As to my second and third choice, I'm still mulling it over.
Hodges is a tough sell for me. I love the Brooklyn Dodgers, and Gil was a great player. But Hall of Fame worthy? I just don't know. He's borderline, to me, at least. We're quick to drop Rice, but is Hodges more deserving? Gil had a career 45.0 WAR, and exactly three seasons of 5.0 or higher (5 being All Star caliber). And, even his best season by WAR, 1954, was only a 6.2.
He never finished in the top five of any MVP vote in 18 seasons (well, 15 seasons of 100 or more games). His career OPS + is 120, which is seven points lower than Dwight Evans, who is not in. He won three Gold Gloves. His defensive metrics are ok, nothing great.
Here's the main problem I have with Hodges. Besides his MVP finishes (three top ten finishes; 7th in 1957, 8th in 1950, and 10th in 1954) don't wow me. And, he never led the league in any meaningful category. Games played twice, strikeouts once. That's it.
Don't get me wrong, I've always liked Gil Hodges. I just think he was overshadowed by Duke Snider for a reason. Really, if you look at the stars of the Dodgers, he was the fourth best offensive player on the team, behind Robinson, Campanella and Snider.
Can somebody make a case for his induction, please? He hit a good deal of home runs; two 40 + seasons, four others of 30 +. He drove in a good deal of runs; from 1949 to 1955, he drove in 100 + each season.
But where does he stand out as an exceptional player?
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06-18-2016, 02:08 AM
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