Who is the most important player in the history of Major League Baseball?
This is not the same as asking who the greatest player in the history of Major League Baseball is, though one could certainly make the case that Babe Ruth is in contention for both titles. Babe Ruth is the all-time leader in every major version of Wins Above Replacement, and if a new one were to emerge, its creator would immediately be forced to justify it if anyone other than Ruth topped the list. And while great, famous baseball players existed before Ruth, none came close to reaching his level of ubiquity—even today, children born more than a half century after his death know Ruth’s name.