Were only Ripken, Gwynn Hall-Worthy?
The baseball writers have spoken on Mark McGwire, but what about the other candidates for Hall of Fame induction? Jim Rice was as dominant as any power hitter in the game between 1975 and 1986, putting up numbers to match Hall of Famers Mike Schmidt, Dave Winfield and Eddie Murray, but he's still on the outside looking in. There are numerous precedents for getting in based on a shorter stretch of superior play -- Bob Lemon and Richie Ashburn come to mind -- and Rice fits the bill. Bert Blyleven ranks fifth all-time in strikeouts, and he is the only retired player among the top 16 all-time in strikeouts who is not in the Hall. He often excelled while pitching for lackluster teams. What about Goose Gossage and Lee Smith, who were every bit as effective as the best closers of today in their prime, and often worked more than a single inning to pick up a save? Comparing these four to others in the Hall suggests all of them would be legitimate additions to Cooperstown.
Comments
What about Andre Dawson? Outside of average, his numbers were universally better than Rice. Dawson was also a huge upgrade defensively over Rice.
Posted by: Walter Lis | January 12, 2007 6:12 PM
His raw numbers are better, though mostly because he played longer than Rice. Their annual averages in doubles, homers and RBIs during their full seasons are pretty similar, though Rice drew more walks and Dawson stole many more bases. Those steals are a reminder that when healthy, Dawson was a complete player with power, speed, excellent defensive skills and a cannon for an arm. It's remarkable he put up the final numbers that he did, as he played the second half of his career with gimpy knees. He always gave a complete effort and withstood as many knee operations and as much pain as anyone.
Posted by: TH | January 17, 2007 10:51 AM
Re McGwire, was it his evasive testimony in the 2005 Congressional hearing, the specter of his alleged steroid use, or his otherwise pedestrian overall offensive statistics that kept his HOF vote totals low? If steroid use was as rampant as others (Canseco, Caminitti) have reported AND there were no MLB rules prohibiting them, should it even be a consideration of the voters? And how likely was it the the MLB clubs themselves were encouraging and, dare I say, supplying their sluggers with the performance enhancers? Former Senator Mitchell has stated that his investigative group would like more cooperation from MLB owners. Any chance one or more will them will come clean?
Posted by: Chick Evanstonian | January 19, 2007 12:30 PM