^
For years and years and years, it was accepted that any player with 500 or more career home runs deserved Hall of Fame enshrinement.
That unwritten rule was busted into a zillion little pieces by the Steroid Era. Mark McGwire and Rafael Palmeiro have been shunned decisively by BBWAA voters. And there's a better than good chance that all-time longball leader Barry Bonds, as well as Sammy Sosa (whose bat-corking episode represents a second strike against him), will be blanked in this year's balloting.
But what about those who haven't been suspected of juicing? Well, 500 home runs isn't automatic for them, either.
Example: Adam Dunn.
The White Sox whiffer just became the 50th player in big-league history to hit career HR No. 400. He's only 32 years old, he goes for the fences with every swing and he's about the size of the Trump Tower (though not as big as the Trump Ego).
I'll be shocked if he doesn't finish his career with well over 500 home runs.
Unless he suddenly becomes more than a one-tool ballplayer, however, Adam Dunn will not get my Hall vote no matter how many HRs he ends up with. I'm guessing the vast majority of my fellow voters also will reject his candidacy.
He was an embarrassingly bad outfielder in the National League before becoming a DH in Chicago. He lumbers around the bases. He is a strikeout machine. In 2011, he had arguably the worst offensive season in baseball history. He is only a two-time All-Star, with one selection coming despite a batting average near .200. He hasn't been a big-time run-producer. He has never played on a playoff team, a fact he hopes to help change this season.
Only his wife and son believe this to be the resume of a Hall of Famer.
Yep, if unwritten rules actually meant something, they'd be written!
^
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
.JPG)
i got a real goofy idea...why don't you suggest to the other writers that y'all (comon you are in the south) create a juicers hall of fame from which there is no escape...really... that way...there will be no weakening of the wills of future and present writers...if the person can actually show some kinda proof that they were drug free well so be it... ;=) anyway the thought made me smile...
ReplyDeleteI'm still ticked that the McGwire/Sosa home run chase in 1998 is just, well, meaningless now because of what we eventually learned. It was such a feel-good time and I didn't even hate the Cardinals for awhile, ha. Dang, I do hope those two are never recognized for HoF, simply because they drew us in, then spit us out, and never owned up to the truth. ~Belle
ReplyDeleteAlways nice to hear from you, Belle.
ReplyDeleteJudging by the BBWAA's complete disregard for McLiar's Hall candidacy, I don't think you're gonna have to worry about future enshrinement for either him or Sammy.