There have been a lot of posts lately on who should be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2009.  Since a lot of the reviews I do encompass whether or not the player is worthy of entrance into the Hall, I though I would give my opinions on whether a player gets in or not.  Here is this year’s list of players on the ballot, which by the way is the fewest number of names ever in balloting history:

2009 candidates
• Harold Baines
• Jay Bell
• Bert Blyleven
• David Cone
• Andre Dawson
• Ron Gant
• Mark Grace
• Rickey Henderson
• Tommy John
• Don Mattingly
• Mark McGwire
• Jack Morris
• Dale Murphy
• Jesse Orosco
• Dave Parker
• Dan Plesac
• Tim Raines
• Jim Rice
• Lee Smith
• Alan Trammell
• Greg Vaughn
• Mo Vaughn
• Matt Williams

Here is my take, if you took steroids or were linked to steroids in any way shape or form, no way you get in. You need at least 7 years of domination, where you were by far and away one of the 20 best players in the game. Automatics are 3000 hits, 500 home runs, 800 stolen bases, 300 wins, 300 saves, or 3000 strikeouts. Character plays a huge role, if the player’s numbers are close and he was a guy who was good for baseball he’s in, likewise for a guy bad for baseball he is out.  I’ll break it down into getting in this year, next three years, before 15 years are up, veterans committee, and not a chance.  Here would be my voting record.

Hall this Year (3):

1. Rickey Henderson - 3000+ hits, 800+ stolen bases = automatic.  Throw in that he leads two major statistical categories all time, and he should get nearly 100% of the vote.
2. Jim Rice - Last chance, he was a pain to them, now the writers got their revenge.  15 years is long enough, he was a major offensive force in the game from 1975 - 1986, in my book that get’s him in.
3. Lee Smith - 300+ saves = automatic, just because he played for 8 teams in 18 years doesn’t make him a bad pitcher, the guy was money from 1983-1995.  Don’t forget that he owned the saves record when he retired.

Hall in the Next 3 Years:

1. Bert Blyleven - In my mind his 3000+ strikeouts gets him in.  Just look at his per season strikeout rate, it’s mind numbing.
2. Harold Baines - Numbers are good, but he defined a position (DH).  Anyone who defines a position gets in.
3. Andre Dawson - Dominated from 1977 - 1992, if game was on the line with bases loaded down by 1, would you want to face him in his prime? Should have been in years ago, not sure why it’s taking so long.  Plus he was a baseball good guy.
4. Dale Murphy - Two MVPs should have gotten him in.  He was the face for some god awful Braves teams in the mid 80s.  Could you imagine what his stats would look like if he had protection in the lineup in his prime years?
5. Tim Raines - 800+ stolen bases means a trip to the Hall. We are talking about a guy that flat out wreaked havoc on the base paths, good for at least 2 runs every 3 games for a solid decade.

Sometime in Next 15 years:

1. Don Mattingly - He was so popular and on a popular team.  At some point they have to let him in right? High quality personality as well.
2. Alan Trammell - See Mattingly.

Veterans Committee

1. David Cone - Just not dominant long enough. Sub 200 wins hurts as well. His 2600+ strikeouts are good but not good enough. He was dominating though, that’s why he is on this list. Only way he gets in is this route.
2. Jack Morris - I like his 14 wins a year on average, but he played on some good teams and 11 of his 18 seasons he had double digit losses.  He has just under 2500 strikeouts. Just not enough support to get in though.
3. Dave Parker - Never had the decade of dominance.  His numbers are real good though, and he was definitely a feared hitter.  At 339 home runs though, it’s going to be an uphill battle.
4. Tommy John - If you pitch for 26 years you have to win 300 games, sorry but that’s how it works, 288 isn’t gonna get you in on your last ballot.  Only way in is on a wing a a prayer.

Nice Try But Not Going To Happen:

1. Jay Bell - Um no, not a chance.
2. Ron Gant - Gant was good, not very good or great, just good.
3. Mark Grace - Wildly popular but so short on so many statistical categories.  Great hitter though.
4. Mark McGwire - Steroids, whether he did or didn’t, he’s been mentioned.  Can’t let him in sorry.
5. Jesse Orosco - Pitching until you’re almost 50 doesn’t grant you access.
6. Dan Plesac - Not even remotely close in any categories. Good set up guy though.
7. Mo Vaughn - Tough one because he had the decade of dominance.  The problem was that he played only 2 more years after that.
8. Greg Vaughn - A lot better than you think, 3 40+ home run seasons and 1 50 home run season. Very solid, but not good enough for the Hall.
9. Matt Williams - If he got to 400 home runs I would said yes, but couple that with only 1878 hits and he just is never getting in.
   

Like I said, these are my opinions and I am sure that your’s will be different.  I always find this part of the year exciting just for the Hall of Fame debate.  I’m curious about your takes.

In a recent post, Kimaloo mentions offhandedly that even at her local Tar-ghay store she inevitably gets hits. It almost made me misty-eyed because, you see, that can never, ever happen at the Target in our town.

It took me a while to notice that the trading card distributor who stocks Target here is usually present on Wednesday or Thursday mornings. That's been true for at least a year, maybe longer, now that I think about it. Okay, so I'm slow.

But whenever I've noticed her, I also spy a fellow in the following uniform:

• wool hat;
• several shirts;
• a hoodie;
• droopy pants;
• a backpack;
• and iPod earphones leading to some electronic gizmo tucked in a pocket of one of his shirts.

Last week as I strolled by seeking dryer sheets, baby wipes, and a certain item that must go unmentioned in case You Know Who sees this post, there they were, the two of them, and it finally dawned on me that it's no coincidence. He is lurking.

The tableau:

*Neither do I.

It seems like this is long overdue.  Rickey certainly prolonged his retirement as he played well into his 40’s.  But Rickey Henderson and the Hall of Fame are a natural fit as he is certainly one of the best all-around players to ever have played the game.

If you think about all of the players that debuted in the majors after Rickey that are in baseball’s Hall of Fame, it is really a testament to his 25 season career.  Boggs, Gwynn, Sandberg, and Ripken Jr. are all players that got elected before Rickey but debuted in the big leagues years after his rookie season.

When I think Hall of Fame, I think of greatness.  The greatest hitters, the greatest pitchers, and the greatest fielders.  Some of the most logical tools out there to evaluate this would be the number of individual awards that a player has earned naming him as the greatest over the course of that specific season.  We have the Rookie of the Year award given to the best rookie.  We have the Cy Young award for the best pitcher.  We have the MVP for the best player.  And we have the Gold Glove for the best fielders.  Amazingly enough, after 25 seasons in the big leagues, Rickey Henderson was only honored with just 2 awards, the MVP in 1990 and the Gold Glove in 1981. 

It was Henderson’s approach to the game and approach at the plate that made him stand heads and shoulders above the other players that came into the league during the same time as him.  When at bat, you never knew if Rickey was going to hit one out of the park(he has 297 career home runs) or if he was going to get a single and then steal 2nd or 3rd base(he has 1406 career stolen bases) and eventually score(he has 2295 career runs scored).  What you did know was that you were watching one of the most exciting baseball players in the history of the game and he was going to entertain you every minute he was on the field.

Rickey Henderson should capture 98+% of the votes for his election into Cooperstown.  There are always those voters that seem to have grudges against certain players and take this as a chance to ruin the player’s opportunity to become a Hall of Famer on the first ballot.  Surely over the course of his 25 seasons Rickey has rubbed a few writers the wrong way and they will penalize him for it now.  But, the good news is that he will certainly be voted in on the first attempt and now we just sit back to wait for the speech to come next summer!!!!