Last Friday marked the passing of one of baseball's most beloved players, "Mr. Cub," Ernie Banks. He was loved in Chicago by Cubs and White Sox fans alike for his on field accomplishments, boundless enthusiasm, and love of the game. His recognition as "Mr. Cub" is unique among baseball players. While there are players who are readily identified as the face of their team, no other has been officially given the applellation of "Mr. ____". Reflecting on this, I have attempted to list who would most likely be recognized as the "Mr. ____" of each franchise if one were selected.

Mr. Cub: Ernie Banks, of course. Honorable Mention: Ron Santo. Other than Mr. Cub himself, Santo is probably the most beloved Cub which is remarkable since he was on par with a young Chuck Knoblauch and was posthumously voted into the HoF by the Veterans Committee.

Mr. Phillie: Mike Schmidt for leading them to a long awaited World Series victory. Honorable mention to Robin Roberts and Richie Ashburn of the Whiz Kids.

Mr. Met: Mr. Met, of course. On the field, possibly Mookie Wilson, but given the strength of their staff in '69, I'll go with a pitcher. Tom Seaver is Mr. Met. It could have been Dwight Gooden or Darryl Strawberry if one of them had stayed clean and played for the Mets for a longer time period.

Mr. Marlin: This is a tough one. Given all of their fire sales, has anyone stayed with this franchise long enough to even be considered? Maybe Livan Hernandez for being the MVP of their first World Series Championship team. Maybe Jim Leyland or Jeff Conine for that matter. Former owner Wayne Huizenga was the most recognizable person associated with the team for a while.

Mr. National: The team really hasn't been around long enough, but I would go with Jayson Werth or Ryan Zimmerman over the more talented Bryce Harper. Andre Dawson if you want to reach back to the Expos days.

Mr. Brave: Hank Aaron. Hard to argue with the non-PED Home Run King. Honorable mention to Dale Murphy.

Mr. Red: Pete Rose. I wish I could say Ted Kluszewski or Barry Larkin, but reality dictates otherwise. Reds fans are still blindly loyal to Rose.

Mr. Pirate: Willie Stargell. Not their best player ever, but probably their most popular. The real old school fans would probably go with Bill Mazeroski or maybe Roberto Clemente. I would argue that Clemente actually transcends the team. Andrew McCutcheon has a real chance of overtaking Stargell if he can bring the Bucs a World Series championship.

Mr. Cardinal: Stan Musial and it isn't even close.

Mr. Brewer: Robin Yount with a hat tip to Gorman Thomas as a fan favorite.

Mr. Diamondback: Randy Johnson almost by default. He's best known as a Mariner or an Expo that got away, but there isn't really anyone who stands out solely as a Diamondback. He and Curt Schilling were almost always mentioned as a duo, but Schilling's performance in the 2004 playoffs has left him identified as a member of the Red Sox far more than as a Diamondback.

Mr. Dodger: Vin Scully. The team's broadcaster for over a half century going back to its days in Brooklyn and arguably the most recognizable voice in baseball. If we limit it to players and just the Los Angeles years, I'd be tempted to say Steve Garvey. If we include the Brooklyn years, it has to be Jackie Robinson. Robinson transcended the game in a way nobody else has as the player who broke the color barrier. Roy Campanella was arguably a better player, but Branch Rickey recognized that Robinson had the rare mix of talent, personality, temperament, and attitude that was necessary to be the first player to cross over from the Negro Leagues. Nobody else's number number is retired league-wide. He also brought the franchise to prominence. After two second place finishes in the National League and two World Series losses to the Yankees, Robinson brought the team together and put them over the top in 1955.

Mr. Padre: Tony Gwynn. He was a local player who had a Hall of Fame career with the hometown team and arguably the best pure hitter since fellow San Diegan Ted Williams. Honorable Mention to late long-time broadcaster Jerry Coleman.

Mr. Rockie: Another tough one since we're dealing with just over 20 years of history and only one World Series appearance. Dante Bichette or Larry Walker would be favorites from the early years, but they may have been surpassed by Troy Tulowitski and Todd Helton.

Mr. Giant: To not say Willie Mays borders on heresy, but a strong case could be made for Willie McCovey. Mays is arguably the best all-around player ever, but he is in some ways associated more with his time with the New York Giants than the San Francisco Giants. McCovey is beloved by Giants fans and aside from a few years with the Padres and Athletics, played in San Francisco. They named the cove after him, didn't they?

Mr. Red Sock: Ted Williams. Period.

Mr. Yankee: A tough call with so many great players, but I will go with Joe DiMaggio. He seems to embody the Yankee mystique more than any other player. Derek Jeter came close to doing it, but he was emulating DiMaggio. Honorable Mention to Lou Gehrig.

Mr. Oriole: Cal Ripken, Jr. with Honorable Mentions to arguably the best third baseman of all time, Brooks Robinson, and to Boog Powell as a fan favorite.

Mr. Blue Jay: I'm sure I'm going to miss someone here. There must be a Canadian player the fans gravitate towards that I'm not thinking of. It's too early for Jose Bautista. It's tempting to go with Dave Stieb or another early Jay (Garth Iorg?), but it has to be someone from one of the World Series teams. I'll go with Joe Carter over Dave Stewart. Both are just as well known their time with other teams, the Indians and Athletics, respectively; but they are responsible for those two World Series championship banners hanging in Rogers Centre. Honorable mention to Cito Gaston.

Mr. Devil Ray/Ray: This is another team that suffers from a combination of being too new even after almost 20 years and having a lot of roster turn over. Wade Boggs? Fred McGriff? James Shields? No, Boggs and McGriff gained their fame with other teams and Shields arguably wasn't there long enough. At this point, probably Joe Maddon. He is probably more responsible for their on field success than anyone else.

Mr. Indian: Bob Feller. Honorable Mention to Jim Thome who might have overtaken Feller had he played his entire career with the Indians and/or been part of a World Series champion. It also hurt Thome's stock a bit that he didn't retire with the Indians after rejoining them late in his career.

Mr. Tiger: Sometimes the older franchises are almost as difficult to come up with a name for as the newer teams, but for very different reasons. There are a lot of great names here. One could go with Hank Greenberg, the duo of Alan Trammell and Lou Whitaker, or even local boy Kirk Gibson. In the end, I have to go with Ty Cobb, easily the most recognizable Tiger.

Mr. Royal: George Brett. After spending nine months in the KC area, I can tell you it isn't even close. If the Royals go to another World Series and win, Alex Gordon might join him in the pantheon someday. Maybe. Honorable mention to Buck O'Neil. He never never could have played for the Royals for a couple of reasons, segregation and absent that the Royals didn't exist in his era. However, other than Brett, he is probably the player that has been most embraced by the team and the community.

Mr. White Sock: I really want to say Shoeless Joe Jackson. He's easily the most famous White Sock and I personally don't believe he was guilty of throwing the 1919 World Series. Unfortunately, he hasn't been exonerated either, so I can't consider him based on the criteria laid out above. He also doesn't hold the same cache with White Sox fans as Rose does with Reds fans. I'll go with Frank Thomas with honorable mention to Nellie Fox.

Mr. Athletic: What a mess this franchise is. Who do you pick from the Oakland years? Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco? Probably not unless you don't mind having the identity of your franchise associated with the Steroid Era. Reggie Jackson? Maybe, but he's really more of a Yankee. There really wasn't anyone of note during the Kansas City years. I guess it comes down to Connie Mack. He managed the team from 1901 to 1950 and was part owner from 1901 to 1954. It was only after he sold the team in 1954 that it was moved to Kansas City.

Mr. Ranger: Either Juan Gonzalez or Reuben Sierra. Other than that, their most notable players outside of their recent ALCS and World Series teams might be Bump Wills and Pete Incaviglia. As for the recent teams, do we really want to go with Josh Hamilton? Some will want to say Nolan Ryan, but he is almost equally well known as a member of each of the four teams he played for (Mets, Angels, Astros, and Rangers). He had his number retired by all but the Mets and was inducted into the Hall of Fame as an Angel.

Mr. Mariner: Mike Schooler. Okay, just kidding. Obviously, it's Ken Griffey, Jr. It's really too bad his 2009 return to the team was marred by diminished skills and poor sleeping habits (His retirement was hastened when he was caught napping in the clubhouse during a game.). Honorable mention to Edgar Martinez, the only Mariner eligible to have his number officially retired by the team, and Ichiro Suzuki.

Mr. Angel: Does this team have an identity other than being L.A.'s other team? I'm tempted to go with former owner Gene Autry. Most of their great players of the 70s and 80s were acquired as free agents who had made their names elsewhere (Reggie Jackson, Dave Winfield, Don Baylor, Nolan Ryan, Joe Rudi, Bobby Grich, Fred Lynn, et al.) 2002 World Series MVP Troy Glaus just doesn't quite cut it for me. Part of me wants to be parochial and go with North Dakota native Darin Erstad, but I don't think he quite makes the cut either. I normally wouldn't go with a current player, but who do you take over Mike Trout? 

Mr. Astro: There are a surprising number of players I could go with here, but I'll go with Jimmy "The Toy Cannon" Wynn. He was a fixture with the team from it's Colt 45's days in 1963 to 1973. There used to be a cannon on one of the seats in the Astrodome's left field bleachers marking the longest home run he hit in that stadium. It might actually still be there since the Astrodome is still standing. Honorable mention to the duo of Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell.

Last but not least, my hometown Minnesota Twins: As much as the historian in me would like to do so, I just can't consider anyone who played only in Washington. The franchise doesn't even know where the 1924 World Series trophy is or list Walter Johnson or anyone else who played only in Washington among its retired numbers. Statistically speaking, Harmon Killebrew is the greatest Twin and the franchise's first Hall of Famer to have played in Minnesota. He was beloved by fans and admired by his teammates and the players that followed in his footsteps. That said, Mr. Twin has to be Kirby Puckett. Without Puckett, the Minnesota Twins might not exist today. It was only a couple of years prior to his arrival in Minnesota that then-owner Calvin Griffith was trying to break his Metrodome lease and move the team to Tampa. Puckett provided the spark that led the franchise to two World Series championships famously telling the team to jump on his back before Game 6 of the '91 Series. His smile, enthusiasm, and love for the game were infectious and well regarded throughout the league.

Clearly this is open to debate as none of it, aside from Banks, is even remotely official. Let the debate begin!