Right fielder
Right fielder Sam Thompson, known as "Big Sam," was the third future Hall of Famer on the 1887 Detroit team. Thompson was in his prime in 1887 and had a tremendous year. He was the National League batting champion with a .372 average, and he also led the league in slugging percentage (.571), hits (203), total bases (311), triples (23), RBIs (166), and runs created (127). His 1887 total of 166 RBIs stood as a major league record for 40 years until Lou Gehrig broke it in 1927. He was No. 2 on the all-time home run list at the time of his retirement.