The voting is finally in for the most-anticipated ballot ever for the Baseball Hall of Fame.
As somebody who has submitted a ballot since 1997, these are my thoughts, item-by-item.
- I am surprised former Tigers? ace Jack Morris didn?t get in. It seems like he has become the victim of statistical nit and cherry picking. In the process, what Morris actually accomplished is too often ignored.
What is primarily keeping Morris out of the Hall of Fame is his career ERA. It was 3.90, which would be the highest of any Hall of Fame pitcher. What is not taken into account is the era Morris pitched in. The offensive numbers, likely because of Performance Enhancing Drug (PED) use, skewed higher in the late 1980s and 1990s, which encompassed the second half of his career.
For example, the composite batting average of American League hitters in 1968 was .230, and OPS (on base plus slugging percentage) .637. In 1987, the year in the middle of the World Series heroics Morris performed for the Tigers in 1984 and Twins in 1990, AL hitters batted .265 with a .759 OPS. The composite AL ERA and WHIP (walks and hits per innings pitched) in 1968 and 1987 were equally different. The ERA and WHIP in 1968 were 3.41 and 1.885 compared to 4.47 and 1.408 in 1987. Pitchers prior to 1969 worked on a mound that was five inches higher (15 inches compared to 10). Morris pitched in the American League when there was a designated hitter.
The pitchers of the 1950s and 1960s with the similar career stats across the board to Morris were locks for the Hall of Fame, but their ERAs were lower.
That?s before you get to the 254 career wins and Morris winning more games than any pitcher during the 1980s.
And the idea Morris wasn?t dominant in any given season is a laughable.
If it weren?t for Jack Morris, it is doubtful either the 1984 Tigers or the 1990 Twins (the latter a last-place to World Series title story the year they got Morris) would have won world championships. Continued...
The window of opportunity for Morris to be voted in was this year. With Greg Maddux, among others coming onto the ballot next year, I doubt he will be voted in. Next season will the 15th and last year Morris will be on the writer?s ballot. But the high percentage of votes he has been getting is a strong indication he will eventually be voted in by the Veterans Committee. It?s just a shame he will have to wait longer than necessary for that moment.- My ballot this year had Morris, former Tigers shortstop Alan Trammell, Tim Raines, Fred McGriff and Lee Smith.
I didn?t vote for anybody I remotely suspected of PED use. I will not vote for Barry Bonds or Roger Clemens until a full and sincere mea culpa on their part. I would consider them if there is an admission about what they did, because a strong case can be made they were Hall of Fame caliber players before there were any PED questions.
Others such as Craig Biggio, Jeff Bagwell, Mike Piazza I am suspicious, but will keep my mind open about voting for them in the future.
- It does not bother me nobody was voted in this year. Better to get it right eventually, than rush to action when it isn?t necessary. In other words, it is a 15-year process for each player. A lot can be revealed in that time. As for denials, remember Marion Jones and Lance Armstrong in other sports.
The players of the steroids era, collectively, did everything they could to make sure they protected those who were cheating their sport and the fan base. The media (myself included) turned a blind eye. History, for some reason, has diminished just how big an epidemic PED issue was in baseball for an extended period of time.
- Look, I have one vote, that?s all, and prepared myself for this day. I decided to do what I think, deep in my heart and soul, is the right thing. I know enough of the others also casting ballots to understand they are doing the same, whether they agree or not with parts or all of my ballot or stance.
If I get criticism for it, so be it. It comes with the territory.
I strongly feel I am doing the right thing.
Pat Caputo is a senior sports reporter and a columnist for The Oakland Press. Contact him pat.caputo@oakpress.com and read his blog at theoaklandpress.com. You can follow him on Twitter @patcaputo98 Continued...
The voting is finally in for the most-anticipated ballot ever for the Baseball Hall of Fame.As somebody who has submitted a ballot since 1997, these are my thoughts, item-by-item.
- I am surprised former Tigers? ace Jack Morris didn?t get in. It seems like he has become the victim of statistical nit and cherry picking. In the process, what Morris actually accomplished is too often ignored.
What is primarily keeping Morris out of the Hall of Fame is his career ERA. It was 3.90, which would be the highest of any Hall of Fame pitcher. What is not taken into account is the era Morris pitched in. The offensive numbers, likely because of Performance Enhancing Drug (PED) use, skewed higher in the late 1980s and 1990s, which encompassed the second half of his career.
For example, the composite batting average of American League hitters in 1968 was .230, and OPS (on base plus slugging percentage) .637. In 1987, the year in the middle of the World Series heroics Morris performed for the Tigers in 1984 and Twins in 1990, AL hitters batted .265 with a .759 OPS. The composite AL ERA and WHIP (walks and hits per innings pitched) in 1968 and 1987 were equally different. The ERA and WHIP in 1968 were 3.41 and 1.885 compared to 4.47 and 1.408 in 1987. Pitchers prior to 1969 worked on a mound that was five inches higher (15 inches compared to 10). Morris pitched in the American League when there was a designated hitter.
The pitchers of the 1950s and 1960s with the similar career stats across the board to Morris were locks for the Hall of Fame, but their ERAs were lower.
That?s before you get to the 254 career wins and Morris winning more games than any pitcher during the 1980s.
And the idea Morris wasn?t dominant in any given season is a laughable.
If it weren?t for Jack Morris, it is doubtful either the 1984 Tigers or the 1990 Twins (the latter a last-place to World Series title story the year they got Morris) would have won world championships.
The window of opportunity for Morris to be voted in was this year. With Greg Maddux, among others coming onto the ballot next year, I doubt he will be voted in. Next season will the 15th and last year Morris will be on the writer?s ballot. But the high percentage of votes he has been getting is a strong indication he will eventually be voted in by the Veterans Committee. It?s just a shame he will have to wait longer than necessary for that moment.
- My ballot this year had Morris, former Tigers shortstop Alan Trammell, Tim Raines, Fred McGriff and Lee Smith.
I didn?t vote for anybody I remotely suspected of PED use. I will not vote for Barry Bonds or Roger Clemens until a full and sincere mea culpa on their part. I would consider them if there is an admission about what they did, because a strong case can be made they were Hall of Fame caliber players before there were any PED questions.
Others such as Craig Biggio, Jeff Bagwell, Mike Piazza I am suspicious, but will keep my mind open about voting for them in the future.
- It does not bother me nobody was voted in this year. Better to get it right eventually, than rush to action when it isn?t necessary. In other words, it is a 15-year process for each player. A lot can be revealed in that time. As for denials, remember Marion Jones and Lance Armstrong in other sports.
The players of the steroids era, collectively, did everything they could to make sure they protected those who were cheating their sport and the fan base. The media (myself included) turned a blind eye. History, for some reason, has diminished just how big an epidemic PED issue was in baseball for an extended period of time.
- Look, I have one vote, that?s all, and prepared myself for this day. I decided to do what I think, deep in my heart and soul, is the right thing. I know enough of the others also casting ballots to understand they are doing the same, whether they agree or not with parts or all of my ballot or stance.
If I get criticism for it, so be it. It comes with the territory.
I strongly feel I am doing the right thing.
Pat Caputo is a senior sports reporter and a columnist for The Oakland Press. Contact him pat.caputo@oakpress.com and read his blog at theoaklandpress.com. You can follow him on Twitter @patcaputo98
Source: http://www.pressandguide.com/articles/2013/01/10/sports/doc50eec62199351092934871.txt
navy seals navy seal team 6 tim gunn tim gunn built to last obama state of the union address 2012 mitt romney tax return
No comments:
Post a Comment