Well, that happened

The 2017 BBWAA ballots for induction into the Baseball Hall of Famer were announced back on January 18th.  The results were interesting.  Gaining induction were Tim Raines (on his 10th and final ballot), Jeff Bagwell (on his 7th ballot) and Ivan Rodriguez (on his first ballot).  Just barely missing the cut were Trevor Hoffman (on his second try) and Vlad Guerrero (on his first ballot).  Both got above 70%, so they will get in within two years time (and probably next year).  Roger Clemens, Barry Bonds, Mike Mussina and Edgar Martinez all took strong steps forward, while Curt Schilling went backwards and other players stalled.  There’s a lot of good and bad to look at on this year’s results, so let’s start with the good.

Hall of Fame Hopefuls- Right Field

Yes, this post is a couple of days late.  After reworking the center field post to up the median, it made sense to do it in right field as well, since the Veterans Committee has really watered down each position.  There were 10 center fielders voted in by the Veterans Committee, compared to eight by the BBWAA.  Out of the 24 right fielders inducted into the Hall of Fame, 11 were inducted by the Veterans Committee, and with very few exceptions are some of the lowest ranking players in Cooperstown.  As such, instead of the typical median score, a modified one using the lowest ranking BBWAA-inductee (Wee Willie Keeler) as the base score will be used.  That gives a median score of 29056, between Roberto Clemente and Paul Waner.

Hall of Fame Hopefuls-Centerfield

Centerfield is the most glorious position on the diamond, so it should have the highest standards for induction to Cooperstown.  If a player is going to be in the same group as Ty Cobb, Willie Mays and Mickey Mantle, then he better be one of the best of all-time.  That’s why the median score of 19553 seems like it’s lower than it should be, ranking between Kirby Puckett and Earl Averill.  It’s brought down quite a bit by having three players (Edd Roush, Hack Wilson and Lloyd Waner) rank in the bottom 200’s, and four additional players (Duke Snider, Max Carey, Earle Combs and Larry Doby) rank below 150.  So, it’s time to up the ante.  Snider is the worst CF that the BBWAA elected, and setting him as the bottom score resets the median to 28717, between Griffey and Hamilton.  Now, let’s see how some hopefuls do:

Hall of Fame Hopefuls- Left Field

Left field is always difficult to judge due to the fact that it is typically occupied by big bulky sluggers who are poor defenders.  As such, those few that can actually field well (Yaz, Rickey, Bonds) tend to get a boosted ranking because they can stand out more.  Still, if a player isn’t a big power hitter, it’s tough for them to be considered a great left fielder.  Left fielders have a median score of 22948, which would be Fred Clarke’s score with 19 left fielders in Cooperstown already.  Here’s how a few outsiders look:

Hall of Fame Hopefuls- Catchers

Catching is the most stressful and demanding position on the diamond defensively.  Accordingly, there tends to be less offense expected from catchers than from other players as long as they field well.  However, all that changed in the 1930’s with the advent of catchers like Mickey Cochrane, Gabby Hartnett and Bill Dickey who were very good hitters.  Cooperstown houses 15 catchers in the gallery, with the median score belonging to Buck Ewing, 24573.  Let’s see how some outsiders rank:

Hall of Fame Hopefuls- Shortstops

Shortstops tend to be the most underrated hitters in history, mostly because they are typically known for their gloves first.  However, without some positive contributions offensively, even an Ozzie Smith level defender would have difficulty making it into the Hall of Fame.  Shortstop is one of the more populated positions in Cooperstown, with 22 inductees at the position.  The median score for shortstops comes in between Luis Aparicio and Barry Larkin at 26116.  Here are how some outside shortstops rank:

Hall of Fame Hopefuls-Third Basemen

Third basemen tend to be players with limited range, but quick reflexes and strong arms.  Ever since Eddie Mathews hit the scene, third basemen have needed to possess some power in order to get noticed, with the exception of great OBP skills (Wade Boggs) or tremendous defense (Brooks Robinson).  Third base is criminally underrepresented in the Hall of Fame with merely a dozen inductees.  The median score for third basemen is 27782, which is between Robinson and Ron Santo.  Let’s see how well some outsiders rank for potential Hall of Famers.

Hall of Fame Hopefuls- Second Basemen

Second basemen tend to be the smaller, less powerful players on a team.  Most are good base runners, and most hit for a high average.  Like at first base, there are twenty second basemen inducted in the Hall of Fame, ranging from Rogers Hornsby to Johnny Evers.  Second basemen check in with a median score of 24104, ranking between Ryne Sandberg and Joe Gordon.  Let’s see where a few outside players rank:

Hall of Fame Hopefuls-First Basemen

First basemen are typically big sluggers (ie Willie McCovey and Harmon Killebrew) that are poor to average defenders, but there will occasionally be one that hits for a high average without a ton of power (ie George Sisler) or is a good defender.  The Hall of Fame currently hosts 20 first basemen, ranging from Lou Gehrig to Frank Chance.  The median score for first basemen is 21066, which ranks between Hank Greenberg and Jake Beckley.  The best way to determine a player’s Hall of Fame candidacy would be to calculate what his score will be, then compare it within his position.  If he grades out with similar Hall of Famers, then he probably would be a good candidate.  If he grades only with low-ranking Hall of Famers, then he probably shouldn’t be inducted.  While the following list isn’t meant to be exhaustive (and isn’t for any position that will be covered here), here’s a list of former, current and future candidates for induction at first base:

Split-stats: Teams in the Hall of Fame

While looking over each player, it’s easy to wonder which teams have the most Hall of Famers, or which teams have the best Hall of Famers.  According to the categories on the right-hand side of the screen, the top 10 teams in terms of numbers of Hall of Famers are:

1- NY/SF Giants (24)

2- NY Yankees (19)

3- Chicago Cubs (15)

3t- St Louis Cardinals (15)

5- Cleveland Indians (14)

6- Boston/Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves (13)

7- Pittsburgh Pirates (12)

7t- Philadelphia Phillies (12)

9- Boston Red Sox (11)

10-Baltimore Orioles (St Louis Browns) (10)

10t- Chicago White Sox (10)

10t- Brooklyn/LA Dodgers (10)

10t- Philly/KC/Oakland Athletics (10)

Most of these should be pretty straight forward.  All 13 teams here were part of the original 16 teams (Senators, Reds and Tigers on the outside looking in).  The Giants get a big boost from the Frisch/Terry coalition of the Veterans Committee, and the Yankees have been arguably the best baseball team of all-time.  The Indians are interesting, as are the White Sox, since neither team has a long history of success.  The Dodgers feel like they should be higher, but most of their great players came in the 1950’s and 1960’s.

What would be more interesting would be to see which teams actually had the best quality of Hall of Famers inducted.  Here’s how the teams above average Hall of Fame player scored:

1. Giants- 20995
2. Yankees- 26289
3. Cubs- 19690
4. Cardinals- 23750
5. Indians- 23974
6. Braves- 23025
7. Pirates- 21544
8. Red Sox- 32662
9. Phillies- 24441
10. Orioles- 26055
11. White Sox- 24151
12. Dodgers- 23065
13. Athletics- 27356

The Red Sox pretty much blow everyone else there away.  Why is that?  Well the Sox have only two players ranking below 150 (Jimmy Collins and Harry Hooper), while the Yankees have seven that far down (Phil Rizzuto, Earle Combs, Herb Pennock, Waite Hoyt, Tony Lazzeri, Red Ruffing and Jack Chesbro) which will hurt their average score.  The Cubs rank so low because they have four players below 200 in the Hall of Fame (Frank Chance, Johnny Evers, Hack Wilson and King Kelly) and their best players (Cap Anson and Ernie Banks) rank only 41st and 44th respectively.

An aggregate ranking would be difficult, but based on the number of players in each of the top 25 marks (25, 50, 75, etc.) would yield this:

1. Yankees
2. Giants
3. Red Sox
4. Cardinals
5. Indians
6. Athletics
7. Tigers
8. Cubs
9. Phillies
10. Orioles
11. White Sox
12. Braves
13. Pirates
14. Dodgers

That list looks fairly accurate, with another surprise at just how good the Indians have been over the years.  Another interesting surprise is the appearance of the Tigers, who had 9 Hall of Famers so far.  However, the Tigers did manage to get three players in the top-50 (Ty Cobb, Charlie Gehringer and Al Kaline) and only one player ranked below the top-150 (George Kell).

What teams have done the worst in the Hall of Fame?  Several teams have only one or two players inducted, and only four teams have yet to have an inductee (Angels, Rockies, Rays and Marlins).  Of the original franchises, the Senators/Twins and Reds have both seen the fewest inductees with only 8.

Believe it or not, I will still have a double update today.  The next one will go up at 7:00 am EDT.