Baseball
Established in 1936, and currently based in Cooperstown, New York, the Baseball Hall of Fame may be the most prestigious of any Sports Hall of Fame. Although Baseball may have taken a backseat to Football in recent years, there is no doubt that Baseball’s version of the Hall of Fame is by far the most relevant and the most difficult to get enshrined in. At present, a player has to receive seventy five percent of the votes from the Baseball Writers Association of America, which has proven to be no easy task. Failing that, a player could be inducted by the Veterans committee, though few have been inducted this way. Our list will focus on the players only, and although we could easily do a tally focusing on mangers, broadcasters or other vital personnel, as always it is far more enjoyable to discuss the merits of those on the field as oppose to those off of it.Until Then, Let’s get some peanuts and cracker jacks and cast some votes of our own!
Sincerely,
The Not in Hall of Committee.
Bringing a strong power game to all four of the Major League teams he played for (Texas, Atlanta, Los Angeles Angels, New York Yankees) Mark Teixeira would go deep 409 times in his career including winning the Home Run Title in 2009 (39) with eight other seasons of 30 or more. A three-time All-Star and three-time Silver Slugger, Teixeira also showed off good defensive skill at First Base as he was a five-time Gold Glove winner. It should also be noted just how strong his 2009 season was where he helped his Yankees win the World Series and was the…
Sadly, like our Notinhalloffame entry for Whitesnake brings about thoughts of Tawny Kitaen; our Chuck Finley Baseball entry conjures up the same image; although this image is not her straddling a sports car, but hitting a Pitcher over the head with a stiletto.
From the island of Cuba, Bert Campaneris would go down in history as one of the most versatile players in Major League history, and he would become the first man to ever play all nine positions in a Major League Game. He accomplished that early in his career in 1965 when he was with the Kansas City Athletics.
A four-time All-Star, Tim Hudson spread those accolades over three teams (Oakland, Atlanta & San Francisco). Hudson would finish in the top ten in Cy Young voting four times, including a runner-up run in 2000. He would also finish in the top ten bWAR for Pitcher seven times. The sinkerball specialist would win 223 Games, an excellent number for his era, and most notably, made history by becoming the oldest Pitcher to start a Game 7 in the World Series, a game that his San Francisco Giants won, giving him his lone World Series ring.
Vida Blue debuted in 1969, where in his 12 Games in Oakland, he was ineffective with a 6.64 ERA. His 1970 callup was different with a 2-0 record over six starts and a pair of Shutouts. 1971 was one of the best seasons ever for an Oakland A’s Pitcher.
Sal Bando was an integral part of the Oakland Athletics dynasty, and he was there when they were toiling in obscurity in Kansas City. When the Athletics’ owner, Charles O. Finlay, relocated the team to Oakland, Bando was at the core of what was poised to become a special team that defined the early 1970s.
In 1981, a "mania" took over Los Angeles. Some would say it took over the entire baseball world. That was "Fernandomania" in honor of Mexican hurler, Fernando Valenzuela.
In this era of the overpriced, overpampered, selfish athlete, we can’t help but like a player who was nicknamed “Mr. Team”. This isn’t to say that Bob Elliott did not still rack up some impressive individual accolades as he certainly did just that.
The Hall of Fame victim always pointed at about the Black Sox Scandal is "Shoeless" Joe Jackson, but Pitcher, Eddie Cicotte, might have also been cost a Cooperstown plaque.
Adolfo Domingo De Guzman “Dolf” Luque was a Cuban baseball legend who played in the Cuban Winter League from 1912 to 1945. For our purposes, Luque played in the Majors from 1914 to 1935 and was a long-time star for the Cincinnati Reds.
One of the most popular players in Cleveland Indians' history, Rocco "Rocky" Colavito, came from the Bronx, where naturally, he was a Yankees fan.
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Many of the early baseball players suffered from an addiction to alcohol, but we have to wonder if any of them had anything on Pete Browning, an Outfielder who once quipped, "I can't hit the ball until I hit the bottle." He hit the bottle a lot, but he also hit the baseball at a high level.
Another very interesting name eligible for the 2014 Baseball Hall of Fame vote is Luis Gonzalez. “Gonzo” has very good career numbers, with 2,591 Hits, 354 Home Runs and 1,439 RBI’s. His 48.0 career bWAR is nothing to sneeze at either. The question that arises with Gonzalez is the major spike in his power numbers in his 30’s and that he had his best seasons in his second decade in the Majors. Although his name has never been associated with PEDs, he is often lumped in that category. As it stands, Gonzalez is probably a bubble candidate before the alleged…
A slick hitting Second Baseman, who was pretty good on the field too, Cupid Childs was one of the top stars for the Cleveland Spiders and was one of the top leadoff hitters in the 1890’s
In the mid-2000s, Roy Oswalt was considered one of the top pitchers in the National League. “Os” would have five seasons where he was voted in the top five in National League Cy Young balloting and it was his arm that won the NLCS MVP in 2005 getting Houston to their lone World Series appearance.
The Los Angeles Dodgers were an excellent team in the 1970s and early 80s, and Ron Cey was a part of it.
The Major League career of Johnny Sain began in 1942, where he had a fairly uneventful season with a 4-7 record for the Boston Braves. Like so many other baseball players, Sain served in the U.S. Military during World War II, and he lost three years on the diamond. When he returned to Boston, he quickly became one of the most recognized Pitchers in the game.
The quick synopsis of Fred “Firpo” Marberry is a Pitcher who was used in a way that was ahead of its time.
We here at Notinhalloffame.com talk every day about those who should be in their respective Halls of Fame. The hottest sports debate in this context might be in baseball. Vern Stephens might have a Hall of Fame case, but before we go there, we can say without question that he is the greatest player who never made the ballot.