Is Baseball's Hall of Fame Overpopulated? ...or

GaryPassamonte · #1 06-12-2013, 11:44 AM

Ken- As far as I know the NA is considered a Major league by the HOF.
David- Flood is not given enough attention.

Clydewally · #2 06-12-2013, 03:06 PM

I certainly prefer the Baseball Hall to some of the others like basketball (that one is a mish mosh of international players, pioneers, women, college and NBA players and executives which makes it much less interesting to collect).
My main problem with the Cooperstown standard is that it is too often a lifetime achievement award and rewards longevity more than dominance. So you get the Don Suttons and guys like Palmiero who would likely have gotten in but PEDs and ignore the Mattingly's who was considered one of the top players of the 80s (thankfully they made an exception for Koufax).
I am not sure I would put in the short lived greats like Murphy, Maris and Mattingly, but I don't like to see everyone who lasts long enough to amass high totals without really being a dominant player make it either.

cubsfan-budman · #3 06-12-2013, 03:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Clydewally

I certainly prefer the Baseball Hall to some of the others like basketball (that one is a mish mosh of international players, pioneers, women, college and NBA players and executives which makes it much less interesting to collect).
My main problem with the Cooperstown standard is that it is too often a lifetime achievement award and rewards longevity more than dominance. So you get the Don Suttons and guys like Palmiero who would likely have gotten in but PEDs and ignore the Mattingly's who was considered one of the top players of the 80s (thankfully they made an exception for Koufax).
I am not sure I would put in the short lived greats like Murphy, Maris and Mattingly, but I don't like to see everyone who lasts long enough to amass high totals without really being a dominant player make it either.

All those players you mention got the award they deserve for being the best player for a short amount of time, the MVP award. Doc Gooden would be in the HOF if all it took was the potential for greatness.

GaryPassamonte · #4 06-12-2013, 03:32 PM

Clydewally, you make an excellent point. The most elite HOFers had both dominance and longevity. Other HOFers were either dominant with shorter careers or simply played long enough to accumulate certain numbers. I'll take the dominant shorter career player over the career accumulator every time. Too much emphasis is placed on certain career milestones and not on domination while playing. The best measuring stick of a player's greatness is how he stacks up against his peers when he played. Rules change, bats change, ball change, etc. Numbers are deceiving.

Kenny Cole · #5 06-12-2013, 03:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cubsfan-budman

ADoc Gooden would be in the HOF if all it took was the potential for greatness.

Doc Gooden WAS great, not just potentially great. So was Mattingly. Unfortunately, their greatness came at the beginning of their careers. People have forgotten just how good they were because they weren't so great later on. Koufax, on the other hand, was great at the end of his career. Being great later is better. That's what people remember, and, insofar as Koufax (one of my favorite players btw) is concerned, that's what people voted on.

jhs5120 · #6 06-12-2013, 04:05 PM

I love that executives can be inducted. Men (or women) who devote their life to the game and leave a lasting, positive impression deserve to be considered.

HOF Yankees · #7 06-12-2013, 04:11 PM

Lee Smith needs to be in top 5 in saves c'mon, excersley and fingers have less and they are in

earlywynnfan · #8 06-12-2013, 07:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HOF Yankees

Lee Smith needs to be in top 5 in saves c'mon, excersley and fingers have less and they are in

Lee Smith is the poster child for the argument of longevity vs. dominance. (And I'm a fan of Smith's!)

To me, the biggest puzzle of how to reward longevity is Eddie Murray. Nobody ever said "Man, that Murray, what a freakin' stud!!" But year after year he was really good -- but never great. And 20 years later, he piled up numbers like almost nobody else. So does he compare to Gehrig or Foxx or even Sisler?

Ken

kmac32 · #9 06-12-2013, 09:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HOF Yankees

Lee Smith needs to be in top 5 in saves c'mon, excersley and fingers have less and they are in

I personally know Lee Smith, and he is a true Hall of Famer. The job the current baseball writers are doing is a joke. Talk about politics.

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