Forbes Magazine fills us in on the most popular jersey sales.
The common theme among almost all of these players: winners. Each of the top 20 players was on a team with a winning record last year save Joe Mauer from the Twins and 14 of the 20 making the postseason. Winning sells in baseball whether you are talking about merchandise or attendance. The top 10 in MLB attendance last year all had winning records outside of the Twins and Cubs.
It is an eclectic group featuring: nine infielders, five pitchers, four outfielders and two catchers. There are 12 players under the age of 30 and 11 played in the American League last year.
1. Derek Jeter, New York Yankees
2. Cliff Lee, Philadelphia Phillies
3. *Albert Pujols, LA Angels of Anaheim
4. Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers
5. Roy Halladay, Philadelphia Phillies
6. Tim Lincecum, San Francisco Giants
7. Dustin Pedroia, Boston Red Sox
8. Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers
9. *Hunter Pence, Philadelphia Phillies
10. Buster Posey, San Francisco Giants
11. Chase Utley, Philadelphia Phillies
12. Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins
13. Justin Verlander, Detroit Tigers
14. Adrian Gonzalez, Boston Red Sox
15. Alex Rodriguez, New York Yankees
16. Ian Kinsler, Texas Rangers
17. Robinson Cano, New York Yankees
18. Mariano Rivera, New York Yankees
19. Carl Crawford, Boston Red Sox
20. David Freese, St. Louis Cardinals
*Pujols played for the St. Louis Cardinals until signing with the Angels in December 2011, while Pence was traded from the Houston Astros to the Phillies in July 2011. In both cases, their rankings reflect sales of jerseys for both teams.
