Baseball Hall of Fame Quiz: While the Hall is on my brain, and
recognizing I have asked one of these before.
1) Who were the first five inductees as selected by the Baseball
Writers Assoc. of America in 1936? 2) Of the inductees in the
1970s, which of the following received the highest percentage of
the vote? [Koufax, Clemente, Mantle, Banks, or Mays] 3) What
pitcher, who was inducted in the 80s or 90s, received the highest
vote ever for any player in the history of the Hall? Answers
below.
2002 Hall of Fame Vote.continued
Last time I expressed dismay at Gary Carter not receiving
enough of the vote to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
He fell just 11 votes shy of the 75% requirement, however, his
whining afterwards certainly didn”t endear him to those who will
have to vote on him next year. “It”s confusing. I don”t really
understand it, but there”s no anger.[then]…But 129 voters felt I
didn”t deserve it.” He was crying, his wife was crying…it was a
mess.
Well, I outlined Carter vs. history on Wednesday, but allow me
to throw out some highly random thoughts on the vote
concerning other past stars.
–Luis Tiant received only 18% in his 15th and last year of
eligibility. His only remaining hope is to be selected by the
Veterans Committee, which has finally toughened its standards.
Anyway, it”s interesting to compare Tiant to Jim Bunning, an
undeserving hurler who received the Veterans Committee nod a
number of years ago.
Tiant: 229-172, 3.30 ERA, 49 shutouts
Bunning: 224-184, 3.27 ERA, 40 shutouts
But then you have this big group of pitchers who received
between 20 and 27 percent of the vote this year, which in my
mind means they are really splitting each other”s support.
[Whether they deserve to be selected or not is a different matter.]
Bert Blyleven: 287-250, 3.31 ERA. #4 all-time in strikeouts, #9
all-time in shutouts.
Tommy John: 288-231, 3.34.
Jim Kaat: 283-237, 3.45.
Jack Morris: 254-186, 3.90.
Someday I will complete my exhaustive study to prove that
Blyleven deserves to be in the Hall. [I need a snow day. I also
know the preceding comment will tick a lot of you off.]
And then there is the case of Dave Parker, who received only
14%. Now I”m not saying Parker should be in (I wouldn”t vote
for him), but here”s a guy who hit 339 HR and drove in 1493 to
go along with a .290 batting average and 2712 hits. He was also
a MVP and two-time batting champion. It”s just interesting to
compare this with Hall of Famer Billy Williams, somewhat of a
contemporary. Williams went 426-1475, .290 and 2711 hits. He
had one batting crown. Parker deserves some Veterans
Committee consideration down the road. [Dale Murphy fans,
forget it, even if some of the numbers are similar. But,
obviously, I should also be discussing Jim Rice: 382 HR, 1451
RBI, .298, 2452 hits. It”s a close call with him. I think I”d vote
”yes.”]
And then you have the deal with shortstop Alan Trammell, who
was on the ballot for the first time this year and received only
16%. As Johnny Mac noted, hell, if Ozzie Smith got in,
Trammell at least deserves more consideration. After all, he had
185 HR and 1003 RBI, big numbers for a shortstop in any era
(except the live-ball one of today), a .285 BA, 2365 hits and 236
stolen bases, plus he was no slouch in the field, earning 4 Gold
Gloves. So it will be interesting to see the progression of his
vote the next few years.
And what about relief pitchers? Only two are currently in the
Hall, Hoyt Wilhelm and Rollie Fingers. Serious consideration
should be given both Bruce Sutter and Goose Gossage, yet these
two appear likely to be disappointed for years to come until the
Veterans Committee can rule on them. [Sutter received 50% of
the vote, Gossage only 43%.]
Sutter and Gossage also have their own situations complicated by
the fact that Lee Smith, the all-time saves leader, becomes
eligible next year (he doesn”t deserve to get in), while Dennis
Eckersley (who should be selected) comes up the following year.
Joining Smith on the ballot in 2003 are Eddie Murray and Ryne
Sandberg. Now I never thought of Murray as a great player
(though he was one of the better clutch hitters of his era), but you
can”t keep a guy out who compiled the following:
504 HR 1917 RBI (#7 all-time) and 3255 hits (#11).
As for Sandberg, his case will be interesting. After all, this
perennial Gold Glover at second base hit 282 HR and drove in
1061, huge numbers for his position, along with a .285 BA and
2386 hits. Eventually, he”s in.
—–
Which leads us to Johnny Mac”s thoughts on one Eric Davis.
With the retirement of Mark McGwire, 2007 is shaping up as
quite a summer for Cooperstown. Assuming Rickey Henderson
will actually retire (predicting what Rickey will do is risky
business, though) we should have four first-ballot inductees. I
think we can safely assume Cal Ripken and Tony Gwynn will
make it. Even lesser lights like Paul O”Neill might garner a fair
bit of support. There is one player, however, who will also be in
his first year of eligibility and will most likely not get enough
votes to remain eligible (and rightfully so). Oh, but there was a
time when you wouldn”t have traded this guy even up for any of
the stars mentioned earlier, nor traded his rookie card. I am
talking about Eric Davis.
Circa 1986/87, Eric was the next big thing. After spending way
too much time in the minors because of a propensity for striking
out (quaint notion in today”s game), Davis burst upon the scene
with a combination of speed and power that took your breath
away. Whippet-thin (29″ waist) but with powerful arms, he
could hit it 500 feet, chase down deep fly balls with arrogant ease
and steal a base at will. In his first full year, 1986, he hit 27
homers, scored 97, drove in 71 and stole 80, all in just 415 at-
bats, equivalent to 40 dingers and 120 steals if he had played a
full season. Unheard of stuff. Forget 40/40.this guy was gonna
hit 50 and steal 100, all while playing centerfield like Willie
Mays.
And in 1987 he came out of the gate like gangbusters. In his first
93 at-bats, he had 12 homers, 27 RBI, 28 runs scored and 13
steals, all while hitting .409 (you do the math for 600 plate
appearances). Davis was the absolute talk of baseball at the time.
Then the one recurring constant that would bedevil his entire
career hit. injuries. Davis finished up with good numbers,
having what would be his best season (474 at-bats, 120 runs, 100
ribbies, 37 homers, 50 steals in 56 attempts, with a .400 on-base
percentage). He made the all-star team and won the first of three
consecutive Gold Gloves.
The 474 plate appearances would represent his career high, as an
assortment of injuries and illness would rob him of the career we
all hoped he would have. He battled cancer and a lacerated
kidney, along with a more pedestrian collection of knee, shoulder
and ankle problems, which combined to limit his playing time
considerably; 1991 – 89 games, 1992 – 76 games, 1994 – 37
games, 1995 – sat out the entire season, 1997 – 42 games.
To his credit, at age 36 in 1998, after beating colon cancer, Davis
put up some fine numbers for Baltimore: .327 average, 28 HR,
89 RBI, and 81 runs scored in 452 at-bats. It would be a final
reminder of the ability that once seemed to come so easy to him.
Eric hung them up after this past year, posting relatively modest
career numbers, but for those of us who saw him back in his
early days, we can mourn the quiet demise of greatness
unfulfilled. [Man, was that poetic or what?!]
Stuff
–J Mac also points out the following: Richest women in
America – Oprah, Martha Stewart, Mrs. Michael Jordan.
–Great white sharks: Hey, did you see this? It was once thought
that great whites migrated only a couple hundred miles from
their breeding grounds. But scientists tagged a few of them over
the past few years and found one, in particular, that swam all the
way from the California coast to Hawaii…2,300 miles.where it
remained until spring (had to catch the PGA tour stops) and then
swam all the way back, traveling about 43 miles a day. Which
means one thing. Don”t swim in Hawaii.
–Oops, forgot one baseball tidbit that I have to bring up each
time I discuss the Hall of Fame. My father still feels “Indian
Bob” Johnson should be in Cooperstown. Toiling for the
Philadelphia Athletics for most of his career (1930s and 40s),
Johnson was a hero of my father growing up. And when you
look at his career numbers, 288 dingers and 1283 RBI, to go
along with a .296 average, he may have something, especially
considering that he didn”t play in the majors until age 26. [Paid
for by the Indian Bob Johnson Fan Club.]
–The deer population in New Jersey was 75,000 in 1950. Today
it”s 200,000. Hunters are welcome. I”ll supply the hot cocoa.
–The Grammy Awards are being held February 27. In case you
didn”t see the nominations:
Album of the Year
“Love and Theft” Bob Dylan…didn”t buy it.
“Acoustic Soul” India…Arie.didn”t buy it. What”s with the dot?
“Stankonia” OutKast…didn”t buy it.
“All That You Can”t Leave Behind” U2…playing it now.
“O Brother, Where Art Thou?” Soundtrack…didn”t buy it, but
told it”s great.
R&B Album
“Aaliyah” Aaliyah…didn”t buy it.
“No More Drama” Mary J. Blige…didn”t buy it.
“Survivor” Destiny”s Child…didn”t buy it.
“Acoustic Soul” see above. What”s with the dot?
“Songs In A Minor” Alicia Keys…didn”t buy it.
Country Album
“One More Day” Diamond Rio…didn”t buy it.
“Set This Circus Down” Tim McGraw…didn”t buy it.
“Rainbow Connection” Willie Nelson…didn”t buy it.
“Timeless – Hank Williams Tribute” Various…didn”t buy it.
Bought real Hank Williams instead.
“Inside Out” Trisha Yearwood.didn”t buy it.
What else did I buy? “Best of the Zombies” and Jack Jones”s
“Greatest Hits.”
Top 3 songs for the week of 1/13/68: #1 “Hello Goodbye” (The
Beatles) #2 “Judy In Disguise” (John Fred & His Playboy Band)
#3 “Day Dream Believer” (The Monkees)
Baseball Hall of Fame Quiz Answers: 1) 1936 original
inductees: Walter Johnson (83.6% of the vote), Christy
Mathewson (90.7%), Babe Ruth (95.1%), Honus Wagner
(95.1%) and Ty Cobb (98.2%). There were 226 ballots that year,
meaning 11 didn”t vote for Ruth, let alone the 37 who didn”t
deem Johnson worthy. Nuts. 2) Willie Mays received the
highest percentage in the 70s, 94.68% (and that year 23 didn”t
vote for him.bastards); Koufax (86.7%), Clemente (92.7%),
Mantle (88.2%), Banks (83.8%). 3) The highest vote ever was
the 98.84% Tom Seaver received in 1992. 5 of 430 still said
“No.” #2 is Nolan Ryan with 98.79%, #3 – Ty Cobb.
Next Bar Chat, Monday.
