In a recent column I said that Jay Bruce was the best major-league baseball prospect I’d ever seen come through Louisville. Of course, no matter what you may have heard to the contrary, I’m not nearly old enough to have seen Honus Wagner and Pete Browning play for the local franchise back in the late 1800s.

I also wasn’t around to check out Earle Combs when he played two years for the Colonels in the 1920s before moving on to play center field for the Ruth-Gehrig Yankees. Why, heck, I’m so young that I didn’t even see Pee Wee Reese play here in 1938 season here he moved on to Brooklyn, where he became shortstop and captain of the Dodgers’ immortal “Boys of Summer” teams.

Still, I’ve seen some players in my day, which more or less extends from 1950 to the present. During that time, the Louisville franchise has been the top farm team of the Boston Red Sox (twice), Washington Senators, Milwaukee Braves, St. Louis Cardinals, Milwaukee Brewers, and Cincinnati Reds (2000 to the present).

That’s a lot of years and players, even considering that Louisville didn’t have a professional team from 1972 to ’82.

Still, after thinking about it, I’m convinced that Bruce is the best of all the fine prospects who have played at Parkway Field, Fairgrounds Stadium, and Slugger Park during my career as a sports writer.

So here’s my Louisville all-star team from 1950 through the present:

CATCHER: Carlton Fisk

Why – No other catcher in Louisville history has come close to accomplishing what Fisk did in the major leagues, where he was an All-Star with both the Boston Red Sox and Chicago White Sox. Known as “Pudge,” Fisk caught for the Louisville Colonels in 1971, hitting .263 with 10 homers and 43 RBI in 73 games.

Interesting fact – Fisk is best remembered for his dramatic home run against the Cincinnati Reds in Game 6 of the 1975 World Series. As the ball soared toward Fenway Park’s “Green Monster” in left field, Fisk motioned for it to stay fair as he left the batter’s box, an endearing bit of footage that has become a staple of World Series highlights.

Honorable mention – Pete Daley, who caught for the Colonels in the early 1950s, was the Red Sox starting catcher from 1955-’59. He then played two seasons with Kansas City and Washington before retiring with a .239 career batting average.

Todd Zeile was supposed to be the game’s next great catcher when he came to Louisville in 1989, but St. Louis manager Whitey Herzog shifted him to third base in 1990 in order to make room for Tom Pagnozzi, another former Redbird. Zeile mainly played third and first for 11 big-league teams. Pagnozzi was the Cardinals’ regular catcher from 1990 through ’96, making the 1992 NL All-Star team.

FIRST BASE: Harry Agganis.

Why – Strictly personal. He was my favorite player in 1953 and gave me a cracked bat as he left the clubhouse after his final game as a Colonel. That season, his first in professional baseball, Agganis hit .281 for the Colonels with 23 homers and 108 RBI. As a Red Sox rookie in 1954, he hit .251 with 11 homers and 57 RBI. He was off to a great start in 1955, hitting .313 when he suddenly fell ill. He did on June 27, 1955, shocking the baseball world.

Interesting fact – Agganis was an All-American quarterback at Boston University, but opted for baseball instead of the NFL. His nickname was “The Golden Greek.”

Honorable mention – The most deserving candidate is Cecil Cooper, the Louisville first-baseman in the early ‘70s who played with the Red Sox for five years (1971-’76) before being traded to Milwaukee, where he became an All-Star. I also strongly believe that before he’s done, Joey Votto, now with the Reds, has the potential to surpass both Cooper and Agganis. He led last year’s Bats team in homers and RBI, and was named the International League Player of the Year.

SECOND BASE: Ron Belliard.

Why — I’m not wild about this pick, but I couldn’t think of anybody better at this position. He had an outstanding season with the 1998 Bats, becoming the only Louisville second-baseman since 1982 to make the International League All-Star team. He’s currently playing for the Washington Nationals.

Interesting fact – Belliard holds the franchise records for runs in a season (114 in 1998) and is tied with Allen Battle for hits (163).

Honorable mention  – The Colonels had a fairly slick second-baseman named Eddie Lyons in the early 1950s. In the early 1980s, the Bats got some decent second-base play from another Lyons, Billy, and Jeff Doyle.

SHORTSTOP: Jose Uribe Gonzalez.

Why – He played 10 seasons in the majors and was a regular for the San Francisco Giants from 1985 through ’91. His best season came in 1987, when he hit .291 with five home runs. The Giants acquired him from the St. Louis Cardinals, who couldn’t use him because they had Ozzie Smith at shortstop. He played for the Redbirds during the last part of the 1982 season and all of ’83 and ’84. He made the American Association All-Star team in ’84, hitting .279 and leading the league in fielding percentage.

Interesting fact — Jose played in the minors under the name Gonzalez, his father’s last name, but decided to use his mother’s last name, Uribe, in the majors.

Other contenders –  Don Buddin, who played for the Colonels before becoming the Red Sox regular shortstop in the late 1950s and early ‘60s. Jeff Keppinger, who played with the Bats in 2006 and ’07, has the potential to surpass both Uribe and Buddin. I also liked what I saw of Paul Janish, who was called up to Cincinnati a few weeks ago when Keppinger was injured.

THIRD BASE: Frank Malzone

Why — .After a couple of good seasons here in the early 1950s, he moved up to Boston and started a third base from 1956 through ’65. In 1,359 games with the Red Sox, he had 1,454 hits, 131 homers, 716 RBI and 386 extra-base hits, in addition to winning three Gold Gloves. He was named to the American League All-Star team eight times.
Interesting fact – Malzone was a teammate of both Ted Williams, who retired after the 1960 season, and Carl Yastrzemski, whose rookie year was 1961.

Honorable mention — Terry Pendleton, who played for the Redbirds in 1984 before going on to a solid big-league career with St. Louis and the Atlanta Braves, and Brandon Larson, the Bats’ all-time career leader in homers and RBI.

OUTFIELD: Dwight Evans, Adam Dunn, and Bruce.

Why — Evans hit. 300 and knocked in 95 runs for the 1971 Colonels, earning MVP honors in the International League. He was called up to Boston at the end of the ’71 season and became a popular fixture at Fenway Park, eventually joining Jim Rice and Fred Lynn to give Boston one of baseball’s all-time best outfields in the 1970s. He won eight Gold Gloves from 1976 through ’85.

Dunn recently passed Ted Kluszewski to become the most prolific left-handed home-run hitter in Reds’ history. Like many free-swinging sluggers, it’s usually either feast or famine with Dunn, either a strikeout or a prodigious homer. Over the last four seasons, he has averaged more than 40 homers and 100 RBI.

Bruce, you know about.

Interesting fact – Jay Bruce and Hall-of-Famer Frank Robinson, the 1956 Rookie-of-the-Year with the Reds, both were born in Beaumont, Tx.

Honorable mention — Charlie Maxwell shuttled between Louisville and Boston through the first half of the 1950s, but then found a home in Detroit, where he averaged 24 homers and 82 RBI from 1956 through 1960. For whatever reason, he always was at his best in Sunday afternoon games.

Gene Stephens came to Louisville in the 1950s touted as the replacement for Williams. Stephens never panned out, but still played 11 seasons with four big-league teams. His main claim to fame was being the first big-league player to have three hits in one inning.

Willie McGee and Vince Coleman both honed their games in Louisville before moving on to outstanding careers with the Cardinals. McGee was a solid .300 hitter and started for two World Series teams. Coleman led the National League in steals six consecutive seasons.

Andy Van Slyke came to Louisville as a third-baseman, but made five errors in one game and ended up in the outfield. In his 13-year big-league career, Van Slyke appeared in three All-Star games (1988, 1992, 1993), won five Gold Glove Awards, two Silver Slugger Awards, and ranked in the top 10 in many offensive categories in varying seasons.

PITCHERS: Juan Pizzaro, Frank Baumann, Phil Niekro, Dave “Boo” Ferris, Dick Radatz, Todd Worrell, Joe Magrane, Bill Henry, Homer Bailey, and Johnny Cueto.

Why – O.K., I know that Cueto appeared in only four games here last year, but I’m going to cheat a little because I love his potential. So sue me. The jury still is out on Bailey, who looked extremely promising in Louisville last year but was only so-so, at best, this season before being called up again last week.

Most of the rest of my staff went on to have successful big-league careers. The best of the bunch is Niekro, who became a Hall-of-Fame knuckleballer, mostly with the Atlanta Braves. Radatz, Henry, and Worrell were among the most respected closers of their eras.

Interesting fact –  Dave “Boo” Ferris won 21 games for Boston in 1945 and 25 in ’46, but then dropped out of sight. He was at the end of his career, not the beginning, when he pitched for the Colonels in the early 1950s.

Honorable mention – Russ Kemmerer and Ike Delock from the 1950s; Ralph Citarella, Jeff Keener, Bob Tewksberry, and Rick Owenby from the 1980s; Rheal Cormier, Bob Sebra, and John Frascatore from the 1990s; and Steve Soderstrom from early in this decade.

I eagerly await additions, corrections, opinions, and oversights.