By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
EDITOR'S NOTE: Over the coming weeks, TopSports.news will recognize hundreds of Shawnee County's all-time greats in 25 sports/categories as part of our Best of the Best project. The project gets under way with baseball and readers will have the opportunity to vote through July, with the Top 25 in all categories announced in August. To cast a vote for the Best of the Best, click on: https://linkto.run/p/87MXCEBI Email votes/nominations will be also accepted at
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The list of contenders to get the nod as the top baseball player in Shawnee County history has to start with New York Yankees World Series hero Mike Torrez and American League All-Star and Gold Glove winner Ken Berry.
Mike Torrez
Ken Berry
But the list certainly doesn't end there, with the county producing a large group of players who made it to the Major Leagues, including All-Star Aaron Crow, 13-year veteran Duff "Sir Richard'' Cooley and Washburn University products Rick DeHart and Jerad Head as well as Negro Leagues stars Elwood "Bingo'' DeMoss and Carroll Ray "Dink'' Mothell.
Shawnee County has also produced No. 1 MLB draft pick David Proctor, second-round pick Blair Johnson and recent third-round selection Ryan Zeferjahn.
There are 25 candidates listed to pick from at https://linkto.run/p/87MXCEBI while readers also have the option of writing in a name.
Vote as many times as you wish, with the only requirement that eligible candidates must have grown up in Shawnee County or attended one of the county's 10 high schools.
Final selections will be based on reader vote as well as input from TSN contributors and current and past local sports media professionals.
Votes will be accepted through July 31 before TSN publishes our Best of the Best lists in August.
NEXT UP: Women's basketball (ballot will be published on TopSports.news on July 7).
