Baseball Hall of Fame ballot released

Except he had a 3.90 career ERA at home and 3.88 ERA on the road. And the stats suggest that Tiger Stadium wasn't as hitter-friendly a park as you like to say it was. But don't let facts or numbers get in the way of your argument, please just continue to rely on anecdotal evidence based on your selective memory.

Yeah, he had some great postseason starts--no question. Let's clear up the issue of him taking three franchises to WS titles, though--he did much more to hurt Toronto in the playoffs then he did to help them, and he was a league-average pitcher that year. His run support bailed him out. He happened to be on a team that won the WS that year, he didn't have much to do with it.

In 9 years, his ERA was league-average (OK, an ERA+ of 102) or worse. In other words, for half of his career, he was no better than ordinary--and his "best" seasons weren't great enough to make up for that. And as far as his playoffs stuff goes...pick out Jack Morris from these five pitchers:

Pitcher A: 6-3, 2.65 ERA, 13 starts
Pitcher B: 5-3, 3.15 ERA, 11 starts
Pitcher C: 8-3, 2.59 ERA, 18 starts
Pitcher D: 7-4, 3.80 ERA, 13 starts
Pitcher E: 5-1, 2.47 ERA, 6 starts

Jack Morris is Pitcher D, and he has arguably the least impressive collective body of postseason work on that list. None of the other four are in the Hall (A is Tommy John, B is Jimmy Key, C is Orel Hershiser and E is ... Bert Blyleven). So give Morris all the playoff bonus points that you want. It still shouldn't put him in.

Plus, as far as ERA+ is concerned, Morris is closer to Livan (96) than Blyleven (118). He's clearly better than Livan, but just sayin'...

 

Haven't been in New York since the end of the World Series, have you? People here are wondering if it'll take one or two more years to get him in. Egads.

 

heh, Well I think it's more that Livan had such a weird career that the comparison doesn't seem apt, and he didn't have the same career length. Sorry - I was just trying to think of someone off the top of my head who was known for munching innings at a league-average rate. Livan did so in 2003, 2004 and 2005, with good ERA+ numbers in the process. But yeah, he didn't have the (good) career length of Morris.

 

And Schilling is not a Hall of Famer, either.

 

That's dumb and you should feel dumb.

15th in strikeouts, 2nd in K/BB, 42nd in ERA+, top 100 in wins and innings pitched.

Even if you don't give him credit for the postseason, that's a clear HOF resume. If he's not in, nobody's in.

 

I repeat. Not a Hall of Fame pitcher.

 

Ehh, I wouldn't go so far as to say Morris was known for "munching innings at a league-average rate."

In fact, Morris's reputation -- unlike Hernandez's -- was very strong during his playing days, by peers, writers and fans alike, and he remains an "ace" in the minds of many. Problem is, the numbers don't back up that perception. But he certainly was not known as an average pitcher.

 

Schilling's going to the HOF, and while it probably won't be on the first ballot, there won't be a whole lotta suspense about it, either.

Edit: Unless he somehow ends up on the steroid list. Then he can forget it, for multiple reasons.

 

Raines, Alomar, McGwire, Blyleven, Larkin for me this year (if I had a vote).

I think Dawson gets in despite his ridiculously low OBP and I think Alomar gets in.

 

My ballot arrived in the mail today, and I have just finished voting. Alomar, Blyleven, Raines, Parker, McGwire, Larkin, Dawson. Feel free to rip choices.

 

Keith Olbermann is among that heretofore unknown five percent of the population that thinks Harold Baines deserves to get in:
http://keitholbermann.mlblogs.com/archives/2009/11/hall_of_famers_and_numbers_wit.html