The games are still composed of nine innings and 27 outs. There are still 90 feet between bases, and .300 has always been a benchmark of accomplishment for hitters. But one longtime pitcher who started his career in the 1990s laughed off the idea that you could possibly compare the game he played with the brand of baseball that occurred 100 years ago.If you look back at pictures of those games, the catcher is standing up, he said. Do you think that strike zone is the same size as it is now?Nope. This is why measuring players of today against those who played a century ago is ridiculously imprecise, unfair and mostly an empty exercise.But its also a lot of fun.With that caveat: My top 10 players of all time.10. Rickey HendersonWhen Henderson was up for election for the Hall of Fame in 2009, it was shocking ?he was left off the ballots of 28 voters. Its just as stunning that he is not higher on this list. The aim of every game is to score as many runs as possible, and Henderson did that more than anyone -- 2,295 in his career. He reached base more than 5,000 times. He stole 1,406 bases --?over 500 more than Ty Cobb. He hit 297 homers. He won a Gold Glove Award. He is one of the best players of all time.9. Lou GehrigHe played alongside Babe Ruth in the 1920s and 30s, and yet he was so great he managed to distinguish himself long before the onset of the illness that would take his life. Gehrig hit for a high average -- .340 in his career --?and he had about 50 percent more extra-base hits than he did strikeouts. Gehrig finished in the top 10 in the MVP voting in nine seasons, and while playing in seven World Series, he batted .361 with an OPS of more than 1.200. And he didnt miss a game for almost 14 years. Think about that.8. Ty CobbIn some of the oral histories from players of Cobbs generation, there are many references to his personality --?how disliked he was, how difficult he could be. That conversation about Cobb has come to overshadow just how great a player he was, in spite of his other faults, with 4,189 hits and?a .366 career batting average, which is the greatest of all time. Think about this: He won the American League batting title in all but one season from 1907 through 1919, and until Rickey Hendersons arrival, Cobb held the MLB record for stolen bases with 897.7. Stan MusialThe Cardinals Musial formed the most perfect statistic in MLB history. During his career, Musial generated 1,815 hits in home games and 1,815 hits on the road. Thats 3,630 in all, which was the most in National League history before Pete Rose broke it. Stan The Man also ranks in the top 10 all time in runs, RBI and doubles, among others.6. Walter JohnsonHis peers liked and respected him, yet they feared him as well because of how hard he threw and how he dominated, even while pitching for mostly forgettable teams between 1907 and 1927. He led the American League in strikeouts in 12 seasons and in ERA?during five seasons, including the year he turned 36. Only Cy Young compiled more victories, and Big Train threw nearly 6,000 innings, rolling on and on.5. Ted WilliamsThere could be a robust argument about who the actual forefathers of this era of analytics were. But all moneyball DNA could probably be traced back to Williams, who seemed to have the earliest understanding of on-base percentage before it was called that. He continues to inspire hitters into the current generation, including Joey Votto. Either he or Barry Bonds should be viewed as the greatest hitters of all time.4. Barry BondsHe might not gain induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame, but if you asked most players from the 90s and early 2000s about the best player they ever saw -- and Ive had a lot of those kinds of conversations with a lot of players -- the vast majority would say Bonds. Tony Gwynn once told me he believed Bonds eyesight was so good that he could identify pitch types while the ball was still in the pitchers hand.3. Babe RuthHis greatest value to baseball wasnt necessarily in his production but in how he captured the imagination of a nation with his power and his personality. He drove baseball beyond the 1919 Black Sox scandal and into a new realm with all of the home runs he hit, creating generations of fans at a time when baseball was, in fact, Americas pastime. But its difficult to put him at the top of this list when he played in an era of segregation.2. Hank AaronAaron will be remembered forever for all of the home runs, of course, and some baseball fans will continue to regard him as the home run king because of Bonds association with performance-enhancing drugs. But he won Gold Gloves, a couple of batting titles, stole 240 bases and finished in the top 10 in the MVP voting in 13 seasons. He scored 2,174?times and drove in a record 2,297 runs. The consistency of his excellence is almost unimaginable now. Think about what it takes to compile 755 homers.1. Willie MaysHe might be as close to a perfect player as weve ever seen in baseball, with the power -- he finished his career third all time in home runs -- and the speed and the defense. Scouts will talk about five-tool players, and Mays was great at everything. He led the National League in homers four times and in steals four times, won 12 Gold Gloves and finished in the top 10 for the MVP 12 times.Greg Little Panthers Jersey .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. Ryan Kalil Panthers Jersey . The (11-11-4) Jets are seventh in the Central Division with 26 points. Fifth place Dallas and sixth-seeded Nashville also have 26 points, but the Stars have three games in hand on Winnipeg while Nashville has two. http://www.shoppanthersonline.us/panthers-greg-little-blue-jersey/ . Its an influence in football and a big part of the game. Brian Burns Womens Jersey . James, who turned 29 on Monday, injured his groin Friday during the Heats overtime loss at Sacramento. He sat out the following game, a 108-107 win Saturday in Portland, before coming back to help send the Nuggets to their seventh consecutive loss. Brian Burns Jersey .ca NHL Power Rankings for the second straight week, ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Colorado Avalanche.CHICAGO -- The San Francisco Giants likely need a better performance from right-hander Johnny Cueto than they got in his last outing if theyre going to split a four-game series with the Chicago Cubs on Sunday.Cueto, a two-time All-Star, allowed four runs in 4 2/3 innings on Tuesday in a loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks in his shortest outing of the season for theGiants. He is 14-5 with a 2.98 ERA this year and 9-8 with a 3.34 ERA in 23 career starts against Chicago.I think the pitches caught up with him, Giants manager Bruce Bochy told reporters after that game. His command was a little off, he started missing his spots. It just got away from him.The Cubs (87-48), who lead the National League Central and own the best record in the majors, won the first two games of the series, 5-4 on Thursday and 2-1 on Friday. The Giants held off the Cubs 3-2 on Saturday behind Madison Bumgarners 10-strikeout performance.The victory in a playoff-like atmosphere in front of 41,250 fans boosted the Giants spirits. Theyre just 16-29 since the All-Star break.Its a tough group, Bochy said. Despite what happens, I really like the way theyre coming out and staying focused. Theyve had their backs to the wall and been through difficult times. But theyre going to keep fighting. Sure, weve had some issues in the second half, but its all about going out there every day with the same effort.The Giants (73-62) lead the National League wild-card standings but have won just five of their last 13.It was one we definitely wanted and needed, Giants catcher Buster Posey said about Saturdays win. It was good to score some runs off (Jake) Arrieta and then for our bullpen to hold the lead the last tthree innings.ddddddddddddOn Sunday, Cubs right-hander John Lackey (9-7, 3.41 ERA) is expected to make his first start since he went on the disabled list Aug. 15 with a right shoulder strain. He allowed an unearned run in 6 2/3 innings on Aug. 14 against the St. Louis Cardinals before he exited with the injury in his last start. He is 6-4 with a 2.47 ERA in 13 home starts.Lackey is 1-1 with a 2.57 ERA in two regular-season career games against the Giants.Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo and right fielder Jason Heyward were out of the starting lineup Saturday against left-hander Bumgarner but are expected back Sunday against Cueto.Veteran reliever Joe Nathan could soon make his first appearance for the Giants, who drafted him in 1995 and purchased his contract fromDouble-A Richmond on Saturday. The Giants signed the 41-year-old as a free agent on Aug. 16 after the Cubs released him on Aug. 8. Nathan previously pitched for the Giants from 1999 to 2003 before he and left-hander Francisco Liriano were traded to the Minnesota Twins for catcher A.J. Pierzynski and cash in 2003.It made everything a lot more comfortable, a lot easier to come back here, a little less to have to kind of prove myself, Nathan said of returning to the Giants.Nathan went 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA in three games with the Cubs.At that time, we just couldnt fit everybody in, Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. He had one really good game up in Milwaukee where we got a couple guys on and he struck out the side. His pitches got up to the low 90s (mph) with some really good break. ' ' '