Lee Smith & Harold Baines??

[slidekellyslide]

Originally Posted by glynparson

Sorry missed where it says great in the name. Honestly the place is a museum to tell the games history. I have no problem with a guy with 2866 career hits getting in or a player who was considered at one time to be the games best closer. But then again I believe in a large hall and have no problem with relief pitchers. Good for both gentlemen and I hope they can enjoy the honor with out receiving too much hate from the peanut gallery.

Exactly!

[glchen]

I'm not sure what the shock with Harold Baines in the HOF is. He is #46 on the all time hits list. Everybody on that list from 1-53 is in the HOF except those tainted by steroids, gambling or aren't eligible yet because they are still active and one other player (Omar Vizquel). Sure he's borderline, but I think his era is underrepresented, and I'm fine with him getting in.

[dgtom]

Dick Allen was one of the most feared hitters of his era. I think of him as a Hall of Fame caliber player, and he should already be in.

[pclpads]

Cooperstown is replicating Canton. If a former FB player can tell the diff between a golf ball and a football, well, he's in at Canton! Case closed . . .

[G1911]

Fine players, but I can probably come up with 30 players more deserving. I saw the veterans committee has both Baines former manager and owner on it, which helps explain it. Veterans committee nominations seem to be almost random, while the writers tend to do a pretty good job on the whole

[frankbmd]

Originally Posted by pclpads

Cooperstown is replicating Canton. If a former FB player can tell the diff between a golf ball and a football, well, he's in at Canton! Case closed . . .

I played high school football and I can tell the difference between a golf ball and a football. My problem is that I can't always find my golf ball, but I have never lost a football.

CANTON here I come.

[bbcard1]

If relievers belong in the hall of fame, then I think Lee Smith is a fair choice. The irony is that the longevity for which we often (and perhaps fairly) leads to an indictment of the Baines/Sutton types as "compilers" is very elusive for closers. While you get an occassional Thigpen or Mark Davis, Smith had more than 30 saves eleven years in a row. You could argue the value of a save, but it's a fairly globally accepted measure of productivity.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Metrics of course aren't everything, but sheesh Baines ranks as the 74th best right fielder of all time according to JAWS. He's so far down the list it isn't even funny. Exactly what did he do other than play a long time at a decent level that offsets the tale told by that metric?

I think guys like Allen, Belle, Oliva, Murphy, Garvey who were among the top few best players in the game for a stretch of 5-7 or so years are more worthy.

[packs]

I don't think anyone would say Lee Smith was better than Rollie Fingers or Dennis Eckersly, both of whom overlapped with his career. He was left out for a reason. Nothing has changed in the time between.

[riggs336]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

Metrics of course aren't everything, but sheesh Baines ranks as the 74th best right fielder of all time according to JAWS. He's so far down the list it isn't even funny. Exactly what did he do other than play a long time at a decent level that offsets the tale told by that metric?

I think guys like Allen, Belle, Oliva, Murphy, Garvey who were among the top few best players in the game for a stretch of 5-7 or so years are more worthy.

Two names I haven't seen listed here really deserve consideration IMO:
Ken Boyer and Vada Pinson.

[pclpads]

Originally Posted by frankbmd

[CENTER]I played high school football and I can tell the difference between a golf ball and a football. My problem is that I can't always find my golf ball, but I have never lost a football.

So, with that qualification, can we expect your imminent enshrinement next summer in Canton? How's the speech coming? And, can I get a reduction on your pre-HOF auto?

[Peter_Spaeth]

Do not feed the troll!!