Every year when we return our ballot paper, we are asked if we want to make our vote public 14 days after the results are announced. If this story appears, you will of course know the answer.
One thing you won’t see here is criticizing someone else’s ballot. There are so many different ways to approach this assignment.
The other thing is that in most cases I don’t like to say why I didn’t vote for someone unless they are players like Manny Ramirez And Alex Rodriguezwho have failed tests for steroids.
The other person I’m not voting for that should be mentioned is Carlos Beltranwho is worth introducing with his performance, but masterminded the Houston Astros’ sign-stealing scandal in 2017, which changed the perception of the World Series champions. His role was so big that it cost him a managerial job.
Last year Beltran came closest to being unelected by receiving 70.3% of the vote and this year he will likely get the necessary 75%. He had a great career.
The argument against my position on players like Ramirez, Rodriguez and Beltran is that they were among the best players and deserve a place in Cooperstown.
Again, I can respect that opinion, but not vote for those players.
One more thing: I won’t have a very big vote, but I also won’t explain why certain players other than those already mentioned aren’t on it. Doing so belittles a player’s great career. All of these players on the ballot were great and there is no need to tear them down.
Another thing is that this reporter believes that players should be judged by the position they play. The criteria for second basemen is different than for third basemen, etc.
That said, here is my ballot, which consists of just two players.
The remains
Chase Utley
None of them the Phillies 2008 World Series champion team has reached the Hall of Fame. Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins (now in its fifth year on the ballot) and Cole Hamels (now in his first season of eligibility) all had great careers.
Utley led that World Series team with a bWAR of 9.0.
He was a six-time all-star. The knock on him is that he didn’t produce enough, but at his peak Utley was among the best players in baseball.
Utley had a six-year stretch where his bWAR average was 7.3. During those six years, from 2005 to 2010, his slash line was .298/.388/.523 with an OPS+ of 133. He averaged 27.0 home runs, 95.3 RBI and 104.7 runs scored.
His career 64.6 career bWAR is 15th all-time among all second basemen. Of those 15 players, he had the fewest plate appearances (7,863), as injuries hampered him during the latter part of his career, although he still continued to produce, just not at the rate he did during the aforementioned six-year span. He ranks 10th among all second basemen in wins above average (41.0).
His 259 career home runs rank seventh among all second basemen, six of whom have been elected to the Hall of Fame. There are only 11 Hall of Fame second basemen who produced a better OPS+ than Utley’s 117.
His career slash line was .275/.358/.465. That, along with his power numbers, is very good for second basemen. He was in the top 10 of MVP voting three times.
This is Utley’s third year on the ballot. He received 28.8% of the vote his first year and 39.8% last year. He still has a long way to go, but he is moving in a positive direction.
David Wright
Also in his third year of voting, Wright received only 8.1% of the votes a year ago. Injuries ended an excellent career.
For comparison: two years ago Scott Rolen got my vote and he was elected to the Hall of Fame. Wright was certainly comparable to Rolen in my opinion. Both earned seven All-Star appearances. Rolen was the better fielder, but Wright did win two Gold Gloves. Wright was a more consistent offensive player.
The reason Wright got this vote is that, like Utley, he had a very strong peak. For Wright, that lasted nine years, from 2005 to 2013. During that time, his slash line was .302/.384/.505. He averaged 23.1 home runs and 92.9 RBI, 90.2 runs scored and 19.7 stolen bases. His OPS+ was 138.
After that 2013 season, which he played at age 30, Wright was never the same again due to injury.
For his career, Wright hit .296/.376/491 with 242 home runs and 970 RBI with a 133 OPS+. He finished in the top 10 in MVP voting four times.
During his time, Wright was among the best players in baseball and while he faces an uphill battle for election, he will continue to get this vote.
This year’s players
No one got my vote among this year’s first-year eligible players. This year’s first-year eligible players were Ryan Braun, That’s a Chinese, Edwin EncarnacionGio González, Alex GordonCole Hamels, Matt Kemp, Howie Kendrick, Nick Markakis, Daniel Murphy, Hunter Pence And Rik Porcello.
Again, they were all great players to get on the ballot, but not enough to receive this vote.
And finally
The players who will appear on next year’s ballot for the first time are: Jake Arrieta, Jay Bruce, Asdrubal Cabrera, Starlin Castro, Wade Davis, Dexter Fowler, Todd Frazier, Brett Gardner, YES Happ, Scott Kazmir, Jon Lester, Andreas Molenaar, Mitch Moreland, Buster Posey, Ervin Santana, Kyle Seager, Joakim Soria, Ryan Zimmerman, Jordan Zimmermann.
#Marc #Narducci #Hall #Fame #vote