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1. Best Player: "Willie Mays. I saw him make his debut with the Giants in 1951. Mays had the complete tool chest: He could throw, hit and run. He played with spirit and verve. Hank Aaron, Joe DiMaggio and Roberto Clemente were probably the best of the rest."
2. Best Hitter: "Ted Williams. The Splendid Splinter was the ultimate student of the game. He possessed great eyesight and combined it with muscle and deft coordination."
3. Best Pitcher: "I like Warren Spahn over the long haul. I place him just in front of Sandy Koufax and Bob Gibson. Spahn is the all-time winningest left-hand pitcher in the majors with three-hundred sixty-three victories. That's some record."
4. Best Outfielder: "Tiger Al Kaline, who had great instincts in the outfield. He was smooth and graceful. Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners is a very good rightfielder today. He can catch and throw."
5. Best Guy: "Frank Tanana. I enjoyed being around him a lot. He played for the California Angels, Boston Red Sox, Texas Rangers and Detroit Tigers. He was always fun. Of course, so were Kaline and former Tiger reliever Todd Jones."
6. Best Team: "I can't pick between the 1949 Brooklyn Dodgers, who had Don Newcombe, Roy Campanella, Pee Wee Reese and Jackie Robinson, and the 1961 New York Yankees, with Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, Yogi Berra and Whitey Ford. Both were great teams, with pitching and hitting depth."
7. Best Moment: "I was at the microphone when New York Giant Bobby Thomson hit his playoff home run The Shot Heard 'Round the World off Ralph Branca against the Brooklyn Dodgers on Oct. 3, 1951. It was a truly historic moment. Kirk Gibson's two upper-deck home runs against the Padres in the 1984 World Series come close."
8. Best Restaurant Lunch: "I always liked Murray's restaurant in downtown Minneapolis. I had lunch there earlier this week. It serves up a great steak. It's just ahead of the lamb at the English Room in Milwaukee and the Maine lobster and tenderloin at Moose's in San Francisco."
9. Best Ballpark: "Tiger Stadium. It had so much history and lore. Seattle's new ballpark, Safeco Field, is very good, too."
10. Best Era: "Overall, I think baseball then and now is just as good as it has always been. I was broadcasting in New York, however, in 1949-51. There were probably more good teams during that period than any other time."
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