SteveJRogers

Funny you should say that. Talk to basketball experts and they are never going to suggest that Chamberlain and Cousy would be so much better than say Shaq and Steve Nash.

Ditto with hockey experts if you suggest Gordie Howe and Bobby Orr could compete in today's game, and football experts would laugh in your face if you suggest that Jim Brown would dominate in today's game.

Thats why I can't believe radio talkers like Warner Wolf, and callers as well on 1050 ESPN Radio this morning, are taking Ozzie Guillen to task for saying Roberto Clemente is the third greatest player from Puerto Rico behind Roberto Alomar (in his Blue Jay/Oriole/Indian prime of course) and Ivan Rodriguez.

Thing is, the comments should not be dismissed, you are still talking about two guys who are among the best in their positions all-time against a guy who if you actually LOOK at the record is on the level of a Derek Jeter type.

In fact Baseball-Reference.com lists Steve Garvey, Steve Finley, Al Oliver, Dave Parker, and Vada Pinson as Clemente's similar batters. Course they also list Tony Gwynn, but as well as fringe HOFers like Paul Waner, Enos Slaughter, Goose Goslin and Zack Wheat.

Alomar and Pudge (yes Pudge is a cheater and Alomar does deserve have more suspicions about him than many of his peers) also have put up much better stats over the years, as well as playing positions that are not traditionally offensive positions.

Well the point is the Alomar/Pudge vs. Clemente debate is not as cut and dried as the debate that Wolf said that Ozzie's comments were like, he said that Ozzie's comments were like if you said Juan Marichal was the second best Dominican pitcher behind Armando Benitez!

Why is baseball arguments this way where so many people with opinions like to say players in the past are so superior to anyone who played in couple of generations after them, and that there is no argument to their superiority?

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