Hall of Fame - Would I vote for them or not... 2011 edition

So while I was lying on my yoga mat yesterday, eyes closed, I envisioned the Hall of Fame ballot in my head and what I think was going to happen this morning.

I began asking myself "Which players would I vote for and which players would I leave off?"

So OF COURSE I am going to share that with you dear readers.

Bert Blyleven

I couldn't make his case any clearer than I did a few years ago. I think Felix Hernandez's Cy Young victory showed the using of wins as a be all and end all barometer for a pitcher's worth might be ending.

And maybe I'll stop using this picture of Blyleven.





PREDICTION: He gets elected.

WOULD I VOTE FOR HIM: You bet.




Roberto Alomar

OK, a few idiots left him off their ballot because of the spitting incident. Now there is no excuse. One of the greatest second baseman of all time and best all around players of the 1990 (and a 2 time World Champion to boot) deserves to be in.






PREDICTION: He gets in

WOULD I VOTE FOR HIM: Duh



Tim Raines

I am puzzled to why Rock Raines would not be getting more support. One of the great basestealers and most exciting players of the 1980s put up terrific numbers throughout his career.

And yeah he had drug problems, but they weren't performance enhancing drugs. (A remember the innocent days of cocaine?)


PREDICTION: Not this year.

WOULD I VOTE FOR HIM: No question.



Jack Morris

Look, I get the arguments against Jack Morris. I understand the high ERA and the tendency to look past his win total. I get it.

That being said, I'm a big fan. And I watched enough games that his teams desperately needed to win and he won. Yeah yeah yeah, big deal.





PREDICTION: It's not happening.

WOULD I VOTE FOR HIM: Sure, but I know it likely won't happen.



Dave Parker

Maybe this is even more of an emotional pick than even Jack Morris, but man the Cobra was great. His first peak, in the late 1970s, he was arguably THE best hitter in the National League. And he had a cannon for an arm to boot. Then after his drug problems nearly won the MVP again. When you have two stretches about a decade apart of being among the elite, that should count for something.




PREDICTION: Sorry Cobra. Your support isn't strong enough.

WOULD I VOTE FOR HIM: I'd have to say yes.



Barry Larkin

I think he was oddly underrated during his career even though he was an MVP and a Gold Glove winner. And he will be strung along a la Andre Dawson and Jim Rice and Bert Blyleven in his Hall of Fame candidacy no doubt. Why do that to the classy Larkin? Vote him in!




PREDICTION: He gains votes but not enough.

WOULD I VOTE FOR HIM: Yes. He deserves it.


Alan Trammell

A tough one for me. He was terrific, had dominating years, won a World Series MVP and along with Cal Ripken turned short stop into a power position.

He didn't have many elite seasons and he had a hard time shining in Ripken's shadow. I can see people voting yes and I can understand voting no.



PREDICTION: Once again doesn't come close.

WOULD I VOTE FOR HIM: I am feeling at peace today. Sure.


Jeff Bagwell

A complicated candidacy. An MVP and frequent MVP contender and someone who put up big eye popping numbers. But he also did it in an era when he wasn't alone in eye popping numbers. It isn't fair, but he is a victim of "suspicion by his era." And he did get really really big and then got really really hurt.





PREDICTION: He falls short.

WOULD I VOTE FOR HIM: Not sure. I can be convinced either way.


Fred McGriff

At one point he sure looked like a lock for the Hall. But he seemed to be a classic compiler instead of a superstar. Now it will help his candidacy that his home run totals didn't balloon up and nor did he.

He was a steady producer, but was he an MVP? Or even in the conversation as one of the elites? It seems harsh, but this is the Hall of Fame we're talking about here.

PREDICTION: He comes up short but his defenders become more vocal.

WOULD I VOTE FOR HIM: Right now no. But I will listen, defenders. I changed my tune on Blyleven.

Lee Smith

This is brutal for me because I was a big Lee Smith fan. I loved him on the Red Sox and elsewhere and thought he was a terrific pitcher.

But I am harsh on relievers. They are specialists and their job is to lock down big wins. He had two post season opportunities and came up short both times, losing critical games for the 1984 Cubs and the 1988 Red Sox.

Yeah, I am being mean. But what exactly is his great Hall of Fame moment?

PREDICTION: Doesn't come close to being elected.

WOULD I VOTE FOR HIM: I wish I could, but I can't.


Harold Baines

I wrote about Harold Baines and his Hall of Fame credentials last year. If he just got 7 more hits each year he played, he'd have 3,000 hits and his supporters would be out in force.

Instead he has 2,866 hits and will never get serious consideration.





PREDICTION: Not a chance.

WOULD I VOTE FOR HIM: Sorry Harold. Can't do it.


Dale Murphy

One of the all time good guys in baseball history, his peak was absolutely Hall of Fame worthy. Power, speed, Gold Gloves and MVPs are all on his resume.

But does a 6 year stretch, no matter how brilliant, equal a Hall of Fame career?

Sadly I don't think so.


PREDICTION: No election for Murph.

WOULD I VOTE FOR HIM: No. He didn't do it for long enough.


Don Mattingly

He had the worst luck of any Yankee legend ever. Read it and weep. For people my age, Mattingly WAS the Yankees. He was arguably the most loved Yankee to never win a World Series ring as a player. (Bobby Murcer would be up there too.)

He had a 5 year peak where he was THE best player in the American League.

Is 5 years enough for Cooperstown?

PREDICTION: His support is fading.

WOULD I VOTE FOR HIM: No, but not because I am a Red Sox fan.


Edgar Martinez

I was a big Edgar Martinez fan and felt he was as fearsome a hitter as you can expect in the clutch. But as a hitter specialist in a hitter crazed era, he needed to have awesome career numbers to justify the Hall of Fame. And sadly, he didn't reach any of them.






PREDICTION: No election for Edgar.

WOULD I VOTE FOR HIM: I couldn't pull the trigger.


Juan Gonzalez

A two time MVP who once homered 5 times in a 4 game series? An imposing figure and terrifying home run hitter.

And one of the faces of the 'roid era.

He will get a startlingly small amount of the vote.




PREDICTION: This might be his only ballot.

WOULD I VOTE FOR HIM: No way.

Rafael Palmeiro

He could have been a batting champion.
He could have been a great line drive hitter.

But the back of his baseball card doesn't lie. When he became teammates with Jose Canseco he magically became an elite home run hitter.

And oh yeah, he tested positive.

PREDICTION: Don't hold your breath.

WOULD I VOTE FOR HIM: No. Period.


Mark McGwire

I covered this already in my Ron Kittle entry. He was destined to be a Kittle/Steve Balboni type with a better eye. Then suddenly he became the biggest home run hitter in history.

It was fun.
It was cool.
It was fake.



PREDICTION: Hall of Fame voters talk about the past. His chances are toast.

WOULD I VOTE FOR HIM: Nope, but thanks for the memories.

Forgive me if I don't break down Kevin Brown, Benito Santiago, Larry Walker, Bret Boone, Tino Martinez, Al Leiter and John Franco.

All had nice careers... but who would put them in Cooperstown?

As for Bobby Higginson, Marquis Grissom, Lenny Harris, Kirk Reuter, Raul Mondesi, Carlos Baerga and Charles Johnson... I am just eager to see which one gets the sympathy single vote.

Let's wait and see!

The Sully Baseball HALL OF FAME BALLOT...2010

I admit, I am a lenient Hall of Fame voter. I am rough on some (sorry Lee Smith. You were an elite closer but you bombed in the post season… sorry Dale Murphy, you were an MVP and a class act but you didn’t do it long enough.)

But I also like to honor lots of players AND I like to see them voted in on the first ballot.

Writers can vote for as many as 10 and as few as zero.
I guess it is necessary to say as few as zero because no doubt there are writers would love to vote some players OUT of the Hall.

I can never understand how someone can be mad about someone being voted in… but I digress.

I know not all of these players are getting in tomorrow. Chances are only 1 or 2 will. But let’s just say I wouldn’t have a problem with any of these names being announced tomorrow at 10 AM Pacific Time.

ROBERTO ALOMAR… for 11 years he was no doubt about it the best second baseman in the game. And for many of those years he was in the conversation for MVP.

10 Gold Gloves reflected his defensive ability.

His four Silver Sluggers showed what he could do with the bat.

He had power (just ask Dennis Eckersley in the 1992 ALCS). He had speed (40th All Time in Stolen Bases) and he came up big in the post season.



BERT BLYLEVEN… one of the best strikeout pitchers of all time. He did it over the long haul, had post season heroics for two World Series winners and came up 13 wins short of 300 (but I broke that down.)

Put him in.







ANDRE DAWSON… A Gold Glover 8 times. An MVP with power and speed and one of the elites in the game for over a decade.

And oh yeah, he did it without having his body suddenly change shape when he turned 35.








BARRY LARKIN… Like Alomar, he did a little bit of everything for the long haul. He won an MVP, Gold Gloves, Silver Sluggers and a World Series Title.

He began his elite status in the 1980s and carried it through into the new millennium.

And unlike Alomar, he stayed put. The hometown hero was a Red for life.




JACK MORRIS… the bulldog ace of the 1980s with 5 top 5 Cy Young finishes.

Won 7 of his first 8 post season decisions and threw possibly the greatest Game 7 in World Series history with his 10 inning shutout masterpiece. Was his ERA higher than you’d want it to be?
Sure.

But he was the #1 starter for three World Series winners and the guy you’d want on the mound in the big game.



DAVE PARKER… I admit the Cobra’s chances are fading, but I remain a supporter.

He had a stretch in his career where he was no doubt about it the best all around offensive player in the National League.

A batting champ, an OPS leader, an RBI leader, a Gold Glove winner multiple times over, an MVP (with 4 other top 5 finishes).

Plus he was a key player on one World Series winner (1979) and the stable veteran on another (1989.)


TIM RAINES… Possibly the most underrated player of his era as he played North of the border in his prime.

A batting champ, he was the National League’s answer to Rickey Henderson for many years. He stole 70 bases six straight years, had power and was always among the league leader in on base percentage (what you want from a lead off hitter).

Cleaned up from his drug problems, he became an elder leader on two World Series winners in New York. He deserves it.


I am still mulling over Edgar Martinez… and while I mull I hope he makes it to next year when I can cast a fake ballot then too.

Sully's Hall of Fame Ballot for 2008

Well sports writers... if you want to cast a vote against steroids, now is the time to do it.

The Hall of Fame is announcing its new entries in about 15 minutes and not much has changed from my ballot last year.



VOTE IN:

JIM RICE
Consistently a top 5 MVP candidate from 1975 to 1986. Criminal that he isn't in.

RICH GOSSAGE
Don't dub Mariano Rivera "The Greatest Reliever of All Time" before looking at the Goose and his stats. Let's see Rivera pile up 133+ innings out of the pen and close out the Red Sox, Royals and Dodgers in 1978.

TIM RAINES
My co worker Tim Alves at Sports Unfiltered converted me to Tim Raines' deserving candidacy. He was the best leadoff man in the NL for a decade, mirroring Rickey Henderson's dominance. And played well as a veteran in the World Series for the Yankees. Don't give me the "Not on the First Ballot" garbage. You are a Hall of Famer or you aren't.

JACK MORRIS
Tim doesn't agree with me on this and I don't care. As big a big game pitcher for a decade as there was.

DAVE PARKER
More of an emotional pick than any. Didn't have the career numbers but was a dominating offensive force for the long haul.

ANDRE DAWSON
Another candidate I've been converted to. Put up MVP numbers in anonymity up in Montreal while playing on bad knees on that carpet.


So there's my ballot.
I don't really have hope for Morris, Parker, Dawson nor Raines.
And I wouldn't be upset if Blyleven got in... I just never thought of him as an ace like Morris.

But what a way to protest the latest steroid scandal... by letting in Parker and Raines from the cocaine scandals of the 1980s!