
Round 3: Richie Zisk
Richie Zisk was quite the underrated hitter during his time in Pittsburgh. Zisk was the Pittsburgh Pirates third-round pick in 1967 and established himself as a quality player a few years later in 1973. From his rookie campaign in 1973 through his last season with the Bucs in ‘196, Zisk batted .302/.367/.481, .382 wOBA, and 139 wRC+.
Zisk was traded during the 1976-1977 offseason to the Chicago White Sox for Terry Foster and, the big piece of the trade, Rich Gossage. Zisk arguably had the best year of his career with the Sox, batting .296/.355/.514, blasting 30 home runs, all while posting a .374 wOBA and 131 wRC+. But after the season, he was a free agent and signed with the Texas Rangers.
Zisk split his last six Major League seasons with the Rangers and with the Seattle Mariners. However, he just kept hitting. Zisk’s final six campaigns saw him bat .277/.343/.447 with a .352 wOBA and 118 wRC+. Later in his career, Zisk eventually moved out of the outfield and into the designated hitter role.
Zisk was consistently a good batter. He had a ten-year streak of posting a wRC+ of at least 105. That lasted from his rookie season up until the next to last season of his career. Zisk ended up with a very good career that often gets overlooked.