Who are the most underrated athletes of all time?

[Medford Bronco]

Who are your most underrated athletes of all time?

The players that are excellent, but seem to not get any recoginiton?

Mine are

1. Ron Francis-Hartford, Pitt and Carolina Hurricanes. Francis has won Stanley Cups and only played on 4 all-star teams. He is in the top 5 scorers of all time and I believe #2 in assists. This all around player was just classy and unassuming.

2. Paul Oneill of the NY Yankees. ONeill was a gritty player who helped the Yanks win 4 World Series. He was clutch and had an edge about him. He has been missed by the Yanks since he retired.

3. Roger Craig 49ers. When talking about great running backs of all time rarely is Craig mentioned. Craig was huge in the 49ers success in the 80s and was a great runner and pass catcher for that team.

4. Steve Atwater of the Broncos- Steve was the heart and soul of this team in the 90s. He helped win our fist Super Bowl, but when mentioning great all time safety he is rarely mentioned. He should be a HOFer but we will see.

5. Jim Rice of the Boston Red Sox. In the late 70s Jim was the most feared hitter in baseball. He was so strong that he could break a bat on a check swing. With the steroid era we are in, it is a travesty that he can not get in the HOF.

Lastly

6. Tommy John of the Yankees and Dodgers. John is famously know for the "Tommy John Surgery" where a tendon is taken from your leg and put in your elbow. What is forgotten is that John won over 280 games and was an excellent sinker ball pitcher.

Who are your players?

[In-com-plete]

While I agree with most of the guys you mentioned Medford, I don't agree with Paul O'Neil. He was a good player, but a .259 hitter in Cincy and had only hit over 16 HRs once. He goes to NY and became a .300+ hitter while averaging like 22 HRs.

I'd take a guy like Tim Raines or Willie McGee or Fred McGriff. All of whom I believe were very underrated.

[Medford Bronco]

While I agree with most of the guys you mentioned Medford, I don't agree with Paul O'Neil. He was a good player, but a .259 hitter in Cincy and had only hit over 16 HRs once. He goes to NY and became a .300+ hitter while averaging like 22 HRs.

I'd take a guy like Tim Raines or Willie McGee or Fred McGriff. All of whom I believe were very underrated.

Fred McGriff is a good on INC. I also forgot someone like Brett Butler of the Giants and Dodgers. He was a pest that could hit, steal bases and play great defense. :D

[NJBRONCOSFAN]

Esa Tikkanen
Pat Verbeek
Claude Lemieux

[Medford Bronco]

Esa Tikkanen
Pat Verbeek
Claude Lemieux

NJ I like Tikkanen and Verbeek, but I hate Claude Lemieux. He was a dirty sob.
All I can remember the cheap shot he gave Kris Draper of the Wings in 1996. It was awful.

The only two other players I hate more than Claude Lemieux were Ulf Samuelson for his dirty hit on Neely in 1991 and Dale Hunter for his cheap shot on Pierre Turgeon of the Islanders in the 1993 playoffs.

C Lemieux was a good player but nasty :eek:

[NJBRONCOSFAN]

NJ I like Tikkanen and Verbeek, but I hate Claude Lemieux. He was a dirty sob.
All I can remember the cheap shot he gave Kris Draper of the Wings in 1996. It was awful.

The only two other players I hate more than Claude Lemieux were Ulf Samuelson for his dirty hit on Neely in 1991 and Dale Hunter for his cheap shot on Pierre Turgeon of the Islanders in the 1993 playoffs.

C Lemieux was a good player but nasty :eek:
I'm not sure if there was anyone who was more clutch in the playoffs.

What, no Tie Domi on the most hated list? :D

[In-com-plete]

Fred McGriff is a good on INC. I also forgot someone like Brett Butler of the Giants and Dodgers. He was a pest that could hit, steal bases and play great defense. :D
I was going to say Brett Butler but I was a huge fan of his and was affraid I was being a homer about him. Same goes for Lenny Dykstra and Albert Belle. All three of those guys played the game the way it should be played and were underrated IMO. To bad Dykstra and Belle had their career cut short because of injuries.

[NJBRONCOSFAN]

I was going to say Brett Butler but I was a huge fan of his and was affraid I was being a homer about him. Same goes for Lenny Dykstra and Albert Belle. All three of those guys played the game the way it should be played and were underrated IMO. To bad Dykstra and Belle had their career cut short because of injuries.
Belle was a scumbag.
I agree though with Butler and Dykstra.

Even if you like Belle, he certainly wasn't under-rated.

[Gyro]

I'm not sure if there was anyone who was more clutch in the playoffs.

What, no Tie Domi on the most hated list? :D

Tie Domi rocks!!! :rockon:

[In-com-plete]

Belle was a scumbag.
I agree though with Butler and Dykstra.

Even if you like Belle, he certainly wasn't under-rated.
There was about 5-6 years when he was the best hitter in the game. He got screwed in the MVP voting atleast 3 times because he refused to talk to the media. He wasn't liked by most fans and the media and for that he won't make the Hall.

I have this theory that "Good" guys and "Nice" guys are overrated while many great "Bad" guys are underrated. Look at guys like Puckett and Brady and Jeter and Oscar Delahoya and Ozzie Smith. All were/are overrated. The media loves those kind of guys and always talks them up. Look at guys like Belle and Bernard Hopkins and Goose Gossage and Curt Schilling and Eric ****erson. All the guys are/were not popular with the media and fans. All are underrated IMO.

[Medford Bronco]

Tie Domi rocks!!! :rockon:

Sorry Al but Tie Domi is a dirty SOB :heh:

But in 93 Doug Gilmour rocked and so did Nikoli Borochevski (spelling) the man who scored the game winner in game 7 vs Det in the first round.

Potvin was awesome as well with Dave Ellett on D and also Wendel Clark who is a very underrated player and one of my favorites for the Leafs.

[NJBRONCOSFAN]

There was about 5-6 years when he was the best hitter in the game. He got screwed in the MVP voting atleast 3 times because he refused to talk to the media. He wasn't liked by most fans and the media and for that he won't make the Hall.

I have this theory that "Good" guys and "Nice" guys are overrated while many great "Bad" guys are underrated. Look at guys like Puckett and Brady and Jeter and Oscar Delahoya and Ozzie Smith. All were/are overrated. The media loves those kind of guys and always talks them up. Look at guys like Belle and Bernard Hopkins and Goose Gossage and Curt Schilling and Eric ****erson. All the guys are/were not popular with the media and fans. All are underrated IMO.
I don't see how those guys are all that under-rated...

Schilling is a 6-time all star, a world series and NLCS mvp, 3 times finished second in the Cy Young voting. If that's not recognition, then I don't know what is.

As far as Goose is concerned, the only place where he hasn't received the recognition is from the Hall of Fame. A 9-time all star and considered one of the best closers ever.

****erson was a 6 time pro-bowler, 5 time all-pro, a hall of famer...in his rookie year he was named player of the year.

I guess we just have different definitions for the word...in my mind, someone is under-rated when they dont' receive any recognition..these guys all did.

[NJBRONCOSFAN]

Albert Belle was certainly disliked by the media and many fans, but it was warranted...he shouldn't be made out as some sort of victim...

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2449605

[In-com-plete]

I don't see how those guys are all that under-rated...

Schilling is a 6-time all star, a world series and NLCS mvp, 3 times finished second in the Cy Young voting. If that's not recognition, then I don't know what is.

As far as Goose is concerned, the only place where he hasn't received the recognition is from the Hall of Fame. A 9-time all star and considered one of the best closers ever.

****erson was a 6 time pro-bowler, 5 time all-pro, a hall of famer...in his rookie year he was named player of the year.

I guess we just have different definitions for the word...in my mind, someone is under-rated when they dont' receive any recognition..these guys all did.
I think we have a different interpertation of underrated.

Wouldn't you say Marvin Harrison is underrated? He's got 7 probowls. But he's rarely mentioned as one of the best in the game.

Torry Holt? 6 straight 80+ catch seasons with all 1300+ yards. He's not mentioned as a top reciever.

Curtis Martin. 10 staight 1000 yard seasons with 5 probowls. Underrated.

Steve Atwater. 8 probowls but still underrated.

Hell, until '01 the Barry Bonds was underrated. Overshadowed by guys like Sosa and McGwire and Mo Vaughn and Griffey and Frank Thomas and Juan Gonzalez. But Bonds was on his way to becoming possibly the greatest of all time. Sometimes even the greats are underrated is what I'm trying to say. It doens't matter how many all-star games or probowls they play in. It's how the media covers it IMO.

[AZOmae]

The Two names that pop up immediately are Harold Baines and Simon Fletcher.