Cardinals 5 All Time Best Center Fielders

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To play center field, you must be fleet of foot to cover the wide territory between left and right. You must be a leader and direct the other fielders where to go with certain batters and take charge of covering the most ground in the outfield.

The St. Louis Cardinals have a tremendous history of clean, crisp defense, and the center field position is of paramount importance. This is a part of a running series on Redbird Rantsranking the top 5 Cardinals at each position. You can find the other position groups we have ranked so far below.

But first, an Honorable Mention:

St. Louis Cardinals v Brooklyn Dodgers / Kidwiler Collection/GettyImages

Honorable Mention: Stan Musial

It is unusual, and quite frankly awkward, to place the greatest St. Louis Cardinal in history in an honorable mention category. While Stan Musial was not playing first base, he was in the outfield. In 22 seasons, Musial played a total of 331 games in center field.

Musial’s batting stats speak for themselves: 3630 hits, 475 HRs, and a .331 batting average. And of course, there is the 128.6 WAR that is #1 all-time in Cardinals history according to Baseball-Reference. So why is Musial not ranked in the top five, let alone #1 among center fielders?

While Musial did play some center field, it was not his primary position in the outfield. He spent many more games in the corner outfield spots than in center. Even the Baseball Hall of Fame recognizes Stan Musial’s primary position as a left fielder. If this was a list of the greatest outfielders in Cardinals history, Stan Musial would be at the top.

Unfortunately, this is a list for primarily center fielders, so I have Musial on the outside looking in.

No. 5: Terry Moore

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Like Stan Musial, Terry Moore (pictured on the left yelling) spent his entire career with the St. Louis Cardinals. Moore began his career in 1935 right after the Gas House Gang captured the previous year’s World Series. Moore would go on to spend ten years patrolling center field and collect over 1000 hits with the Birds on the Bat.

By all accounts, Terry Moore would have won the Gold Glove for center field on multiple occasions had the award been presented during his time. If we go by his career Fielding Percentage (.983), we see that he played almost a near-perfect center field.

Terry Moore could have been higher on this list, but his entry into military service during the Second World War cost him three prime years of his career. After he returned to the Cardinals, he was not the same player. The combination of age and time away from the game was detrimental to Moore’s productivity from 1946 until his last season in 1948.

No. 4: Willie McGee

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Willie McGee may be #4 on this list, but to many St. Louis Cardinals fans who saw the 1980s teams, he was the #1 beloved player on the team. McGee came to the Cardinals via a trade with the New York Yankees for Bob Sykes after the 1981 season. His first full season with the Cardinals would be a magical ride.

McGee would bat .296/.318/.391 his rookie year, as the 1982 Cardinals won the National League Pennant for the first time since 1968. In Game 3 in Milwaukee, McGee would have one of the greatest games in St. Louis Cardinals postseason history. He would homer twice off Pete Vuckovich and make this leaping grab to rob Gorman Thomas of a home run.

In McGee’s career, he would earn four trips to All-Star Games, three Gold Gloves, one Silver Slugger, and was awarded the 1985 NL MVP. After serving as an assistant in the Cardinals organization, he now works as the outfielders' coach on Oliver Marmol’s staff.

No. 3: Ray Lankford

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Ray Lankford is one of the most underrated players in the St. Louis Cardinals' history. Originally a third-round draft pick by the Chicago Cubs in 1986, Lankford decided to stay an extra year at Modesto Junior College in California. The very next year, he again was selected in the third round. This time with the St. Louis Cardinals.

After only playing 39 games in 1990, Ray Lankford became an impact player (in one case, literally) in the 1991 season. Despite an OPS+ of 94, he did finish third in the NL Rookie of the Year voting and led the NL in triples with 15.

In thirteen years with St. Louis, Lankford batted .272/.364/.477 with an OPS+ of 123. In 1992 and in each season from 1995 to 1998, Lankford hit over 20 home runs and stole 20 stolen bases in multiple seasons, becoming the first Cardinal ever to do so. He was elected to the St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame in 2018.

No. 2: Jim Edmonds

Sports Contributor Archive 2020 / Ron Vesely/GettyImages

I strongly considered having a 2A and a 2B when it came to ranking Lankford (37.6 WAR) and Jim Edmonds (37.9 WAR). However, I could not ignore Edmonds’ combination of highlight-reel catches and sweet swing as the deciding factor.

Before he came to St. Louis, Jim Edmonds was already recognized for his defense. When he arrived via trade in 2000, he became an MVP-caliber player. Edmonds would go on to six consecutive Gold Gloves at the center field position. During that run, he made some of the most dazzling plays Cardinals fans ever saw.

Whether it was the regular season, the All-Star game, or in the postseason, Jim Edmonds always found a way to track down the ball. Did I also mention he had a sweet swing?

Edmonds hit 393 career home runs in the majors, with 241 coming in St. Louis, and won the 2004 Silver Slugger award for center fielders. He now works with Bally Sports Midwest as a broadcaster.

No.1: Curt Flood

No player in St. Louis Cardinals history has started more games (1738), accumulated more WAR (42.3), and gathered more Gold Gloves (7) as a center fielder than Curt Flood. As a member of the dominant 1960s Cardinals teams, Curt Flood batted .293/.340/.390 and had an OPS+ of exactly 100. After making a spectacular catch at Wrigley Field in August 1968, he graced the cover of Sports Illustrated as “Baseball's Best Center Fielder.”

But Curt Flood is best remembered for what he did off the field. A contract dispute during and after the 1969 season led Flood to be traded to Philadelphia. Flood refused to go, citing their fans’ acrimonious and boorish behavior, especially toward Dick Allen. Since he could not go to another team under MLB’s reserve clause, Flood sued MLB for perceived violations of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.

In a letter to then-Commissioner Bowie Kuhn on Christmas Eve 1969:

After twelve years in the Major Leagues, I do not feel that I am a piece of property to be bought and sold irrespective of my wishes. … I believe I have the right to consider offers from other clubs before making any decisions. I, therefore, request that you make known to all Major League clubs my feelings in this matter, and advise them of my availability for the 1970 season.
Curt Flood

Although the Supreme Court ruled that the reserve clause was exempt from Anti-Trust law, Flood would pave the way toward free agency. That contribution, plus what he did on the baseball field, makes him the greatest center fielder in St. Louis Cardinals history.

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St. Louis Cardinals Five All-Time Best Center Fielders