Before we get too far along in looking at the 25 candidates,let's quickly separate the wheat from the chaff and throw the following into the recycling bin.
Brady Anderson (likely steroid user and Cal Ripken's best friend), Rod Beck (don't think so),Shawon Dunston (how does a utility player get on the ballot),Chuck Finley (getting beat up by his wife is enough for me),Travis Fryman (solid player,but not near this level),Chuck Knoblaugh (isn't being able to complete a throw to first a prerequisite for the HOF?),Robb Nen (had a small window of high performance,but not long enough),Jose Rijo (How did he show up here?) and Todd Stottlemyre (Rijo was better than him!).
So that trims the field from 25 to 16.
Here are my thoughts on the 16 in alphabetical order.
Harold Baines:
Harold Baines had one of the prettiest swings from a left handed hitter that I have ever seen and he seemed like a super nice guy to boot.
His 2,866 hits and 384 homers look good too,but he did play 22 seasons.
Baines never hit more than 29 homers in a season,only knocked over 100 three times and rarely played the field,as Baines spent most time as a DH.
Harold Baines was an excellent professional hitter,but falls short of the Hall of Fame level.
Bert Blyleven:
I have already given Blyleven my recommendation in a Forgotten Superstars feature last month.
Therefore I will not get too deep into evaluating Bert again.
In short-Blyleven gets our vote.
Dave Concepcion:
Concepcion was the definition of slick fielding shortstop for his generation.
That was the generation that spent most of their career on artificial turf and played a different type of game than was played before or since.
Always a smooth,gliding player,it looked easy for the Venezuelan and turning the twin killing was a joy to watch.
But his bat was average at best,only reached double digits in homers twice and never had an OPS higher than .767.
Again,a very good player,but not a Hall of Famer.
Andre Dawson:
Dawson was an excellent player and his 1987 year with the Cubs ranks among the best of all time.
Dawson always gave top effort and was well liked among teammates and unlike Baines,he did play a position,as he spent his career in the NL,except for two seasons in Boston.
The Hawk played through injuries that likely robbed him of even better numbers as knee injuries hobbled him throughout his career that were caused by playing on the pool table like surface at Montreal.
The numbers put him on the bubble for induction and I kinda agree.
I would not argue against a Dawson induction,but I rate others higher on the list.....
Rich "Goose" Gossage:
Here is a case of ignoring the numbers,but as good as Fingers,Sutter etc were in the 1970's,Gossage was the elite closer of the time and both of those two are in the Hall.
This is the year that gets rectified as Gossage has to be rated as the favorite to get in going into the election.
The fireballer from Colorado had less than 21 saves only twice from 1975-1986 and both come with asterisks.
In 1976,the White Sox made him a starter for the season and his 18 save 1979 season came in 36 appearances due to injury.
Saves were not so inflated in Gossage's day compared to today,so do not be deceived by the seemingly low numbers.
Gossage gets our vote.
Tommy John:
Tommy John is an interesting case.
John won 288 games,20+ 3 times and of course how many players have a procedure named after them?
But he was not a dominant hurler,never won a Cy Young award and never won a top pitching category either.
Tommy John to me most resembles Don Sutton and Jim Kaat.
All were excellent pitchers with long careers,but not elite level.
The difference is Sutton was able to hang around long enough to reach 300 wins,while John and Kaat were not.
A hesitant no,but I liked Tommy John,so no complaints from me,if he gets in....
David Justice:
David Justice was another sweet swinging lefty and was one of my brother's favorites.
Justice has a problem though,his power numbers look good on paper,but considering the era that he played in aren't superlative and his batting averages are above average but not great.
Justice had a very good 2000 with 41 and 118 RBI,but his quickly declined and after two down seasons,he was out of the game at 36.
A few more good years would have helped his candidacy.
David Justice is just two years older than me!
Seems like more than that.
No to Justice.
Don Mattingly:
Don Mattingly had four elite level seasons from 1984-87 and won the 1985 MVP,but his prime ended quickly and the remainder of his career was good at best.
His last four seasons were spent as an above average hitter with low power and was gone from baseball at 34.
Mattingly gets a lot of hype because he was a Yankee and the NY media loved him,but he falls way short.
No to Mattingly...
Mark McGwire:
Put the steroid stuff to the side for a moment.
As a player,he is borderline.
Yes,he hit 583 homers and normally that gets him in no matter the other stats.
But considering the era he played in and that he many times looked like this generations Dick Stuart (That is for the Stuart fans out there) or Rob Deer makes you think.
Then he was an indifferent defender at best and THEN add how he achieved his career.
To me-the power numbers would have gotten my vote without the steroid allegations,but barely because of the limitations to his game.
With the drug issues-We vote no
Jack Morris:
With the exception of Bob Gibson,Morris may have been up there with Curt Schilling as the best big game pitcher of the last 40 years...
Morris won 20 games 3 times,but never won a Cy Young and was a very good pitcher not a great one.
Morris was a durable guy that wanted the ball in the clutch and pitched a lot of innings,but his dramatic end of his career cost him the numbers that he needed for more consideration for the Hall.
No to Morris
Dale Murphy:
Murphy's case is similar to that of Jim Rice.
Which matters more a 6-8 year run of being an elite player,maybe the best in the game or a longer run of numbers that are a step down?
The 2 time MVP could be arguably the National League's player of the 1980's with his 4 season stretch of winning both the Gold Glove and Silver Slugger at his position and hitting less than 20 homers only in the strike season of 1981.
The power numbers are there,although the batting average isn't outstanding and the addition of being the best defender at his position,a great ambassador for the game and the person that should get most of the credit for making the Braves on TBS such an institution.
We vote Yes on Murphy
Dave Parker:
Another difficult call for the former Pirate.
Parker might have been the best player in the game in the late 70's with batting titles in 1977 and 1978 to go with Gold Gloves both years and the 1978 MVP.
The rocket armed Parker is noted for his gundown of Brian Downing in the 1979 All-Star game and won the MVP in the game.
The big man had all the tools,power,average,speed and arm
But his skills dropped off dramatically after 1979 and the numbers did as well.
Parker did have two huge years after leaving Pittsburgh and joining the Reds and did fairly well as a DH in Oakland.
In the end,it is a close call,but Parker didnt put the quality up that Dale Murphy did and Murphy is a borderline pick.
We vote No reluctantly to Parker,but would be willing to look at him again down the road.
Jim Rice:
Jim Rice needs to be in the Hall.
Period.
His dominance from 1975 to 1985 warrants it and the writers need to put the fact that Rice was not a pal of the media aside and get him in-NOW!
8 seasons of over 100 RBI and one with 97,consistently great power numbers for his time and the most feared hitter of his time.
His power numbers look a bit deflated compared to the current era,but they were excellent for the time.
A career average of .298 shows Rice not to be a one dimensional hitter and his fielding was not a liability either.
Enough raving about Rice.
We vote Yes to Jim Rice.
Tim Raines
Raines was high average,low power and ranked among the fastest players in a time that rewarded the fast slap hitting player.
Artificial turf gave players such as Raines a huge advantage as most National League fields used turf,but once he moved to the AL,his numbers dropped as speed was not as important in their game as the NL.
Raines was a good,not great player that was fun to watch,but not a Hall of Famer and I am surprised that on many peoples ballots,he is their top choice.
No to Raines-for now.
Lee Smith:
How can the player with the second most career saves not be in the Hall?
Especially considering that the all time leader is playing?
That is the conundrum with the people voting for the Hall.
Smith was a hard throwing hurler that racked up great numbers despite being on poor teams much of his career.
Now that the Hall is putting more closers in,you have to put in Lee Smith sooner or later on his numbers.
He will eventually,but Gossage will be next.
Yes to Lee Smith
Alan Trammell:
The six time all star was overshadowed by higher profile teammates and later by Cal Ripken at his position.
Solid and steady with both the stick and the leather,Trammell's numbers other than an tremendous career year in 1987 are the same consistent stats every year.
Trammell was an all-star level player,but falls short of the Hall of Fame bar.
So we have 4 yes votes for Blyleven,Gossage,Murphy and Rice and 2 borderline votes for Dawson and Smith.
Feel free to offer your thoughts as well.
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