2007 Hall of Fame vote: Would you vote for McGwire?

Zeke nailed it, of course.

But yes, Joe Jackson was a certain Hall of Famer when his career ended. If he plays 3-4 more years (and he played independent/semi-pro ball til 1933, at age 45, so there's no reason to believe he wouldn't have played another 5-6 years in the majors, easy) then we're talking about a legit rival to Cobb and Williams as the greatest hitter of all time. And of course, without the tarnished reputation ...

Yes, Shoeless Joe was that good.

And the man's been dead since 1951 -- he's served his time, now put him in the Hall.

 

That's just like you, Buck Weaver...

 

You know, I could be the ugliest man in baseball until Yogi Berra came along ... just sayin' ... (and thank god for Joe Torre, FWIW) ;D

Just be glad you can't see who Risberg's talking to beside the cage there behind me. Probably up to something fishy.

The Swede was a hard guy ...

 

Couple of things.
Unless someone has proof Rose bet on baseball while a PLAYER, he should be eligible for the HOF and banned from managing or coaching.
Pete isn't a saint but he earned his spot.
And maybe someone else can look this up but wasn't Ty Cobb investigated for throwing a game? From what I know, Landis brushed it aside.
If Pete Rose is on the outside looking in, then Ty's racist ass should be there too.
Finally, if Shoeless Joe was banned for "life," doesn't the ban end after he DIES?

And to the original question, no way McGwire belongs, not after his "I'm not here to talk about the past" performance on the Hill.

 

I think they're hte best damn ball club I ever saw.

I loves me some Eight Men Out.

 

I've posted about Cobb-Speakergate before. Here's the best one I could find about it:
http://www.sportsjournalists.com/forum/posts/685288/

Here's my previous take about Shoeless Joe and the HOF (also some mention of Cobb there, too):
http://www.sportsjournalists.com/forum/posts/751739/

 

Thanks Buck.

 

All Dad has to do is explain that most people believe McGwire accomplished much of what he did with the help of steroids, which are illegal for that kind of use in this country. And when given the opportunity to clear his name in Congress, he whiffed. Dad can explain to the kids that sometimes, the end doesn't justify the means.

 

No.
The guy was a .264 career hitter. He was a fine fielder, but he was a first baseman, not a centerfielder or shortstop, so it's hard to give him many points for that. He couldn't run. He even didn't hit that many doubles. He did nothing memorable in the post-season. And, while he played 14 seasons, he only topped 110 games in 10 of them. He was great at bashing homers. But that's about it. And, really, he was only all-time-great at bashing homers for three seasons.
Like someone said at the start of this thread, he was one-dimensional. No Hall for him.

 

Maybe instead of talking baseball, Dad and junior can have a meaningful conversation about values and the consequences of cheating?

 

GOOSE FREAKIN' GOSSAGE!!!!

One bad dude.

No to McGwire.

He's not here to talk about the past.

 

The steroid hysteria is a reason why a player can be kept on the ballot for a few years, so that passions can subside, or memories of somebody tanking at the end of a career can be set aside with added perspective, or to see if someone's base-stealing ability or something like that is proven more extraordinary in light of subsequent stats by other players. That said, DiMaggio needing three ballots is unfathomable.

And I hope Dad is Junior's moral role model, not some athlete.