Baseball’s a game of heroes—until these slimeballs step up to the plate. From juiced-up freaks to fist-swinging lunatics, here’s the definitive rundown of MLB’s most despicable villains, ranked by how much they make you want to bleach your eyeballs. All true, all savage.
10. Roger Clemens: The Rocket-Fueled Fraud
Clemens snagged seven Cy Youngs—1986, ‘87, ‘91, ‘97, ‘98, ‘01, ‘04—but his late-career “peak” (20-3 at 42 in ‘04) screams steroids. The 2007 Mitchell Report fingered him, with trainer Brian McNamee swearing he injected him. Clemens denied it under oath, flirting with perjury, then yeeted a broken bat at Mike Piazza in the 2000 World Series like a rage-blind caveman. A pitcher with no shame.
9. Ty Cobb: The Spiked Psycho
Cobb’s .366 average and 4,191 hits are immortal, but he was a demon in cleats. Sharpened his spikes to maim—Buck Herzog got sliced in 1915. Attacked a Black groundskeeper in 1907, choked the guy’s wife. Smashed a disabled fan’s face in 1912, no remorse. Racist, vicious, and built for nightmares—baseball’s first supervillain.
8. Jose Canseco: The Juiced Judas
Canseco mashed 462 homers, including a 40-40 season in ‘88, but he was a steroid poster boy. Admitted it in his 2005 book Juiced, ratting out McGwire and others—claimed he shot them up personally. Mitchell Report confirmed it. Didn’t just dope—he flipped on the whole era for a paycheck. A traitor with biceps.
7. Barry Bonds: The Smug Slugger
Bonds blasted 762 homers, 73 in ‘01, sniping Aaron’s record in ‘07. Pre-‘99, he was a wiry stud; post-BALCO, his skull swelled and the balls flew. Tied to steroids in the 2003 BALCO bust, convicted of obstruction in 2011 for dodging questions. Never failed a test? Bull—he’s still whining like we owe him a trophy. Arrogance on stilts.
6. Hal Chase: The Crooked Prince
“Prince Hal” hit .291 across 15 years, but he was baseball’s original fixer. Accused of throwing games for cash with the Reds and Giants by 1910, he bolted to the Federal League in ‘14 to duck the heat. Banned in ‘19 after the evidence stacked up—no trial, just gone. The godfather of grift.
5. Alex Rodriguez: The King of Cringe
A-Rod’s 696 homers and ‘09 title get eclipsed by his rap sheet. Busted for PEDs via Biogenesis, suspended 162 games in 2014—after confessing to earlier use in ‘09. Swatted Arroyo’s glove in the ‘04 ALCS like a desperate punk, sued MLB to squirm free. Add the J-Lo circus—$252M of pure phoniness.
4. George Steinbrenner: The Tyrant Overlord
The Boss owned the Yankees from ‘73 to 2010, snagging seven rings—but he was a monster. Banned ‘90-‘93 for paying gambler Howard Spira $40K to trash Dave Winfield. Fired 20 managers in 18 years, rehiring Billy Martin five times like a sadistic yo-yo. Bullied everyone, bought success. A dictator in a suit.
3. John Rocker: The Bigot with a Slider
Rocker notched 38 saves for the ‘99 Braves, but his venom stole the show. In a ‘99 Sports Illustrated rant, he smeared NYC—slammed immigrants, mocked “queers with AIDS,” trashed subway riders. Suspended 28 days in 2000, chased out by ‘03. A hillbilly hate machine who flamed out fast.
2. The 1919 Black Sox: The Traitors Who Tanked It
Eight White Sox—Shoeless Joe (.356 in the Series), Cicotte (29-7 in ‘19), and crew—took mob bribes to blow the 1919 World Series to the Reds. Nabbed in ‘20, banned for life by Landis in ‘21. Jackson’s 12 hits don’t hide Cicotte’s choke jobs. They didn’t just cheat—they stabbed baseball in the heart.
1. Billy Martin: The Drunken Brawler
Martin managed five teams, won a ring with the Yanks in ‘77, but he was a booze-soaked disaster. Punched out players, fans, even a marshmallow salesman in ‘79—fired by Steinbrenner five times across 13 years. Ejected 46 times, once for kicking dirt on an ump. Genius tactician, human tire fire—chaos in a cap.
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