Peter--in Deacon White's first nine years in baseball he hit over .300 every year and, over those nine years, he struck out twenty-six times. He was one of the best defensive catchers in the league and, unlike most of the players of his time, a model citizen. He started playing in 1871, the first year of the National Association. Virtually none of the HOF voters ever saw him play while in his prime. I think he is more deserving of inclusion in the HOF than a lot of the current members. He is much more deserving than Tommy McCarthy, a fellow pre-1900 player.
|