[jgannon]

I'm glad and it's great that Hodges was elected. Long overdue. To those who say he is a borderline candidate, I say he was a great consistent player. He hit over 20 home runs 11 years in a row, and over a 100 RBI's 7 years in a row. As to home runs, he hit over 30 four times and over 40 two times.

In 1954, when Willie Mays won the MVP, Hodges hit more home runs and had more RBI's than Mays. I'm not saying Mays shouldn't have been MVP. But Hodges in another year would very well have been the MVP.

Hodges as already stated, was a great fielder and won 3 gold gloves, and probably would have won more had the award existed earlier in his career. He lost a couple of years due to military service. Would he have developed as a player earlier either through the minors or in the majors? No one can tell, but if he had been in the majors, his stats would be higher. It may have taken him a couple of years to start really producing, but when he started, he put up great numbers.

As to this discussion not being had, had he not been a player in New York, the Dodgers were in 6 World Series when he played in Brooklyn (five, when he was really established). If his playing in Brooklyn was a factor in his being a HOF candidate, it should be, because he was a big factor in most of the Dodgers' 6 National League pennants from 1947 - 1956, and winning the the series in 1955. In the four World Series after 1952, Hodges hit .337 with 4 home runs and 16 RBI in 26 games. That included a go-ahead home run in Game 4 in 1955 as well as driving in both runs in Game 7 in 1955 to clinch the series.

It's a cheap shot to say the only thing he led the league in was games played and strikeouts. In 1951 in 582 at bats, he struck out 99 times. There have been other Hall of Famers who have had plenty more, the 99 was a career high for him, and it was the only time he led the league in strikeouts. Reggie Jackson led league in strikeouts 5 times, including 4 in a row with totals of 171, 142, 135, 161, and 156 respectively. In 2013, everyone's hall-of-famer-to-be Mike Trout, had 136 strikeouts in 589 at bats.

Finally, while the committee only considered Hodges' playing days, his being at the helm of the Mets' World Series win in 1969 is definitely something that should be considered in the Gil Hodges story. I lived through that, and the Mets' win was truly fantastic. That season, in my opinion is just as storied as the 1961 home run chase. The Mets were truly Amazin'.

It was a great day for baseball that Hodges was selected for the Hall. I'm happy for his wife and kids.