Hal Chase...HOF in the future?

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Posted By: Misunderestimated

Actually what I find most preposterous is that Joe Jackson's "lifetime ban" still applies -- notwithstanding his death several years ago.

I've read a biography or two (I forget) of Chase. He was probably the dirtiest (in the sense of corrupt) ballplayer in major league history. He thre games, he got others to throw games etc. Supposedly he even made out on the 1919 series. His fielding at 1st Base was reknowned but that was based on how he looked on the field not his stats. My guess is that he had a reason to drop all those throws to first base in that one game.

Evan Statistically (without the ban and the gambling etc.) he still isn't quite Hall of Fame material for a 1st baseman. Although there ae a few other players who probably aren't hall of fame material either. I think I also read at one point that teams that acquired him tended to do worse and he moved around quite a bit for a decent player in his era. Alot of the hype during his playing days was generated by the fact that he was the marquee player for the New York Highlanders/Yankees for several years. He arrived after Keeler and Chesbro were well past their prime. The pre-Yankees never won like the Giants but they still got a lot of press.