmani Grandal to the biggest contract in club history 4 years 73 million dollars. Things seem to be turning around for the White Sox as some hot young players like Eloy Jimenez and Yoan Moncada paired with Tim Anderson and Jose Abreu veteran leadership seem to have the team heading in the right direction towards 2020. 2019 wasn't as kind as they missed out on Bryce Harper and Manny Machado and finished with a 72-89 record finishing third in the AL Central. Plenty of draft able players on this team and some utility players that can fill the extra roster spaces when tight on points.

In case you forgot where this picture came from

MLB SHOWDOWN 2019 SET -- Boston Red Sox

The defending World Series Champions took a big step back this season compared to the dominant team they put out in 2018. That side they put some first round draft pick talent out as well to be corner stones of a drafting league. Finishing with an 84-78 record they finished third in the AL East, the first time they didn't win the division since 2015.

MLB SHOWDOWN 2019 SET -- Arizona Diamondbacks

The first non playoff team released is in my opinion the most visually pleasing team of the set, the color scheme of the card, coupled with the color scheme of their jerseys just make these cards look amazing. Arizona was one of my favorite teams to watch this year because I love Ketel Marte and his card this year doesn't disappoint in any facet of the game. The Diamondbacks made two drastic changes this season, trading Paul Goldschmidt in the off season and then moving Zach Grienke before the deadline leaves this team just short of what could be playoff hopes in a league, but will be fun to use anyways with some great hitting players and some decent pitching. The wrapped up 2019 with a 85-77 record good for second in the NL West and 4 games out of the last wild card position.

All Time Royals

All Time Royals



The next team up is the Kansas City Royals, who much like the Tigers, are in a period of rebuilding- although they have had success more recently. Founded in 1969 as an expansion team they have won the World Series in 1980 and in 2015, while losing in 1985 and 2014. They also have 6 AL West titles, one Central title and a wild card berth.

Royals Logo 1969-1978

All Time Tigers

All Time Tigers


This week we start with the AL Central, and leading them off is the Detroit Tigers. They are one of the AL's original eight charter franchises from back in 1894, and the only "western" team still in their original city. They've won four World Series titles, 11 AL Pennants, 7 division titles and 1 wild card appearance. At the moment the Tigers are in Major rebuild mode, but over the years they've had some stellar players, and this team largely represents their early 2010s dominance.

Tigers Logo 1901-1902

MLB SHOWDOWN 2019 SET -- Milwaukee Brewers

Thanks for letting me take over the summary on this one, Matt! I'm taking a break from All Decade cards to discuss my favorite team.... the Milwaukee Brewers!

The Template is responsible for producing a better version of Christian Yelich than the original calcs, so there's that positive!

MLB SHOWDOWN 2019 SET -- Tampa Bay Rays

Today brings the Tampa Bay Rays, the team I was pulling for in the playoffs to somehow magically win the American League. A record of 96-66 getting the second wild card spot, eliminating the Athletics in the wild card game, and taking the Astros to a game 5 in the ALDS. The showdown version of this team looks like it would be tons of fun to manage and strategize with as it isn't your typical team.

MLB SHOWDOWN 2019 SET -- Oakland Athletics

The Oakland Athletics were an AL Wild Card team this season losing to the Rays in the wild card game. This team came from the tough AL West and finished with a 97-65 record falling just short of being another 100 win team. A strong September record of 18-8 helped them clinch that #1 wild card position.

ALL DECADE RANGERS

The squad that typically wins my "best of" Showdown leagues, the Texas Rangers. Seriously, I've done two such leagues (one 24 games, the other 36 games)  and the Rangers were the AL #1 seed and eventual World Series champ both times... mainly because the first featured 00-05 cards (crazy favored offense, no surprise) and the second featured original set plus Colby 11-13 cards (i.e. Rangers prime seasons). So now, the Rangers won't have the benefit of Alex Rodriguez 01 pennant run at SS (2x MVP of "best of" leagues), 00 Rafael Palmerio, 01 or 00 Pudge, 00 Juan Gonzalez... or John Wetteland and Jeff Zimmerman adding depth to the bullpen.... BUT they're still absolutely loaded. They're stacked in all three phases and, until they get knocked out, are my favorite to win it all in the Clemson-train of thought so many people have in college football. And like Clemson, it's hard to doubt them beyond thinking other superpowers may have just enough juice to stop the magic.

People forget -- Josh Hamilton was a power monster for the Rangers!

All Time Cubs

All Time Cubs




The final team in the NL Central is the Chicago Cubs, who were a founding member of the NL in 1876 as the White Stockings, before becoming the Cubs in 1903. The Cubs have appeared in 11 World Series, however are most famously known for their 108 year drought between their wins in 1908 and 2016. Their only other win was in 1907, being the first team to appear in three straight fall classics and the first to win two in a row. They have 17 NL Pennants to their name, although every one of them except 2016 came before 1945. In their long and storied existence there have been a large numbers of Hall of Famers, some of which you will see here. This team is a very solid team, although after seeing the other members in their division, they're going to have to fight their way out.

Original Cubs Logo from 1903-1905

All Time Cardinals

All Time Cardinals



Today's team is the Cardinals, and just as always, they come in and grasp the Brewers dominance right out of their hands. In 1881 the Brown Stockings barnstorming club was purchased and renamed the St. Louis Browns. They would join the National League in 1892, and in 1900 took their current name of the Cardinals. They invented farm systems, and have a long list of accomplishments over the years including 11 World Series Titles, 19 NL pennants, 11 Central division titles, 4 AA Pennants, 3 East Division titles and 3 wild card berths. There's a long list of players who have made it to Cooperstown from playing with the Cardinals, and you will see quite a few in here.

MLB SHOWDOWN 2019 SET -- Minnesota Twins

The 2019 Minnesota Twins won the Central Division going 101-61 this season. In a season known for the long ball, this squad was all about bombs, and set a new Major League record with 307 home runs this season. The also set the record for the best record ever to get the third seed in the playoffs, showing how strong the top of the American League was this past season. Sadly for these Twins the season ended after a 3 game sweep by the Yankees in the first round of the playoffs.

If you want to play Nelson Cruz in the outfield instead of the DH role it will cost your defense 2 points, but better than -5

MLB Showdown 2019 Set Release Podcast

It's that time of the year again. When you get to listen to our annoying voices talking about a card game. This year we have more people to stick in your ear. We started off this years podcast with some of the main discussion points. We breakdown the new design and the new calculations. We talk about the pros and the cons. We breakdown some of the teams that have been released thus far. We also talk random baseball stuff. Listen in and let us know your thoughts. More podcasts to come.

All Time Brewers

All Time Brewers



The Milwaukee Brewers, originally the Seattle Pilots of the AL, were founded in 1969 and relocated a year later to Milwaukee and adopted their current name during the move. They jumped over the NL in '98 and are the only team to play in four divisions. They have made the playoffs five times and their only World Series appearance came back in 1982, losing to the Cardinals in seven games. The only two Brewers in the Hall of Fame in Brewers uniforms are Robin Yount and Paul Molitor, who make an appearance here.

The original Pilots and Brewers logos

MLB SHOWDOWN 2019 SET -- Atlanta Braves

The 2019 Atlanta Braves were one of my favorite teams to watch this season. As an Indians fan I get to see Francisco Lindor enjoy himself 162 games a year, and watching the Braves and the youthful Ronald Acuna and Ozzie Albies having fun while playing is a great time. Add in one of my favorite players in Josh Donaldson, and as you will see below, have some fun in the dug outs with the help of an umbrella. The Braves won 97 games this year finishing with a 97-65 record to win the very tough NL East for the second straight season. Sadly on October 9th, they became the first team in MLB playoff history to allow 10 runs in the first inning of a playoff game. So here we go with the 2019 Atlanta Braves.

The cut out y'all didn't know you wanted in some alt calcs!

ALL DECADE CARDINALS

My least favorite team in baseball, I begrudgingly have to admit the Cardinals have been the class of the NL Central for the vast majority of my lifetime. This decade, they started off on fire with a 2011 World Series title and forcing me to watch them in the playoffs for the five years that I spent in Columbia, Missouri, surrounded by Cardinals' fans. I think this team is built to continue to frustrate me (and my beloved Brewers) in the All Decade league!

Shout out to Harrison, my least favorite Cardinal in large part because he's below average with a bat and YET my friends kept yelling "HYDRATE WITH BADERADEEEEE" every (rare) time he got a hit last summer

ALL DECADE ATHLETICS

The A's and their moneyball ways had an up-and-down decade mostly filled with success! Five playoff berths, but their best team somehow only won 88 games in 2014 and they unfortunately were behind the Astros after winning 97 games the past two seasons. However, they're going to have a chance to win the division in the All Decade league thanks to depth at pitching!

KRUSH sadly didn't make the All Decade team due to fan vote, but I love his power!

ALL DECADE PHILLIES

Coming into the 2010s, the Phillies were absolutely rolling off of back-to-back Pennant triumphs. They kept it going -- NLCS in 2010, well over 100 wins in 2011. Then came some droughts, but Philly still has some amazing talent from those early teams to put together an awesome squad. Hard to believe it, but we're now 18/30 teams through the All Decade squads... and we're seeing another title contender here!

The Hall of Famer is an absolute beast.... and this 2010 stud wasn't even his best card!

ALL DECADE PADRES

The 2020s look like they'll be a lot brighter for San Diego's sole professional sports team. Especially with the recent reveal of the awesome brown uniforms the Padres are about to rock! Unfortunately, the 2010s were not an especially kind decade to San Diego's baseball club. Zero playoff berths and only one winning season (90 wins in 2010) made for a bleak decade, but there's some life to be found on this squad (mainly Rookie stud Fernando Tatis Jr). If half the young arms in their system develop and they sign Cole or Strasburg this offseason, watch the Padres 2020 All Decade team look a lot more like the Astros than this mediocre assemblage!

Let's all hope Tatis reaches this peak potential card soon! After his rookie year, it seems VERY possible!

MLB SHOWDOWN 2019 SET --St. Louis Cardinals

The unlikeliest of the playoff teams to make it to the NLCS if I had to rank the 5 teams that made the playoffs. The NL Central Champions went 91-71, and eliminated the Atlanta Braves in the first round of the playoffs. This unique team doesn't have the offensive fire power in terms of high on base that we've seen from the teams released already, but one  9 on base and six 8 on bases give them a deep hitting line up. The only foil of the team comes from the starting rotation and second half beast Jack Flaherty. This team can definitely compete but do the lack the fire power to beat the top teams?

ALL DECADE RED SOX

Since the curse was broken, the Red Sox lead all of baseball with four championships.... and two came during the last decade! Accordingly, they're one of the most talented squads in the All Decade League!

Dustin Pedroia's MVP season was a season too soon for this team, but a later version definitely made the squad!

MLB SHOWDOWN 2019 SET -- Houston Astros

Another successful season ending in a game 7 defeat to the Washington Nationals, but this very well could be the greatest showdown team to ever be made. With the name of the site being greatestmlbshowdown this team fits the bill in every possible way. This lineup is going to need high rolls all the time to get through it, and if you make a mistake the bases may be getting cleared. Finishing with a 107-55 record winning the AL West and were the first team since the 02-04 Yankees to have three consecutive 100 win seasons. 

ALL DECADE REDS

Cincinnati has gone through a lot this decade. From soaring hopes to the bottom of the NL Central to being a darling in the analytic models despite a sub .500 season, the Reds fans have experienced it all..... except a postseason series victory. For the All Decade teams, Cincinnati can definitely feel good about itself! We're now halfway through the rollout and the Reds are definitely in the upper half of teams so far! However, I think most fans will be underwhelmed initially due to our classic preference for Control and On-Base ... but take a gander at these charts and take a second to think "man, all they need are 3-4 charts in a game to do some REAL damage." Will it lead to postseason success for the Reds? Or will they end up behind their NL Central rivals once more? More importantly, what do you think??

The stellar Canadian slugger Joey Votto is always a win, putting together consistently awesome cards throughout the Decade

MLB SHOWDOWN 2019 SET -- Washington Nationals

So guys… WE DID IT!  The release of the 2019 set is here! The entire Showdown creator team has been looking forward to this date for a great deal of time now. There are loads of changes and new things this season, so stay tuned for a break down of the new changes to the 2019 set in a later blog post. For now, here are the World Series Champions…

THE WASHINGTON NATIONALS

So here they are, standing at an impressive 6,640 points.. They may have only won 93 games and a Wild Card spot, but they sure did deserve everything they won with the team they had. After last year’s dud of a season for the Nats, most fans thought they would see this team fall to the middle of the division standings behind the Braves and possibly the Phillies or Mets with their new acquisitions, however, the Nationals played just well enough to take the N.L. Wild Card to Nationals Park. Once again, the Nationals were definitely doubted in the playoffs because … they’re the Nationals and they hadn’t won a single series in their four franchise postseason appearances. Despite the odds, the Nationals were resilient and edged their way past the Brewers, Dodgers, and eventually the Astros to make history as the first championship to be brought home to Washington

All Time Reds

ALL TIME REDS


Two teams in one week, and we are officially back in the swing of things! Today's team is the Cincinnati Reds. They joined the NL in 1890, and actually played in the NL West from 1969-1993 before joining their current division, the central. They've won five world series, with their first coming from the infamous 1919 Black Sox Scandal. Fun fact, that was one of a few best of 9 game series formats that they tried. They've also won 9 NL Pennants and 10 division titles. The Reds have many players enshrined in Cooperstown, however possibly the most famous is not there due to his alleged gambling ways.

Cincinnati Reds first logo (previously were Red Stockings)

All Time Pirates

All Time Pirates


                     After a LONG layoff, I'm back! Going to try and include more run analysis while doing this. Our first team in the NL Central is the Pirates, one of the oldest teams in the sport. They briefly spent time in Allegheney before moving to Pittsburgh in 1891, and have been there ever since. Over their storied franchise they have won five World Series titles, although none since 1979. They’ve also won nine NL pennants, no central division titles, nine east division titles and three wild card births. Throughout their long history they’ve also had a large number of Hall of Famers don the black and yellow, including Honus Wagner, Roberto Clemente, Ralph Kiner and Willie Stargell. This team won’t have the same punch as the other teams, however they definitely have some fun players to use. 

ALL DECADE RAYS

The Sunshine state's finest, the Tampa Bay Rays! After a miserable first decade or so as the Devil Rays, Tampa rebranded as just the Rays in 2008... and immediately won their first pennant! Since then, the Rays have been consistent playoff contenders despite extremely limited budgets and woeful attendance figures. They've been masters of flipping guys for more valuable prospects (see: Chris Archer for Meadows and Glasnow... who are both on the All Decade team) and their "opener" strategy is the new Moneyball approach. Just like real life, the odds are going to be stacked against them in the All Decade league since they've got to take on the mighty Yankees and Red Sox (and Blue Jays) in the AL East, but the Rays have arguably the best pitching in baseball -- that can be enough to not only help them squeak into a wild card berth, but possibly to win the division and challenge for the pennant!

Archer had big K ranges, but never had the necessarily Tier level to crack the All Decade Rays

ALL DECADE INDIANS

The favorite team of most blog contributors, I know this is a team that'll be released to great fanfare/controversy! Accordingly, I'm turning this All Decade team's breakdown over to Matt (who you can follow @mlbshowdowncup on twitter for great content), who's been helping me a lot with the Showdown card creation! From my perspective, the Indians are going to be the AL Central frontrunner. They lack any discernible weakness, have a bunch of OB 10s and speed in the lineup, aces galore in the rotation, and three Tier 1 pitchers out of the pen. They're going to be really hard to (a) keep down for an entire series; (b) consistently score on. With that combination, watch out AL playoff race! A quick note -- I took Bob's Tier 1 2017 Corey Kluber card for the team because Kluber led the AL in both ERA and WHIP during his Cy Young season.... but the Tier 2 Carrasco was too far off to fly. Although I'm impressed with Carrasco's consistency -- he's put up the same Control 5, on at 16, David Cone type card in 2016, 2017, and 2018! Injuries kept him from getting a card in 2019, but look out 2020! I'm taking this opportunity to show off a Michael Brantley that just missed the cut that was made by Matthew P (different Matt and big fan of the Twins) in his gorgeously made 2015 set:

I really love this card's look, but the extra singles on the 2014 card pushed this Brantley to the bench!

ALL DECADE DODGERS

Despite dominating the NL West in the regular season throughout the Decade, the Dodgers have zero World Series to show for it while their arch-rival Giants took home THREE titles. However, LA has a small consolation -- their All Decade team looks much better than San Fran's on paper... and, in fact, looks to be a top flight contender for the All Decade crown! The lineup is stacked with guys combining high OB with high power, a surprising amount of speed, and really lacks any weak points. The rotation is led by Cy Young Kershaw and Grienke -- no surprise there! Potential 2019 Cy Young winner Ryu is the #3 pitcher!! And the bullpen has, of course, super dominant Tier 0 Kenley Jansen. Overall, there isn't any obvious weakness to the team (maybe the backend of the bullpen, which is a huge stretch) and the Dodgers are looking like the frontrunner for the NL Pennant..... but of course, that's true of most years in the 2010s and, yet, zero World Series trophies.

I won't be the one to blame Kershaw -- the dude had MULTIPLE Tier 1 seasons in the 2010s!!

ALL DECADE ROYALS

After languishing in over a decade of futility, the Royals burst into the playoffs in 2014 -- taking the AL Pennant after a crazy Wild Card win! Then in 2015... TRIUMPH as Kansas City claimed the World Series crown. Their showdown team reflects the Ned Yost era very well -- lots of speed and contact hitters, solid starting pitching, and some BEASTS in the bullpen. I'm excited to start small balling my way through the season, as similar to reality, the Royals have the least expensive team we've seen so far. Moreover, this has been the first All Decade to place a real emphasis on defense, so let's see if the elite infield defense (with some good GB pitching mixed in) makes a difference against all the top level talent! Overall, going to be a fun team to watch go toe to toe with other solid AL Central teams!

Wade Davis was the best of many, many good relievers with this Tier 0 card in 2015. 

I love the powder blue jerseys for KC, definitely a top 5 look in the majors in my mind!

ALL DECADE GIANTS

Make no mistake about it -- the San Francisco Giants are one of the best All Decade teams out there. It makes perfect sense after they took home three of the first five World Series titles of the 2010s. However, the Giants "dynasty" is a bit of a misnomer to me, as none of the Giants' championship teams were dominant over the course of 162 games. This takes nothing away from their incredible postseason performances (in fact, with their trio of aces and timely hitting, they were built for the playoffs), but the Giants really don't have the type of firepower you'd expect from a team that won the title 3/5 years. After all, they were never even the favorite to win it all and Showdown is based more on "who had the best regular season and squad on paper" versus the intangible qualities needed to actually take home the top prize! All that's to say...... this team is great, but they're looking up at the Dodgers, so will can luck be the Giants lady in the All Decade league??

It's hard not to love MVP Buster Posey, an absolute force behind the plate!