Tag: Craig Biggio

According to ELIAS – Twins lose on back-to-back jacks in 15th inning

Morrison and Longoria go back-to-back in the 15th inning

Logan Morrison and Evan Longoria hit back-to-back home runs in the 15th inning yesterday to give the Rays an 8-6 win over the Twins. It’s the third time in major-league history that a pair of players hit back-to-back home runs in the 15th inning or later. Boston’s Frank Malzone and Dick (Dr. Strangeglove) Stuart did it in the 15th inning at Tiger Stadium on June 11, 1963, and Brian Hunter and Craig Biggio did it for the Astros at Shea Stadium on June 16, 1995.

If I had a Hall of Fame vote

Hall of FameIt won’t be long before the MLB Hall of Fame announces its newest members so it is time once again for me to dream and pretend that I have a vote that counts. Heck, I have probably seen more games and follow baseball more closely than a lot of the clowns that have a vote but that is a whole different story. If I had a vote I still can’t find it in my heart to vote for Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Mark McGwire and that bunch. I am not going to waste my time and yours on my reasoning because we have heard all those pro’s and con’s before. Maybe some time in the future they will get my vote but it won’t be this year. Just to show how time can change your thinking I am just about ready, not quite there yet but very close to saying that Pete Rose has served enough time in purgatory to get elected to the Hall of Fame. I know he has been a jerk at times but he could play some baseball and who could argue his hustle? The rub is that “hustle” can have several meanings. I am not going to quote a bunch of stats here because if you want to see them then go to B-R and check them out for yourself.

Randy Johnson gets my first vote, simply because I think he was the most intimidating pitcher in my era. Johnson has to be the pitcher that most batters would hate to face and the man was just scary to watch but you couldn’t help but stay focused on the mound whenever he pitched.

Vote number two goes to Pedro Martinez, 5 foot 11 and 170 pounds and I think 170 may have been pushing it. Are you kidding me? The man could throw a baseball and he knew how to pitch. He never pitched for teams I liked so I was always hoping he would lose but the man seldom did, a career .687 winning percentage over 18 seasons. Hall of Fame in my book.

Tim Raines gets vote number three. Again, small in stature at 5 foot 8 and 160 pounds but the “Rock” could play some baseball. Not as well-known as some because he played in Montreal for so long but Raines had six straight seasons with 70 stolen bases or more to go with his .810 OPS.

Vote number four goes to Craig Biggio. The man was a catcher, second baseman and a center fielder and through out all those position moves he still found time to post a .281 career batting mark in over 10,800 at bats. Heck, playing for 20 years for the Houston Astros should get you a few bonus votes too.

My fifth vote goes to one of my favorite all-time players, John Smoltz. 213 wins and 154 saves to boot spread over 21 seasons. I still remember that fateful day in August 1987 when the Detroit Tigers traded him to the Atlanta Braves for Doyle Alexander. When someone mentions the word “winner”, I have an image of Smoltz in my mind. A great pitcher and a real gentleman.

My final vote this season goes to Jeff Bagwell. OMG, those Houston Astros sure cleaned the Boston Red Sox’s clock when they acquired Bagwell for Larry Andersen. Only 15 seasons but 449 home runs along with a .948 OPS is good enough for me.

How will my votes compare to the “real” votes? I am thinking I will be 4 for 6 with Tim Raines and Jeff Bagwell coming up short of the 75% required. That will be a shame but we all know that life is not always fair and that there is no crying in baseball. Good luck to all the Hall of Fame candidates, you had to be a pretty special ballplayer just to make the ballot.

Maddux, Glavine, Thomas elected to HOF

Greg Maddux
Greg Maddux

Congratulations to Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Frank Thomas on getting elected to the Hall of Fame in their first year on the BBWAA ballot. All three cleared the 75-percent threshold required to gain election to the Hall of Fame and thus will be inducted in ceremonies July 25-28 at Cooperstown, N.Y. According to the BBWAA web site, “Maddux was the leading vote getter with 555 votes of the 571 ballots, including one blank, cast by senior members of the BBWAA, writers with 10 or more consecutive years of service. That represented 97.2 percent of the vote. Glavine received 525 votes (91.9 percent) and Thomas 478 (83.7).

Tom Glavine
Tom Glavine

In his second year on the ballot Craig Biggio missed getting elected by just two votes. Former Twins pitcher Pitcher Jack Morris received 351 votes (61.5) in his final year on the ballot and will be eligible for the Expansion Era Committee consideration in the fall of 2016. Former Twins reliever Todd Jones who had asked that no one vote for him for the HOF was granted his wish and he will be dropped from the ballot. Former Twins outfielder Jacque Jones and pitcher Kenny Rogers each received but one vote and will also be dropped from future HOF ballots. Rafael Palmeiro only received 4.4% of the vote and will also be dropped from future voting. You can see the complete voting results at http://baseballhall.org/voting-results .

Frank Thomas
Frank Thomas

I am very disappointed that Tim Raines (46.10%), and Edgar Martinez (25.20%) received such low vote totals, I don’t understand how some of the voters can not vote for these and other baseball greats. It appears that the DH role continues to plague some players and I just don’t understand that. DH is a position created by major league baseball and yet voters do not give it the credit it deserves. Each position has unique characteristics and has to be looked at in its own right. Wake up voters, the DH has been around for 40 years and it is not going away in the near future so give the men that play the DH role the credit they deserve. Closers only pitch an inning or so in about 60 games a season, often lose more games than they win and damn near never hit and yet you have no problem electing them to th HOF and yet most DH’s are kept out? STUPID!

On a side note, the Baseball Bloggers Alliance (BBA) hit it right on this year by selecting Maddux, Glavine and Thomas to be elected to the HOF. You can see how we voted here.

 

If I had a Hall of Fame vote

Just think how much fun it would be to have a have a vote for the MLB Hall of Fame. There are many deserving candidates on the list this year as there are every year but this years ballot seems extraordinarily loaded. You have three pitchers with 300+ wins, you have five hitters with 500+ home runs, two players with 3,000+ hits, a player with 800+ stolen bases and a closer with 478 saves.

According to MLB HOF rules, electors may vote for as few as zero (0) and as many as ten (10) eligible candidates deemed worthy of election. Write-in votes are not permitted.

Any candidate receiving votes on seventy-five percent (75%) of the ballots cast shall be elected to membership in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Voting shall be based upon the player’s record, playing ability, integrity, sportsmanship, character, and contributions to the team(s) on which the player played.

For me that is where the “kicker” comes in to play. The words integrity and character are specifically mentioned in the voting rules. I know that not all the players in the Hall are saints but what is in the past is not something I can change. If I had a vote today I could not vote for players that have been accused of cheating. I know all about innocent until proven guilty but that is not how things really are in life. These players that are being accused of cheating are hiding behind the veil of time and waiting for time to pass by. If these players were really innocent, I think they would be putting forth some effort to show that they are innocent. Come on, step up and show me why you should not be lumped in with that bunch of cheaters. When and if the Hall decided that Shoeless Joe Jackson and Pete Rose can be enshrined in the Hall, I will be open to placing a vote for players like Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, and Rafael Palmeiro. Until then, these guys have to wait on the bench.

 The Twins Trivia Hall of Fame ballot for 2013 would look like this.

Greg Maddux

Frank Thomas

Craig Biggio

Edgar Martinez

Tom Glavine

Jack Morris

Tim Raines

Tony La Russa, Joe Torre and Bobby Cox were unanimously elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame
Tony La Russa, Joe Torre and Bobby Cox were unanimously elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame

Congratulations to Joe Torre, Bobby Cox, and Tony LaRussa on their election to the Hall of Fame.