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The Iowa Hawkeyes will retire the number 22 of Caitlin Clark

Regular visitors of Notinhalloffame.com know that we are slowly working on the top 50 of every major team in the NHL, NBA, NFL and MLB.  Once that is done, we intend to look at how each team honor their past players, coaches and executives.  As such, it is important to us that the

The University of Iowa has already announced its intention to retire the #22 of Caitlin Clark.

This is an incredible achievement for Clark, whose career just concluded, and it places her in rarified air.  Few organizations and institutions seldom make an announcement like this after a player leaves, and it can’t be argued that Clark deserves to be in this group.

Clark, who will presumably be the first overall pick by the Indiana Fever this draft, set the NCAA record for Points (3,951) and carried the Hawkeyes on her back to two straight Finals.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to congratulate Caitlin Clark for this impending honor.

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The Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project: 1959 Preliminary VOTE

1959 PRELIMINARY RESULTS:

Thank you to all of you who have participated in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project. If you are unaware of what that is, we acted as if the PFHOF had its first class in January 1946.

We have completed the first 14 years thus far.

For “1958,” a Preliminary Vote with close to 130 players whose playing career ended by 1952. We are also following the structure in that players have 20 years of eligibility, and if they do not make it into the Hall, they are relegated to the Senior Pool.

Each voter was asked to select 25 names from the preliminary list, and the top 25 vote-getters were named Semi-Finalists.

A week later, the voters will be asked to pick 15 names from the 25 Semi-Finalists, and next after, they will pick five from the remaining 15. We will continue this process weekly until we catch up to the current year.

Please note that a significant change occurred “years ago”, allowing voters to submit less than the allotted spots. 

31 Votes took place

This is for the “Modern Era”

Bold indicates they advanced to the Semi-Finals:

*Indicates they have been removed from future ballots

Player

Year of Eligibility

Vote Total

Bill Dudley HB-TB-QB

1

27

Bill Willis G

1

26

Max Speedie E

2

26

Ace Gutkowski FB-TB

15

25

Arnie Weinmeister DT

1

25

Ward Cuff WB-QB-HB

7

23

Bill Osmanski FB

7

23

Whizzer White TB-HB

12

22

Wayne Millner E-DE

9

22

Marshall Goldberg FB

6

22

Ken Kavanaugh E

4

22

George Christensen T-G

16

21

Buckets Goldenberg G-BB

9

21

George Svendsen C

13

18

George Wilson E

8

18

Lou Rymkus T

3

17

Woody Strode E

5

16

Frankie Albert QB

2

16

Glenn Presnell T-B

18

15

Charley Brock C-HB

7

15

Frank Cope T                               

7

15

Spec Sanders TB

4

14

Pat Harder E

1

14

Gaynell Tinsley E

14

12

Vic Sears T-DT

1

8

Buster Ramsey G

3

6

Al Blozis T

10

5

Jack Manders

14

4

Russ Letlow G-T

8

4

Pug Manders HB-TB

7

4

Tommy Thompson QB

4

3

Jack McBride FB

20

3

Nate Barragar C-G

19

3

Joe Kopcha G

18

3

Bill Owen T-G

18

3

Stumpy Thomason WB-TB-BB-HB

18

3

Father Lumpkin BB

17

3

Baby Ray T

6

3

Doug Wycoff B

20

2

Bo Molenda FB-HB-BB

19

2

Luke Johnsos E

18

2

Swede Hanson B

16

2

Milt Gantenbein E

14

2

Eggs Manske E

14

2

Bernie Masterson QB

14

2

Bull Karcis FB-BB-HB

12

2

Parker Hall TB-HB

8

2

Roy Zimmerman QB-WB

6

2

Paul Christman QB

4

2

Otto Schellenbacher S

3

2

Ray Bray G

2

2

Bill Fischer T-G-DT

1

2

Tom Nash E

20

1

Keith Molesworth HB-QB

17

1

Potsy Jones G

16

1

Ozzie Simmons HB

15

1

Tony Blazine T

13

1

Pete Tinsley G

9

1

Merl Condit HB

8

1

Gary Fangietti FB-HB

8

1

Frank Filchok TB-QB-HB

8

1

Bob Masterson E

8

1

Jim Poole E

8

1

Ed Rucinski E

8

1

Ki Aldrich C-LB-G

7

1

Jim Lee Howell E

7

1

Ed Kolman T

7

1

Bill Radoivch G

7

1

Billy Dewell E

5

1

Glenn Dobbs TB-QB

5

1

Chet Bulger T

4

1

Ted Frisch FB

4

1

Dick Huffman T

4

1

Elmer Angsman HB

2

1

Tex Coulter T-E-C

2

1

Dick Hoerner E

2

1

Ray Poole R

2

1

Johnny Strzykalski HB

2

1

Jerry Shipkey LB-FB-DB

1

1

*Zuck Carlson G-T-C-LB

18

0

*Carl Brumbaugh B

16

0

*Lou Gordon T-G-E

16

0

*Ookie Miller C-G-LB

16

0

*Joe Zeller G-E

16

0

*Ralph Kerchaval WB

14

0

Jim Barber T

13

0

Ed Danowski B

13

0

Johnny Drake B

13

0

*Clyde Shugart G

10

0

Conway Baker G-T

9

0

Joe Carter E

9

0

Andy Farkas FB-HB-WB

9

0

Gene Ronzani T

9

0

*Bill Lee T

8

0

*Orville Tuttle G

8

0

*Willie Wilkin T

8

0

Dick Plasman E-T

7

0

Elbie Schultz T-G

7

0

Joe Aguire E

5

0

Larry Craig B-E

5

0

Dick Humbert E-DE

5

0

John Woudenberg T

5

0

*Jack Ferrante E

4

0

*Dante Magnami HB-WR

4

0

*Bob Nowasky E

4

0

*Steve Pritko E

4

0

*Bob Reinhard T-FB

4

0

*Norm Standlee FB-LB

4

0

Fred Davis T-DT

3

0

Vic Lindskog C

3

0

Ed Neal MG-C-G-T

3

0

*Visco Grgich G

2

0

*Jim Keane E

2

0

Dick Wildung G-DT-T

1

0

This is for the “Senior Era”

Bold indicates they advanced to the Semi-Finals:

*Indicates that they will be removed from the ballot permanently.

Tony Latone

4

20

Al Nesser

3

18

Hunk Anderson

9

17

Wildcat Wilson

5

14

Cub Buck

9

8

Joey Sternaman

4

7

Gus Sonnenberg

4

6

Gull Falcon

14

5

Sol Butler

14

4

Two-Bits Honan

4

4

Herman Kerchoff

14

4

Henry McDonald

14

4

Steamer Horning

14

3

Bob Shiring

14

3

Pete Stinchcomb

7

3

Doc Alexander

7

3

Duke Osborne

6

2

*Jug Earp

2

1

*Ray Kemp

1

1

*Joe Lillard

1

1

*Hap Moran

1

1

*Harry Robb

11

0

*Curly Oden

2

0

*Milt Rehnquist

2

0

*Jack Spellman

2

0

*Rudy Comstrock

1

0

*Chuck Kassell

1

0

*Dick Stahlman

1

0

In the special vote, modern candidates are removed if they have no votes on years 2,4,6,8,10,12,14,16,18.

We will post the 1958 Finalists of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project results next Saturday.

Thank you to all who contributed. If you want to be part of this project, please let us know!

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Jon Lester

In the year 2000, the two most cursed franchises in baseball were the Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox. Given their history of bad luck, many believed that it would be another hundred years before either of these big market teams would win a championship. While Jon Lester did not break these curses (he wasn't in the Majors when Boston broke it in 2004), he played a significant role in two squads that had been struggling for decades.

Lester was a Second Round pick by the BoSox in 2002 and joined the main roster in 2006. While he played well, he had enlarged lymph nodes that required off-season treatment. Fortunately, Lester recovered and returned to the Red Sox the following summer, where he gained a win in the 2007 World Series, his first championship. After that, Lester became a high-end starter.

In 2008 and 2009, Lester won a combined 31 games with 377 strikeouts. He went to his first All-Star game in 2010, led the AL in SO/9 (9.7), and was fourth in Cy Young voting. He struck out 225 batters, with a 3.25 ERA and a career-high 19 wins. He was an All-Star again in 2011 (15-9, 3.47 ERA) but slipped in 2012 (9-14, 4.82 ERA), which was cause for concern in Fenway.

However, in 2013, Lester rebounded and went 15-8. His postseason was phenomenal as he went 4-1, including two wins in the World Series with a 0.59 ERA. He went to the All-Star game again in 2014, but the struggling Red Sox traded him to the surging Athletics for their playoff run. Although Oakland did not get past the first round, Lester's overall season was his best in years, as he finished fourth in Cy Young voting with an overall performance of 16-11, 220 strikeouts, and a 2.46 ERA.

Lester became a free agent and signed with the Chicago Cubs. He had his ups and downs with the Cubs, but his up years were memorable. He won 19 games in 2016 with a 2.44 ERA and was again an All-Star. Most importantly, Lester led Chicago to their first World Series win in over a century, and he won the NLCS MVP and was named the Babe Ruth Award winner. He was an All-Star again in 2018 (his fifth), but he struggled afterward and retired after brief runs in Washington and St. Louis.

Lester retired with three World Series rings, an even 200 wins, and 2,488 strikeouts.

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Jon Jay

Jon Jay had a 12-year career as an outfielder, but he was not known for his power-hitting. He hit only 37 home runs throughout his career. However, he did have seven seasons in which he had over 100 hits and batted over .290 five times. Jay's willingness to help his team is also reflected in his ranking in the top 100 all-time in Hit by Pitch. He spent most of his career with St. Louis, where he played for six seasons and won a World Series in 2011. He also played for San Diego, Chicago (NL), Kansas City, Arizona, Chicago (AL), and Los Angeles (AL). Jay had a lifetime batting average of .283 with 1,087 hits.

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John Axford

John Axford, a Canadian baseball player, started his career in the Majors by replacing Hall of Fame reliever Trevor Hoffman in Milwaukee. Although he was a starting pitcher in the Minors, Axford performed well as a relief pitcher, saving 24 games in 2010 and leading the National League with 46 saves the following season (2011). His impressive performance earned him the NL Rolaids Relief Award and a ninth-place finish in the Cy Young voting.

In the subsequent season, Axford recorded 35 saves but his ERA was over four. Unfortunately, he was unable to regain his previous dominance, but he still managed to accumulate 144 saves during his 11-year career. In addition to Milwaukee, he played for St. Louis, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Colorado, Oakland, Toronto, and the L.A. Dodgers.

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Joakim Soria

Joakim Soria began his career in the Mexican League before being selected in the Rule 5 Draft by the Kansas City Royals from the San Diego Padres organization. This turned out to be a wise investment for KC as Soria finished seventh in the American League Rookie of the Year voting in 2007, with 17 Saves. Over the next three seasons, Soria established himself as one of the best closers in baseball, earning All-Star Game selections in 2008 and 2010 and recording 105 Saves. Although he finished tenth for the Cy Young in 2010, he was arguably better in his first All-Star year, with 42 Saves, a 1.60 ERA and a WHIP of 0.861. However, Soria's performance slumped in 2011 (28 Saves, 4.03 ERA, 1.276 WHIP), and he missed the entire 2012 season due to Tommy John Surgery to repair a torn UCL. Although he made a comeback, he was never the same as before.

Over the next nine seasons, Soria played for nine different teams (Texas, Detroit, Pittsburgh, Kansas City again, Chicago (AL), Milwaukee, Oakland, Arizona, and Toronto), all out of the bullpen where he was sometimes again the closer. During this period, he had 69 Saves and a total of 229. While Soria never regained his past glory in Kansas City, he was good enough to find work for nearly a decade after.

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Jay Bruce

Jay Bruce is a former baseball player who is best known for his time with the Cincinnati Reds. He was a three-time All-Star and a two-time Silver Slugger.

Bruce was a premier power hitter for the Reds for many years. In 2008, Bruce finished fifth in the National League Rookie of the Year voting. That season, he had 21 home runs and 52 RBIs, which was arguably his worst season as a member of the Reds. However, he gradually increased his power numbers and had three consecutive 30-home run seasons, during which he had over or close to 100 RBIs. Bruce was an All-Star in both 2011 and 2012. He won Silver Sluggers in 2012 and 2013 and finished tenth in MVP voting that year.

Cincinnati traded Bruce to the New York Mets in 2016, shortly after he went to his third All-Star game. That season, he finished with his career-best 36 home runs. However, the struggling Mets waived Bruce, and he signed with Cleveland. He later returned to the Mets as a free agent, but his second stint only lasted a year. His power was fading, and he was eventually traded to the Seattle Mariners. Bruce finished his career with the Philadelphia Phillies and the New York Yankees. He retired with 319 home runs and 951 RBIs.

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Jake Arrieta

Jake Arrieta played for four different teams during his career in Major League Baseball, but he is most famously known for his time with the Chicago Cubs. Arrieta started his career with the Baltimore Orioles but struggled to perform consistently, moving back and forth between the minor and major leagues. Over the course of 69 games with the Orioles, Arrieta had an unimpressive 5.46 ERA and 1.472 WHIP.

In 2013, Baltimore traded Arrieta to the Cubs, where he initially played in the minor leagues but finished the year with a 4-2 record and a 3.66 ERA. This was just the start of Arrieta's success with the Cubs.

Arrieta's best year came in 2015, where he led the National League in Wins (22), Games Started (33), Complete Games (4), Shutouts (3), and H/9 (5.9). He also boasted a 1.77 ERA, a 0.865 WHIP, and 236 Strikeouts. Arrieta won the Cy Young award that year and even finished sixth in MVP voting.

 In 2016, Arrieta had another solid season, going 18-8 with a 3.10 ERA and 190 strikeouts. He was also an All-Star for the first and only time. Arrieta won the Silver Slugger award that year and helped lead the Cubs to their first World Series victory in 108 years.

Arrieta played one more season with the Cubs before signing with the Philadelphia Phillies. However, injuries began to take their toll, and his performances declined quickly. He played again for the Cubs and then the Padres before retiring after the 2021 season. Overall, he had a record of 115-93 with 1,433 strikeouts.

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J. A. Happ

J.A. Happ had a career that could be described as that of a journeyman, as he played for eight different teams, including one twice. But despite this, he had some accomplishments that other pitchers would have been proud of.

Happ was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in 2004 and first appeared for them in 2007. However, he was still considered a rookie in 2009, when he was the narrow runner-up for the National League Rookie of the Year award. He had a record of 12-4 and an ERA of 2.93, losing out to Chris Coghlan of the Marlins. Happ played a small role in the Phillies' World Series win, earning himself a championship title.

Despite this, Happ was traded to the Houston Astros in a deal that brought Roy Oswalt to the Phillies. This was the start of Happ's journeyman period. Over the next few seasons, he played for the Toronto Blue Jays, the Seattle Mariners, the Philadelphia Phillies again, and then back to Toronto where he had his best season. He had a record of 20-4, 163 strikeouts, and finished sixth in the Cy Young voting, his only such finish. While still with Toronto, he also played in his first and only All-Star Game, but was later traded to the New York Yankees.

Happ continued playing for the Minnesota Twins and the St. Louis Cardinals before retiring with a record of 133 wins and 100 losses.

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Gerald McCoy

Gerald McCoy was a highly sought-after player in the 2010 NFL Draft after his impressive college career at the University of Oklahoma, where he was a two-time All-American. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected him as the third overall pick, joining a long list of defensive stars in their team.

From day one, McCoy won the starting position as the Left Defensive Tackle. Although his statistics don't fully showcase his value, McCoy was a consistent disruptor, overpowering most of his opponents, and blocking lanes to make way for his teammates to rush the quarterback. In his third season, he began a six-year streak of Pro Bowls, including a First Team All-Pro in 2013. He remained with Tampa until 2018, when he was released due to salary constraints.

McCoy then played for Carolina for one year before signing a three-year contract with Dallas. Unfortunately, he never played a single game for them as he suffered a ruptured quad and was subsequently released. He sat out the entire 2020 season and signed with Las Vegas, but his time with them was cut short after he sustained a knee injury in his first game. That was his last time playing.

Throughout his career, McCoy achieved 59.5 sacks and 334 combined tackles.

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