cmarlow's Blog

STL:

The other day I was watching SportsCenter and saw Rangers' rightfielder (at the time) Josh Hamilton field a single in the mid-outfield and gun down a runner who was trying to go first to third.  Hamilton's toss reached third base on a fly and seemed to be on a straight line about head-high.  It was one of the best and strongest throws I've ever seen.  I remember Ichiro Suzuki had nearly the same type of throw about 5 years ago against the A's, showing off just jaw-dropping arm strength.

So that got me thinking, who has the best outfield arm in baseball?  I figure this question has some local appeal because Rick Ankiel is definitely in the conversation.  The names that immediately come to mind are Hamilton, Ankiel, Vlad Guerrero, Jeff Francouer and Ichiro.  Ankiel had those 2 amazing throws in one game against Colorado (I think) earlier this year, throwing out 2 guys at third, on a fly.  Francouer has a cannon, but I don't think his arm is as accurate as some of these other guys.  Hamilton hasn't been around enough to claim the title just yet.  That leaves Vlad and Ichiro, and I give the nod to Ichiro,  because I think he gets his momentum behind the ball, better than anybody else in the game.

As far as worst outfield arms go, I think Juan Pierre and Johnny Damon are tied for first.  And that's only because Rondell White is no longer playing (I think).  Any thoughts?

Charlie Marlow