In the NFL, the dirtiest players ever are given that reputation because they try to gain a competitive advantage by intentionally hurting opposing players. In the NBA, players get the dirty label if they foul with a little extra force or become frequent technical foulers. Things are a little bit different in baseball, though, as it is a non-contact sport. Because of that, though, when an MLB player is dirty, it is all the more noticeable, as you really have to go out of your way to be a dirty player in baseball.
We've seen MLB players try to injure other players, which can qualify them as dirty, but we've also seen players earn the dirty label for other reasons. This includes from using performance enhancing drugs, intentionally using illegal equipment, or by simply making plays that don't belong in baseball.
Whatever the reasons are, you know a dirty player when you see one, so check out the gallery to see our ranking of the 10 dirtiest MLB players in history.
1. Chase Utley, second base

Chase Utley had an affinity for injuring players, and his method of choice was via the slide. Instead of sliding with the intent of securing a base, Utley slid with mal-intent. He wouldn't even go for the bag, and he'd instead slide right into defenseless defensive players in order to break up plays, and it often resulted in injury, as the second basemen led his slides feet first and with his cleats pointed into the air.
There are two uber-famous incidents that fit this description. During the NL Division Series in 2015, Utley slid into Ruben Tejada at second base. He outright missed the base and instead took out the New York Mets shortstop. In fact, he didn't even start to slide until after he passed the base. The dirty play resulted in Tejada fracturing his fibula and the Los Angeles Dodgers mounting a comeback.
Utley was handed a two-game suspension, but he was able to delay that suspension and eventually get it dropped altogether. Tejada never fully recovered from the injury, and MLB was forced to change its sliding rules.
Additionally, in 2011, Utley avoided the slide altogether, and instead lowered his shoulder and made a football move into Buster Posey at home plate. Like the aforementioned play, Utley's victim suffered a broken leg, and an ensuing rule change occurred. These were far from the only two times that Utley put other players' health and well-being on the line in order to try and avoid an out.
2. Ty Cobb, center field
Ty Cobb is widely regarded as one of the best MLB players ever, as evidenced by his unbreakable league record .366 career batting average. He also gained a reputation as a dirty player and unlikeable figure. In fact, he was one of the first players that fans loved to hate. Opponents and teammates alike despised him just as much, too. He doesn't take the top spot on this list because his reputation as a dirty player might be greater than what he actually did, but there are still plenty of alleged stories to justify why he is one of the dirtiest MLB players in history.
Cobb most infamously allegedly sharpened his spikes in plain sight, which struck fear in opponents because they knew he'd use them as a weapon once he had a chance to slide on the base paths. It didn't take Cobb getting on base for him to use his spikes in the wrong way, though. After getting hit by a pitch, Cobb laid a bunt down the first base line in his next at-bat, forcing a pitcher to go retrieve it. Cobb then knocked over the pitcher before he spiked him on the chest while he was on the ground.
Other stories are just as jaw-dropping. Cobb reportedly got into a fight with a handicapped heckler, he attacked someone on a golf course, and he was known to stomp on first baseman's heels. A lot of this rage (and ultimate desire to win) stems from when Cobb's mom accidently shot and killed his father.
Cobb became one of the best players ever because of his ultimate talent, but he was also going to do whatever it took to be great. He didn't care if people didn't like him, either. However, there is likely some over exaggeration associated with Cobb that has come since his retirement and because of media portrayals like the movie “Cobb.”
3. Gaylord Perry, pitcher

The two players above Gaylord Perry on this list of the dirtiest MLB players ever got here because they often hurt their opponents, and seemingly with intent. Perry is here for a different reason, and that is because he openly bent or even broke the rules as much and as often as he could get away with.
The Hall of Famer was dominant as a pitcher, but you have to wonder how much of his greatness was because of how much he would doctor balls. Perry pitched into extra innings 39 times, he won 314 games, and he was named the Cy Young winner twice. He also used the spitball, Vaseline, and other substances to gain a competitive advantage. Everybody knew that he was doing this, so Perry would use that to his advantage by touching his cap or other parts of his body in order to fake out batters into thinking something nasty was coming.
Perry was open about his cheating ways, going as far as to write an autobiography titled ‘Me and the Spitter'. Despite this, he wasn't caught until his 21st season.
4. Manny Machado, third base

Manny Machado is one of the biggest stars in MLB right now, and although he has calmed down with his antics recently, earlier in his career he was notorious for being a dirty player. Machado is most known for overextending on his back swing and hitting catchers in the helmet or glove. If there is a way to be dirty, Machado has probably tried it, though.
A couple of noteworthy Machado moments include when he kicked Jesus Aguilar while running down the first baseline and when he charged the mound and threw a punch at Yordano Ventura. He also was suspended five games for faking a swing and instead deliberately throwing his bat down the third baseline in the vicinity of Josh Donaldson.
There were even a handful of incidents leading up to Machado throwing his bat. First, Machado spiked his helmet near Donaldson, which led to a brawl. Next, he twice hit Derek Norris with his backswing. The suspension didn't come until all of that culminated into the bat throw.
Christian Yelich is one player who has called out Machado for being dirty, and a good chunk of the rest of the league feels that way, too. Perhaps Machado has matured. After all, he was super young during his days with the Baltimore Orioles. You can't erase the past, though, and nobody would be surprised if the now San Diego Padre were to do something dirty again.
5. Rougned Odor, second base

Trouble has always seemed to follow Rougned Odor, so that makes you wonder if he is the problem. Odor was the type of player that his team loved, but opposing teams and fan bases hated, and he was frequently involved in bench-clearing brawls. Before even making it to the majors, Odor started a brawl that led to 51 players being fined.
The brawls didn't stop in the majors. In fact, Odor is responsible for arguably the most iconic fight in MLB history when he landed a clean right hook on Jose Bautista. On top of that, Odor played the game with passion, and his never-give-up attitude rubbed a lot of people the wrong way.
Additionally, he was yet another player who focused too hard on breaking up double plays and not hard enough on making sure nobody would get hurt.
6. Nyjer Morgan, outfield

Nyjer Morgan has hockey roots, so it shouldn't come as a surprise that he is somewhat of a brawler and willing to play the game of baseball with physicality. Morgan is responsible for one of the biggest home plate collisions with a catcher ever when he took out Brett Hayes in 2010, separating Hayes's shoulder in the process.
Hayes followed that play up by charging the mound after being thrown at during his next at-bat. That day in 2010 wasn't just a bad day, either. Morgan had a tendency to act dirty throughout his MLB career, which made him often hated by opposing fans and players alike.
7. Albert Belle, left field

Albert Belle was a great player, and although he never got in trouble for taking performance enhancing drugs, fans have still given him the roid rage label because of how he carried himself. Belle was a bully, and that was compounded by his freakish size and strength. When Belle ran over Fernando Vina to break up a double play, it was one of the clearly most blatant dirty plays ever and something that was far from a baseball manuever.
A lot of Belle's teammates didn't like him, and his attitude has played a part in preventing him from going to Cooperstown. Belle was also accused of using a corked bat.
8. Roger Clemens, pitcher

Roger Clemens is one of the dirtiest players for a number of reasons. For starters, he is one of the leading figures of the steroid era. You have to wonder how much Clemens' late-career success/longevity can be attributed to steroids.
On top of that, he was one of the pitchers continuously throwing inside pitches that led to the 2003 ALCS brawl between the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees. While Pedro Martinez's attack of Don Zimmer was worse, Clemens still certainly played a big part in arguably the most notorious brawl in league history.
Another dirty moment that stands out with Clemens is when he threw a shattered bat back at Mike Piazza. This came in the same season that Clemens drilled Piazza in the head with a pitch.
9. Vicente Padilla, pitcher

Players being hit by a pitch is commonplace in baseball, but Vicente Padilla made that his calling card. The pitcher would often hit the same player with a pitch twice in a game, and he threw the pitch that led to a brawl on more than one occasion. If a player made a good play against Padilla, the odds were that Padilla would target them during their next at-bat.
10. Alex Rodriguez, shortstop/third base

Alex Rodriguez, one of the biggest villains in MLB history, was often criticized for childish behavior during his playing days. Fans really started to hate him when he was caught as a steroid user. Rodriguez cheated the game, and he lied about it for a long time, too.
One of Rodriguez's most famous dirty acts, outside of his steroid usage, came in the 2004 ALCS. The infielder hit a weak shot back to the pitcher (Bronson Arroyo), and then he slapped the ball out of his hands. Rodriguez was an all-time great, even when accounting for the cheating, but he was also certainly an unlikeable player and dirty athlete.