The first HOF vote was very complicated and confusing and the Wikipedia page's explanation is equally complicated and confusing. But essentially, it was almost impossible for Young to get inducted on that first ballot with him split between centuries and his votes being recorded in a very confusing way.
I don't know that you can look at strike out totals for him because of his era. But if you look at his WAR totals, he led the league six times, spent 14 seasons in the top five for the entire league, and he's still third all time today for all players.
He never got hurt either. It wasn't until he was 43 years old that his innings dipped below 200. I see him as a Dead Ball Nolan Ryan for his time. Not in the strike out sense, but in the durable freak sense.
|