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.
One of the most underrated players in Baseball's history has to be George Uhle, a Pitcher who spent most of his career with the Cleveland Indians and won an even 200 Games. Debuting for Cleveland in 1919, Uhle was a member of the Indians’ World Series Championship team in 1920, albeit in a minor role. Following that, Uhle became the Tribe's staff ace, posting three 20-Win seasons, with two of those years being league-leading. One of his claims to fame is that he deliberately walked a batter to pitch to Babe Ruth (he struck him out). In fact, he struck out Ruth 25…
Cliff Lee was known for his methodical pitching style, and it was effective. Lee’s MLB career began with the Cleveland Indians in 2002, and he was a fixture in their rotation two years later. The southpaw did well and had an 18-5 year in ’05, where he was fifth in Cy Young voting. That was good, and after an injury setback in 2007, Lee was set to have the season of his life. In 2008, Lee won the Cy Young with a sparkling 22-3 record, and he led the American League in Wins (22), ERA (2.54), and FIP (2.83). He was traded to…
Johnny Damon came close to getting to the 3,000 Hit mark in his career (2,769) and did have other decent career numbers with 235 Home Runs, 1,139 Runs Batted in, and 408 Stolen Bases. Damon was also a very popular figure who won two World Series (one in Boston and one in New York), but a look at his individual campaigns shows that of a statistical compiler, as he never had a top ten MVP season, only made two All-Stars, and only was in the top ten in WAR for Position Players once. Throw in his sub .800 career OPS…
Cesar Cedeno played the first twelve years of his seventeen-year career with the Houston Astros, and it was there that he established himself as one of the best baserunners of the 1970s. From 1972 to 1977, Cedeno swiped at least 50 Bases, and he had good power in those years, with the first three seasons showcasing at least 20 Home Runs. The four-time All-Star was also a five-time Gold Glove winner, and he had two years where he topped the National League leaderboard in Doubles. It was a unique blend of power and speed, and he led the NL in Power-Speed #…
Historically speaking, one of the most important Pitchers in Latin America is Dennis Martinez, and he was also among the longest-tenured. Martinez broke in with the Baltimore Orioles in 1976, and he became the first player from Nicaragua to make the Majors. The righthander did well, earning a place in the starting rotation and had five 14-win seasons for the O's, including a league-leading 14 in the strike-shortened 1981 season. Martinez finished fifth in Cy Young voting that year, but he had an awful 1983 season, with an ERA well over 5. He was left off of the postseason roster, and the Orioles…
A two-time World Series Champion with the Detroit Tigers (the only team he ever played for), Tommy Bridges was a major force in that first championship, winning two games in the Fall Classic. The curveball specialist led the AL in Strikeouts twice and won twenty games three years in a row (1934, 1935 & 1936). Bridges was also a six-time All-Star. Overall, Bridges would have a record of 194-138 with 1,674 Strikeouts.
Wine and scotch got better with age, and for years the sporting world thought Jamie Moyer did too. He holds multiple pitching records in regards to the oldest pitcher to do (insert accomplishment here) and is one of the rare players to have competed in four decades.
Alvin Dark had an excellent start in baseball, as he was the Rookie of the Year in 1948 with the Boston Braves. He was a huge part of Boston’s surprise run to the World Series (they lost to Cleveland), but he was traded to the New York Giants two years later, a move that proved beneficial for both sides. With the Giants, he would go to three All-Star Games, have three .300 years, and take them to the World Series in 1954, which they would win. That year and the season before, he was able to show off some power with at…
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the Houston Astros had put together a good team, but they did not see much national attention, as they had never won anything of note before. Those who were paying attention to Houston couldn’t take their eyes off their Puerto Rican Outfielder, Jose Cruz. Cruz played his first five seasons in St. Louis, but he never had a 100 Hit season with the Cards. A trade to Houston in 1975 changed his fortunes, and Cruz was their starting Left Fielder from 1976 to 1986. With the Astros, Cruz was a two-time All-Star, and he showed a…
When you have a name like Dizzy Trout, you expect that you have a unique and colorful character on your hands. Trout fit the bill, and while the validity of many of the stories surrounding him might not be valid, he was unquestionably an excellent Pitcher. Trout played most of his career with the Detroit Tigers, breaking in during the 1939 season. Due to a hearing impairment, Trout could not serve his country during World War II, and during that time, he had his best run in baseball. Trout led the American League in Wins (20) in 1943, and he had an even…
A Cleveland Indian for his entire career, Mel Harder debuted for the Tribe in 1928, where he was used in relief in his first two seasons when he was on their main roster and not in the minors. The Nebraskan would be part of the Indians' rotation for a decade, and the control pitcher would win the ERA Title in 1933 and was first in BB/9 in 1935. The four-time All-Star finished in the top ten in BB/9 eight times, WHIP six times, and ERA six times. Seven times he was in the top ten in SO/BB, which was very impressive, considering…
Jimmy Sheckard spent most of his career with either the Brooklyn Dodgers or the Chicago Cubs, and while they were both high-profile teams, He is one of the most undervalued players in history. The Outfielder proved to be a good hitter throughout his career, batting at least .300 twice. In 1901, as a Brooklyn Superba, he led the National League in Triples (19) and Slugging Percentage (.534), and two years later, Sheckard’s nine Home Runs were enough to lead the NL. Sheckard later played for the Cubs, where he helped Chicago win four National League Pennants, two of which they won. The…
Sam McDowell had one of the most unimposing yet correct nicknames. When you hear the name "Sudden" Sam, you aren't sure what to think, but what does a "sudden" Pitcher mean? For McDowell, it is in reference to his rapid delivery and the strong odds that he would strike you out. McDowell broke in with the Cleveland Indians as a teenager in 1961, and he was a fixture in the starting rotation in 1964. While Sandy Koufax and Bob Gibson would have more Strikeouts than McDowell in the 1960s, McDowell had the most in the American League. The southpaw led the AL in Ks…
Camilo Pascual left Cuba in 1951 at the age of 17, and a year later, he was part of the Washington Senators’ farm system. Pasucal was impressive and made the Washington main roster in 1954. Pascual was largely unimpressive in his first few years, but he came of age in 1959, when he went 17-10 and led the American League in Complete Games (17) and FIP (2.44). The Cuban was an All-Star for the first time and would be in four of the next five seasons. The Senators relocated to Minnesota, becoming the Twins in 1961, and in the first three years…
Silver King is quite the name, isn't it? This was the name of the man whose birth certificate stated, Charles Frederick Koenig, but doesn't this name sound more fun? King debuted in 1886, playing a handful of games with the Kansas City Cowboys, but it was the three seasons that followed that put him on the map. These years were spent with the American Association's St. Louis Browns, where he won at least 32 Games each year. Known for his lack of windup and sidearm delivery, King had a monster season in 1888, where he led the league in Wins (45), ERA (1.63),…
There was a time when Nomar Garciaparra owned the city of Boston. The “Nomah" chants rocked Fenway, and he was, at one point, one of the most well-known baseball players around in the game. Playing at Shortstop, Garciaparra debuted in 1996 for 22 Games, which was not enough to exceed rookie limits, but more than enough to turn heads and win him the starting job the next year. We mention this because Nomar would win the Rookie of the Year in 1997, and the hearts of Boston. It would be his first of six All-Star Games, and first of four consecutive .300 Seasons. The…
In the last half of the 1990s, the New York Yankees built a dynasty that would win four World Series Championships in five years. Jorge Posada missed the first one (1996) as he was not part of the postseason roster, but the Puerto Rican Catcher would see his playing time rise and earn rings with New York in 1998 and 1999. The year 2000 would be a different story, as he was no longer splitting duties at Catcher with Joe Girardi. The Yanks again won the World Series, but this time, Posada was an All-Star and Silver Slugger. Posada would be dubbed one-quarter…
Mark Langston was one of the most underrated flamethrowers in baseball history, and let’s give him a bit of due here. The San Diego native led the American League as a Seattle Mariner in Strikeouts (204) as a rookie in 1994, and he was the runner-up for the Rookie of the Year award. Langston led the AL in Strikeouts in 1986 and 1987, going to the All-Star Game in the latter year. After a brief stint in Montreal, Langston came to the California Angels, where he was a three-time All-Star. As an Angel, Langston has four 13-win seasons and four campaigns with…
Mark Grace is the answer to the question of the trivia question; Who had the most Hits in the 1990s?