Harold Baines - Designated Hitter/Rightfielder
Chicago White Sox 1980-1989, 1996-1997, 2000-2001
Texas Rangers 1989-1990
Oakland Athletics 1990-1992
Baltimore Orioles 1993-1995, 1997-1999, 2000
Cleveland Indians 1999
Awards
1989 AL Silver Slugger - DH
All-Star Selections: 6 (1985, 1986, 1987, 1989, 1991, 1999)
League Leader
1984: Slugging %
Career Ranks
Games: 17th
Hits: 39th
TB: 30th
2B: 52nd
HR: 50th
RBI: 23rd
BB: 82nd
RC: 44th
Hall of Fame Stats
Black Ink: Batting - 3 (499) (Average HOFer ≈ 27)
Gray Ink: Batting - 40 (595) (Average HOFer ≈ 144)
HOF Standards: Batting - 43.5 (116) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Batting - 66.5 (267) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Batters in HOF: 3 (Tony Perez, Al Kaline, Billy Williams)
Other Similar Batters: Dave Parker, Rusty Staub, Andre Dawson, Dwight Evans, Chili Davis, Fred McGriff, Andres Galarraga
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacement Level (WARP3)
1980: 8/1.2
1981: 10/5.3
1982: 19/6.9
1983: 20/6.2
1984: 24/9.1
1985: 25/7.8
1986: 20/7.0
1987: 13/3.7
1988: 18/4.4
1989: 18/6.3
1990: 11/4.6
1991: 22/6.5
1992: 15/3.3
1993: 15/4.9
1994: 6/3.0
1995: 11/5.3
1996: 13/5.5
1997: 12/4.1
1998: 8/2.5
1999: 15/4.6
2000: 4/1.2
2001: 0/-1.0
Career Win Shares: 307
Career WARP3: 102.4
Would he get my vote?
No. When it comes to players who spent the majority of their career not playing the field I feel they have to hit at the level an excellent first baseman to get in the HOF and Baines is no where close. Sort of like a hitting version of Tommy John in that his career counting numbers are impressive but only because he played a very long time and his peak is just not that impressive. Baines actually was a fairly decent defensive outfielder but knee problems were what forced him to become an everyday DH when he was only 28.
Greg Vaughn, Left Fielder
Milwaukee Brewers 1989-1996
San Diego Padres 1996-1998
Cincinnati Reds 1999
Tampa Bay Devil Rays 2000-2002
Colorado Rockies 2003
Awards
1998 NL Silver Slugger - OF
All-Star Selections: 4 (1993, 1996, 1998, 2001)
League Leader
None
Career Ranks
Homeruns: 73rd
Best Performance
September 7, 1999 - Cincinnati at Chicago (Game 2 of DH)
Hits three homeruns against the Cubs.
Hall of Fame Stats
Gray Ink: Batting - 22 (928) (Average HOFer ≈ 144)
HOF Standards: Batting - 25.0 (418) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Batting - 50.0 (368) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Batters in HOF: None
Top 10 Similar Batters: Jeromy Burnitz, Ron Gant, Rocky Colavito, Roy Sievers, Andruw Jones, Darryl Strawberry, David Justice, Greg Luzinski, Dave Kingman, Jack Clark
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacement Level (WARP3)
1989: 6/1.1
1990: 10/1.3
1991: 20/8.4
1992: 16/6.4
1993: 22/6.7
1994: 9/4.9
1995: 5/1.2
1996: 17/6.3
1997: 8/1.8
1998: 30/10.6
1999: 24/7.2
2000: 16/5.1
2001: 15/3.8
2002: 1/0.6
2003: 1/0.4
Career Win Shares: 199
Career WARP3: 65.3
My Stupid Opinion
Vaughn was your prototypical low batting average slugger. His one really standout year in 1998 was of course completely overshadowed by a couple of other sluggers who's names escape me at the moment. Really nothing special about him outside of his power.
Could it finally be, someone who I'd actually vote for on my imaginary ballot?
Rich "Goose" Gossage - Closer
Chicago White Sox 1972-1976
Pittsburgh Pirates 1977
New York Yankees 1978-1983, 1989
San Diego Padres 1984-1987
Chicago Cubs 1988
San Francisco Giants 1989
Texas Rangers 1991
Oakland Athletics 1992-1993
Seattle Mariners 1994
8th year on the ballot
Past HOF Voting Results
2000: 33.27%
2001: 44.27%
2002: 43.01%
2003: 42.14%
2004: 40.74%
2005: 55.23%
2006: 64.61%
Awards
1978 AL Rolaids Relief Award
All-Star Selections: 9 (1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1984, 1985)
League Leader
1975: Saves
1978: Saves
1980: Saves
Career Ranks
Saves: 17th
Games: 10th
K/9: 40th
ERA+: 55th
Hall of Fame Stats
Black Ink: Pitching - 9 (248) (Average HOFer ≈ 40)
Gray Ink: Pitching - 41 (580) (Average HOFer ≈ 185)
HOF Standards: Pitching - 19.0 (312) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Pitching - 126.0 (61) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Pitchers in HOF: 2 (Rollie Fingers, Hoyt Wilhelm)
Other Similar Pitchers: Lindy McDaniel, Stu Miller, Gene Garber, Kent Tekulve, Tug McGraw, Sparky Lyle, Roy Face, Mike Marshall
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacement Level (WARP3)
1972: 3/0.2
1973: 0/-0.5
1974: 4/1.9
1975: 23/10.5
1976: 10/4.7
1977: 26/10.5
1978: 20/7.8
1979: 11/4.0
1980: 18/6.2
1981: 12/5.9
1982: 17/7.4
1983: 16/7.1
1984: 15/5.1
1985: 15/4.4
1986: 5/1.5
1987: 7/3.3
1988: 4/1.3
1989: 5/1.4
1991: 3/1.8
1992: 2/1.1
1993: 3/1.8
1994: 4/2.0
Career Win Shares: 223
Career WARP3: 89.5
Would he get my vote?
...No. Like I said in the Lee Smith entry I just have a hard time viewing someone who spent their career primarily as a reliever as being a true Hall of Famer. I absolutely agree that Gossage is much more deserving of enshrinement than that of Bruce Sutter. What's funny is that if Gossage had retired at 35 like Sutter did he probably would already be in the HOF as his greatness as a closer would have been remembered better by the short attention span of the writers. Gossage retired nine years after his last good season as a closer after bouncing around several teams as a moderately effective, situational reliever and he gets unfairly penalized for it. I will not argue with anyone who says Gossage deserves to get in and I will have no problem if he ever gets in, which I think will happen eventually after the big jump in support he's received the last couple of years. But on my imaginary ballot I just can't put him down.
In my need to always find content after the 2007 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot is released I plan on doing individual entries on each player on the ballot, even the ones that have no business being on it. The profiles will mainly just be useless information on each player and then a short opinion by me on whether or not I'd vote for them into the Hall of Fame. So as a test run I decided to do one on an active player and Gary Sheffield seemed like a good choice since he has recently been in the news.
Gary Sheffield - Outfielder/Third Baseman
Milwaukee Brewers 1989-1991
San Diego Padres 1992-1993
Florida Marlins 1993-1998
Los Angeles Dodgers 1998-2001
Atlanta Braves 2002-2003
New York Yankees 2004-2006
Detroit Tigers 2007-
Awards
1992 Sporting News ML Player of the Year
1992 NL Silver Slugger - 3B
1996 NL Silver Slugger - OF
2003 NL Silver Slugger - OF
2004 AL Silver Slugger - OF
2005 AL Silver Slugger - OF
All-Star Selections: 9 (1992, 1993, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2004, 2005)
League Leader
1992: Batting Average, Total Bases
1996: On Base Pct., OPS, OPS+
Career Ranks
OBP: 64th
SLG: 52nd
OPS: 47th
Runs: 70th
TB: 54th
HR: 31st
RBI: 46th
BB: 37th
OPS+: 48th
RC: 39th
Hall of Fame Stats
Black Ink: Batting - 4 (401) (Average HOFer ≈ 27)
Gray Ink: Batting - 118 (164) (Average HOFer ≈ 144)
HOF Standards: Batting - 57.7 (37) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Batting - 132.0 (98) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Batters in HOF: 5 (Willie Stargell, Billy Williams, Duke Snider, Mickey Mantle, Eddie Mathews)
Other Similar Batters: Jeff Bagwell, Ken Griffey Jr., Fred McGriff, Frank Thomas, Jim Rice
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacment Level (WARP3)
1988: 2/0.3
1989: 6/1.8
1990: 20/5.2
1991: 1/0.2
1992: 32/11.9
1993: 16/4.9
1994: 15/5.0
1995: 13/4.3
1996: 34/10.6
1997: 22/7.1
1998: 30/7.7
1999: 24/7.7
2000: 31/8.8
2001: 30/8.8
2002: 26/6.8
2003: 35/11.0
2004: 30/8.5
2005: 31/8.4
2006: 3/1.2
Total Wins Shares: 401
Total WARP3: 120.3
Would he get my vote?
Yes. Whether your a career voter or a peak voter Sheffield measures up. Although he never won an MVP and his black ink number is very low, the overall consistentcy of performing at a high level is deserving of a spot in the Hall of Fame. On the other hand because of his personality and some steroid questions due to his brief association with BALCO he might not be a slam dunk in the view of the baseball writers. But with now over 400 career Win Shares he should be.
Eric Davis - Outfielder
Cincinnati Reds 1984-1991, 1996
Los Angeles Dodgers 1992-1993
Detroit Tigers 1993-1994
Baltimore Orioles 1997-1998
St. Louis Cardinals 1999-2000
San Francisco Giants 2001
Awards
1987 NL Gold Glove - OF
1988 NL Gold Glove - OF
1989 NL Gold Glove - OF
All-Star Selections: 2 (1987, 1989)
League Leader
None of note
Career Ranks
AB/HR: 83rd
Hall of Fame Stats
Gray Ink: Batting - 61 (398) (Average HOFer ≈ 144)
HOF Standards: Batting - 26.8 (395) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Batting - 27.5 (603) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Batters in HOF: 1 (Larry Doby)
Other Similar Batters: Kirk Gibson, Jeromy Burnitz, Darryl Strawberry, Raul Mondesi, Roger Maris, Bill Nicholson, Reggie Sanders, Danny Tartabull, Ray Lankford
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacement Level (WARP3)
1984: 7/2.2
1985: 5/1.6
1986: 25/7.1
1987: 30/11.2
1988: 27/7.7
1989: 26/7.5
1990: 17/5.8
1991: 8/3.2
1992: 6/1.2
1993: 12/5.8
1994: 1/0.4
1996: 22/6.8
1997: 6/1.4
1998: 18/6.9
1999: 5/1.0
2000: 8/2.1
2001: 0/0.1
Career Win Shares: 224
Career WARP3: 72.0
Would he get my vote?
No. Yet another player on this year's ballot who's career was wrecked by injuries. From 1986 to 1989 he posted OPS+ of 143, 155, 139, and 154 respecitvely while playing Gold Glove defense in center and being a force on the base paths. Even during these years when he was at the top of his game he had nagging injuries and he never played more than 135 games in a season at any point in his career.
Don Mattingly - First Baseman
New York Yankees 1982-1995
7th year on the ballot
Past HOF Voting Results
2001: 28.16%
2002: 20.34%
2003: 13.71%
2004: 12.85%
2005: 11.43%
2006: 12.30%
Awards
1985 AL MVP
1985 AL Gold Glove - 1B
1985 AL Silver Slugger - 1B
1985 ML Sporting News Player of the Year
1986 AL Gold Glove - 1B
1986 AL Silver Slugger - 1B
1987 AL Gold Glove - 1B
1987 AL Silver Slugger - 1B
1988 AL Gold Glove - 1B
1989 AL Gold Glove - 1B
1991 AL Gold Glove - 1B
1992 AL Gold Glove - 1B
1993 AL Gold Glove - 1B
1994 AL Gold Glove - 1B
All-Star Selections: 6 (1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989)
League Leader
1984: Batting Average, Hits, Doubles, OPS+
1985: Doubles, RBI, Total Bases
1986: Hits, Doubles, Total Bases, Runs Created, Slugging %, OPS, OPS+
Career Ranks
Doubles: 86th
Hall of Fame Stats
Black Ink: Batting - 23 (84) (Average HOFer ≈ 27)
Gray Ink: Batting - 111 (185) (Average HOFer ≈ 144)
HOF Standards: Batting - 34.1 (211) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Batting - 133.5 (95) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Batters in HOF: 2 (Kirby Puckett, Jim Bottomley)
Other Similar Batters: Cecil Cooper, Garret Anderson, Wally Joyner, Hal McRae, Will Clark, Tony Oliva, Jeff Conine, Keith Hernandez
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacement Level (WARP3)
1982: 0/0.1
1983: 7/1.3
1984: 29/11.7
1985: 32/11.7
1986: 34/12.7
1987: 27/9.1
1988: 24/6.4
1989: 26/7.4
1990: 7/2.1
1991: 14/4.0
1992: 20/7.3
1993: 20/6.0
1994: 15/6.0
1995: 8/4.7
Career Win Shares: 263
Career WARP3: 89.1
Would he get my vote?
No. He was unbelievable from 1984-1986, very good from 1987-1989, and then just very ordinary from 1990-1995. His peak was just too short and back problems took away his power as he hit over 20 homeruns only once in the final eight years of his career. He was an excellent defensive first baseman but there's only so much of a bonus you can give for first base defense.
Devon White - Centerfielder
California Angels 1985-1990
Toronto Blue Jays 1991-1995
Florida Marlins 1996-1997
Arizona Diamondbacks 1998
Los Angeles Dodgers 1999-2000
Milwaukee Brewers 2001
Awards
1988 AL Gold Glove - OF
1989 AL Gold Glove - OF
1991 AL Gold Glove - OF
1992 AL Gold Glove - OF
1993 AL Gold Glove - OF
1994 AL Gold Glove - OF
1995 AL Gold Glove - OF
All-Star Selections: 3 (1989, 1993, 1998)
League Leader
None of note
Career Ranks
None of note
Hall of Fame Stats
Gray Ink: Batting - 41 (581) (Average HOFer ≈ 144)
HOF Standards: Batting - 21.3 (651) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Batting - 34.5 (502) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Batters in HOF: None
Top 10 Similar Batters: Amos Otis, Claudell Washington, Brady Anderson, Chet Lemon, Marquis Grissom, Johnny Callison, Felipe Alou, Cesar Cedeno, Johnny Damon, Gary Matthews
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacement Level (WARP3)
1985: 0/0.1
1986: 2/0.6
1987: 17/7.1
1988: 11/5.0
1989: 14/6.2
1990: 7/3.5
1991: 24/10.3
1992: 19/7.5
1993: 20/8.8
1994: 11/5.4
1995: 12/4.3
1996: 18/5.7
1997: 9/2.6
1998: 18/5.1
1999: 12/3.4
2000: 2/0.4
2001: 11/3.1
Career Win Shares: 207
Career WARP3: 79.2
Would he get my vote?
No. During his prime he was an outstanding defensive centerfielder, very deserving for most of the Gold Gloves he won, and a good base stealer but outside of 1991 was never that much of hitter. Only had a career OBP of .319, never hit higher than .283, and struck out a lot which is not a good combination. His similar batters make him look better than he was as only Marquis Grissom had a lower career OPS+.
David Cone, Starting Pitcher
Kansas City Royals 1986, 1993-1994
New York Mets 1987-1992, 2003
Toronto Blue Jays 1992, 1995
New York Yankees 1995-2000
Boston Red Sox 2001
Awards
1994 AL Cy Young
All-Star Selections: 5 (1988, 1992, 1994, 1997, 1999)
League Leader
1988: W/L Pct.
1990: Strikeouts, K/9, K/BB
1991: Strikeouts, K/9
1992: Shutouts, K/9
1995: Innings
1998: Wins
Career Ranks
Strikeouts: 22nd
Games Started: 99th
W/L Pct: 95th
H/9: 62nd
K/9: 20th
Best Performance
July 18, 1999 - Montreal at New York (A)
Throws only 88 pitches in tossing the 15th perfect game in MLB history.
Hall of Fame Stats
Black Ink: Pitching - 19 (101) (Average HOFer ≈ 40)
Gray Ink: Pitching - 165 (76) (Average HOFer ≈ 185)
HOF Standards: Pitching - 39.0 (73) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Pitching - 103.0 (90) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Pitchers in HOF: 2 (Dazzy Vance, Bob Lemon)
Other Similar Pitchers: Dwight Gooden, Tommy Bridges, Bob Welch, Orel Hershiser, Dave Stieb, Kevin Brown, Jack Stivetts, Dave McNally
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacement Level (WARP3)
1986: 0/0.2
1987: 5/1.9
1988: 19/7.2
1989: 11/4.4
1990: 13/6.9
1991: 15/7.0
1992: 18/7.5
1993: 21/9.0
1994: 20/10.8
1995: 19/9.7
1996: 8/3.7
1997: 16/7.7
1998: 17/6.7
1999: 15/6.6
2000: 0/1.0
2001: 8/3.6
2003: 0/0.1
Career Win Shares: 205
Career WARP3: 94.2
My Stupid Opinion
You know there are crazier cases to be made than trumpeting David Cone as a HOF, although I'm not going to do it. The 1994-95 strike very likely cost him a shot at 200 wins as it occurred in the prime of his career and he had 10 to 11 potential starts wiped out in the middle of his Cy Young season of '94. But that being said he was definitely a notch below the elite pitchers of his era. Would be worthy of staying on the ballot but I think he has less than a 50/50 chance of getting the necessary 5% of the vote.
Dave Parker - Rightfielder
Pittsburgh Pirates 1973-1983
Cincinnati Reds 1984-1987
Oakland Athletics 1988-1989
Milwaukee Brewers 1990
California Angels 1991
Toronto Blue Jays 1991
11th year on the ballot
Past HOF Voting Results
1997: 17.55%
1998: 24.52%
1999: 16.10%
2000: 20.84%
2001: 16.31%
2002: 13.98%
2003: 10.28%
2004: 10.47%
2005: 12.60%
2006: 14.42%
Awards
1977 NL Gold Glove - OF
1978 NL MVP
1978 NL Gold Glove - OF
1979 NL Gold Glove - OF
1985 NL Silver Slugger - OF
1986 NL Silver Slugger - OF
1990 AL Silver Slugger - DH
All-Star Selections: 7 (1977, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1985, 1986, 1990)
League Leader
1975: Slugging %
1977: Batting Average, Hits, Doubles
1978: Batting Average, Total Bases, Runs Created, Slugging %, OPS, OPS+
1985: Doubles, RBI, Total Bases
1986: Total Bases
Career Ranks
Games: 55th
Hits: 55th
2B: 31st
HR: 80th
RBI: 47th
TB: 42nd
RC: 68th
Hall of Fame Stats
Black Ink: Batting - 26 (68) (Average HOFer ≈ 27)
Gray Ink: Batting - 145 (97) (Average HOFer ≈ 144)
HOF Standards: Batting - 41.1 (138) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Batting - 125.5 (107) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Batters in HOF: 2 (Tony Perez, Billy Williams)
Other Similar Batters: Luis Gonzalez, Harold Baines, Andre Dawson, Al Oliver, Jim Rice, Rusty Staub, Chili Davis, Dwight Evans
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacement Level (WARP3)
1973: 4/1.4
1974: 6/1.5
1975: 26/8.6
1976: 23/5.8
1977: 33/10.3
1978: 37/8.8
1979: 31/8.5
1980: 17/3.7
1981: 6/1.1
1982: 7/1.8
1983: 12/4.1
1984: 17/3.4
1985: 29/7.9
1986: 20/4.4
1987: 13/3.2
1988: 10/2.2
1989: 15/3.6
1990: 15/4.9
1991: 6/0.9
Career Win Shares: 327
Career WARP3: 86.3
Would he get my vote?
No. I'll always have a soft spot for the Cobra for the 1989 postseason where he pissed off all around douche bag Kelly Gruber for his flaps down homerun trot in the ALCS and also hit the first of many homeruns for the A's in the World Series. Also I'll say that for anyone who argues Jim Rice for the HOF they better also argue for Parker as well as I don't see how Rice is so close to being elected yet Parker has no chance at all. That being said I couldn't give him the imaginary vote mainly because when you get past his great peak of the late 70's he had a really ordinary career once the 80's started. Outside of 1985 in that decade he was an average and sometimes below average corner outfielder. Had a rifle for an arm and it appears he did deserve his 1977 Gold Glove (26 assists) but overall he was not a good defensive outfielder.
Dave Concepcion - Shortstop
Cincinnati Reds 1970-1988
14th year on the ballot
Past HOF Vote Results
1994: 6.81%
1995: 9.35%
1996: 13.40%
1997: 12.68%
1998: 16.91%
1999: 11.87%
2000: 13.43%
2001: 14.37%
2002: 11.86%
2003: 11.09%
2004: 11.26%
2005: 10.66%
2006: 12.50%
Awards
1974 NL Gold Glove - SS
1975 NL Gold Glove - SS
1976 NL Gold Glove - SS
1977 NL Gold Glove - SS
1979 NL Gold Glove - SS
1981 NL Silver Slugger - SS
1982 NL Silver Slugger - SS
All-Star Selections: 9 (1973, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982)
League Leader
None of note
Career Ranks
Games: 48th
Hall of Fame Stats
Gray Ink: Batting - 25 (863) (Average HOFer ≈ 144)
HOF Standards: Batting - 29.1 (311) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Batting - 106.5 (136) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Batters in HOF: 3 (Bobby Wallace, Pee Wee Reese, Luis Aparicio)
Other Similar Batters: Omar Vizquel, Tony Fernandez, Bert Campaneris, Alan Trammell, Royce Clayton, Garry Templeton, Frank White
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacement Level (WARP3)
1970: 5/1.9
1971: 4/0.9
1972: 6/3.5
1973: 16/5.9
1974: 25/10.7
1975: 19/8.0
1976: 23/10.2
1977: 19/8.7
1978: 25/8.8
1979: 24/10.2
1980: 17/6.1
1981: 20/9.7
1982: 17/8.3
1983: 8/4.2
1984: 11/3.1
1985: 12/2.8
1986: 8/2.4
1987: 8/3.6
1988: 2/0.8
Career Win Shares: 269
Career WARP3: 109.7
Would he get my vote?
No. I did give him more thought than I originally anticipated mainly due to his strong WARP3 number but he seems overrated by that measure. He was the best shortstop of his era which is definately worthy of some extra credit but he played in a dreadful era for shortstops. His career OPS+ is actually one point higher than Ozzie Smith's but Smith had 56 more Win Shares and 39.6 more WARP3 despite only playing a half season longer. He had some very good years in his prime but the level of performance just wasn't high enough to warrant a spot in the HOF.
Dante Bichette - Outfielder
California Angels 1988-1990
Milwaukee Brewers 1991-1992
Colorado Rockies 1993-1999
Cincinnati Reds 2000
Boston Red Sox 2000-2001
Awards
1995 NL Silver Slugger - OF
All-Star Selections: 4 (1994, 1995, 1996, 1998)
League Leader
1994: Games, At Bats
1995: SLG%, Homeruns, Hits, Total Bases, RBI, Runs Created
1998: Hits
Career Ranks
None of note
Hall of Fame Stats
Black Ink: Batting - 19 (112) (Average HOFer ≈ 27)
Gray Ink: Batting - 81 (284) (Average HOFer ≈ 144)
HOF Standards: Batting - 30.5 (275) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Batting - 82.0 (203) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Batters in the HOF: None
Top 10 Similar Batters: Garret Anderson, Moises Alou, Shawn Green, Ted Kluszewski, Tony Oliva, Fred Lynn, George Hendrick, Tim Salmon, George Bell, Greg Luzinksi
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacment Level (WARP3)
1988: 1/0.3
1989: 2/1.2
1990: 7/3.1
1991: 7/3.8
1992: 8/3.8
1993: 19/6.3
1994: 13/5.8
1995: 23/5.8
1996: 20/4.1
1997: 15/4.0
1998: 17/6.2
1999: 15/3.0
2000: 14/3.9
2001: 7/2.3
Career Win Shares: 168
Career WARP3: 53.7
Would he get my vote?
No. Bichette's numbers were heavily inflated by playing in Colorado and even if you took his counting stats at face value he still is no where close to a HOF. He's a good example of similarity scores not always being very reliable because they don't adjust to the era a player played in. Of his Top 10 similar batters only Garret Anderson has a lower career OPS+, who just happens to be his most similar batter, and Bichette was no where near is good as the likes of Tony Oliva and Fred Lynn.
Dan Plesac, Relief Pitcher
Milwaukee Brewers 1986-1992
Chicago Cubs 1993-1994
Pittsburgh Pirates 1995-1996
Toronto Blue Jays 1997-1999, 2001-2002
Arizona Diamondbacks 1999-2000
Philadelphia Phillies 2002-2003
Awards
None
All-Star Selections: 3 (1987, 1988, 1989)
League Leader
None
Career Ranks
Games: 6th
Saves: 59th
K/9: 10th
K/BB: 61st
Best Performance
April 25, 1990 - Kansas City at Milwaukee
Comes in with the bases loaded, none out in the 8th inning with a 1-0 lead and George Brett coming up. Brett pops out and then Willie Wilson grounds into an inning ending double play. Plesac retires the side in order in the 9th.
Hall of Fame Stats
Gray Ink: Pitching - 17 (1143) (Average HOFer ≈ 185)
HOF Standards: Pitching - 8.0 (981) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Pitching - 54.0 (231) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Pitchers in HOF: None
Top 10 Similar Pitchers: Mike Jackson, Mike Timlin, Mike Stanton, Willie Hernandez, Dave LaRoche, Darold Knowles, Craig Lefferts, Roger McDowell, Paul Assenmacher, Roberto Hernandez
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacement Level (WARP3)
1986: 13/6.4
1987: 14/6.2
1988: 10/4.1
1989: 11/5.5
1990: 6/3.1
1991: 4/2.0
1992: 6/2.8
1993: 3/0.8
1994: 2/1.3
1995: 6/3.2
1996: 8/3.2
1997: 5/2.2
1998: 7/2.4
1999: 2/1.2
2000: 4/1.7
2001: 5/3.2
2002: 3/1.7
2003: 4/1.4
Career Win Shares: 113
Career WARP3: 52.5
My Stupid Opinion
Along with Jesse Orosco, I'm pretty sure Plesac is the first pitcher to make the HOF ballot who was primarily a middle reliever. Closers are gaining more acceptance when it comes to HOF voting but just a hunch we are way off from LOOGYs gaining enshrinement. Maybe if they open a middle reliever wing of the HOF Plesac would be worthy of consideration but for the real HOF he's no where close.
Dale Murphy - Outfielder
Atlanta Braves 1976-1990
Philadelphia Phillies 1990-1992
Colorado Rockies 1993
9th year on the ballot
Past HOF Voting Results
1999: 19.32%
2000: 23.25%
2001: 18.46%
2002: 14.83%
2003: 11.69%
2004: 8.50%
2005: 10.46%
2006: 10.77%
Awards
1982 NL MVP
1982 NL Gold Glove - OF
1982 NL Silver Slugger - OF
1983 NL MVP
1983 NL Gold Glove - OF
1983 NL Silver Slugger - OF
1984 NL Gold Glove - OF
1984 NL Silver Slugger - OF
1985 NL Gold Glove - OF
1985 NL Silver Sluger - OF
1986 NL Gold Glove - OF
All-Star Selections: 7 (1980, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987)
League Leader
1982: RBI
1983: RBI, Slugging %, Runs Created, OPS
1984: Homeruns, Slugging %, Total Bases, Runs Created
1985: Homeruns, Runs, Walks, Runs Created
1987: Runs Created
Career Ranks
Homeruns: 45th
Hall of Fame Stats
Black Ink: Batting - 31 (54) (Average HOFer ≈ 27)
Gray Ink: Batting - 147 (90) (Average HOFer ≈ 144)
HOF Standards: Batting - 34.3 (209) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Batting - 115.5 (121) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Batters in HOF: 1 (Duke Snider)
Other Similar Batters: Joe Carter, Don Baylor, Ron Santo, Gil Hodges, George Foster, Ruben Sierra, Jack Clark, Ellis Burks, Lee May
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacement Level (WARP3)
1976: 2/0.3
1977: 2/-0.1
1978: 7/1.4
1979: 11/1.5
1980: 28/9.2
1981: 11/4.3
1982: 32/10.2
1983: 32/10.3
1984: 33/9.8
1985: 31/9.3
1986: 22/6.0
1987: 29/11.5
1988: 12/6.8
1989: 14/2.6
1990: 15/5.0
1991: 13/4.7
1992: 0/-0.8
1993: 0/-0.4
Career Win Shares: 294
Career WARP3: 91.6
Would he get my vote?
No. If I had a real vote I'd be very tempted to give Murphy a sympathy vote as it would be nice to see him get more support and he's actually lost support over the years, nearly falling off the ballot in 2004. With Jim Rice I said he needed two more good seasons but with Murphy I think he needed just one more. He had a very good peak, better than Rice's, as he was just incredible from 1982-1985 but he was washed up by age 32. Although he did win six Gold Gloves at a premium defensive position in centerfield, he was not nearly as good as those six Gold Gloves indicate. He was decent but not great defensively.
Bret Saberhagen - Starting Pitcher
Kansas City Royals 1984-1991
New York Mets 1992-1995
Colorado Rockies 1995
Boston Red Sox 1997-1999, 2001
Awards
1985 AL Cy Young
1985 Sporting News AL Pitcher of the Year
1985 World Series MVP
1989 AL Cy Young
1989 Sporting News AL Pitcher of the Year
1989 AL Gold Glove - P
All-Star Selections: 3 (1987, 1990, 1994)
League Leader
1985: WHIP, BB/9, K/BB Ratio
1989: Wins, ERA, Win %, WHIP, Innings, Complete Games, K/BB Ratio, ERA+
1994: BB/9, K/BB Ratio
Career Ranks
WHIP: 47th
BB/9: 35th
K: 97th
K/BB: 10th
ERA+: 56th
Hall of Fame Stats
Black Ink: Pitching - 20 (88) (Average HOFer ≈ 40)
Gray Ink: Pitching - 124 (139) (Average HOFer ≈ 185)
HOF Standards: Pitching - 32.0 (123) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Pitching - 70.5 (158) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Pitchers in the HOF: None
Top 10 Similar Pitchers: John Candelaria, Ron Guidry, Ed Lopat, Jimmy Key, Ed Morris, Scott Sanderson, Doug Drabek, Bill Gullickson, Dave McNally, Rick Rhoden
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacment Level (WARP3)
1984: 10/4.1
1985: 24/10.2
1986: 8/4.4
1987: 23/10.1
1988: 15/6.6
1989: 28/11.7
1990: 7/5.0
1991: 16/7.6
1992: 5/2.5
1993: 9/4.5
1994: 16/8.7
1995: 8/3.3
1997: 0/0.1
1998: 12/5.5
1999: 12/6.3
2001: 0/0.2
Career Win Shares: 193
Career WARP3: 90.7
Would he get my vote?
No. At age 25 he had already had two Cy Young's and a World Series MVP but three straight years where he through over 250 innings took it's toll on his arm as he would only throw enough innings three more times in his career to qualify for the ERA title. Certainly a great "What If?" case if he could have stayed healthy. When he was healthy he pitched like a HOF but didn't pitch enough to warrant consideration.
2007 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot is out so as planned I'm going to do individual profiles on each player on the ballot. I'll go in the order of career Win Shares starting at the bottom. No player on this year's ballot is nearly bad as Gary DiSarcina being on last year's ballot and there are quite a few Hall of Very Good players making their first appearance on the ballot. But we start off with a very dubious addition to this year's ballot.
Bobby Witt - Starting Pitcher
Texas Rangers 1986-1992, 1995-1998
Oakland Athletics 1992-1994
Florida Marlins 1995
St. Louis Cardinals 1998
Tampa Bay Devil Rays 1999
Cleveland Indians 2000
Arizona Diamondbacks 2001
Awards
None
League Leader
None
Career Ranks
K: 69th
K/9: 64th
Hall of Fame Stats
Gray Ink: Pitching - 33 (696) (Average HOFer ≈ 185)
HOF Standards: Pitching - 11.0 (696) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Pitching - 7.0 (1050) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Pitchers in HOF: None
Top 10 Similar Pitchers: Kevin Gross, Mike Moore, Jim Clancy, Steve Renko, Scott Erickson, Steve Trachsel, Bump Hadley, Tim Belcher, Floyd Bannister, Tom Candiotti
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacment Level (WARP3)
1986: 3/2.0
1987: 6/3.9
1988: 10/3.8
1989: 5/2.0
1990: 17/6.4
1991: 0/0.2
1992: 8/4.5
1993: 11/5.8
1994: 4/2.8
1995: 9/4.4
1996: 10/4.7
1997: 11/5.4
1998: 1/0.3
1999: 8/2.8
2000: 0/0.0
2001: 2/1.1
Career Win Shares: 102
Career WARP3: 49.9
Would He Get My Vote?
No, shockingly as that might seem. Only had one good year in 1990 when he went 17-10 with a 3.36 ERA which was one of only four seasons that he had an ERA+ of 100 or better. Now any player who played at least 10 years can appear on the ballot but there is still a nomination process where a handful of players don't get on the ballot but there is always a few that make no sense as to why anyone would nominate them and Witt is definately one this year. If you're going to include Bobby Witt on the ballot why even bother with a nomination process? Not that it really matters in the end.
Bobby Bonilla - Third Baseman/Rightfielder
Chicago White Sox 1986
Pittsburgh Pirates 1986-1991
New York Mets 1992-1995, 1999
Baltimore Orioles 1995-1996
Florida Marlins 1997-1998
Los Angeles Dodgers 1998
Atlanta Braves 2000
St. Louis Cardinals 2001
Awards
1988 NL Silver Slugger - 3B
1990 NL Silver Slugger - OF
1991 NL Silver Slugger - OF
All-Star Selections: 6 (1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995)
League Leader
1991: Doubles, Runs Created
Career Ranks
None of note
Hall of Fame Stats
Black Ink: Batting - 3 (499) (Average HOFer ≈ 27)
Gray Ink: Batting - 96 (229) (Average HOFer ≈ 144)
HOF Standards: Batting - 32.0 (239) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Batting - 64.5 (278) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Batters in HOF: None
Top 10 Similar Batters: Fred Lynn, Paul O'Neill, Dal Ennis, Reggie Smith, Ken Boyer, Robin Ventura, George Hendrick, Todd Zeile, Gary Matthews, Bob Johnson
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacement Level (WARP3)
1986: 10/3.5
1987: 16/4.4
1988: 31/8.5
1989: 29/11.7
1990: 23/7.4
1991: 31/10.5
1992: 18/5.8
1993: 16/5.7
1994: 19/7.0
1995: 22/9.3
1996: 19/5.2
1997: 21/5.4
1998: 5/0.7
1999: 0/-0.1
2000: 6/-0.1
2001: 1/0.1
Career Win Shares: 267
Career WARP3: 85.1
Would he get my vote?
No. Solid four year peak from 1988-1991 but for me personally I consider his 1991 season to be the only year where he was among the elite players in the game. Of course cashed in on that season but could never live up to the hype coming into New York and fell far below it. Good hitter but not the cornerstone of a lineup that he was paid to be. Poor defensively regardless of the position he played.
Bert Blyleven - Starting Pitcher
Minnesota Twins 1970-1976, 1985-1988
Texas Rangers 1976-1977
Pittsburgh Pirates 1978-1980
Cleveland Indians 1981-1985
California Angels 1989-1992
10th year on the ballot
Past HOF Voting Results
1998: 17.55%
1999: 14.08%
2000: 17.43%
2001: 23.50%
2002: 26.27%
2003: 29.23%
2004: 35.38%
2005: 40.89%
2006: 53.30%
Awards
None
All-Star Selections: 2 (1973, 1985)
League Leader
1971: K/BB
1973: Shutouts, K/BB, ERA+
1977: WHIP
1985: Innings, Strikeouts, Complete Games, Shutouts
1986: Innings, K/BB
1989: Shutouts
Career Ranks
Wins: 26th
IP: 13th
K: 5th
CG: 91st
SHO: 9th
K/BB: 44th
K/9: 99th
Hall of Fame Stats
Black Ink: Pitching - 16 (129) (Average HOFer ≈ 40)
Gray Ink: Pitching - 239 (24) (Average HOFer ≈ 185)
HOF Standards: Pitching - 50.0 (36) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Pitching - 120.5 (68) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Pitchers in HOF: 8 (Don Sutton, Gaylord Perry, Fergie Jenkins, Robin Roberts, Tom Seaver, Early Wynn, Phil Niekro, Steve Carlton)
Other Similar Pitchers: Tommy John, Jim Kaat
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacement Level (WARP3)
1970: 10/3.7
1971: 20/8.4
1972: 19/7.4
1973: 29/12.3
1974: 23/10.0
1975: 21/8.7
1976: 20/9.3
1977: 21/8.2
1978: 16/6.2
1979: 13/3.8
1980: 9/2.9
1981: 14/8.2
1982: 1/0.2
1983: 10/4.3
1984: 20/9.2
1985: 23/9.9
1986: 18/7.9
1987: 18/7.5
1988: 4/2.2
1989: 22/7.9
1990: 3/1.3
1992: 5/2.5
Career Win Shares: 339
Career WARP3: 142.0
Would he get my vote?
Yes. Blyleven's plight to get into the HOF has been well documented by now. Many voters in the past have immediately written him off because he never won a Cy Young and because he had only two All-Star selections. Of course a player's total number of All-Star selections can be taken with a grain of salt since they are based mostly on what a player did the first three months of the season and with pitcher selections they are heavily influenced by their win/loss record. Blyleven for his career was 150-140 with a 3.47 ERA in the first half of the season but 137-110 with a 3.12 ERA in the second half, so he did his best pitching after the ASB. Another reason why Blyleven has been ignored in the past as well is as you see didn't lead his league in many categories. But for his career he was in the Top 10 ERA ten times, Wins six times, WHIP 11 times, Strikeouts 15 times, Complete Games 12 times, and Shutouts ten times. Nevermind of course he's in the Top 10 all-time in both strikeouts and shutouts. In addition of the eight HOF comps he has only Tom Seaver had a better career ERA+. Many writers are slowly coming around and long time holdouts are now voting for him. He certainly won't get in this year as no backloggers have a chance but within the next five years it appears he will get in.
Andre Dawson - Outfielder
Montreal Expos 1976-1986
Chicago Cubs 1987-1992
Boston Red Sox 1993-1994
Florida Marlins 1995-1996
6th year on the ballot
Past HOF Voting Results
2002: 45.34%
2003: 50.00%
2004: 50.00%
2005: 52.32%
2006: 60.96%
Awards
1977 NL Rookie of the Year
1980 NL Gold Glove - OF
1980 NL Silver Slugger - OF
1981 NL Gold Glove - OF
1981 NL Silver Slugger - OF
1982 NL Gold Glove - OF
1983 NL Gold Glove - OF
1983 NL Silver Slugger - OF
1984 NL Gold Glove - OF
1985 NL Gold Glove - OF
1987 NL MVP
1987 NL Gold Glove - OF
1987 NL Silver Slugger - OF
1988 NL Gold Glove - OF
All-Star Selections: 8 (1981, 1982, 1983, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991)
League Leader
1983: Hits, Total Bases
1987: Homeruns, RBI, Total Bases
Career Ranks
Games: 32nd
Hits: 45th
Runs: 85th
HR: 35th
RBI: 29th
2B: 42nd
TB: 24th
RC: 64th
Hall of Fame Stats
Black Ink: Batting - 11 (204) (Average HOFer ≈ 27)
Gray Ink: Batting - 164 (68) (Average HOFer ≈ 144)
HOF Standards: Batting - 43.7 (115) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Batting - 118.0 (118) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Batters in HOF: 5 (Billy Williams, Tony Perez, Al Kaline, Ernie Banks, Dave Winfield)
Other Similar Batters: Dave Parker, Harold Baines, Dwight Evans, Vada Pinson, Fred McGriff
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacement Level (WARP3)
1976: 1/0.4
1977: 18/5.8
1978: 21/6.0
1979: 24/5.6
1980: 29/9.1
1981: 25/10.7
1982: 26/9.1
1983: 28/8.0
1984: 12/4.9
1985: 16/4.0
1986: 16/4.8
1987: 20/7.2
1988: 19/7.9
1989: 13/4.8
1990: 22/6.4
1991: 20/5.4
1992: 16/6.4
1993: 7/2.1
1994: 1/0.7
1995: 4/0.2
1996: 2/0.0
Career Win Shares: 340
Career WARP3: 109.5
Would he get my vote?
No. Maybe I'm just too tough on outfielders as I've gone through about five of them on this ballot that I was just underwhelmed enough by them that I can't give them a vote. Dawson is the one I did the most waffling on due to defensive brilliance early in his career although his last three or four Gold Gloves were purely reputation awards. Part of the argument for him seems to be that if he hadn't his knees destroyed by the awful Olympic Stadium turf he would have reached several major career milestones which I wouldn't necessarily disagree with. But injuries and the enviroment you play in are part of the game so I can't really justify giving Dawson a bonus for what he might have done had he played on grass his whole career. I'm just not completely blown away by his peak and unimpressed by his career after age 28. Has received solid support though and if he ever does get in hopefully the HOF does the right thing and has him wear an Expos cap.
Albert Belle - Leftfielder
Cleveland Indians 1989-1996
Chicago White Sox 1997-1998
Baltimore Orioles 1999-2000
2nd year on the ballot
Past HOF Voting Results
2006: 7.7%
Awards
1993 AL Silver Slugger - OF
1994 AL Silver Slugger - OF
1995 ML Sporting News Player of the Year
1995 AL Silver Slugger - OF
1996 AL Silver Slugger - OF
1998 AL Silver Slugger - OF
All-Star Selections: 5 (1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997)
League Leader
1993: RBI
1994: Total Bases
1995: Runs, Doubles, Homeruns, Total Bases, Slugging Pct.
1996: RBI
1998: Total Bases, Slugging Pct., OPS, OPS+, Runs Created
Career Ranks
HR: 54th
SLG%: 19th
OPS: 35th
OPS+: 58th
AB/HR: 22nd
Hall of Fame Stats
Black Ink: Batting - 28 (62) (Average HOFer ≈ 27)
Gray Ink: Batting - 137 (117) (Average HOFer ≈ 144)
HOF Standards: Batting - 36.1 (187) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Batting - 134.5 (94) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Batters in HOF: 1 (Hank Greenberg)
Other Similar Batters: Juan Gonzalez, Carlos Delgado, Jim Edmonds, Jason Giambi, Moises Alou, Vladimir Guerrero, Dick Allen, Rocky Colavito, Tim Salmon
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacmenet Level (WARP3)
1989: 6/0.9
1990: 0/-0.1
1991: 15/4.9
1992: 16/5.3
1993: 27/10.5
1994: 24/11.4
1995: 30/13.7
1996: 31/11.3
1997: 18/5.6
1998: 37/12.3
1999: 24/9.9
2000: 15/4.2
Career Win Shares: 243
Career WARP3: 90.0
Would he get my vote?
No. From a peak standpoint, Belle has a serious case. He was one the most feared and best hitters of the 90's. Four times he posted an OPS+ of better than 150, six times in the Top 10 in the league in slugging, eight times in total bases, nine times in RBI, and nine times in homeruns. Although he isn't listed as one of Belle's comps you can bring up Ralph Kiner who is in the HOF, who like Belle had a very short career and was a dominating power hitter while he was active. But I personally don't view Kiner as a HOF and even though I weigh peak a little more than a player's career I just don't think Belle lasted quite long enough to be a HOF. If his hip had held up just for a couple of more good years I think it would have pushed him over the top. I may also had given him my imaginary vote if he had been a good defensive outfielder but he was below average at best. It was actually a mild surprise he got enough votes last year to stay on the ballot given his on the field and off the field persona but with a much deeper ballot this year I doubt he makes it to 2008.
Alan Trammell - Shortstop
Detroit Tigers 1977-1996
6th year on the ballot
Past HOF Voting Results
2002: 15.68%
2003: 14.11%
2004: 13.83%
2005: 16.86%
2006: 17.69%
Awards
1980 AL Gold Glove - SS
1981 AL Gold Glove - SS
1983 AL Gold Glove - SS
1984 AL Gold Glove - SS
1984 World Series MVP
All-Star Selections: 6 (1980, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1990)
League Leader
None of note
Career Ranks
None of note
Hall of Fame Stats
Gray Ink: Batting - 48 (505) (Average HOFer ≈ 144)
HOF Standards: Batting - 40.4 (146) (Average HOFer ≈ 50)
HOF Monitor: Batting - 118.5 (116) (Likely HOFer > 100)
Similar Batters in HOF: 2 (Ryne Sandberg, Pee Wee Reese)
Other Similar Batters: Barry Larkin, B.J. Surhoff, Jay Bell, Lou Whitaker, Tony Fernandez, Julio Franco, Buddy Bell, Dave Concepcion
Year-by-Year Win Shares & Wins Above Replacement Level (WARP3)
1977: 0/-0.3
1978: 14/5.5
1979: 13/3.0
1980: 21/7.0
1981: 14/8.7
1982: 16/8.0
1983: 26/10.3
1984: 29/10.5
1985: 16/7.0
1986: 26/10.2
1987: 35/13.1
1988: 23/8.3
1989: 13/6.3
1990: 29/9.7
1991: 12/4.3
1992: 4/1.7
1993: 17/6.3
1994: 3/2.5
1995: 6/1.5
1996: 1/-0.2
Career Win Shares: 318
Career WARP3: 123.3
Would he get my vote?
Yes. An excellent peak gives him the nod from me, the first player I've voted "yes" for. Five times he had an OPS+ of 130 or better in a full season, six if you include his 1993 season although that came in 112 games. As you see Trammell is getting little support, not even at the level of Dave Concepcion. What has hurt Trammell the most is probably the era he played in. You could make a legitimate argument that in the last 25 years we've seen seven of the top 10 to 12 greatest shortstops of all-time as we are truly in a golden age for the position. Trammell's peers included Cal Ripken, Robin Yount, Ozzie Smith, and Barry Larkin and since he retired Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter (maybe needs one more good year) have joined that list. When he retired Trammell was without question one of the Top 10 shortstops of all-time. He shouldn't be punished because his career numbers were dwarfed by all-time greats like Ripken and Yount nor should he be punished for the feats of players who came after him like A-Rod and Jeter.
I already posted in the ALCS thread about the game, where I was probably on t.v. for a split second on the Inge homerun, so I'd like to throw in something for the blog. Ever since 9/11 the New York Yankees and I'm guessing the Mets as well play "God Bless America" during the 7th inning stretch and in the immediate aftermatch of 9/11 this was common across baseball. As time has passed the regular tradition of the 7th inning stretch has continued in most ballparks, including in Oakland. But since we're in the playoffs now Bud Selig feels it's necessary to force everyone to play this God awful song that grinds a game to a complete halt and makes break in the middle of the 7th twice as long. If New York wants to do it that's fine but forcing all other teams remaining in the playoffs to do it is lame and really pointless. What exactly is the significance of playing "God Bless America"? Even if you're the most patriotic of Americans you have to admit it's not a good song. Tonight it didn't really matter with the general awfulness of the A's performance but the break to play "God Bless America" can completely take the air out an entire stadium after an exciting Top of the 7th.
Sorta off topic I hadn't been to a playoff game since 2002 and I forgot how long the breaks are between innings because of network commercials. Almost every inning the pitcher would finish his warm ups and have to just stand there for 30 seconds so FOX could come back from commercial.
Tommorrow, back to the player rankings moving on to shortstops. God Bless Jeter.
I never got to truly appreciate the A's run in the late 80's and early 90's because really as a kid how can you appreciate or understand the major accomplishments of your favorite sports team? I was spoiled rotten by the A's and 49ers to point that I pretty much expected my teams to always be in the hunt for championships. I was 12 years old when the A's beat the Red Sox 3-1 in Game 4 of the 1990 ALCS to sweep that series and win their third straight A.L. pennant. That game of course is best known for the premature, and hilarious to me, ejection of Roger Clemens in the 2nd inning. The A's winning was expected and their postgame celebration was fairly subuded. The A's that year would be swept by the Cincinnati Reds in the World Series, a result that was even more shocking that their loss the Dodgers two years earlier. Little did we know it would be 16 years and five postseason failure later that the A's would win another playoff series.
1992 was the end of that dynasty and I unfortunately witnessed the nail in the coffin live in person, courtesy of the bat of Roberto Alomar. I attended Game 4 of that year's ALCS, the first A's playoff game I ever had a chance to go to. Well okay that isn't entirely true as I was at Game 3 of the World Series on October 17, 1989 but...that's another story. In that game in 1992 with Blue Jays leading the series 2 games to 1 the A's jumped Jack Morris with a five run third inning. They led 6-1 going into the 8th inning and the game was in the bag and the A's were back in the series. But Tony LaRussa pressed his luck a bit with an aging Bob Welch and left him in to start the 8th who was promptly met with an Alomar double. LaRussa hooked him for Jeff Parrett who had been very reliable during the regular season but became very unreliable here. He gave up back-to-back singles to Joe Carter and Dave Winfield to make the game 6-2. No matter, the A's had Dennis Eckersley and LaRussa would now rely on him to get a two inning save. But Eck would then give up rbi singles to John Oledrud and Candy Maldanado to make it 6-4. But it still seemed fairly secure but that ended quickly in the 9th. Eckersley just didn't have it that day as he gave up a lead off single to Devon White and then...Alomar hits one of the biggest LCS homeruns in history. I still remember those annoying Blue Jays wives sitting in one section waving around their blue "J's" as Alomar circled the bases. What did I do, along with my brother? We left. Ya too young and stupid to realize how lame it is to leave a tie game in the ALCS in the 9th inning but that's what we did. I would miss Mark McGwire bunt, yes BUNT, in the 9th inning and then a horrible baserunning miscue by A's fans cult hero Eric Fox that would send the game to extra innings. I would then miss the Blue Jays eventually win on that most exciting of baseball plays, the sacrafice fly, in the 11th. So really I didn't end up regretting our decision to leave early.
But thanks to Eric Chavez and Marco Scutaro I'll be going to another ALCS game, either Game 1 against Detroit or Game 3 against New York. I want to say how happy I am that Eric Chavez played a big role in today's win. The guy has been nothing but a scapegoat for irrational A's fans since fan favorite Miguel Tejada left. Sure he hasn't lived up to the hype and promise he showed just a few years ago but the guy deserved to finally shine in the spotlight.
Since 1995 I have played the computer version of Strat-O-Matic Baseball which might as well be Dungeons & Dragons for baseball geeks. I always order the updated version of the game online but they still send me the mail order form along with some little newsletter. I usually just glance at it and throw it away but something caught my eye this time. SportingNews.com in recent years has run some sort of fantasy baseball version of Strat-O-Matic but I've never been interested in it as it costs $25 a team. Well apparently very soon they will be running a free game that will be based on the 1986 MLB season where you can make up your own team of players from 1986. They are doing in conjunction with their 1986 Take Two promotion where "celebrities" are replaying that season. From what I know of with the Sporting News version of the game the leagues are 12 teams each, you draft 25 man rosters with a salary cap, and play a 162 game season. You don't actually "play" each other as the games are simulated but you can make trades and make line up adjustments during the season.
So I pose the question to my three blog readers...would anyone be interested in doing this? The website say it's a limited offer so I have no idea if I'll even be able to create a league but it sounds like an interesting alternative to typical fantasy baseball and best of all it's free. If I get a feeling that there will be enough interest on the board I'll probably create a thread for it in the Sports folder when they starting take sign ups, which will be February 27th.
Resident TSM Astros fan vivalaultra inspired me by his excitement over me mentioning Glenn Davis in the new TWiB thread and bringing up him being traded to the Orioles. During the '90/'91 offseason the Astros traded their slugging first baseman for three prospects named Curt Schilling, Steve Finley, and Pete Harnisch. Davis played three injury filled years in Baltimore while Schilling and Finley are still active players. Quite the coup by the Astros but Schilling and Finley's best years would come away from Houston as they would both be traded within the next three years.
This gave me an idea, which I've actually thought of before, of looking at the evolution of a trade and see what other moves it spawned. I orignally was going to post this in the TWiB thread but there is an insane number of moves that that one trade created and changed the lives of many players. This is only from the Astros perspective or otherwise this would go on forever. Now since I'm lazy I'm only C&Ping the transactions from baseball-reference.com.
Fun Facts from the Evolution of the Glenn Davis Trade
-13 future trades, the last made in 2004
-61 Players traded
-Acquired Brad Ausmus from the Tigers, then traded him back to the Tigers, and then traded back for him. If he's never traded again by the Astros he will be the last connection to the Davis trade.
Glenn Davis
January 10, 1991: Traded by the Houston Astros to the Baltimore Orioles for Pete Harnisch, Curt Schilling, and Steve Finley.
Curt Schilling
April 2, 1992: Traded by the Houston Astros to the Philadelphia Phillies for Jason Grimsley.
Jason Grimsley
March 30, 1993: Released by the Houston Astros.
Pete Harnisch
November 28, 1994: Traded by the Houston Astros to the New York Mets for players to be named later. The New York Mets sent Todd Beckerman (minors) (December 6, 1994) and Juan Castillo (April 12, 1995) to the Houston Astros to complete the trade.
Steve Finley
December 28, 1994: Traded by the Houston Astros with a player to be named later, Ken Caminiti, Andujar Cedeno, Roberto Petagine, and Brian Williams to the San Diego Padres for Derek Bell, Doug Brocail, Ricky Gutierrez, Pedro Martinez (the other one), Phil Plantier, and Craig Shipley. The Houston Astros sent Sean Fesh (minors) (May 1, 1995) to the San Diego Padres to complete the trade.
Phil Plantier
July 19, 1995: Traded by the Houston Astros to the San Diego Padres for Rich Loiselle and Jeff Tabaka.
Pedro A. Martinez
October 10, 1995: Traded by the Houston Astros to the San Diego Padres for Ray Holbert.
Ray Holbert
December 15, 1996: Signed as a Free Agent with the Detroit Tigers.
Craig Shipley
January 5, 1996: Signed as a Free Agent with the San Diego Padres.
Rich Loiselle
July 23, 1996: Traded by the Houston Astros to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Danny Darwin.
Doug Brocail
December 10, 1996: Traded by the Houston Astros with Brian Hunter, Todd Jones, Orlando Miller, and cash to the Detroit Tigers for Brad Ausmus, Jose Lima, Trever Miller, C.J. Nitkowski, and Daryle Ward.
Jeff Tabaka
January 10, 1997: Signed as a Free Agent with the Cincinnati Reds.
Danny Darwin
February 7, 1997: Signed as a Free Agent with the Chicago White Sox.
Brad Ausmus & C.J. Nitkowski
January 14, 1999: Traded by the Houston Astros to the Detroit Tigers for Paul Bako, Dean Crow, Brian Powell, Carlos Villalobos (minors), and Mark Persails (minors).
Ricky Gutierrez
December 20, 1999: Signed as a Free Agent with the Chicago Cubs.
Derek Bell
December 23, 1999: Traded by the Houston Astros with Mike Hampton to the New York Mets for Roger Cedeno, Octavio Dotel, and Kyle Kessel (minors).
Trever Miller
March 29, 2000: Traded by the Houston Astros to the Philadelphia Phillies for Yorkis Perez.
Paul Bako
April 11, 2000: Purchased by the Florida Marlins from the Houston Astros.
Yorkis Perez
July 24, 2000: Released by the Houston Astros.
Roger Cedeno
December 11, 2000: Traded by the Houston Astros with Chris Holt and Mitch Meluskey to the Detroit Tigers for Brad Ausmus, Doug Brocail, and Nelson Cruz.
Jose Lima
June 23, 2001: Traded by the Houston Astros to the Detroit Tigers for Dave Mlicki.
Brian Powell
November 30, 2001: Signed as a Free Agent with the Detroit Tigers.
Doug Brocail
November 11, 2002: Granted Free Agency.
Nelson Cruz
December 16, 2002: Traded by the Houston Astros to the Colorado Rockies for Victor Hall (minors).
Daryle Ward
January 25, 2003: Traded by the Houston Astros to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Ruddy Lugo (minors).
Octavio Dotel
June 24, 2004: Traded as part of a 3-team trade by the Houston Astros to the Oakland Athletics. The Oakland Athletics sent Mike Wood and Mark Teahen (minors) to the Kansas City Royals. The Houston Astros sent John Buck and cash to the Kansas City Royals. The Kansas City Royals sent Carlos Beltran to the Houston Astros.
Carlos Beltran
January 11, 2005: Signed as a Free Agent with the New York Mets.
Took a different rout with the next Draftback by just focusing on the top quarterbacks to come out of each draft with brief comments on each class.
1980
Good depth but not one star came out of this class. Marc Wilson only had one year as a starter that he threw more touchdowns than interceptions. Mark Malone had to follow Terry Bradshaw and he was just awful. David Woodley had his 15 minutes of fame when he started Super Bowl XVII but he was not a good quarterback and only lasted until 1985, although as an 8th round pick you’d have to consider him a good value pick. Gary Hogeboom now of course now best know for being a contestant on Survivor.
Top 5 Passing Yards
1. Marc Wilson, 15th overall by L.A. Raiders, BYU, 14391 yards
2. Erik Hipple, 85th overall by Detroit, Utah State, 10711 yards
3. Mark Malone, 28th overall by Pittsburgh, Arizona State, 10175 yards
4. Gary Hogeboom, 133rd overall by Dallas, Central Michigan, 9436 yards
5. David Woodley, 214th pick by Miami, LSU, 8558 yards
Highest Pick Not to Throw a Pass: Gene Bradley, 37th overall by Buffalo, Arkansas State
1981
Very little depth although did produce two pretty good quarterbacks from small schools in Neil Lomax and Wade Wilson. Rich Campbell was selected 6th overall by the Packers in one of the all-time draft blunders as he threw just 68 passes in the NFL. They passed on Ronnie Lott to pick Campbell. Whoops!
Top 5 Passing Yards
1. Neil Lomax, 33rd overall by St. Louis, Portland State, 22771 yards
2. Wade Wilson, 210th overall by Minnesota, East Texas State, 17283 yards
3. Dave Wilson, Supplemental pick by New Orleans, Illinois, 6987 yards
4. Mark Herrmann, 98th overall by Denver, Purdue, 4015 yards
5. Bob Gagliano, 319th overall by Kansas City, Utah State, 3431 yards
Highest Pick Not to Throw a Pass: Brad Wright, 96th overall by Miami, New Mexico
1982
Basically just Jim McMahon and a whole lot of nothing. Mike Pagel hung around for a long time as a back up. Does feature one of the greatest busts in sports history as the Colts drafted Art Schlichter as the 4th pick overall who’s career would derail very quickly due to the fact that he was a degenerate gambler.
Top 5 Passing Yards
1. Jim McMahon, 5th overall by Chicago, BYU, 18148 yards
2. Mike Pagel, 84th overall by Baltimore, Arizona State, 9414 yards
3. Oliver Luck, 44th overall by Houston, West Virginia, 2544 yards
4. Matt Kofler, 48th overall by Buffalo, San Diego State, 1156 yards
5. Art Schlichter, 4th overall by Baltimore, Ohio State, 1006 yards
Highest Pick Not to Throw a Pass: Mike Kelley, 149th overall by Atlanta, Georgia Tech
1983
This draft doesn’t need introduction as it produced three Hall of Famers. Todd Blackledge was the one true bust of this famous 1st round and it’s amazing that he went so high. Bad luck back-to-back years for the Colts as we all know Elway was drafted #1 by them but whined his way into a trade.
Top 5 Passing Yards
1. Dan Marino, 27th overall by Miami, Pittsburgh, 61361 yards
2. John Elway, 1st overall by Baltimore, Stanford, 51475 yards
3. Jim Kelly, 14th overall by Buffalo, Miami, 35467 yards
4. Ken O’Brien, 24th overall by N.Y. Jets, UC Davis, 25094 yards
5. Tony Eason, 15th overall by New England, Illinois, 11142 yards
Highest Pick Not to Throw a Pass: Jeff Christensen, 137th overall by Cincinnati, Eastern Illinois
1984
No first round quarterback in this draft but it did produce decent depth with one standout in Boomer Esiason and a Super Bowl winner in Jeff Hostetler. I don’t know how Jay Schroeder ended up with 20,000+ yards passing.
Top 5 Passing Yards
1. Boomer Esiason, 38th overall by Cincinnati, Maryland, 37920 yards
2. Jay Schroeder, 83rd overall by Washington, UCLA, 20063 yards
3. Jeff Hostetler, 59th overall by N.Y. Giants, West Virginia, 16430 yards
4. Randy Wright, 153rd overall by Green Bay, Wisconsin, 7106 yards
5. Steve Pelluer, 113th overall by Dallas, Washington, 6870 yards
Highest Pick Not to Throw a Pass: Rick McIvor, 80th overall by St. Louis, Texas
1984 Supplemental
The ’84 Supplemental Draft was different from any other as it was to draft the rights to USFL players (those who NFL teams didn’t own the rights to already) and a handful of CFL players. The draft was three rounds with 84 picks. Steve Young was #1 overall and was only one of two quarterbacks from the draft to throw a pass in the NFL. Young had already signed with the Los Angeles Express so he wasn’t eligible for the regular draft.
1. Steve Young, 1st overall by Tampa Bay, BYU, 33124 yards
2. Frank Seurer, 76th overall by Seattle, Kansas, 340 yards
1985
In terms of overall depth there was very little as there was no quarterback picked in the first round and only 11 quarterbacks selected overall, but a very good group of quarterbacks did come out of this draft all with very different career paths. Due to quirk the in the draft rules at the time because he wasn’t a senior Bernie Kosar was able to declare himself eligible after the regular draft and be taken in the supplemental draft so he could play for his hometown Browns.
Top 5 Passing Yards
1. Randall Cunningham, 37th overall by Philadelphia, UNLV, 29979 yards
2. Bernie Kosar, Supplemental pick by Cleveland, Miami, 23301 yards
3. Doug Flutie, 285th overall by L.A. Rams, Boston College, 14715 yards
4. Steve Bono, 142nd overall by Minnesota, UCLA, 10439 yards
5. Frank Reich, 57th overall by Buffalo, Maryland, 6075 yards
Highest Pick Not to Throw a Pass: Scott Barry, 168th overall by San Francisco, UC Davis
1986
Lots of quarterbacks drafted in the first few rounds but some what of an underwhelming group led by Jim Everett and Mary Rypien. Featured a pretty big bust in Chuck Long. I always hated Bubby Brister. Come on his name was Bubby!
Top 5 Passing Yards
1. Jim Everett, 3rd overall by Houston, Purdue, 34837 yards
2. Mark Rypien, 146th overall by Washington, Washington State, 18473 yards
3. Bubby Brister, 67th overall by Pittsburgh, NE Louisiana, 14445 yards
4. Jack Trudeau, 47th overall by Indianapolis, Illinos, 10243 yards
5. Hugh Millen, 71st overall by L.A. Rams, Washington, 6440 yards
Highest Pick Not to Throw a Pass: Robbie Bosco, 72nd overall by Green Bay, BYU
1987
Doesn’t the have star power of the ’83 Draft but this was a very deep quarterback class with four first round picks. Just outside the Top 5 in passing yards was Packers quarterback Don Majkowski who had one great season in 1989 but injuries derailed his career. Draft does feature a huge bust in Kelly Stouffer who the Cardinals picked 6th overall. A first round bust by the Cardinals? Go figure.
Top 5 Passing Yards
1. Vinny Testaverde, 1st overall by Tampa Bay, Miami, 45252 yards
2. Rich Gannon, 98th overall by New England, Delaware, 28743 yards
3. Jim Harbaugh, 26th overall by Chicago, Michigan, 26288 yards
4. Steve Beurlein, 110th overall by L.A. Raiders, Notre Dame, 24046 yards
5. Chris Miller, 13th overall by Atlanta, Oregon, 19320 yards
Highest Pick Not to Throw a Pass: Doug Hudson, 186th overall by Kansas City, Nicholls State
1988
Although it did produce two quarterbacks who started Super Bowls, this was an incredibly weak class with zero depth. No quarterback was taken until the 3rd round when the Cardinals picked Tom Tupa who’s long term future ended being as a punter. Of the 13 qb’s selected, only five threw a pass in the NFL. Did feature two CFL standouts in Danny McManus and Kerwin Bell.
Top 5 Passing Yards
1. Chris Chandler, 76th overall by Indianapolis, Washington, 28484 yards
2. Stan Humphries, 159th overall by Washington, NE Louisiana, 17191 yards
3. Tom Tupa, 68th overall by Phoenix, Ohio State, 3430 yards
4. Scott Secules, 151st overall by Dallas, Virginia, 1311 yards
5. Kerwin Bell, 180th overall by Miami, Florida, 75 yards
Highest Pick Not to Throw a Pass: Don McPherson, 149th overall by Philadelphia, Syracuse
1989
Pretty much the Troy Aikman class although I suppose Rodney Peete had his moments. Cowboys picked Aikman #1 overall and then took Steve Walsh in the supplemental draft. Many thought Walsh would be better than Aikman. Many of us don’t know anything.
1. Troy Aikman, 1st overall by Dallas, UCLA, 32942 yards
2. Rodney Peete, 141st overall by Detroit, USC, 16338 yards
3. Billy Joe Tolliver, 51st overall by San Diego, Texas Tech, 10760 yards
4. Steve Walsh, Supplemental Pick by Dallas, 7875 yards
5. Timm Rosenbach, Supplemental Pick by Phoenix, Washington State, 3676 yards
Highest Pick Not to Throw a Pass: Jeff Graham, 87th overall by Green Bay, Long Beach State
