The first half of George Gore's career was by far the best half, where he was a member of the Chicago White Stockings, the team that became the iconic Chicago Cubs.

Ellis Burks compiled a much better career than you might initially realize.

Beginning with the Boston Red Sox in 1987, Burks became their starting Centerfielder and, as a rookie, was a 20-20 player.  As a member of the Red Sox, Burks had his best year in 1990, when he went to his first All-Star Game and was a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger recipient.  Burks hit 21 Home Runs that year and finished 13th in MVP voting.

After an injury-plagued 1992 season, he signed with the Chicago White Sox for one season and joined the Colorado Rockies the year after.  In the mountains, he had his best season in baseball, albeit after two more years of missing a plethora of games.  In 1996, he was third in MVP voting, was an All-Star, and led the National League in Runs Scored (142) with career-highs in Home Runs (40), Runs Batted In (128), Stolen Bases (32), and the Slash Line (.344/.408/.639).  

Burks couldn't replicate that year, but he had six more 20-HR seasons and would play for San Francisco and Cleveland, and had one final stop in Boston in 2004.  He retired with 2,107 Hits, 352 Home Runs, 1,206 RBIs, and a Slugging Percentage of .510. 

Wally Berger was one of the better sluggers of the National League in the first half of the 1930s, and the Boston Braves were lucky to have him. 

Berger had a spectacular rookie season in 1930, where the Outfielder batted .310 and blasted 38 Home Runs, which would be his career-high.  His power dipped below the 20 HR mark in the next two years, but he batted over .300 in his first four seasons.  

When the Majors debuted their All-Star Game in 1933, Berger was a part of the first four.  In those four seasons, Berger would have at least 25 Home Runs, and in 1935, he won the Home Run Title (34) and the RBI Title (139), and he was sixth in MVP voting.  Berger also finished third for the MVP in 1933. 

Berger's skills eroded in 1937, and he was injured for the second half of his career.  He was traded to the New York Giants during the '37 season and would finish his career with Cincinnati and Philadelphia (NL).

He retired with a lifetime Batting Average of .300 with 242 Home Runs.

Tony Phillips never made an All-Star team, and he only had one year in which he received MVP votes (16^th in 1995).  Yet, here we have a player worth talking about among some of those worth a Hall of Fame look.

What Phillips did well was get on base.  He twice led the league in Walks (1993 & 1996), and he was a key contributor in Oakland's 1989 World Series win.  Phillips accumulated 2,023 career Hits with 160 Home Runs and was also a league-leader in Runs Scored in 1992.  Defensively, he was versatile, able to play in the Outfield, Second, or Third, and do so at a more-than-average level.

Phillips retired with a career bWAR of 50.9, a number that actually eclipses many Baseball Hall of Famers.  Phillips was never a star, but he provided value for years, and if you want to classify him as a utility player (as many publications have), he was one of the best.