Quote:
Originally Posted by z28jd
I think the Rizzuto lovers always miss the point that there is a difference between being a good ballplayer and a hall of famer. Rizzuto was a good ballplayer with one great year that played only for great teams. The Yankees still made the 1955 WS with him barely playing, repeated again in 1956 when he played even less, repeated in 1957 when he wasn't on the team, won again in 1958. They won from 36-39 and 60-64, before and after him, the Yankees won the AL over and over for a long time.
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John D.
By 1955, Rizzuto's career was ending. Pardon me for correcting you. He had more than just 1 great year. In 1949, he was runner-up for the AL MVP award to Ted
Williams. Speaking about Ted....I trust his judgement of Rizzuto, when he said to me......
"If Phil Rizzuto was the Red Sox shortstop in the late 1940's and the early 1950's, the Red Sox would have been the AL Champs those years, not the Yankees."
Quote:
Originally Posted by z28jd
Red Sox wouldn't have won the AL with Rizzuto instead of Vern Stephens because if Rizzuto was in Boston, Stephens would've been in the middle of the Yankees lineups driving in runs. Then Johnny Pesky took over, then in 1952 the Red Sox were horrible, they weren't making up a 16 game difference in 1953 because of a light hitting shortstop and by 54 Rizzuto wasn't that good. The Red Sox wouldn't have won anything more with Rizzuto unless the Yankees only put 8 men in field and left the SS position open
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John
OK, you are too young to have seen Rizzuto play and I'm too old and did see Rizzuto play from 1949 to 1956. He was a tremendous
Lead-Off batter. An expert bunter,
and a good hitter (especially when a lead-off runner was needed). His fielding at SS and his throwing arm were excellent. And, this is what Ted Williams was alluding to.
Rizzuto's enthusiam for the game; and, his ability to execute at bat and on the field are intangibles that are not evident in the statistics.
Quote:
Originally Posted by z28jd
Rizzuto never even got the support of the writers who saw him back in the day that Marty Marion did. Marion got 40% of the votes in 1970, 7th highest total and only non-HOF besides Hodges in the top 10. At 11th place you had Allie Reynolds, 12th Johnny VanderMeer and down in 15th, Rizzuto on his 8th try. Only if Marion could've been a star shortstop for a team that went to the WS....
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Rizzuto did not get the support when it came to HOF voting because of guys like Charles Gehringer who had it in for Phil (I've never understood why). Ted Williams
was very influential in getting Phil into the HOF.
Marty Marion should be in the HOF, he was "Mr Shortstop" before Ernie Banks.
Furthermore, considering some of the guys who have been inducted by the Veterans Committee in recent years, Marion, Hodges, Reynolds, and Vander Meer should
all certainly be in the HOF.
P.S.....Give my regards to your Dad. Tell him my 1957 T-Bird is tuned-up and ready to race
TED Z