What Deadball Players Should be Inducted Into HOF?

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Posted By: Chris

Hello everybody.

This is a question which I have been thinking over with the 2009 class of inductees. It's been about 9-10 years since a deadballer got inducted I believe, and I figure there will be more at some point. So who do you think should be in the HOF?
In my opinion, these guys stand out:
Larry Doyle
Sherry Magee
Ed Konetchy

Anybody else? Pitchers?

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Posted By: Fred C

This subject has been rehashed a million times, but it's a fun one! Please include what years you consider to be the "deadball era".

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Posted By: Jerry

I might add Bad Bill Dahlen, considering the middle infielders that are already in. He stacks up well against most of them, for sure.

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Posted By: brock

Duffy Lewis and Carl Mays

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Posted By: Bob

Ed Reulbach and Mike Donlin

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Posted By: Mark L

Isn't the term "dead ball" something of a misnomer? Isn't intended as a perjorative term, meant to demean the earlier style of play and to reflect a preference for the age of the home run and the "lively ball"? As a fan of pre-1921 baseball, I prefer to think of it as the "inside baseball" era, which demanded lots of teamwork and execution of the little things. As for the actual question, I think that Larry Doyle deserves an other look-- he was the offensive star and captain of the Giants through quite a few pennant winning seasons. The Pirates were another perennial winner back then, so it's a little surprising that not one of their fine pitchers ever came close to making it into the hall (not counting Vic Willis).

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Posted By: Anonymous

Bob Veach



Babydoll Jacobson



One of my favorites-Jake Daubert



Pete Browning


Kid Gleason-forget about the Black Sox. Had 138 wins during his career and 1944 hits. I can't think of another player who had such statistics as a pitcher and position player.

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Posted By: Dan Bretta

Shoeless Joe Jackson!

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Posted By: Danny Grimes

think we had this post before, but i nominate nap rucker, and gavvy cravath

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Posted By: Anonymous

A few other legitimate candidates:

Ginger Beaumont
Bill Dinneen (for service as an umpire)
Johnny Kling
Sam Leever
"Smokey" Joe Wood

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Posted By: Michael Steele

I sound like a broken record but....Joe Wood...one of these days

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Posted By: Jason Carota

Make it three votes for Smokey Joe.

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Posted By: Steve F

Smokey Joe
Count Mullane
Hank O'Day

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Posted By: dennis

George Van Haltren

Jimmy Ryan

Tony Mullane

Dummy Hoy

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Posted By: Marty Ogelvie

Jimmy Ryan has my vote..

Marty

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Posted By: prewarsports

Mullane

Browning

Bobby Matthews

I also think that the pioneers of the 1860's and 1870's are vastly underrepresented. As such I think Al Reach and several of the Levi Meyerle and Cal McVey's and Jack Chapmans of the era should be inducted.

Rhys

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Posted By: Dave Hornish

Bill Dahlen

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Posted By: John K

Joe Wood
Joe Jackson

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Posted By: Bob Manning

Deacon Phillippe
Babe Adams
Chief Zimmer

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Posted By: Frank Wakefield

Joe Wood

Ed Reulbach

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Posted By: sean

Johnnky kling held together the champion Cubs. He misses one season and the cubs dont get the pennant. He comes back and they make it to the series.

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Posted By: marshall barkman

There should be a special section in the Hall of Fame where Shoeless Joe Jackson and Pete Rose stand side by side with all of their photos and memorabilia. Believe me it would get looked at 10 times more than 75% of the players in their right now.

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Posted By: davidcycleback

James Creighton should be in.

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Posted By: Fred C

I still believe that they should have a "pioneers" section in the HOF and induct a few of the 19th century players that have been forgotten/neglected:

Bobby Mathews (297 lifetime wins, 3 more an he would have been an automatic shoe in)
Tony Mullane (he would have 300 wins if he wasn't suspended for one season)
Bob Caruthers (200 wins and less than 100 losses, a .690 winning percentage)

Stovey (great all around position player who did it all)
Van Haltren (look at those lifetime batting stats, not dominant in any way but very consistent)
Browning (.342 lifetime average)

Possibilities:

Orr (.342 lifetime average, not as flashy as Browning but...)
O'Neil (one of the greatest offensive seasons ever - lifetime .326)
Ryan (consistent stats)
Hoy (averaged over 100 runs a season in a 14 year career)

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Posted By: Jason L

Reulbach
Joe Wood
Joe Jackson
Cravath
Ciccote
Doyle

enough for a couple years worth of interesting new members' classes

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Posted By: Ken Wirt

Fred C.

I believe that the Hall does have a category entitled "Executives and Pioneers." (Although, it's possible that they have now abbreviated it to simply "Executives"). I do agree that there should definitely be more representatives from the very early years of the game, even though that would throw another severe monkey wrench in my HOF collecting needs!

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Posted By: Steve Murray

James "Deacon" McGuire

http://www.baseball-reference.com/m/mcguide01.shtml

___________________________

http://www.vintagecardz.com/

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Posted By: Sean BH

I wouldn't complain if Gavvy Cravath made it in.

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Posted By: Fred C

Regarding Cravath -

You have to wonder, if he had only hit only ONE more HR in 1916, he'd have been a part of 7 consecutive HR titles rather than 6 out of 7 years (1913-1915 and 1917-1919).

Would 7 consecutive HR titles have helped him into the HOF? He had a few good seasons but overall his stats were somewhat average if you remove his 1913-1915 seasons. I say put him in the HOF because there are certainly enough players that don't belong and having another marginal player inducted wouldn't be so bad... besides, I've got a game used bat of his and I figure it couldn't hurt the value of that piece of lumber.

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Posted By: Sean BH

Did you get the bat from the Hunt auction in 1999?

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Posted By: Jason L

of that bat?
would love to see it

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Posted By: Chris

That's awesome about the Cravath bat! Yeah, you should definately post some pics. I'd like to get a replica bat from the deadball era, just because they seem like great bats to use. I guess you could consider Cravath as a top power hitter of the later deadball era, but weren't other players around the 1910s hitting almost as many home runs? During that period there seems to have been a dramatic increase in slugging power due to (I believe) the switch to lighter baseballs, starting somewhere around 1912. Was Cravath just like a Dick Hoblitzel type hitter who was able to benefit from this better hitting environment? He also played in the Baker Bowl, right?

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Posted By: Glenn

Nobody that hasn't already been mentioned, but I'm particularly behind

"Turkey" Mike,
"Smokey" Joe,
"Count" Mullane,
& Sherry Magee

and I'd support Jim Creighton as a pioneer.

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Posted By: Fred C

I didn't pick up the bat in a 1999 Hunt Auction. If you have a catalog with a picture of that bat (and item description) I'd like to see it. This bat came from an avid PCL collector. The bat came from the LS archives a few years ago.

I wont have access to the bat for a few days but if you remind me I'll get to it and get some pictures of the bat. I'll either post the pictures here or email them.

The story behind this is that I used to be a stadium rat (lets just say it was a few years ago) when I was a kid. I used to have a nice bat collection. I sold the bats and my collection of cards to help pay for college. After I got out of school I started collecting again. The funny story is that a friend of mine who is an avid game used bat collector (I mean the real stuff, early 20th century) asked me why I wasn't into game used equipment. I didn't like the proliferation of so much "junk" that is said to be game used and isn't. Anyway, I told him the only bat I'd pick up was Cravath, if one ever came up. Guess what, about 6 months after I said that the Cravath bat became available and I had to pick it up. I only have a few bats and the Cravath, without a doubt, is the best one.

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Posted By: Sean BH

Here it is:

http://www.huntauctions.com/online/imageviewer.cfm?auction_num=2&lot_num=1062&lot_qua l>

Edited to add - I would love to see a photo of your Cravath bat.

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Posted By: Fred C

This bat doesn't appear to be the same bat as in the Hunt auction (1999) but it is similar in that it was manufactured while he was in the PCL. I like the bat even though it wasn't from his ML playing days: