RW: The Right Wingers

Infield: Second baseman Rickie Weeks (2002- ) is a bundle of talent, with power and speed and quickness. He’s never brought it all together to become a great player, and his defense need work, but at his best he’s still an exciting player to watch. The other starting infielders are more functional than fun. First baseman Ray Webster (1967-71) showed some potential as a power hitter when he first came up, but he never took that step forward and he was done in the majors well before he turned 30. Third baseman Russ Wrightstone (1920-28) hit alright and played regularly, but only had one season of 500 or more plate appearances, for some really bad Phillies teams. Shortstop Ron Washington (1977-81) didn’t field well enough to start in the majors, and he didn’t hit well enough to make people overlook his glove. He played 1,000 games in the minors before establishing himself as a utility player at the major-league level.

Outfield: Here are three guys who could cover some ground. Left fielder Roy White (1965-79) came up as the Yankee dynasty ended and stuck aroud long enough to see them get good again. He had power and speed (160 home runs, 230 steals), drew about 90 walks per year and played exquisite defense. He was a quiet guy who was never fully appreciated, but he was a very good player. Center fielder Rondell White (1993-2007) had the power (198 home runs) and some speed, too, when he first came up. He wasn’t as complete a player as Roy White, but he was a good player over the course of a long career. Right fielder Randy Winn (1998-2010) ran very fast (215 stolen bases in his career, though he never had 30 in a season) and he got on base a little bit.

Catcher: Rick Wilkins (1991-2001) hit .303 with 30 home runs in 1993. He never came close to that kind of production again, but he was a functional player.

Rotation: Rube Waddell (1897-1910) was a childlike country bumpkin with a blazing fastball. He would run out of the dugout to chase after passing fire trucks, and opposing players use to bring toys on the field during games to distract him. There has even been speculation, in later years, that he may have suffered from a developmental disorder or a mild form of mental retardation that went undiagnosed at the time. But he was a great pitcher, who won 193 games and put up outlandish strikeout totals in an era of contact hitting. He died in a sanitarium at age 37. The other rube, Rube Walberg (1923-37), wasn’t nearly as good as Waddell and he wasn’t as colorful or tragic. But he was a good, durable pitcher who won 154 games. Rick Wise (1964-82) never won 20, but he won between 15-19 a half-dozen times en route to 188 career victories, and he once hit two home runs while throwing a no-hitter. Speaking of no-hitters, Ray Washburn (1961-70) threw one, too. He didn’t hit any home runs that day, but his 1968 gem is famous for a different reason – San Francisco’s Gaylord Perry had thrown a no-hitter against the Cardinals on the previous day, and Washburn returned the favor by throwing one against the Giants. Randy Wolf (1999- ) is a solid lefty who has moved past 100 wins and is still in mid-career.

Bullpen: Rick White (1994-2007) will get the first shot at the closer job, and his 4.45 ERA and 16 career saves are a good indication that the bullpen is not as good as the rotation. He played for 13 teams in 12 seasons, and he actually had some years when he was pretty good. Ron Willis (1966-70) was a pretty average pitcher who developed arm trouble. Rick Waits (1973-85), a decent lefty, was a starter for much of his career, and between 1978-80 he won 42 games – and lost 42 games. Rasty Wright (1917-23) was a swingman for the St. Louis Browns, though they probably didn’t use the word “swingman” back then. Ryan Wagner (2003-2007) was a big strong kid who had had a very warm cup of coffee at age 20 and created a lot of hype, but he never developed into a good pitcher. Arm troubles set in and he was out of baseball in his late 20s. Roger Wolff (1941-47) was a wartime knuckleballer who won 20 games in 1945. Randy Wells (2008- ) had a fine year for the Cubs in 2009 but has yet to build on it.

Bench: Rob Wilfong (1977-87) was a non-descript second baseman who played reguarly for a long time. Rabbit Warstler (1930-40) was a quick little shortstop who couldn’t hit. He was Maranville Lite. Ron Woods (1969-74) was a backup outfielder but nothing more than that. Red Wilson (1951-60) was a decent catcher, mostly for the Tigers. Outfielder Reggie Willits (2006- ) runs fairly well and knows the strike zone.

Manager: Ron Washington, current manager of the Texas Rangers, will be running things from shortstop.