The "dead ball era" still had Ty Cobb and Honus Wagner, both first ever ballot Hall of Famers, and pretty much consensus top 10 of all time; Tris Speaker is another from this era that hovers about there. Then you have Cy Young and Christy Mathewson usually rated as top 10 Pitchers of all time, from the "dead ball" era. With all the talk of Bumgamer's WS Complete Game Shutout, Mathewson produced three shutouts in five games in the 1905 Series!
Don't forget the likes of Walter Johnson, and 'Three Finger' Brown. I just got done watching the 2nd part of Ken Burns Baseball, and that era was just crazy. Especially the 1908 National League pennant race between the NY Giants and Chicago Cubs.
