[GaryPassamonte]

If you look at the HOF vote totals in 1936 for 19th century players, you will see what appear to be anomalies. For example, Herman Long received 16 votes. Ryan, Bid McPhee, and Vic Willis, to name a few, received no votes. I think this type of voting result, that on the surface seems odd, speaks to the mindset of earlier HOF voters. Today, because of the availability of a lot of statistical data, we rely too heavily on it. Earlier HOF voters relied more on the intangibles of a player as well as first hand information, i.e they either saw the player play or knew someone who did and placed a large weight on this observation. Statistics do not tell the entire value of a player in the eyes of his peers and supporters. This said, many early players touted for the HOF today were not that highly regarded in their day and some that were highly regarded have fallen by the wayside because of our infatuation with the accumulation of certain numbers and statistics as a sole measure of worth. This explains the election, to some degree, of McPhee,Willis, Hanlon, George Davis, etc. versus Harry Stovey, Deacon White, and yes, Ross Barnes.