Quote:
Originally Posted by oldjudge
Peter--in Deacon White's first nine years in baseball he hit over .300 every year and, over those nine years, he struck out twenty-six times. He was one of the best defensive catchers in the league and, unlike most of the players of his time, a model citizen. He started playing in 1871, the first year of the National Association. Virtually none of the HOF voters ever saw him play while in his prime. I think he is more deserving of inclusion in the HOF than a lot of the current members. He is much more deserving than Tommy McCarthy, a fellow pre-1900 player.
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The strike out numbers are meaningless. In 1874 Deacon didn't strike out once, but the team's pitcher Al Spalding pitched 617 innings and recorded only 31 strike outs. Wasn't pitching back then akin to slow pitch softball today, underhanded without heat. Deacon batted .301 that year, but his team's batting average was .312. Deacon also committed 70 errors that season, third highest on his team. You cannot convince me of the comparative relevance of statistics from the 1870s to the twentieth century game.
Apples and oranges I say. Deacon White would not be in my Hall of Fame, but that is not to say he wasn't a model citizen.
11-03-2012, 08:25 AM
Figures lie and liars figure ... Behind the numbers
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