Category: Hall of Fame

HOF ’09: Dave Parker

Seven time All Star, 1978 National League MVP, all the talent in the world, heir apparent to Roberto Clemente’s hallowed rightfield in Pittsburgh, what happened? Drugs happened for one thing, he was doing cocaine, injuries also slowed him down, but he also had an attitude that he didn’t have to work, due to his tremendous talent, but it all caught up with him. When I took over the Chicago Champions in the 2nd year of the Illowa APBA League, Davey P was on my team, he was the heart of a very good lineup, but the team needed pitching, so he was traded to the Thunderchickens along with Joe Rudi in exchange for John Candelaria & Don Baylor. It was a deal that helped both ballclubs.

In real life, Parker looked to be on the fast track to the Hall of Fame. In his first full season with the Pirates, he posted a .308 average, drove in 101, hitting 25 long balls, with 35 doubles & 10 triples. Dave also possessed the best throwing arm in the game (26 assists in 1977), maybe since Clemente. In ’77 he had a career best batting average of .338, which led the league, he also had more hits 215 than anybody in the league, and in ’78 he again was tops in batting average with a .334 mark. His .585 slugging average was also the best, he won a Gold Glove in 1977, 78, & 79, and he had 117 RBIs in his 1978 MVP season. He had a couple of more very good years with the Buccos in 1979 & 80, hitting .310 & .295 respectively. This big guy hit the ball so hard, that he actually tore the cover off a baseball he ripped into rightfield in 1979. The Pirates rewarded him, making him baseball’s first million dollar ballplayer.

Knee injuries limited him to only 67 & 73 games in 1981-82, he bounced back playing a full season with Pittsburgh in 1983, but he wasn’t quite the same. The injuries, weight gain, and cocaine had taken their tole on him. Still the Cincinnati Reds wanted him, signing him as a free agent. In 1985 at the age of 34, Parker had one of the best years of his career with the Reds, reaching his personal bests in homers 34 & RBIs 125, and a solid .312 batting average, finishing the season two hits shy of 200, He placed second in the MVP voting to Willie McGee. Then in 86 he had another monster year with Cincinnati, 31 HRs & 116 RBIs. His batting average dipped to .253 in 1987, although he did have 97 runs batted in, with 26 goners. He enjoyed some success in the American League, mostly as a designated hitter, driving in 97 with the A’s at the age of 38, and knocking in 92 with Milwaukee in 1990 at the age of 39.

With all of his accomplishments, there was only one person who could keep this man out of the Hall of Fame, and that man was Dave Parker, himself. Despite his drug abuses, his injuries, and his lack of dedication, he produced numbers that are comparable to others who’ve made it into the Hall. Parker notched a lifetime .290 batting average, 339 homers, 1,493 RBIs, and 1,272 runs scored, during his 19 year career. IMHO, Dave is only good enough for the Hall of the Very Good.

On a side note, since his retirement, Parker’s had both knees replaced. He owns several Popeyes Chicken Restaurants in the Cincinnati area.

  Hall of Fame

Hall of Very Good
  Why is he even on the Ballot?

 

While we wait for January 12 ballot results, The Baseball Zealot will be profiling those players who are on the 2009 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot.  Read the rest the of the profiles.

HOF ’09: Ron Gant

The Chicago Champions of the Illowa APBA League, I drafted Ron Gant after his rookie year as a secondbaseman(?) for the Atlanta Braves. He played secondbase with a bat in his hands. He was quite a talent, Gant could do it all, especially hit for power & run, but he was no infielder, no matter how hard the Braves tried to make him one.

After his disastrous start at 2B, Atlanta moved Gant across the diamond to give him a crack at the hot corner, he fared no better there, and soon he became an outfielder, a pretty good one at that, even playing two seasons in centerfield, before settling on LF. But with Ron, it was all about the bat, not the glove. He posted some respectable offensive numbers over his 16 year career, despite being involved in a career threatening motorcycle accident, which robbed him of alot of his speed, but he rehabbed hard, and fully rebounded from the accident. Gant scored & drove in over 1,000 runs, belted 321 home runs, while pilfering 243 bases. The downside for Ronnie were his K’s, he struckout 1,411 times and batted only .256 for his career.

All in all, a nice career, but Hall of Fame? Why’s this guy even on the ballot?

  Hall of Fame
 

Hall of Very Good

Why is he even on the Ballot?

 

While we wait for January 12 ballot results, The Baseball Zealot will be profiling those players who are on the 2009 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot.  Read the rest the of the profiles.  

Greg Maddux Announces his Retirement

With all the talk about the Hall of Fame, sure to be Hall of Famer, Greg Maddux announced his retirement as the 2008 Baseball Winter Meetings began. Maddux first appeared in the major leagues in 1986 with the Chicago Cubs as a pinch runner, stayed in the game, and picked up the loss in relief. He proved the loss to be a fluke, as he amassed a 355-227 record during his 23 year big league career.

Greg never was an overpowering pitcher, he’d spot his fastball & change speeds. No other 300 win pitchers has ever reached the 3,000 strikeout plateau, while walking less than 1,000 batters. His 355 wins are more lifetime wins than any righthanded pitcher since Walter Johnson, who retired in 1927.

Check out this story on mlb.com about Greg Maddux’ amazing career.

Congratulations Greg Maddux on a wonderful baseball career!!!

HOF VETS COMMITTEE GETS IT WRONG: JOE GORDON IN

The Hall of Fame Veterans Committee voted one new player into the Hall of Fame, Joe Gordon. Don’t get me wrong, Gordon was a fine player, both defensively & offensively (hitting home runs when secondsackers didn’t do such things), but the HOF? Joe was a ten time All Star, even was selected once as MVP, despite Ted Williams winning the Triple Crown that same year. Even though he was acknowledged the best keystone man of his day, his overall stats are somewhat less than impressive. I know anybody can lie, but if you wanna really lie, use statistics. But his lifetime batting average was .268. His stats compare almost identically with Bret (Prolly a Juicer) Boone.

Here’s what DonS had to say about Joe Gordon…

This is my favorite Joe Gordon Story.

Joe Gordon was manager of the Cleveland Indians when I started following baseball (1959). Jimmy Piersall (consider the source) says that when he played for Gordon, Joe was sometimes in a rotten mood by the fifth inning, because of the way the Tribe was playing. So he would head back to the Manager’s Office, where there was a bottle of whiskey in the desk drawer. About 10 minutes later, he would return to the dugout. Good mood, all smiles. Happy Days!!!

HOF ’09: Bert Blyleven

“He was as good as there was for a long time. Bert is up there with the toughest four or five guys I faced in my career.”

Hall of Fame third baseman George Brett

 

The case for Bert Blyleven comes down to the argument of era dominance against longevity.  I’ve been a supporter for Blyleven for the Hall for a while and while his case isn’t open and shut, I think he’s got a shot. 

Blyleven Facts

  • Drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the third round in 1969
  • Played for Minn (twice), Tex, Pit, Cle, Cal (1970-1992)
  • 287 wins, 3701 strikeouts, 3.31 ERA
  • Holds record for most HR allowed season (50 in 1986)

 

Bly came up in 1970 with the Minnesota Twins and won 10 games in his rookie season with a respectable 3.18 ERA.  Through the next five years with the Twins, he won at least fifteen games each season including a 20-17 campaign in 1973.  With ERAs never higher 3.00, he was a stalwart in the Twins rotation but became unhappy in Minnesota toward the end of his time there.  Demanding a trade, the Twins management complied in 1976, trading him to Texas Rangers in a deal that brought Roy Smalley and Mike Cubbage and some cash to Minnesota. 

He pitched well in Texas with sub-3.00 ERAs in 1976-1977 plus a no-hitter against the California Angels on September 22, 1977.  But as was true throughout much of his career, he didn’t get much support and won 9 games in 1976 and only 14 for his full season in 1977.

bly Blyleven was part of MLB’s first 4-team trade later that year that sent him to Pittsburgh.  With them, he went to the World Series in 1979 and helped them win it all by winning two games against the Orioles.  As an aside, Blyleven set a record in 1979 for the most no-decisions with 20. 

Onward to Cleveland in which the Indians sent Jay Bell (yes, that Jay Bell) to the Bucs in 1980.  After a few lean years, Bly broke out in 1984 when he won 19 games for the Tribe.  Not only that, he broke 200 strikeouts for the first time in 10 years. 

Bert won 17 in a split season with the Indians and the Twins who he rejoined after eleven years.  After three years with double digit wins but rather high ERAs, he was traded to the Angels.  In his final hurrah in 1989, he not only went 17-5 but took his ERA down to a level he hadn’t seen in an while, 2.76.  After two sub-par years with the Angels, he retired. 

Pros:  Very good career numbers… 287 wins, 60 shutouts (9th all-time), 3701 strikeouts (5th).  Longevity counts for something.

Cons:  Never won a Cy Young award or ERA title, only one 20 win season, only a two-time All-Star.  Lots of competition in his era. 

Honestly, after researching Blyleven, it does show me how much longevity plays in his value.  That’s not necessarily bad but given all the competition for the Hall from the pitchers from his era, it doesn’t help his cause. 

A couple links I’ll pass along… First, is The League of Nations that link to a few columnists who have opined on the Blyleven issue.  Then there’s Bertbelongs.com.  Well, you know where they stand.

For Blyleven, I’m giving a very tenuous vote for the Hall.

 

green checkmark

Hall of Fame
 

Hall of Very Good
  Why is he even on the Ballot?

 

 

While we wait for January 12 ballot results, The Baseball Zealot will be profiling those players who are on the 2009 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot.  Read the rest the of the profiles.

HOF ’09: Tommy John

My favorite pitcher growing up was Tommy John. John pitched for my Chicago White Sox. My White Sox team at this time were on the verge of going to Milwaukee. In an effort to keep the Sox in Chicago, we traded him to the Dodgers in exchange for Dick Allen. Attendance was down to nothing, we needed a savior, and that savior was Dick Allen.

So my team was safe in Chicago, but what about my favorite pitcher, Tommy John? Despite the fact that John had a losing record three of his last four years with the White Sox, but then he showed he was a winner with LA. In his first three years with the Dodgers Tommy was 11-5, 16-7, & 13-3, before his arm fell off. He missed the second half of the 1974 season & missed the entire 1975 season, recovering from Tommy John Surgery. John wasn’t the first pitcher to have the procedure to replace a tendon in his throwing arm, but he was the first to have a successful career following the procedure.

It didn’t happen over night, he was 10-10 in 1976. But then he bounced back to have the greatest success of his career. He posted records of 20-7 in 1977 & 17-10 in 1978, before leaving LA for the Yankees. With New York at the age of 36, John pitched more innings than ever before 276′ & 265′ innings, completing 33 games over these two years, with a record of 21-9 & 22-9.

He pitched an incredible 26 years in the major leagues, posting a record of 288-231, working 4,710′ innings, with a lifetime ERA of 3.69. Somehow his longevity may also be working against him, a lot of people remember him as a soft tosser, but nothing could be further from the truth. Sure he got by with guile while battling into his forties, but in his hay day, Tommy John could buzz them by you.

Hall of Fame
 

Hall of Very Good
  Why is he even on the Ballot?

 

While we wait for January 12 ballot results, The Baseball Zealot will be profiling those players who are on the 2009 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot.  Read the rest the of the profiles.

HOF ’09: Jim Rice

I know it hasn’t happened yet, but I’m optimistic this will be the year Jim Rice finally gets inducted into the baseball Hall of Fame. I’ve got a special place in my heart for Rice, I drafted him with my first rookie draft pick in the Illowa APBA League 35 years ago. My team was in need of pitching, when is more pitching not needed? Well anyway I bypassed my need and took a hitter, not an ordinary hitter, a real HITTER! Using the APBA card based on his 1978 MVP season, when in real life Jim hit 46 homers, drove in 139, and batted .315, he hit 66 round trippers for my Chicago Champions.

Yes, I do understand that APBA is not real life, and a player cannot be inducted into Cooperstown based on his performances at Crackerjack Park, using dice. But you can see why I love this guy! Besides his MVP year, Big Jim put together a pretty impressive career, finishing with a batting average two points below .300, missing out on 400 homers by eighteen, while driving in 1,451 runs, over 14 seasons as a regular with the Red Sox.

This guy was one of the most feared hitters in the game. He was an eight time All Star and a two time Silver Slugger winner. Rice was so strong that he once broke a bat checking his swing, when bats were bats, none of this Maple BS.

Did I tell you he wore my favorite number 14 and was born on the same date as my first girlfriend Alice & Harris Davis?

 

Hall of Fame
 

Hall of Very Good
  Why is he even on the Ballot?

 

While we wait for January 12 ballot results, The Baseball Zealot will be profiling those players who are on the 2009 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot.  Read the rest the of the profiles.

HOF ’09: Jay Bell

 

Jay Bell had an auspicious if not ironic start in the majors.  Like Harold Baines, he was drafted in the first round.  The Minnesota Twins turned around and traded him the next year in 1985 to Cleveland for Bert Blyleven (who turns out to be a fellow HOF ’09 candidate).  Bell’s very first at-bat was against Blyleven and he hit it for a home run.  To add more drama to the scenario, that home run was the 47th given up by Blyleven that year which broke the MLB record of 46 allowed by Robin Roberts. 

Bell Facts
  • Drafted First round in 1984 by the Minnesota Twins
  • Played for Cle, Pit, KC, Ari and NYM (1986-2003)
  • Two time All-Star, won one Gold Glove
  • 1999 best offensive year (.289, 38 HR, 112 rbis)

 

  Bell didn’t get much playing time with the Indians though and it wasn’t till he got traded to Pittsburgh that he got some serious at-bats in.  With the exception of ’94-’95, Bell played 150 games from 1990-1999.  He was a solid fielder not so much because of his range but of his knowledge of the hitters. 

jabell With the stick, Bell was mostly a singles and doubles hitter though he toyed with the four-base hit later in his career.  As the Pirates are wont to do, they dumped a player once he came into his own.  When Bell was traded to the Royals, he had a decent offensive year with 21 homers and 92 rbis.  That made him a valuable free agent and the Arizona Diamondbacks took advantage of his availability. 

With Arizona, he had his best offensive year of his career in 1999.  Batting .289, he rapped 38 dingers to go along with his 112 rbis.  Two years later, he helped Arizona in their bid to win the World Series.

Pros:  A “solid” (sorry, that’s the best I can say) hitter for a middle infielder, he did accumulate 1123 career runs, a decent OBP (.343) again for a middle infielder.

Cons:  where do I start?  the stats don’t bear out.  a .265 batting average, he’s a middle infielder without the speed and not much power.

 

  Hall of Fame
 

Hall of Very Good

Why is he even on the Ballot?

 

While we wait for January 12 ballot results, The Baseball Zealot will be profiling those players who are on the 2009 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot.  Read the rest the of the profiles.  

HOF ’09: Harold Baines

“(Baines) was on his way to the Hall of Fame. He just stopped by Comiskey Park for 20 years or so.”

GM Paul Richards on the White Sox pick of Harold Baines in the first round of the 1977 draft.

First up in our lineup of HOF09 is Harold Baines.  Now, as a Cub fan, I normally have no use for White Sox players but I have to admit a fondness for Baines.  So, apparently do the Sox who took on Harold for three separate stints.  

Baines Facts
  • Drafted First round in 1977 by the Chicago White Sox
  • Played for ChW, Tex, Oak, Bal, and Cle (1980-2001)
  • Six time All-Star
  • Led AL in Slugging in 1984(.541)
  • 19th all-time in intentional walks (187)

 

Let’s get this out of the way.  Baines won’t be known for his glove.  Though he was a solid outfielder during his first part of his career, an injury and subsequent knee surgery in 1986 pretty much made him useless in the field and relegated him to DH duties thereafter.  So much so, that the This Week in Baseball’s skit where those in on the joke were “trying to find Baines’ glove” is still remembered. 

Yet, some talk about how pure Baines’ swing was.  From the start, he showed he was for real, hitting double figures in homers at the age of 21.  Two years later, he broke out for the Sox with 25 home runs and 105 rbis.  Baines continued his consistent style of hitting always putting up 20+ homers and 90+ rbis. 

10083hb After his 1986 knee surgery and resulting move to the DH role, his hitting numbers didn’t suffer… until 1988 when he banged out only 13 with a subpar .277 average.  The next year came the famous trade to Texas which brought young Sammy Sosa to Chicago. 

The 90s didn’t have the luster that the 80s did but Baines always found a way to find playing time as a DH.  I remember being amazed that year in and year out Baines would be in the lineup, busted knees and all.  He traveled from Texas to Oakland to Baltimore (his homestate).  Finally, after a half season stint with Cleveland, he came back to Chicago again where he finished the last two years of his career. 

Pros:  There’s probably no one with better character.  Clutch hitter, his career numbers look decent (1299 runs, 1628 rbis, more rbis than Mantle, (that comment should p–s somebody off).

Cons:  Not a dominating hitter not even in his era (only three 100-rbi seasons, no MVPs, not even close in voting), defense, we’ve already talked about that.

 

As much as I like Baines personally, I don’t see him making the Hall.  If the White Sox have their own Hall, he should be the first one inducted.  He’s Mr White Sox in my book.  But for Cooperstown, there are those with better credentials.  He makes the Hall of Very Good.

 

  Hall of Fame
600px-Red_x.svg

Hall of Very Good
  Why is he even on the Ballot?

 

While we wait for January 12 ballot results, The Baseball Zealot will be profiling those players who are on the 2009 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot.  Read the rest the of the profiles.

HOF ’09: Profiling the Candidates

This winter, The Baseball Zealot will be doing profiles of the Hall of Fame candidates for 2009.  In addition, we’ll give our opinion on their inclusion in the Hall.   This post will serve as the entry point for the HOF ’09 series.

Here is the link to all the profiles written to date.  

The results will be announced on January 12th, 2009.  With any luck, we’ll get them all in before then.