Larry Murphy is a Hall of Fame NHL defenseman, and he would have been the choice if he had worn 55 his entire career. Join our linker program. Greenwood, NFL; Albert Pujols, MLB; Russ Grimm, NFL;Joe DeLamielleure, NFL, Tim Krumrie, NFL; Will Worford, NFL; Jared Allen, NFL, Sam Huff; NFL; Art Donovan, NFL; Rayfield Wright, NFL; Leon Gray, NFL, Jim Marshall, NFL, Alex Karras, NFL; Walter Jones, NFL; Dave Marcis, NASCAR; Bobby Isaac, NASCAR; Walter Jones, NFL, Carlton Fisk, MLB; Ed "Too Tall" Jones, NFL; Dan Dierdorf, NFL; William "Refrigerator" Perry, NFL, John Hannah, NFL; Ron Yary, NFL; Larry Allen, NFL, Merlin Olsen, NFL; Bob Lilly, NFL; Bruce Matthews, NFL; Ron Mix, NFL, Joe Greene, NFL; Deacon Jones, NFL; Forrest Gregg, NFL;Lomas Brown, NFL; Jonathan Ogden, NFL; Vince Wilfork, NFL, Marion Motley, NFL; Lou Groza, NFL; Rosey Grier, NFL, Red Grange, NFL; Lyle Alzado, NFL; Ray Bourque, NHL; Paul Coffey, NHL; Gary Larsen, NFL, Anthony Munoz, NFL; Art Shell, NFL; Bruce Smith, NFL; Jackie Slater, NFL; Dwight White, NFL, Rosey Brown, NFL; Harvey Martin, NFL; Bob "The Geek" St. Clair, NFL, Jerry Rice, NFL; Kellen Winslow, NFL; Steve Largent, NFL; Chris Carter, NFL, Terrell Owens, NFL; Tim Brown, NFL; Dick "Night Train" Lane, NFL; Doug Atkins, NFL; Art Monk, NFL; Carl Eller, NFL, Raymond Berry, NFL; John Stallworth, NFL; Ozzie Newsome, NFL, Ted Hendricks, NFL; Andre Reed, NFL; Mark Clayton, NFL; Willie Gault, NFL, Randy Moss, NFL; Chris Webber, NBA; Shannon Sharpe, NFL; Sterling Sharpe, NFL; Herman Moore, NFL, Jack Youngblood, NFL; Antonio Gates, NFL;Nick Buoniconti, NFL, Buck Buchanan, NFL;Dante Lavelli, NFL; James Lofton, NFL, Dwight Clark, NFL; Sidney Crosby, NHL; Dave Casper, NFL; Buck Baker, NASCAR, Lynn Swann, NFL; Alan Page, NFL; John Mackey, NFL; Tony Gonzalez, NFL; Michael Irvin, NFL; Eric Lindros, NHL, Mike Ditka, NFL;Gino Marchetti, NFL;Mark Bavaro, NFL; Clyde Lovellette, NBA, Sergei Fedorov, NHL; Kevin Greene, NFL; Dennis Rodman, NBA; Bob Kurland, Olympic basketball, Reggie White, NFL; Michael Strahan, NFL; Albert Haynesworth, NFL, Doug Gilmour, NHL; John Randle, NFL; Dwight Freeney, NFL, Charles Haley, NFL;Dana Stubblefield, NFL; Bill Elliott, NASCAR, Richard Dent, NFL; Greg Lloyd, NFL; Bubba Smith, NFL, Cortez Kennedy, NFL; Sean Jones, NFL;Pavel Bure, NHL, Jeremy Roenick, NHL; Simeon Rice, NFL; Kurt Busch, NASCAR, Tom Harmon, NFL; Julian Peterson, NFL; LeeRoy Yarbrough, NASCAR, Wayne Gretzky, NHL; George Mikan, NBA; Warren Sapp, NFL; Dan Hampton, NFL, 00-99: Top uniform numbers in sports history. He was all over the field for the Bears and actually had 41.5 sacks in his career as well. 0:00. Jim Brown?) Brown played tackle for the Giants from 1953 until 1965, being named an All-Pro six times en route to the Hall. Kelce outdueled another NFL center, Jim Langer, for this honor. For three straight years, he led the American League in strikeouts and FIP, and in two of those seasons he won the Cy Young as well. Honorable mentions: Lou Whitaker, Pee Wee Reese, Richie Ashburn, Why hes here: Jeters career was nothing short of amazing. Why he's here: The Hall of Famer wore No. Bryant and Gordon are all-time greats in their sports, but Mays is on their level and maybe even better. Were no fan of Schilling as a person, but this is about his skill on the mound. Why he's here: The other choices are Ryan Madson and Justin Masterson. He was great, but hes not "the Admiral." Mays hit 660 home runs, stole 338 bases and finished in the top six of the NL MVP voting 12 times in a 13-year stretch (he won the award in 1954 and 1965). Still, that was his number from 1980 until 1993, so he is our pick. However, that's usually a goaltenders number, in hockey and especially in soccer. In 67 career playoff games, Rose hit .321 and helped his teams to three World Series titles (1975-76 with the Reds and 1980 with the Phillies). That makes Wilt the Stilt the choice. The Swede was the best offensive defenseman in the NHL, routinely racking up over 60 points. the official stats partner of the NBA, NHL and MLB. Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun Staff/MCT/Sipa USA, Julian H. Gonzalez/Detroit Free Press/MCT/Sipa USA, Tim Groothuis-Witters Sport/USA TODAY Sports, Photo by Malcolm W. Emmons/Sporting News via Getty Images, Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group/TNS/Sipa USA, Damian Strohmeyer / Hulton Archive / Getty Images, Yong Kim/Philadelphia Daily News/MCT/Sipa USA, Mark Cornelison/Lexington Herald-Leader/KRT, Michael Zagaris/MLB Photos via Getty Images, Susan Tripp Pollard/Contra Costa Times/MCT/Sipa USA, Mark Cornelison/Lexington Herald-Leader/MCT/Sipa USA, Nuccio DiNuzzo/Chicago Tribune/TNS/Sipa USA, Nuccio DiNuzzo/Chicago Tribune/MCT/Sipa USA, Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune/TNS/Sipa USA, Ian McVea/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/MCT/Sipa USA, Curtis Compton/Atlanta Journal-Constitution/MCT/Sipa USA, This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google. The best of the bunch is Brown, who is a name from the past. Why hes here: When you start to look through MLB records for switch-hitters, you begin to put Beltrans stellar career in perspective. He spent almost the entirety of his career with the Cowboys, making six straight All-Pro squads. The competition was slim, so you could say Johnson lapped them all. 99 J.J. Watt. 9. Carolina Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey might be the most famous NFL athlete wearing No. Gehrig finished with 493 homers and a .340 career batting average, and he was even better in the World Series the Iron Horse hit .361 and popped 10 homers in 34 games as his Yankees claimed the title six times in seven tries. 72, but it wasnt until later in his career after he stopped wearing 27. Hes won two Art Ross Trophies and one Hart already. 81 for more than a season. Why hes here: Because it's the Internet, and the Internet loves Bartolo. Why hes here: A second-ballot Hall of Famer, Alomar was named to the All-Star team 12 consecutive seasons, with the Padres, Blue Jays, Orioles and Indians. Honorable mentions: Dwight Gooden, Hal Newhouser, Ted Lyons. Unfortunately for him, he spent half his career in other numbers. No other player wore it for than one. Think we left someone off? Honorable mentions: Ivan Rodriguez, Craig Biggio, Kenny Lofton. Karlsson toiled in relative obscurity when he was with the Ottawa Senators, but hockey fans still knew him. As most baseball fans know, April 15, 1947 is a special day in MLB history. The NBA also has a rich history of players to rock the number with champions like Kawhi Leonard,Kevin Garnett, andKyrie Irving all sporting the 2 on their backs. Why hes here: Rapid Robert had already struck out 466 major-league hitters before he turned 20 years old, thats why. Honorable mentions: Chipper Jones, Ron Santo, Andre Dawson. For now, though, were running from zero to 99 to find the best athlete for each number. The tight end made eight straight Pro Bowls and three straight All-Pro teams, and he had a 12-touchdown season after his peak. Steph Curry is getting close to being the choice here. Thirteen may be an unlucky number to some but not to a few all-time greats. He carried the Milwaukee Bucks to their only NBA title before joining the Lakers. No, seriously. Jeters place among Yankees legends is secure, which is no small accomplishment for that franchise. Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Sunday, April 30, 2:31PM. While he never won a Cy Young, he finished second three times and led the National League in strikeouts twice. Why hes here: Dean was a shooting star, a player who lit up the baseball world and flamed out way too soon (a broken toe in the 1937 All-Star game led to a cavalcade of injuries that crushed his career). Hes second in career whiffs behind only Nolan Ryan, who played forever. 26 his entire career, he may have been the choice. Another 87 with injury issues, Rob Gronkowski, deserves a mention, and not just because he has a WWE title to his name now. Speaking of averaging a triple-double, the last guy to do that before Westbrook was Oscar Robertson, who wore the No. He wore it when he won four MVPs. White was the most feared pass rusher of his era, racking up sacks with gusto. This is tricky for the athletes who have worn a couple of numbers with semi-regularity for example, Kobe Bryant. Lots of options here. In a few years this choice is going to be even more obvious. Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Monday, May 1, 4:39AM. However, he wore it for only two seasons as opposed to four wearing No. Shaquille ONeal wore No. Honorable mentions: Ichiro Suzuki, Willie McGee, Trevor Hoffman. Honorable mentions: Mike Schmidt, Don Sutton, Lou Brock. Why hes here: Look at the honorable mentions list. Allen currently ranks 12th in career sacks. Magic Johnson? Honorable mentions: Billy Williams, Chase Utley, Amos Otis. Witten will never make the football announcing Hall of Fame, but hes on his way to the NFL Hall when he finally retires. Shout out to Steve Heinze, the hockey player who wore 57 for the pun, but hes no match for Santana. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. Why he's here: The recently retired Hunter earned five All-Star selections and nine Gold Gloves over his 19-year career. Dierdorf, who you surely remember from his TV commentary work, wore 72 for the entirety of his career, which ended with him in the Hall of Fame. 42 for all teams. Honorable mentions: Joe Morgan, Gene Tenace, Andy Van Slyke. The No. For six years in a row he was named to the All-Pro team. Phillips is the only player who has worn number zero in franchise history. Detroit sports fans are going to be feeling pretty good here. Baseball history is marked by iconic numbers. Parish earned those rings by taking on three of the league's legendary big men in the NBA Finals: Moses Malone in '81, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in '84 and Hakeem Olajuwon in '86. If you are of a certain age, you probably remember Upshaw primarily as an executive with the NFLPA. From Diana Taurasi at No. As smooth and regal a player who ever wore a Celtics . Why he's here: No one at No. Martinez had a 1.74 ERA in 2000. Chris Morgan is a sports and pop culture writer and the author of the booksThe Comic Galaxy of Mystery Science Theater 3000andThe Ash Heap of History. Bryant split his career between Nos. 6 for a few seasons in Miami, Russell wore it for his entire career a career, mind you, in which he averaged 22.5 rebounds per game. Mathis got overshadowed by Dwight Freeney, but he was a great pass rusher in his own right. Only Orr won it more times, and he did it during a time when there were fewer teams and a lot less competition for the award. Its rare for a middle linebacker to get a ton of awards love, but Lewis managed to be named Defensive Player of the Year twice. 24. He twice held the record for most touchdown passes in a season, one he still holds as of this writing. Playing alongside Ruth, Gehrig still won two MVPs and was on six title-winning Yankees teams. in 1941 he batted .406; no one has hit .400 since. Nowitzki changed the NBA. 3? Thats with him starting his career as a pitcher! Though he often battled injuries, Larkin was an All-Star 12 times, won the 1995 NL MVP and hit .338 in his 17 career postseason games for Cincinnati. We go from a Red Wings legend to the greatest Lions player of all time. So when New York pulled off the massive deal to get Rodriguez, he switch to No. Why he's here: The 2015 AL Cy Young winner is the easy choice after just four MLB seasons. Not too bad for a guy who wasnt even drafted out of college. Pretty impressive. Hes still had an excellent career. Even though he didnt start his career until he was 24, after fulfilling his naval duties, he put together a Hall of Fame career. Find out more. In the News: Aaron Rodgers, Trey Lance, Jordan Love, Brock Purdy, Lamar Jackson, Allen Robinson. Carl Yastrzemski, Willie Stargell, Yogi Berra, Bill Dickey, Gary Carter and Joe Morgan are all players worthy of selection. Outside of his rookie campaign, Mays wore 24 his entire career. Carew made the All-Star team in 18 of his 19 seasons in the majors and was elected to the Hall of Fame in his first year on the ballot (1991). The Chief is a Hall of Famer, but Westbrook will be joining him someday. In the 1993-94 season he won the Hart with 120 points but also won the Selke for best defensive forward. 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Even though he retired early, making him something of a trendsetter, he remains one of the all-time leaders in career rushing yards. A total of 25 players choose 22 as . Damon wore No. 66 during a 2015 season in which he played only two games, had . Petty is one of three drivers to win the NASCAR season title seven times, and he also won the Daytona 500 seven times. Athletes Who Wore #33 Athletes Who Wore #23 Athletes Who Wore #7 Athletes Who Wore #69 Athletes Who Wore #42 Athletes Who Wore #4 Athletes Who Wore #22 Moss and Shannon Sharpe both wore No. Its not the most exciting of numbers, but Bart Starr did lead the Packers to the first two Super Bowl wins of all time. He led the league in receiving touchdowns three times and finished his career with 1,078 receptions. Not a lot of great choices here, but Stieb was a solid player. Where would baseball be without No. Well Hendricks was both. 99, because it was a source of derision to don the number that Gretzky had made iconic. Why he's here: Fielder has worn No. To purchase Any Given Number, go to SI.com/anygivennumber. In fact, the iron man offensive lineman played in every game for 14 straight seasons. 1. After all, he made seven All-Star teams and won one ERA title. His numbers may never be beaten. The striking, photo-driven book, SI takes a comprehensive look at jersey numbers 00 to 99, across all sports and eras, to decide which elite pro athlete wore each digit best. He holds the world record for 100 metres, 200 metres and 4 100 metres relay and is the only sprinter to win Olympic 100 m and 200 m titles at three consecutive Olympics (2008, 2012 and 2016). 64 are even more umipressive than Bonifacio. His best year may have been in a different number, but the bulk of his Hall-of-Fame career in Seattle came wearing 96, so hes still the choice here. Why he's here: A three-time All-Star and Cy Young winner is the easy choice. For the first two seasons of his career, Wright didnt wear No. Montana wore 19 when he moved from San Francisco to Kansas City, but he spent only two years with the Chiefs. Also, he's been a pretty good pitcher, with a Cy Young, three All-Star selections and 218 wins to his name. Honorable mentions: Ted Simmons, Luis Tiant, Don Mattingly. Why he's here: Not much to choose from. You know a goalie carried his team when that happens. Thats amazing, but that was in the era of pitching when the mounds were raised. 25. Why hes here: Because he's Tom friggin' Seaver, that's why. GALLERY: Top pro athletes bynumber, from 00 to 99, Jim Otto, NFL; Robert Parish, NBA; Ken Burrough, NFL, Russell Westbrook, NBA; Al Oliver, MLB; Gilbert Arenas, NBA, Oscar Robertson, NBA; Warren Moon, NFL; Ozzie Smith, MLB; Billy Martin, MLB; Pee Wee Reese, MLB, Derek Jeter, MLB;Moses Malone, NBA; Brian Leetch, NHL; Rusty Wallace, NASCAR;Al MacInnis, NHL, Babe Ruth, MLB; Dwyane Wade, NBA; Allen Iverson, NBA; Dale Earnhardt, NASCAR;Bronko Nagurski, NFL; Harmon Killebrew, MLB; Candace Parker, WNBA;Diana Taurasi, WNBA, Lou Gehrig, MLB;Brett Favre, NFL;Bobby Orr, NHL; Mel Ott, MLB; Duke Snider, MLB, Paul Molitor, MLB, Joe DiMaggio, MLB; Johnny Bench, MLB; Hank Greenberg, MLB; Paul Hornung, NFL; Brooks Robinson, MLB; George Brett, MLB; Nicklas Lidstrom, NHL;Dawn Staley, WNBA, Bill Russell, NBA; Julius Erving, NBA; Stan Musial, MLB; Al Kaline, MLB, Mickey Mantle, MLB; John Elway, NFL; David Beckham, soccer; Tiny Archibald, NBA;Phil Esposito, NHL, Cal RipkenJr., MLB; Yogi Berra, MLB; Troy Aikman, NFL; Steve Young, NFL;Carl Yastrzemski, MLB; Joe Morgan, MLB; Willie Stargell, MLB;Kobe Bryant, NBA, Ted Williams, MLB; Gordie Howe, NHL; Bob Pettit, NBA; Bill Elliott, NASCAR; Rocket Richard, NHL; Bobby Hull, NHL; Drew Brees, NFL; Roger Maris, MLB, Walt Frazier, NBA; Fran Tarkenton, NFL; Pele, soccer;Diego Maradona, soccer;Guy Lafleur, NHL; Chipper Jones, MLB; Lionel Messi, soccer, Isaiah Thomas, NBA; Mark Messier, NHL; Elvin Hayes, NBA; Yao Ming, NBA; Cale Yarborough, NASCAR;Teresa Weatherspoon, WNBA, Tom Brady, NFL; Joe Namath, NFL; Terry Bradshaw, NFL; John Stockton, NBA;Jim Kelly, NFL; Ken Stabler, NFL; Roger Staubach, NFL; Roberto Alomar, MLB, Wilt Chamberlain, NBA; Dan Marino, NFL; Alex Rodriguez, MLB; Steve Nash, NBA; James Harden, NBA, Pete Rose, MLB; Bob Cousy, NBA; A.J. And even though Barry Bonds eventually eclipsed Babe Ruths career home run total, the number 714 still holds a special place in baseball lore. One guy who was hard to strikeout? Like Petty and Earnhardt, he won the NASCAR season title seven times. Nobody has ever rushed for more yards than Smith. He led the NL in batting average seven times and in OPS seven times, though that statistic didnt exist during his career and finished with a career .331 average. Hes been forgotten a bit by this point, even though he played on four Super Bowl winners and made the Hall of Fame. Years active: 1995-2014 Watch our How-To Videos to Become a Stathead, Subscribe to Stathead and get access to more data than you can imagine. MLB Players Who Wore Number 60 | Baseball-Reference.com Frivolities Index MLB Players Who Wore Number 60 This page is missing Negro League uniforms because we do not have that data at this time. Why he's here: There's a reason MLB retired No. He only played five seasons with the Blue Jays, but hes a bit of a hero in Toronto; his Jays teams won back-to-back World Series titles in 1992 and 1993, and Alomar hit .354 with 16 stolen bases in 24 playoff games during those two title runs. Williams set out to be the greatest hitter that ever lived, and it's hard to argue he wasn't. The longtime Devil picked up four Vezinas to go with three Stanley Cups. The Pittsburgh hero led the NL in batting average four times, led the Pirates to a World Series championship twice and won the NL MVP in 1966. The number suited him well. If we are going to honor his career anywhere, itll be at 24. The fact he wasnt Defensive Player of the Year that season was baffling. Injuries and illness tamped down Lemieuxs numbers a bit, but he still won three Harts and six Art Rosses. Jim Brown played nine seasons in the NFL and led the league in rushing eight times and rushing touchdowns five times. Disagree with our picks? He twice led the NFL in sacks, including a 22-sack season that almost broke the record. Alex Rodriguez may have a bit of the taint of PEDs on him, but he would be a fine choice. Despite only pitching those five full seasons, Dean still was elected to the Hall of Fame. While the number he wore, number 42, has always been special and acknowledged throughout the Majors Leagues, especially since Jackie Robinson's induction to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962, the day has . Moses Malone was a great player who wore two, but he wore a few other numbers as well. Peterson has more rushing yards anad rushing touchdowns, and he once ran for over 2,000 yards in a season. Those were the first of 159 sacks he managed in his career, almost all of them coming while wearing the No. I've known people who couldn't tell an infield fly from a household pest who nevertheless held the Yankee Clipper in awe." So we're letting you try, including polls with those select numbers. *Years refers to the time the player spent with the primary team listed with this number.