Detroit Tigers: Top Ten First Basemen in Franchise History

Dale Alexander

Detroit Tigers: 1929-1932

Even diehard fans may not know much about Dale Alexander. He only spent a hair over three seasons in the Motor City. Still, Alexander was excellent in his brief time with the Tigers.

He made his big league debut in 1929, at age 26. He had perhaps his finest season, slashing .343/.397/.580 with 25 home runs, 137 RBI, 43 doubles, a league-leading 215 hits and a stellar 5.1 bWAR. Had there been a Rookie of the Year award, Alexander may well have been your winner. On a team with Charlie Gehringer and Harry Heilmann, both Hall of Famers, Alexander lead the team in HR, RBI and batting average.

His 1930 season was nearly as good, with Alexander posting a .326/.372/.507 to go along with 20 home runs, 135 RBI, 33 doubles and a 3.1 bWAR. His power took a huge step backward in 1931, with just three home runs. He still managed 87 RBI however, and slashed a tidy .325/.401/.445 with a career-high 47 doubles.

1932 saw Alexander only play in 23 games with the Tigers before he was shipped, along with Roy Johnson, to the Red Sox in exchange for Earl Webb. Webb hit .287 in 88 games with the Tigers. Meanwhile, Alexander went on to hit .372 with the Red Sox, finishing the season with a batting title (.367) and an 11th place finish in MVP voting.

Jason Thompson

Detroit Tigers: 1976-1980

Another forgotten slugger in Tigers history, Jason Thompson was a two-time All-Star for the Tigers in the late 1970’s, one of the worst stretches in franchise history.

Originally acquired as a fourth round pick in 1975 out of Cal-State Northridge, Thompson made his big league debut less than a year later as a 21-year-old in 1976. Although he only hit .218 that season, he did mash 17 home runs in 123 games, a sign of what was to come for the slugger.

1977 was one of the best years of Thompson’s 11-year career, as the slugger hit 31 home runs, had 105 RBI and slashed .270/.347/.487 with a 3.9 bWAR. He made his first of three All-Star games and also finished 21st in MVP voting.

1978 saw Thompson make his second All-Star team, finishing with 26 home runs and 96 RBI. He slashed .287/.364/.472 with a 131 OPS+ and a career-high 5.6 bWAR. 1979 was Thompson’s final full season with the Tigers. He hit .246 with 20 home runs and a 98 OPS+, his lowest as a Tiger.

After 36 less than stellar games in 1980, the Tigers decided to flip Thompson to the Angels in exchange for Al Cowens. Cowens spent 1.5 years with the Tigers, hitting .273 with a 1.5 bWAR.

Thompson ended up making another All-Star team with the Pirates in 1982. He retired in 1986 with 208 career home runs, 98 of them in a Tigers uniform.

Tony Clark

Detroit Tigers: 1995-2001

Tony Clark had big shoes to fill when he replaced first baseman Cecil Fielder in 1995 (more on him later). Clark was up to the task however, posting a 121 OPS+ and hitting 156 home runs in a Tigers uniform.

The switch-hitting slugger was drafted second overall by the Tigers in the 1990 draft. He debuted in September of 1995 and hit .238 with three home runs in 101 at-bats.

Clark posted an ugly .299 OBP in 1996, but managed to blast 27 home runs. Fielder was traded at midseason, putting Clark squarely in the driver’s seat as Detroit’s new slugging first baseman.

Clark took off from 1997-1999. He posted three consecutive 30 home run seasons, slashing .282/.365/.510 with a 125 OPS+. Clark collected a combined 9.5 bWAR in those three seasons, for an average of 3.2 per season.

Clark remained with the Tigers through his All-Star 2001 season. He then spent the next eight seasons playing for five different teams. He hit 95 more home runs to give him 251 for his career.

Clark may have played on some bad Tigers teams in the 1990’s, but his prodigious power gives him a spot among the greatest first basemen in team history.

Darrell Evans

Detroit Tigers: 1984-1988

Evans was primarily a third baseman in his career, but he spent almost all of his Tigers career either at first base or as the designated hitter. While he didn’t make an All-Star game in his five seasons in the Motor City, he did finish in the top-15 in MVP voting twice, and blasted 40 home runs in 1985.

Evans signed with the Tigers in December of 1983. He was somewhat of a utility player in 1984, playing 47 games at first base, 19 at third and 62 at designated hitter. It was his worst year with the Tigers, but he still mustered 16 home runs and a solid .353 OBP. He hit well in the ALCS against the Royals, although his 1-for-15 performance in the World Series was less than ideal.

Still, Evans more than redeemed himself in 1985, blasting 40 home runs with 94 RBI, a 138 OPS+ and a solid .356 OBP. He finished 14th in MVP voting, likely because his .248 batting average was sub-par. This was before OBP was more widely recognized, which may have helped Evans get more recognition in his career – he has a career .248 BA but a .361 OBP.

Evans was solid in 1986, hitting 29 home runs with a 116 OPS+. He was really strong in 1987, hitting 34 home runs and posting a .257/.379/.501 slash line with more walks (100) than strikeouts (84). He finished 12th in MVP voting.

Age started catching up to Evans in his age 41 season, as he only hit .208 with 22 home runs in 1988. That would prove to be his final season in the Motor City. He spent one more season back with the Braves before hanging them up. In his 21-year-career, Evans finished with 414 home runs, 2,223 hits, 1,605 walks (12th all-time) and a 58.8 bWAR. He lasted one year on the ballot, with just 1.7% of the vote.

Cecil Fielder

Detroit Tigers: 1990-1996

One of the best power hitters in team history, Cecil Fielder joined the Detroit Tigers in 1990 after a one-year stint in Japan. He made his name known immediately, blasting a career-high 51 home runs in the Motor City.

It was the most home runs in the MLB since George Foster in 1977, and the most in the AL since Roger Maris way back in 1961. Fielder was an All-Star, Silver Slugger Award winner and finished second in MVP voting in 1990. He led the league in home runs, RBI and total bases.

Fielder had a heck of an encore in 1991, blasting a league-leading 44 home runs and 132 RBI. He once again made the All-Star game, won the Silver Slugger award and finished second in MVP voting. Fielder’s power never wavered, as he went on to post home run totals of 35, 30, 28, 31 and 26 before being traded to the New York Yankees for Matt Drews and Ruben Sierra.

Overall, Fielder finished his seven years in Detroit with 245 home runs and 758 RBI. His 245 home runs ranks him sixth in Tigers history, just behind Willie Horton and one spot ahead of Lou Whitaker.

Lu Blue

Detroit Tigers: 1921-1927

One of Detroit’s best players of the 1920’s, Lu Blue, like Evans, was excellent at drawing a walk. Unlike Evans, Blue had virtually no power – only hitting 19 home runs in his seven seasons with the Tigers. However, he blasted 176 doubles, had a .403 OBP, a 110 OPS+ and finished in the top 20 in MVP voting three times.

Blue made his debut in 1921 at 24 years old. He racked up 711 plate appearances, slashing an excellent .308/.416/.427 with five home runs, 13 stolen bases and a 116 OPS+.

He was extremely consistent in the next four seasons, posting bWAR’s of 3.6, 3.3, 3.3, and 3.7. He hit exactly .300 over that time, with a .408 OBP and a 110 OPS+. He also averaged 12 stolen bases per year, although he got caught an average of six times per season.

After the 1927 season, where Blue hit .260/.384/.364, he was traded along with Heinie Manush to the St. Louis Browns for Harry Rice, Elam Vangilder and Chick Galloway. Blue spent two years in St. Louis, three in Chicago and one more in Brooklyn before hanging them up in 1933.

He finished his 13-year-career with a .287/.402/.401 line, a 109 OPS+ and a 36.7 bWAR – 20.9 of which was with the Tigers.

Rudy York

Detroit Tigers: 1934-1945

York made his debut with the Tigers in 1934, but didn’t resurface again in until 1937. Even then, he was a catcher/utility player until he took over as the full-time first baseman in 1940.

York’s six seasons as Detroit’s starting first baseman were excellent. He made four All-Star teams, and received MVP votes every season – topping out with a third place finish in 1943.

During those six seasons, York slashed .275/.361/.474 with 151 home runs (25 per season) and a 124 OPS+. He led the league in games played three times and home runs and RBI once (34 and 118 in 1943). That season, York also posted a .527 slugging percentage and had 301 total bases, both leading the league.

York was shipped to the Boston Red Sox in 1946 in exchange for Eddie Lake. He only played three more years, as he was out of the league by age 34.

York would be higher on this list if he had spent more of his career at first base. His three seasons behind the plate were stellar as well, with York posting a .303/.396/.592 line with 88 home runs (29 per season) and a 141 OPS+.

York had a 31.7 bWAR with the Tigers, with 21.0 of that while he was the full-time first baseman. That is still enough to merit a spot in the top-five among first basemen in franchise history.

Norm Cash

Detroit Tigers: 1960-1974

The Tigers acquired Norm Cash just before the start of the 1960 season in a trade for Steve Demeter. That trade could not have gone better for the Tigers, as Cash ended up being one of the best players in franchise history, and a huge part of their success in 1968.

Best known for his monstrous 1961 season, in which Cash hit 41 home runs, had 132 RBI and won a batting title with a .361 average (and a .487(!) OBP) Cash carved out a very nice overall career with the Tigers. In 15 seasons, Cash hit .272/.374/.490 with 373 home runs, 1,088 RBI and a 139 OPS+. He was a four-time All-Star and is all over Detroit’s leaderboard in nearly every offensive category.

The two players ahead of Cash are Hall of Famers, one is already in and the other will be as soon as he is eligible. So the question then, is does Cash deserve to be in the Hall? After all, his WAR, OPS, and OPS+ are all higher than Orlando Cepeda and Tony Perez – both of whom are in the Hall.

Cash received 1.6% of the vote in 1980, his first and only year on the ballot. While he deserved more recognition than that, his stats are at best borderline for the Hall. His 42.9 JAWS score ranks 32nd among first basemen, with the average HOFer earning a 54.7. His closest statistical comparisons are Gil Hodges, Frank Howard and Rocky Colavito, all great players but none who are Hall of Famers. That’s probably where Cash resides, just on the outside looking in.

Miguel Cabrera

Detroit Tigers: 2008-2018

Similar to York, Miggy loses a little value because he played two of his best (offensive) seasons at third base. Still, there’s no debate that Miggy is one of the greatest to ever don the Olde English D. He still has plenty left in the tank, as evidenced by his .299/.395/.448 line this season before succumbing to season-ending back surgery. However, his time as a first baseman is likely over, as Victor Martinez‘s retirement likely will shift Cabrera to full-time DH duties.

Hopefully, you don’t need me to tell you how great Miggy has been. From 2008-2011, Miggy slashed .322/.403/.571 with 139 home runs (35/year) and a blistering 159 OPS+. He was one of the best sluggers in all of baseball, winning a batting title, leading the league in home runs and RBI, and finishing top-five in MVP voting three of those four years.

2012 and 2013 were the two seasons that Miggy spent at third base, and all he managed to do there was win a Triple Crown (the first in over 30 years) two MVP awards, two batting titles, two Silver Slugger awards, blast 88 home runs (44 each year) and earn an incredible 176 OPS+. Ho hum.

Miggy transitioned back to first base after that, and while he didn’t quite reach those levels of dominance, he remained one of the best players in all of baseball. 2014 saw Miggy hit .313 and led the league with 52 doubles. 2015 saw him win his fourth batting title, with a .338/.440/.534 line. 2016 was a .316/38/108 season, and seventh consecutive All-Star game nod.

2017 was Miggy’s toughest year, as his average dipped to .249 with just 16 home runs. Many felt this was the beginning of the end for the slugger, who is now 35 years old. However, Miggy’s 2018 numbers showed plenty of life, although back surgery is certainly not ideal. Hopefully, he can return to form as the team’s DH and put up enough numbers to reach 500 career home runs, 3,000 hits and maybe even 2,000 RBI.

Hank Greenberg

Detroit Tigers: 1930-1941, 1945-1946

A four-time All-Star and two-time MVP, hammerin’ Hank Greenberg is one of the best to ever lace them up, and is in the conversation for greatest Tiger of all-time.

He had one at-bat in 1930 as a 19-year-old, resurfacing again in 1933. After getting his feet wet in ’33 with a .301/.367/.468 line, Greenberg really took off. From 1934-1940, Greenberg slashed .329/.424/.645 with 235 home runs, 916 RBI and an excellent 166 OPS+. That averaged out to 34 home runs, 131 RBI and 40 doubles per season. He was a four-time All-Star and won the MVP in 1935 and 1940.

Greenberg played sparingly in 1941 before spending the next three seasons in active military duty. He returned in 1945 and hit .311 in 78 games, proving he hadn’t missed a beat. His final season with the Tigers was 1946, and he made it a good one – blasting 44 home runs with 127 RBI and a .277/.373/.604 line.

Greenberg played one more season with the Pirates before calling it a career. He finished with 331 home runs, 1,274 RBI and a 158 OPS+.

After spending nine years on the ballot, Greenberg was finally inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1956 with 85.0% of the vote.

The Tigers have a cloudy future at first base, with Cabrera likely sliding over to the designated hitter spot. Rest assured, they’ll find someone who may end up on this list sometime soon.