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Wednesday, December 09, 2009

Jenkins: First ballot is all Alomar should need

Always a fun time of year (along side Bam-Bam Battaglia’s “Pants Off/Roll Off” tourny week…of course)...Bruce Jenkins’ soul-stirrin’ HOF ballot.

Roberto Alomar
Barry Larkin
Edgar Martinez
Jack Morris
Dave Parker
Mark McGwire

and

Don Mattingly: He won’t make it, and I’m well aware of that, but in the short time he excelled, Mattingly had that rare ability to stir the soul. His swing personified the uncoiling of a precise, well-conceived instrument, and he was revered by even the finest opposing hitters. His name must appear on the balloting somewhere.

but

Close, but not quite: Bert Blyleven and Andre Dawson.

Repoz Posted: December 09, 2009 at 05:00 AM | 17 comment(s) Login to Bookmark
Tags: hall of fame, history

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1. OCF Posted: December 09, 2009 at 05:34 AM (#3407619)

Better than some - but Morris on and Blyleven off.

Dave Parker certainly qualifies if you want to use Jim Rice as a precedent - not that I'd advise that it's a good precedent. (And what does that make Albert Belle?)

But he does have Larkin.

2. Los Angeles El Hombre of Anaheim

Posted: December 09, 2009 at 05:45 AM (#3407620)

I have a feeling Mattingly's going to get somewhere around 40% that first year.

3. Hugh Jorgan Posted: December 09, 2009 at 06:01 AM (#3407627)

The fascination with Morris just stumps me. One game...the dude had one seriously awesome game and that puts him ahead of far more worthy candidates? Sorry, I know we've gone over this ground heaps of times, but the level of support never ceases to amaze me. And of course no Blyleven. Not a bad ballot overall, but "BIG" Dave Parker? I enjoyed Parker as a player, but he's not that close...and I'm a big hall guy.

4. Shock Posted: December 09, 2009 at 06:25 AM (#3407639)

Could Morris actually make it? Virtually every ballot posted here has listed him. Might be enough to get him over the 50% threshold for the first time. The odds are still long, but wow.

If we had a re-draft of the 80's would most really take Morris over Raines?

PS, how the heck do you pull up voting history on the new HOF website? The old site was a little clunky, but that part was a neat feature. I can't find it at all at the new site.

5. SoSHially Unacceptable Posted: December 09, 2009 at 06:31 AM (#3407642)

PS, how the heck do you pull up voting history on the new HOF website? The old site was a little clunky, but that part was a neat feature. I can't find it at all at the new site.

I don't think it's up yet on the new site. It's a strange development, particularly at this time of year. That's probably the place on the site I visited the most.

6. depletion Posted: December 09, 2009 at 06:46 AM (#3407650)

There were times in the 1990s when I wondered, along with many baseball writers, if Roberto Alomar was the best all-around second baseman in history.

Then I woke up, got up from the gutter and resumed panhandling.

If Rogers Hornsby had the glove of Dick Stuart he'd still be the greatest second baseman.

7. Harry Balsagne's transparent jealousy

Posted: December 09, 2009 at 06:47 AM (#3407652)

It's been said many times many different ways, but bears repeating: A Hall with Morris and without Blyleven is a Hall built by total retards.

8. Tripon Posted: December 09, 2009 at 07:06 AM (#3407664)

Would you just give it to Blyleven and end it already.

9. Lassus Posted: December 09, 2009 at 07:13 AM (#3407671)

I think Morris is going to get in.

10. PreservedFish Posted: December 09, 2009 at 07:31 AM (#3407682)

Morris appears to be a frustrating case, like Rice, whereby many dozens or hundreds of people have decided to stake their old school credentials on his case.

11. SoSHially Unacceptable Posted: December 09, 2009 at 07:53 AM (#3407691)

It's been said many times many different ways, but bears repeating: A Hall with Morris and without Blyleven is a Hall built by total retards.

I think Morris is going to get in.

Bert was at 62 percent in the last election, with three left. Morris has never topped 44 percent, with five ballots left. The odds that Bert doesn't get in but Jack does are astronomical.

12. Lassus Posted: December 09, 2009 at 08:09 AM (#3407695)

Bert was at 62 percent in the last election, with three left. Morris has never topped 44 percent, with five ballots left. The odds that Bert doesn't get in but Jack does are astronomical.

Thank you for this reassurance. I agree that all we seem to read here is Morris Morris Morris. If Morris is elected, I'm blaming Repoz. ;-)

13. Walt Davis Posted: December 09, 2009 at 08:45 AM (#3407710)

how the heck do you pull up voting history on the new HOF website?

your good friends at b-r have finally added it to their site (see the "awards" page).

On the votes ... the published sportswriters ballots haven't been a particularly good guide to the final vote the last few years (Repoz has kept count).

14. God Posted: December 09, 2009 at 12:02 PM (#3407729)

The Hall of Fame used to design its own site and provide its own content, but within the last couple of years everything has been turned over to MLBAM -- and the site gutted. Kind of a shame.

15. JPWF13

Posted: December 09, 2009 at 06:19 PM (#3408005)

I have a feeling Mattingly's going to get somewhere around 40% that first year

Yep, Mattingly's boosters are going to mention this ad nauseum:

.324-35-145
.343-23-110
.352-31-113
.327-30-115
and say if Jim Rice is in, why not Mattingly?

16. Pasta-diving Jeter (jmac66) Posted: December 09, 2009 at 08:48 PM (#3408314)

Morris appears to be a frustrating case, like Rice, whereby many dozens or hundreds of people have decided to stake their old school credentials on his case.

bingo--that's it EXACTLY and it's inexplicable.

During the furor of the Rice debate last year, one got the impression, from reading some of the "old school" columnists, that Rice is and has ALWAYS been a slam dunk, but somehow the mother's-basement-sliderule crowd has been keeping him out. (They never got around to explaining why it took him 15 years, then.)

SABR-backlash

17. tjm1 Posted: December 09, 2009 at 09:10 PM (#3408347)

and say if Jim Rice is in, why not Mattingly?

You could put up a pretty similar set of numbers for Cecil Cooper's 4 best years, as long as you prorate the strike year in there. Don't get me wrong, Mattingly was a better player than Cooper, but really not by all that much.

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Wednesday, December 09, 2009

Jenkins: First ballot is all Alomar should need

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