Wednesday, January 24, 2018

Obligatory Hall of Fame Update: 2018

We have six new Hall of Famers for 2018, and that means the list of Hall of Famers' first major league home runs has been updated.

My thoughts on our new inductees? In brief:

Chipper Jones, Jim Thome, and Alan Trammell are all deserving, and I'm glad they got in.

Vladimir Guerrero was more of a borderline case, but he had the traditional numbers and the peak value to be a selection I won't complain too much about.

Trevor Hoffman was one of the most overrated players of all-time, but he was perceived as a future Hall of Famer throughout his career, so I guess it was inevitable. It's a shame that those save totals mean so much to voters. Billy Wagner was probably just as good, but with less-gaudy numbers.

And then there's Jack Morris. There's a selection that makes me angry. When he finally dropped off the BBWAA ballot, I breathed a sigh of relief that we wouldn't have to hear about his overrated career any longer. But then this Veteran's Committee thing decides to put him in. What a joke. The guy was never anything but a good, sturdy starter. He never had any dominant seasons. Yes, Pitching a 10-inning shutout in Game 7 of the World Series is a fine achievement, but it puts him in the Mazeroski Zone of worthiness. A fine career plus a legendary Game 7 are enough for a Cooperstown Plaque, apparently. I'm calling it now: Madison Bumgarner has already got his spot locked up.