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Pennsylvania TedFirst, I do not trust any poll taken now, or in 1942. A poll can be conducted (or manipulated) to achieve any desired result.
With that said....Honus Wagner was an active part of the Baseball scene till 1951 as a Coach for Pittsburgh. He was obviously,
a great all-around player; and, a very gregarious fellow. He would light up a cigar and "hold court" with the Pirates' players (or
with the Sports media). Ty Cobb and Babe Ruth were out of the Baseball scene for many years by 1942. People's memories grow
dim; so, one could imagine that Wagner was still fresh in their minds. In recent years, he is remembered more for his "mythical"
T206 card than his baseball career.
Comparing Cobb and Ruth, all I can say is that during Ruth's pitching years (1914-1919), Mr. Cobb did not fare too well batting
against this young Southpaw. And, you can compare their statistics till you turn "blue". However, from a Team's standpoint,
the following statistic tells the story of why Ruth is the "Greatest"......besides his prodigious HR's.
During his playing years (1918-1935), Ruth produced on an average 2.3 RUNs per GAME (scored, or driven in). Ruth consistently
did this day in and day out for 18 years. Just imagine the opposing teams, knowing that they had to score at least 3 runs every
day, just to overcome this "Ruth Factor". This a significant statistic that shows the true value of a player to his team; and, no
other BB player compares with Ruth on this score....it is the best in the history of the game.
A sportswriter once pointed out to Ruth "that Cobb was the better hitter, since he batted .367". To which Ruth resplied with.....
"You know, I could bat .370 if I wanted to, but you see all these people sitting in the stands, they didn't come out here to see
me hit Singles....they came here to see me hit Home Runs".
In the 20th Century, America was blessed with these three great human beings......
TEDDY ROOSEVELT
THOMAS ALVA EDISON
and
GEORGE HERMAN RUTH