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Awards=HOF? Part Thirty-Six: The Hutch Award

Awards=HOF? Part Thirty-Six: The Hutch Award
18 Aug
2019
Not in Hall of Fame

We here at Notinhalloffame.com thought it would be fun to take a look at the major awards in North American team sports and see how it translates into Hall of Fame potential.

Needless to say, different awards in different sports yield hall of fame potential.  In basketball, the team sport with the least number of players on a roster, the dividend for greatness much higher.  In baseball, it is not as much as a great individual season does not have the same impact.

For our next selection we look at the Hutch Award.  This award is given annually to the player who “best exemplifies the fighting spirit and competitive desire” of Fred Hutchinson. Hutchinson was a former player and manager who died in 1964 after a long battle with lung cancer.  This award was created a year later by his friends and reporters who covered him to honor his memory.

So, how many Hutch Award winners have been enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame?

Let’s find out!

*Please note that as statistics are not as relevant for this award so as opposed to how we normally list players, we will simply just list the winners as opposed to go into that year’s accomplishments.  This is the same position that we took with the Roberto Clemente Award.

The following are the past players who have won the Hutch Award in the MLB who are eligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame and have been enshrined.

Mickey Mantle, New York Yankees (1965)

Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1974.

Sandy Koufax, Los Angeles Dodgers (1966)

Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1972.

Carl Yastrzemski, Boston Red Sox (1967)

Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1989.

Al Kaline, Detroit Tigers (1969)

Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1980.

Joe Torre, St. Louis Cardinals (1971)

Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2014.

Willie McCovey, San Francisco Giants(1977)

Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1986.

Willie Stargell, Pittsburgh Pirates(1978)

Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1988.

Lou Brock, St. Louis Cardinals(1979)

Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1985.

George Brett, Kansas City Royals(1980)

Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1999.

Johnny Bench, Cincinnati Reds(1981)

Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1989.

Paul Molitor, Milwaukee Brewers(1987)

Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2004.

Andre Dawson, Boston Red Sox(1994)

Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2010.

Trevor Hoffman, San Diego Padres(2004)

Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2018.

Craig Biggio, Houston Astros(2005)

Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2015.

The following are the players who have won the Hutch Award in MLB who are eligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame and have not been selected:

Pete Rose, Cincinnati Reds (1968)

Rose has been banned from the Baseball for gambling and the Baseball Hall of Fame has not allowed him on the ballot.  Ranked #1A on Notinhalloffame.com

Tony Conigliaro, Boston Red Sox (1970)

Conigliaro did not play the mandatory ten seasons to qualify for the Baseball Hall of Fame.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Bobby Tolan, Cincinnati Reds (1972)

Tolan was on the ballot for one year in 1985 but he did not receive any votes.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

John Hiller, Detroit Tigers (1973)

Hiller was on the ballot for one year and received 2.6% of the vote.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Danny Thompson, Minnesota Twins (1974)

Thompson did not play the mandatory ten seasons to qualify for the Baseball Hall of Fame.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Gary Nolan, Cincinnati Reds (1975)

Nolan was on the ballot for one year in 1983 but he did not receive any votes.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Tommy John, Los Angeles Dodgers (1976)

John was on the ballot for 15 years and finished as high as 31.7% in 2009.  Ranked #12 Notinhalloffame.com.

Andre Thornton, Cleveland Indians (1982)

Thornton was on the ballot for one year in 1993 and received 0.5% of the vote.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Ray Knight, New York Mets (1983)

Knight was on the ballot for one year in 1994 and received 0.2% of the vote.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Don Robinson, Pittsburgh Pirates (1984)

Although Robinson was eligible for the Hall of Fame in 1998, he was not on the ballot.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Rick Reuschel, Pittsburgh Pirates (1985)

Reuschel was on the ballot for one year in 1997 and received 0.4% of the vote.  Ranked #93 Notinhalloffame.com.

Dennis Leonard, Kansas City Royals (1986)

Leonard was on the ballot for one year in 1992 and received 0.2% of the vote.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Ron Oester, Cincinnati Reds (1988)

Although Oester was eligible for the Hall of Fame in 1996, he was not on the ballot.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Dave Dravecky, San Francisco Giants (1989)

Dravecky did not play the mandatory ten years to qualify for the Hall of Fame.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Sid Bream, Pittsburgh Pirates (1990)

Although Bream was eligible for the Hall of Fame in 2000, he was not on the ballot.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Bill Wegman, Milwaukee Brewers (1991)

Although Wegman was eligible for the Hall of Fame in 2001, he was not on the ballot.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Carney Lansford, Oakland Athletics (1992)

Lansford was on the ballot for one year in 1998 and received 0.6% of the vote.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

John Olerud, Toronto Blue Jays (1993)

Olerud was on the ballot for one year in 2011 and received 0.7% of the vote.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Jim Abbott, Chicago White Sox (1995)

Abbott was on the ballot for one year in 2005 and received 2.5% of the vote.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Omar Vizquel, Cleveland Indians (1996)

Vizquel has been on the ballot for two years and finished as high as 42.8% in 2019.  Ranked #51 Notinhalloffame.com.

Eric Davis, Baltimore Orioles (1997)

Davis was on the ballot for one year in 2007 and received 0.6% of the vote.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

David Cone, New York Yankees (1998)

Cone was on the ballot for one year in 2009 and received 3.9% of the vote.  Ranked #48 Notinhalloffame.com.

Sean Casey, Cincinnati Reds (1999)

Casey was on the ballot for one year in 2014 but did not receive any votes.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Jason Giambi, Oakland Athletics (2000)

Giambi is entering his first year of eligibility. Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Curt Schilling, Arizona Diamondbacks (2001)

Schilling has been on the ballot for seven years and has finished as high as 60.9% in 2019.  Ranked #5 Notinhalloffame.com.

Tim Salmon, Anaheim Angels (2002)

Salmon was on the ballot for one year in 2012 and received 0.9% of the vote.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Jamie Moyer, Seattle Mariners (2003)

Moyer was on the ballot for one year in 2018 and received 2.4% of the vote.  Ranked #105 Notinhalloffame.com.

Mark Loretta, Boston Red Sox (2006)

Although Loretta was eligible for the Hall of Fame in 2015, he wasn’t on the ballot.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Mike Sweeney, Kansas City Royals (2007)

Sweeney was on the ballot for one year in 2016 and received 0.7% of the vote.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Mark Teahen, Kansas City Royals (2009)

Teahen did not play the mandatory ten years to qualify for the Hall of Fame.  Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Raul Ibanez, Seattle Mariners (2013)

Ibanez is entering his first year of eligibility. Unranked on Notinhalloffame.com.

Let’s update our tally, shall we?

Award in Question

Percentage of recipients who have entered the HOF

Percentage of recipients by year who have entered the HOF.

NBA MVP

100%

100%

NHL Norris

90.5%

96.4%

NBA All Star Game MVP

89.5%

91.7%

NHL Conn Smythe

74.2%

85.4%

NHL Lady Byng

63.8%

76.0%

NFL Super Bowl MVP

60.6%

64.9%

NBA Defensive Player of the Year

58.3%

56.5%

NBA Rookie of the Year

56.5%

56.5%

NFL Pro Bowl MVP

52.3%

54.8%

MLB Lou Gehrig Award

51.9%

51.9%

MLB Roberto Clemente Award

47.4%

47.4%

MLB/NL/AL Cy Young Award

44.4%

55.4%

MLB Babe Ruth Award

37.0%

39.3%

NHL Frank J. Selke Trophy

33.3%

36.7%

MLB Hutch Award

33.1%

33.1%

NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year

28.6%

28.6%

MLB Edgar Martinez Award

26.7%

17.2%

MLB (NL/AL) Silver Slugger (Designated Hitter)

25.0%

30.8%

MLB (NL/AL) Silver Slugger (Shortstop)

23.5%

52.6%

MLB (NL/AL) Gold Glove

21.7%

36.8%

NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year

20.6%

20.6%

MLB (NL/AL) Silver Slugger (Catcher)

20.0%

22.5%

MLB (NL/AL) Gold Glove (Second Base)

18.8%

39.8%

MLB (NL/AL) Gold Glove (Shortstop)

18.2%

35.1%

MLB (NL/AL) Silver Slugger (Pitcher)

18.2%

20.1%

MLB (NL/AL) Silver Slugger (Second Base)

16.7%

32.7%

MLB (NL/AL) Gold Glove (Outfield)

16.7%

30.1%

MLB (NL/AL) Silver Slugger (Outfield)

15.7%

25.2%

MLB (NL/AL) Gold Glove (Third Base)

14.3%

14.3%

MLB (NL/AL) Silver Slugger (Third Base)

13.6%

14.3%

MLB (NL/AL) Silver Slugger (First Base)

13.6%

13.3%

MLB (NL/AL) Rookie of the Year

13.3%

13.3%

MLB (NL/AL) Gold Glove (Catcher)

10.3%

15.2%

NBA Most Improved Player of the Year

5.3%

3.2%

MLB (NL/AL) Gold Glove (First Base)

3.8%

3.2%

So, who is up next?

The following are the players who have won the Hutch Award in the Major League Baseball who have retired but have not met the mandatory years out of the game to qualify for the Baseball Hall of Fame:

Tim Hudson, Atlanta Braves(2010)

Hudson is eligible for the Hall of Fame in 2021.

Billy Butler, Kansas City Chiefs(2011)

Hudson is eligible for the Hall of Fame in 2022.

Barry Zito, San Francisco Giants(2012)

Zito is eligible for the Hall of Fame in 2021.

Dustin McGowan, Miami Marlins(2016)

McGowan is eligible for the Hall of Fame in 2023.

The following are the players who have won the Hutch Award who are still active.

Jon Lester, Boston Red Sox (2008)

35 Years Old, Playing for the Chicago Cubs.

Alex Gordon, Kansas City Royals (2014)

35 Years Old, Playing for the Kansas City Royals.

Adam Wainwright, St. Louis Cardinals (2015)

37 Years Old, Playing for the St. Louis Cardinals.

Jake Diekman, Texas Rangers (2017)

32 Years Old, Playing for the Oakland Athletics.

Stephen Piscotty, Oakland Athletics (2018)

32 Years Old, Playing for the Oakland Athletics.

The Hutch Award winners don’t focus on elite players like other tertiary, or any other baseball related award.  Since its namesake was not a Hall of Famer himself, this is not exactly a surprise.

We are finally finished with the tertiary Baseball Awards and we are going to go back to Football with a major award in the Offensive Player of the Year.

As always, we thank you for that support and look for that soon!

Committee Chairman

Kirk Buchner, "The Committee Chairman", is the owner and operator of the site.  Kirk can be contacted at [email protected] .

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