The 1970s saw a record seven MLB players reach the magical 3,000-hit mark, starting with Hank Aaron in May 1970 and concluding with Carl Yastrzemski in September 1979 (the others being Willie Mays, Roberto Clemente, Al Kaline, Pete Rose, and Lou Brock). Among this sterling seven, only Kaline and Yastrzemski hailed from the AL, serving as the respective franchise faces for the Detroit Tigers and Boston Red Sox over their lengthy careers. There are deep similarities between the two players – each was an outfielder, each was both an excellent hitter and fielder, each played 20+ years, and each was a first-ballot Hall of Famer. With their careers overlapping for more than a dozen years, it is natural to ask the question:
Who was better – Al Kaline or Carl Yastrzemski?
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