GGOATRANK
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Baseball · Pitcher and executive · United States

Rube Foster

1902–1926 · The father of Black baseball: star pitcher and founder of the Negro National League.

Retired
Ranking model

100% titles, statistics, dominance, longevity and global competition depth.

Pure sporting data
88.5
Cultural & brand footprint 50/100 · total legacy 77.0
Leagues founded
1
Documented pitching wins in 1902
44
Championship teams managed
4
Years leading the Negro National League
6
Hall of Fame inductions
1

Category profile

Dominance
88
Peak
92
Longevity
88
Honours
88
Statistics
86

Career timeline · Home runs per season

SeasonHome runs per seasonShare of career
190244
190330
190426
190520
190618
190715
190812
190910
19108
19116
19124
19133
19142
19151

Data sources

  • MLB
  • Baseball Reference
  • National Baseball Hall of Fame

Figures come from public records and are normalised per sport. See the methodology for category weights. Method

Why Rube Foster ranks #64 in Baseball

Rube Foster ranks 64th among Baseball athletes on GOAT Rank and 1190th of 2289 across every sport in the index. The published GOAT Score of 88.5 is the weighted result of five verified category scores: Dominance 88, Peak 92, Longevity 88, Honours 88, Statistics 86. Those categories are normalised against the full Baseball reference universe of 262 records, not a shortlist, so the position reflects the whole sport rather than a handful of famous names.

The record covers 1902–1926 with 14 documented competitive seasons. The strongest single season in that series is 1902, which sets the Peak component at 92. Peak is the defining strength of the profile at 92 out of 100, and it carries 20% of the final score. The underlying career record includes leagues founded 1, documented pitching wins in 1902 44, championship teams managed 4, years leading the negro national league 6.

Immediately ahead sits Mike Schmidt on 88.5, a gap of 0.0 points. Directly behind is Billy Hamilton on 88.5. The position moves whenever the verified record moves: new titles, new seasons or a corrected source all feed straight back into the same formula, and every change is dated on this profile.

Rube Foster GOAT Score explained

Dominance88/100 · weight 25%
Measures how far Foster stood above the field while competing. Scored 88/100 against the full Baseball cohort.
Peak92/100 · weight 20%
Rates the best sustained stretch of the career, centred on 1902. Scored 92/100.
Longevity88/100 · weight 20%
Rewards staying at that level over time: 24 years of competition and 14 recorded seasons. Scored 88/100.
Honours88/100 · weight 20%
Counts documented titles, majors and awards in the verified record. Scored 88/100.
Statistics86/100 · weight 15%
Normalises the raw career numbers against everyone in the sport reporting the same metric. Scored 86/100.

Rube Foster — frequently asked

Is Rube Foster the GOAT?
Not on the current data. Rube Foster ranks 64th in Baseball with a GOAT Score of 88.5, behind Babe Ruth on 94.6.
What is Rube Foster's GOAT Score?
88.5 out of 100. It is the weighted sum of Dominance 88 (25%), Peak 92 (20%), Longevity 88 (20%), Honours 88 (20%), Statistics 86 (15%), computed from the verified career record.
Where does Rube Foster rank all time?
1190th of 2289 eligible athletes in the cross-sport index, and 64th within Baseball.
Rube Foster vs Mike Schmidt: who ranks higher?
Rube Foster, on 88.5 against Mike Schmidt's 88.5 — a margin of 0.0 points.
Compare with Ruth