Team with the most borderline Hall of Famers

[D. Bergin]

Originally Posted by Mike D.

Fun list, and I agree the Yankees list is likely among the longest.

Off the top of my head, a few Red Sox:

1. Dwight Evans (3x AS, 8x GG 67.2 WAR)
2. Luis Tiant (229-172, 3.30 ERA 66.1 WAR) - also played for NYY
3. Dustin Pedroia (ROY, MVP, 4 x AS/GG 51.9 WAR)
4. Reggie Smith (7x AS, GG 64.5 WAR)


I'm guessing steroid guys like Clemens (another guy who also played for NYY) and Manny don't count.

You can probably add Fred Lynn to that list to. Had a relatively long career, but injuries robbed him of a lot of stats. You would have thought he was going to be a lock by his mid-twenties.

[Mike D.]

Originally Posted by D. Bergin

You can probably add Fred Lynn to that list to. Had a relatively long career, but injuries robbed him of a lot of stats. You would have thought he was going to be a lock by his mid-twenties.

Yeah, based on year's in Boston, he was well on his way. His 30's weren't nearly as kind, with only about half the WAR of his 20's.

[cgjackson222]

Originally Posted by D. Bergin

You can probably add Fred Lynn to that list to. Had a relatively long career, but injuries robbed him of a lot of stats. You would have thought he was going to be a lock by his mid-twenties.

I would also maybe add Smokey Joe Wood as borderline HOFer for Boston.

He had a very short career, with only 11 years in the League, but he had some big numbers. He was an absurd 34-5 in 1912 and he ranks 15th all-time in both career winning % (.6724) as well as ERA+ (146) (including Negro League leaders). He actually has a better career ERA+ than Clemens, who is right behind with 143.

[packs]

The Angels have had a decent crop of Hall of Very Good guys too:

- Jim Edmonds
- Chuck Finley
- Tim Salmon
- Bobby Grich
- Garret Anderson

[D. Bergin]

Originally Posted by packs

The Angels have had a decent crop of Hall of Very Good guys too:

- Jim Edmonds
- Chuck Finley
- Tim Salmon
- Bobby Grich
- Garret Anderson

Maybe not quite "borderline", but Devon White, Frank Tanana and Jim Fregosi were the 1st 3 to pop into my head for the Angels, that you don't already have on your list.

[packs]

Solid additions. If he were to go into the Hall I don't think Tori Hunter would go in as an Angel but he was also in the Very Good tier.

[D. Bergin]

Originally Posted by packs

Solid additions. If he were to go into the Hall I don't think Tori Hunter would go in as an Angel but he was also in the Very Good tier.

I also have a soft spot for Don Baylor, who had a very interesting career to me. Would anybody have guessed/remembered that the big guy had 52 Stolen Bases the one season he played for the A's, just before he signed with the Angels.

He was also part of the trade that sent Reggie Jackson to the Orioles for one season, before Free Agency kicked in for both of them.

Of course he also won an MVP and had a magnet installed in his left bicep, that seemed to attract an alarming number of baseballs into committing suicide by Baylor, once it left a pitchers hands.

I'll conveniently forget his atrocious defensive analytics, when he wasn't DH'ing.

[Mark17]

Originally Posted by D. Bergin

I also have a soft spot for Don Baylor, who had a very interesting career to me. Would anybody have guessed/remembered that the big guy had 52 Stolen Bases the one season he played for the A's, just before he signed with the Angels.

He was also part of the trade that sent Reggie Jackson to the Orioles for one season, before Free Agency kicked in for both of them.

Of course he also won an MVP and had a magnet installed in his left bicep, that seemed to attract an alarming number of baseballs into committing suicide by Baylor, once it left a pitchers hands.

I'll conveniently forget his atrocious defensive analytics, when he wasn't DH'ing.

In 1987,when the Twins were coming down the stretch, they traded for Baylor. He hit .286 the rest of the way, then .400 in the ALCS, and .385 in the World Series. I think that only Twins fans remember how Baylor saved the Series. In Game 6, the Twins were down 5-2 in the bottom of the 5th, but Baylor launched a 3-run home run to get them back in it, and Hrbek's grand slam the next inning sent it to Game 7.

I remember when the trade was made, one of Baylor's teammates on the Red Sox predicted he'd get some big hits for the Twins. No kidding.

[Mark17]

Originally Posted by D. Bergin

I also have a soft spot for Don Baylor, who had a very interesting career to me. Would anybody have guessed/remembered that the big guy had 52 Stolen Bases the one season he played for the A's, just before he signed with the Angels.

He was also part of the trade that sent Reggie Jackson to the Orioles for one season, before Free Agency kicked in for both of them.

Of course he also won an MVP and had a magnet installed in his left bicep, that seemed to attract an alarming number of baseballs into committing suicide by Baylor, once it left a pitchers hands.

I'll conveniently forget his atrocious defensive analytics, when he wasn't DH'ing.

I will never forget the World Series saving home run he hit for the Twins in Game 6 of the 1987 series. What a valuable pickup he was for the Twins!

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by D. Bergin

You can probably add Fred Lynn to that list to. Had a relatively long career, but injuries robbed him of a lot of stats. You would have thought he was going to be a lock by his mid-twenties.

Nomar.

[D. Bergin]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

Nomar.

Yup, thought of him to. Figured I'd save him for someone else. Unfortunately, outside of one comeback type season, he was done by 30.

[steve B]

Originally Posted by D. Bergin

Yup, thought of him to. Figured I'd save him for someone else. Unfortunately, outside of one comeback type season, he was done by 30.

He was never quite the same after the broken wrist.

[Aquarian Sports Cards]

Tigers have a decent selection of borderline guys

Whitaker
Lolich
Darrell Evans
Kirk Gibson
Bill Freehan
Harvey Kuenn
Bill Madlock (he bounced around so much I don't know what team you'd say he belongs to)
Bobby Veach
Tommy Bridges
Norm Cash
Lance Parrish
Virgil Trucks
Cecil Fielder
George Mullin
Rocky Colavito
Rudy York
Hooks Dauss
Willie Horton
Chet Lemon (actually one of the highest WAR's on this list)

Only a couple of these guys merit super serious consideration but there's an awful lot of them who measure up to the lower end of the Hall.

[Mike D.]

Appropriate that the mention of Whitaker came after talk of HOF 2nd Basemen. Honestly it's hard to argue Whitaker is "borderline"...the fact that he's not in the Hall of Fame is downright bewildering.

[Peter_Spaeth]

LA with Wills, Willie Davis, Garvey, Cey, Hersheiser, probably many others.

[cgjackson222]

Originally Posted by Aquarian Sports Cards

Tigers have a decent selection of borderline guys

Whitaker
Lolich
Darrell Evans
Kirk Gibson
Bill Freehan
Harvey Kuenn
Bill Madlock (he bounced around so much I don't know what team you'd say he belongs to)
Bobby Veach
Tommy Bridges
Norm Cash
Lance Parrish
Virgil Trucks
Cecil Fielder
George Mullin
Rocky Colavito
Rudy York
Hooks Dauss
Willie Horton
Chet Lemon (actually one of the highest WAR's on this list)

Only a couple of these guys merit super serious consideration but there's an awful lot of them who measure up to the lower end of the Hall.

This is a really good list with some very solid players.

There are a lot of borderline pitchers with Lolich, Mullin, Trucks and Dauss. I would add Dizzy Trout. Trout had one of the best pitching seasons ever in 1944 when he led the League in ERA (2.12) and Shutouts (7) and put up almost 50 bWAR for his career.

Whitaker definitely belongs.

Norm Cash was a 5x All Star, and Tommy Bridges a 6x All Star. Both put up over 50 bWAR.

Darrell Evans had 414 HRs and almost 60 bWAR.

Bill Freehan was an 11x All Star.

A really great list. I think Detroit might have just as many borderline guys as they Yankees.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Speaking of borderline Tigers, Jack Morris.

[isiahfan]

Originally Posted by cgjackson222

This is a really good list with some very solid players.

There are a lot of borderline pitchers with Lolich, Mullin, Trucks and Dauss. I would add Dizzy Trout. Trout had one of the best pitching seasons ever in 1944 when he led the League in ERA (2.12) and Shutouts (7) and put up almost 50 bWAR for his career.

Whitaker definitely belongs.

Norm Cash was a 5x All Star, and Tommy Bridges a 6x All Star. Both put up over 50 bWAR.

Darrell Evans had 414 HRs and almost 60 bWAR.

Bill Freehan was an 11x All Star.

A really great list. I think Detroit might have just as many borderline guys as they Yankees.

Might as well add Fred Lynn, Magglio Ordonez and Juan Gonzalez

[TheBig6]

Lance Berkman might get in one day.

[Chuck9788]

Originally Posted by Aquarian Sports Cards

Tigers have a decent selection of borderline guys


Bill Madlock (he bounced around so much I don't know what team you'd say he belongs to).

Definitely a Pirate. Madlock played 7 of his 15 seasons for Pittsburgh. Double the games and at a bats then he played for the Chicago Cubs. In his 3 seasons with the Cubs he batted a .336 average.