Congratulations to the Hawk and to Bert who made a impressive jump this year
While the Hawk was the only player elected to the Hall this ballot, a Mr. Bert Blyleven (whom I know we all hold near and dear to our hearts) made a huge jump this year and fell just 5 votes short of entry. He ended up with 400 votes this year up from 338 last year. Given he's this close and is down to his last 2 years, he's a near lock to get in (normally players pick up some borderline/sympathy votes in their last few chances).
Question: Does Bert belong?
Bert's Career Highlights:
W:287 (25th all-time)
L:250 (10th all -time, but why are you focused on this?)
ERA: 3.31
G: 692
CS:685 (9th all-time)
CG: 242 (wow!)
SHO: 60 (9th all-time)
IP: 4,970 (13th all-time)
H: 4,632
ER: 1830
HR: 430
BB: 1322
SO: 3,701 (6.7 per 9 innings-... again, wow!) (5th all-time)
10 Comments:
I'm not as beat up about this in years past, for the simple reason that he's virtually assured of getting in at this point.
The arguments for are many. The arguments against are (i) few, and (ii) either (a) lacking in historic perspective (he wasn't "dominant enough" or "he didn't win any Cy Youngs") or stemming from a misunderstanding of how to evaluate the effectiveness of pitchers (always centered around W-L). Both of those are combined with a lack of acknowledgment of where and on what generally shitty teams he played most of his career. The only argument I'll accept against Bert is the one that goes "But the Hall of Fame should be for the truly elite, all-time greats, not the really good for a long time, great in their times guys." To which I can only retort "That's the Hall of Fame you wish to see, not the Hall of Fame that is. Exhibit A: Jim Rice. Exhibit B: Andre Dawson. Exhibit C: Don Sutton. I could go on, but you're expressing a philosophical/system displeasure. Go talk to Bill Simmons about his multi-tiered Hall of Fame idea."
In 1971, Blyleven lost 15 games. His run support in those games? 18. Total. With league average run support over his career, he'd be at 320 wins and would have been in a decade ago.
He finished in the top ten in the league in WHIP 11 times, and in Adjusted ERA+ 12 times. He was consistently one of the most effective pitchers in the majors for most of his career. He had what most players of the era would call the most devastating curveball ever. He was a great postseason pitcher when given the rare chance. There's no question he should be in. He's fifth all-time in strikeouts, for crying out loud.
January 6, 2010 at 3:30 PM
Even before the vote it seems the tide had turned for Blyleven. I heard more and more people coming out in favor of him. If nothing else vote him in to get him to shut up about it.
I will say he barely passes the baseball card test. As a kid, I would not put Blyleven in the beloved 3 ring binder. Chris Magnell did and I always thought Blyleven was more filler than quality. Seriously did anyone of you ever trade for a Blyleven post 1980? However, he passes the second part, I would not mind having aquired some 70's Blyleven cards while on the Pirates or the first go around with the Twins.
January 7, 2010 at 11:10 AM
RTS - You get the newly created award: "Comment of the Day." Honors to you.
January 7, 2010 at 11:13 AM
MCA - couldn't agree more. You want the HOF criteria to be you have to be in the top in every category ever, then go to it. And I will join you in ripping down the gaylord perry plaques and the orlando cepeda statue and the willie stargell cards from the gift shop. This is why reporters shouldn't get to vote - because they are smarmy little shits who never played and now spend all their time trying to punch holes in why someone who has the fifth most strikeouts of all time SHOULDN'T be honored as one of the best ever. I;m talking to folks like you, Mitch Albom. I've got a new rule - before you get to vote, you have to catch one of Blyleven's curveballs. Not hit it. Just catch it. If you can't, then go back to coaching tee ball and reading sporting news as you cry yourself to sleep because you were always the last one picked on the playground.
January 7, 2010 at 11:28 AM
Blyleven not 3 ring binder worthy...RTS I'm shocked.Of course this is coming from a kid who, along with those that truly deserved to be in the 3 ring binder, also used to put nearly ever Twin in there (almost every Twin Pete Filson- there is now way in hell you were going in my binder- nor you Tommy Herr)
January 7, 2010 at 1:34 PM
The Twins traded Tom Brunansky for Tom Herr. Terrible trade. Trivia question, Tom Brunansky was on a 1982 Topps Future Star Card. What team was he a future star for?
January 7, 2010 at 2:16 PM
I was going to say the Red Sox, but now that I looked it up I'll just tell everyone to guess something else.
I don't know that I'd call any trade where all we gave up was a corner outfielder with a 105 career OPS+ "terrible." "Didn't work out too well" suffices for me. I think our remembrances of Bruno are probably tainted by our being 10 years old when he was in his prime and being carried by Kirby and Hrbek. Same for Gaetti, incidentally. Those guys really weren't all that good.
Right on, DTK. I should have figured a d-bag like Mitch Albom (never before has a man with so little insight been esteemed as so thoughtful) would vote against Blyleven. I myself was thinking of Jon Heyman, who's unrepentant about throwing out all the numbers he doesn't like about Blyleven (ie, all the ones that are actually indicative of effectiveness) and instead focusing on the unquantifiable "dominant" bullshit. As if throwing 60 career shutouts isn't a pretty good indication of it. Apparently for him you have to have East Coast sportwriters from the '70's miraculously toss their Cy Young votes to you, despite having seen you pitch once or twice all year, to be considered dominant. Then he harps on the numbers he does like, like win percentage, ignoring things like park- and team-adjusted win calculations. Then he has the audacity to fucking vote for Jack Morris and not for Blyleven. I mean, c'mon. I was at Game 7 in '91, but Morris had a career 3.90 ERA. Putting him in the Hall of Fame is roughly equivalent to inducting Joe Carter because he homered off Mitch Williams.
January 7, 2010 at 3:11 PM
Wow...you guys are going way back. No idea...I just remember the TV commercials: "Hey bruno, how 'bout a little BIIINNNNGGOOOO?"
I, too, used to put all my Twins in the binder. John Castino, Sal Butera, everyone.
January 7, 2010 at 3:11 PM
I'm sure my memory inflates his ability just a tad, but I remember John Castino as the greatest player in the history of the game...
January 7, 2010 at 3:33 PM
btw- i believe that bruno was originally an angel future star
January 11, 2010 at 11:52 PM
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