Normal human aging makes it so that
most baseball players start declining in their early 30s, with the
average player's peak years coming somewhere around the ages of 26-32
or so. After that, excluding the steroid era, players normally begin
to start slowing down through the combination of injuries and aging,
and generally stop being productive by their mid to late 30s.
However, some players start getting good right around the time when
most players are heading towards retirement. These players are the Anti-Aging stars.
First, some rules:
- This list is only for players who reached their peak in their mid-30s to 40s, or were not far from it. That does not include players who were still productive at this time, but not at their best. For example, Derek Jeter had a very good run from age 32-35, averaging 4.7 WAR per year and played until age 40, but his best 4-year stretch came from age 24-27 where he averaged 6.3 WAR per year. Same with Ricky Henderson: he played until he was 44, with 2.4 WAR per year from age 35-39, but seeing as he put up 7.0 WAR/year from age 21-33, that obviously wasn't him at his best.
- The list does not include players who have been accused of steroid use, such as Barry Bonds. Bonds had the greatest 4-year run by any player ever from age 36-39, winning 4 consecutive MVPs, averaging 10.8 WAR/year, and somehow having an average season of .349/.559/.809, with 52 HR, 28 2B, 2 3B and 9 SB. Also during this time he was walked a total of 755 times and struck out only 239 times. He was so damn good that his 43.4 total WAR during that stretch would make him 25th all time in Career WAR by a left fielder if you took away his other 18 seasons. Obviously, he is the greatest player ever, and that is the best 4-year run by any player ever. However, this list is for players who did not have the artificial-aging help of PEDs.
So with that said, here is the team:
Catcher:
- Carlton Fisk
- One of very few to play in 4 different decades. His first at-bat came in 1969, and his final came in 1993. He only played for two teams, the Red and White Sox. His longevity was remarkable. His peak came from age 24-30, where he averaged 4.9 WAR/year, despite missing most of his age 26 and 27 seasons. His WAR/650 plate appearances was an excellent 7.0. Then, after he went to the White Sox at 33, he just kept being good. Despite playing the most demanding position in the game, he remained an all-star level player into his early 40s. From age 33-43 he averaged 2.5 WAR/year (4.1/650 PA). But if you take out an outlier season at age 38 with -1.7 WAR (his only negative-WAR season where he played more than 25 games), that improves to 3.1 WAR/season. He also hit a career high in home runs at age 37 (he homered his age with 37 dingers), his only 30+ home run season. Even his speed didn't decline, as he recorded a career-high 17 steals at 34 and then matched that again at 37.
Carlton Fisk
First Base:
- Darell Evens
- Evens was a pretty good player in his 20s, with 9.0 and 7.2 WAR seasons at age 26 and 27, leading the league in walks both years. He also hit 41 home runs in his age 26 season, a career high. From age 24-35 he averaged .261/.364/.420 with 3.5 WAR, 19 HR, 18 2B, and a very good 86-70 walks-strikeout rate. That's pretty good, but if you take out his age 26 and 27 seasons that drops to .249/.358/.407 with 2.5 WAR, 17 HR, 18 2B, and a 79-65 BB-SO rate. Still decent, but obviously not the same level. But then from 36-40 he had 3 of his 5 best seasons by WAR (other than the 26 and 27 seasons), averaging 3.5 WAR per year. He had a .262/.365/.476 line, with 30 HR, 18 2B, and an 87-85 BB-SO rate. He even led the league with 40 HR in 1985 at age 38. Up to age 35, he seemed to have a pretty typical aging curve, peaking at age 26-27 and then slowing down as he entered his mid-30s. But then he started trending upwards again with a great 5-year run before he finally hit his decline at age 41 and then retired at 42 years old.
Darell Evens
Second Base:
- Mark Grudzielanek
- Second base is not a position that tends to age well. The majority of second basemen are low-power guys who rely on speed and reaction time, traits that tend to decline fairly quickly. But Grudzielanek is an exception. He actually had his best 4-year stretch from age 35-38, with 3.1 WAR/season. He had only had one 3+ WAR season before he turned 35. He had always been an above-average player, but he did not hit his peak until he was 33. From age 33-38 he hit over .290 every year, and slugged over .400 every year as well (OK, he only had a .399 slg at 38, but I am including it). He had only topped a .290 avg twice and a .400 slg once in his career before that. He also really stepped up his defense during this time. He averaged 1.4 dWAR from 35-38, including a career high 2.7 dWAR season at age 35, and he won a gold glove in 2006 at age 36. Before that, his career dWAR seasonal average was 0.3 with a high of 1.3.
Mark Grudzielanek
Third Base
- Chipper Jones
- Chipper Jones had always been good. By the time he was 34 he already had 60.1 career WAR and 357 career home runs, which if he had retired at 34 would have put him at 14th and 9th respectively all time among 3rd basemen. He was the first overall pick in the 1990 draft, played his first full season at 23 and averaged 5.9 WAR/year from age 24-30. After that, he seemed to be aging normally as he averaged 4.0 WAR from age 31-34. But then, at age 35 and 36 he put up his two best career seasons by WAR, with 7.6 in 2007 at age 35, and 7.3 in 2008. He hit a career-best 42 doubles at 35, and his 35 and 36 year old seasons were his two best by both batting average and on-base percentage. He began to decline after that, but remained a productive player until his retirement in 2012 at age 40. He averaged 2.5 WAR/year from ages 37-40, never dropping below 2.3 WAR even in his 95 game age 38 season.
Chipper Jones
Shortstop
- Ozzie Smith
- Ozzie Smith could not hit until he turned 30. His career highs in batting average and OBP in his 20s were .257 and .347, both coming at age 29. His career highs in batting average and OBP in his 30s were .303 and .392, both at age 32. For a quick comparison:
- Average hitting season in his 20s:
- .238/.311/.298.
- Average season from age 30-38:
- .281/.358/.350
That is a radical difference. He still managed 3.5 WAR/year in his 20s because of his historically amazing defense and base running, but his WAR improved to 5.4/year in his 30s after he learned how to hit. He made the all-star team 4 times in his 20s, 8 in his 30s, and twice in his 40s.
Ozzie Smith and his signature back flip
Right field
- Tony Gwynn
- Tony Gwynn didn't peak in his 30s; his best years, like most players', came from age 24-27. However, unlike most players, Tony Gwynn never stopped being good. His average season from age 34-37 had him batting .371 with 26 doubles and 10 homers. His defense, speed, and power declined a bit as he aged, but his career highs in batting average (.394, age 34), doubles (49, age 37), hits (220, age 37) OBP (.454, age 34), and SLG (.568, age 34), all came in his mid 30s.
Tony Gwynn
Center Field
- Willie Mays
- Willie Mays was so damn good that his career-low single season WAR from age 23-35 was 7.6, when he was 28. 7.6 is still MVP-level high. He started declining after a 9 WAR season at age 35, but from age 36-40 he still averaged 5.0 WAR/year with a .280/.377/.474, 21 HR, 20 2B, 3 3B, 10 steal stat line. As he lost athleticism, his other qualities improved; he set career-best marks in OBP (.425) and walks (112) at age 40.
Willie Mays
Left Field
- Tony Phillips
- During his 20s, Tony Phillips was a speedy, light-hitting utility player who got most of his value from defense and base running. Then, in the 90s, as he entered his mid-30s, he started cranking out double-digit home run, 20+double, 100 walk seasons... wait a minute...
Phillips in 1989 (30 years old, 4 HR, 15 2B)
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| Phillips in 1995 (36 years old, 27 Hr, 21 2B) |
- Ok, he might have been on the juice.
Left field: part 2
- Raul Ibanez
- Ibanez kind of sucked in his 20s. He never played 100 games in a season until he was 29, and he put up only 1.1 WAR that year. From age 27-29 he averaged .261/.328/.433, with 8 HR, 9 2B, and 2 3B per year. From 30-36 that went up to .292/.352/.481, 22 HR, 35 2B, and 4 3B. From 37-41 (his 3 years on the Phillies, plus one year each on the Yankees and Mariners) he dropped a bit, but was still a good hitter, with a .256/.321/.470, 24 HR, 28 2B, 3 3B stat line.
Raul Ibanez
Pitcher
- Jamie Moyer
- Who else could it be? The captain of the anti-aging all stars, using his absolute mastery of the art of pitching to make up for his 80 MPH (at best) fastball. Moyer didn't age because his game did not rely on throwing hard fastballs or insane breaking stuff. He just kept hitters off balance, changing speed and break and using his pinpoint accuracy. Along with Carlton Fisk, he is one of two players on the anti-aging all stars to play in 4 different decades. He was called up in 1986 at age 23, but from 23-29 he only had one good season, his age 25 year when he went 9-15, 3.48 ERA, 105 ERA+, and 3.4 WAR. At 24 he led the league in earned runs allowed, from 26-28 he never had a positive WAR season, and he didn't even play in the major leagues at 29. He came back at age 30 and had three good years for the Orioles, averaging 2.0 WAR/year from age 30-33. Then he was traded to the Mariners and suddenly became an ace. From 34-40 he averaged 4.2 WAR/year (that becomes 5.0 if you remove an outlier -.1 in 2000). His average season during his Mariners career was 16-8 with 119 ERA+. He had another couple of productive seasons for the Mariners at age 41 and 42 before being traded to the Phillies at 43. For the entirety of his Phillies career, he remained a solid mid-rotation starter, with an average season of 12-10, 97 ERA+, and 1.1 WAR, to go along with winning a World Series ring in his hometown Philadelphia. For most players, remaining productive through their 30s is remarkable. Jamie Moyer was a star in his late 30s, and productive through his late 40s.
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| Jamie Moyer |
Great post!
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