Top 5 Detroit AThletes ALL-Time!

Gordie Howe did not make the list.

Neither did Al Kaline, Steve Yzerman or Joe Louis.

There is a reason they were omitted from a poll of Woodward Sports Network personalities and nitwits to name the all-time best athletes in Detroit history. Many voters only selected athletes they saw perform live. So that meant many of our greatest heroes did not cut the mustard since the average age of the Woodward crew is 12 years old.

Do not become angry with the Minister of Words. I know better, but I allowed the young bucks to do it their way.

The winner is Detroit Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera who edged Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson for honors. I have a major problem with our list, but I will allow it.

Can I say one thing? Do they still have Google? Do they still print books so these boneheads can check history?

Here are the top five all-time Detroit athletes according to our motley crew.

1. MIGUEL CABRERA 1B Tigers: Old timers will huff and puff and claim that Mr. Tiger Al Kaline or acerbic Ty Cobb is the best Tiger of all time. They would be wrong. In 2012 Miggy became baseball’s first triple crown winner since Carl Yastrzemski in 1967. I did radio for the flagship in a previous life and my radio partner argued that Miggy did not deserve MVP honors that year. Yikes! He finished his career with 511 home runs, 1,881 RBIs and a .901 OPS. The young people say I am not allowed to use batting average anymore. Go to hell young people. Miggy’s batting average was a robust .306.

2. CALVIN JOHNSON WR Lions: The young people got this wrong. I have no problem with Megatron finishing second. But how is he ahead of Barry? Sanders was not a football player. He was a magician. Johnson was open even when he wasn’t open. He had big hands, a big body and made big catches even when double and triple teamed. Like Barry he walked away in his prime in part because he didn’t think it was worth abusing his body for a loser organization. Megatron finished his career with 731 receptions, 11,619 yards and 83 touchdowns.
3. BARRY SANDERS, RB Lions: I can still hear the chants of “Barry, Barry, Barry” at the Pontiac Silverdome. Sanders was not only a great back with high production, but he did things no other man could do. We can debate as to whether he was the greatest running back of all time. We cannot debate that he was the most innovative running back of all time. How many times did he disappear into a pile of behemoths only to emerge from the other side still juking and looking for open space? Sanders is tied with Derrick Henry for most consecutive 1,500-yard seasons (5) and most consecutive 100-yard games (14).
4. ISIAH THOMAS PG Pistons: Thomas not only made the Pistons better but he shook up the NBA. He brought a badly needed edge to the Pistons, a franchise that wanted to win 50 or so games and be dangerous in the playoffs. That wasn’t good enough for Thomas who wanted to win titles, which he did in 1989 and 1990. The Pistons also lost a heartbreaking series to the Los Angeles Lakers in 1988. He averaged 19.2 points and 9.3 assists. The NBA wanted to transition from the Larry Bird-Magic Johnson rivalry to the Michael Jordan era. Thomas stood in the way and would not allow it.
5. PAVEL DATSYUK C Red Wings: Datsyuk was good, but this is a case where you wish you worked with older people. Datsyuk finished with 314 goals and 604 assists. But he was no Steve Yzerman (692 goals, 1,063 assists) or Sergei Federov (483 goals, 696 assists). He was no Nick Lidstrom (264 goals, 878 assists) who worked as a surgeon as the best defenseman in Red Wings history and one of the best D men in NHL history.