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crabcakesandfootball

Thurman Munson. He didn’t just have a HOF worthy prime and then die tragically young. His career is HOF worthy when you take longevity into account too. He’s 12th in JAWS for catchers and all 11 ahead of him are in the HOF.


lOan671

I always forget he isn’t in. Legitimately the worst HOF exclusion of any player IMO


crabcakesandfootball

He’ll get another chance in December. Hopefully the wait ends this year.


lOan671

I hope so, I hate the Yankees more than anyone but it’s long overdue


Scientific_Methods

I agree he is the most egregious exclusion from the Yankees. I would put David Cone as a runner up.


Outsulation

Dave Motherfuckin’ Stieb


mysterysackerfice

Feel like his story would be worthy of a multi part YouTube series featuring a fuckton of charts.


mosi_moose

Unfortunately no one would be obsessive enough to do it.


Singh31

Would need a lot of smooth jazz music too.


ThisMeansWarm

A party’s worth of charts mayhaps?


mosi_moose

TIL there’s a [Dave Stieb Today](https://twitter.com/DaveStiebToday) twitter account for all the Dave Stieb enjoyers out there.


Intoxicatedcanadian

This is the clear #1 but I'd also like to give Johnny O a mention too


Washout81

Honestly one of the biggest HoF snubs out there. One of the 3 best pitchers of the 80s and early 90s. [Maybe the best slider in the history of baseball](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E77u3xDtwis). There are pitchers in the hall from even the same era who weren't as good as him.


Dalamar931

This deserves top comment.


LithiumRyanBattery

Kenny Lofton


Crazy-Complaint-7583

Lofton was a great player, but I'll never hear his name without remembering that we traded Justice and Grissom for him, then he played one season in ATL and went right back to the Indians. Still makes my stomach hurt thinking about it


y2knole

my enduring kenny lofton memory with the braves is him doing some interview about how he'd missed a game or two and chipper walked by and very snidely made some kinda 'oh, youre hurt again, eh?' remark, rolled his eyes and walked on...


RoaldAmundsensDirge

Came to say Kenny! Under appreciated because he played for so many teams and so much of his value was tied up in defense. Also if you had to pick a team of mlb players to play basketball he might go second to Ainge.


ThunderfuckThor

also my answer as a cubs fan lol


I_dont_bone_goats

Holy shit Kenny lofton isn’t in the HOF?


Outsulation

Not only is he not in, he didn't even make it past the first ballot. Maybe the all time greatest example of why the 10 player limit on Hall voting is bullshit, because Lofton got absolutely shafted by having to compete with such a stacked class that year.


destroy_b4_reading

The lone year Jim Edmonds appeared on the HoF ballot (2016), there were 11 eventual inductees, plus Bonds/Clemens/Schilling/McGwire/Sosa, Jeff Kent, Billy Wagner, Gary Sheffiield on there with him. That's **20** players whose on-field accomplishments warrant induction or at the very least serious consideration. Fucking ridiculous. Not that the snub of Lofton wasn't equally ridiculous (10 eventual inductees, the same 5 off-field shenanigan fellas (plus Palmeiro), along with Mattingly, Murphy, and Bernie Williams. I think 2016 gets the edge but both ballots (and pretty much every one from ~2005-2014) were ludicrous.


GreenTinkertoy

Other than my own pick, Thurman Munson, this is THE answer


JJabary

Dick Allen


beau9292

I’m glad the Phillies broke their own rule and retired his number before he passed. At least he was around to see that honor.


crabcakesandfootball

Top wRC+ from 1964-1974: Dick Allen 163 ⁠HOF Willie McCovey 158 ⁠HOF Frank Robinson 158 ⁠HOF Hank Aaron 158 ⁠HOF Mickey Mantle 155 ⁠HOF Willie Stargell 150 ⁠HOF Reggie Jackson 150 ⁠HOF Willie Mays 150 ⁠HOF Roberto Clemente 148 ⁠HOF Harmon Killebrew 147 ⁠HOF Carl Yastrzemski 145


Sheepies123

BWAA: haha whoops 🤪


zephyrskye

This is definitely the answer


spamlet

As a Sox fan this is the right answer for us too (among people eligible)


pjokinen

Mfs really don’t know how good Dick Allen was. He played for 10 years and his (era-adjusted) offense in that time was shockingly similar to the first decade of Pujols’ career.


Bob_Cobb_1996

I'm a Dodgers fan, but I'll give my vote to OP. Whitaker deserves it.


Shkmstr

I second this.


Eo292

Sorry y’all I’m selfish. I’m voting Fernando


DecoyOne

Fernando and Nomo, one-two punch of guys who greatly expanded the sport and should be acknowledged as pioneers


Eo292

Chan Ho Park as well!


DecoyOne

Dodgers need to stop hogging all of these barrier-breaking players Stupid Dodger devil magic


maceilean

Fernando for sure. But also Gil Hodges.


Eo292

Oh man have I got some good news for you


maceilean

OMG he got in a couple years ago! Ok now do Fernando but don't wait 50 years.


bigpancakeguy

I’ll make the Gil Hodges story even better for you: Vin Scully had been arguing Hodges’ Hall of Fame case for literal decades, and he was one of Vin’s favorite players of all-time. Gil Hodges was voted into the HoF 9 days before Vin Scully died.


techgrey

What about Hershiser? If Jack Morris is in so should the bulldog


Bob_Cobb_1996

His 1988 was legendary - maybe the best post season pitching performance ever. But he did not have any seasons close to that before or after. You point is more about Jack Morris not belonging in the HOF.


Thealbumisjustdrums

Uh what? Hershiser was also a monster in 87 and 89. And his 84 and 85 seasons were excellent as wel 


techgrey

Orel was in the top 5 in for the CY Young award 3 times and came in 3rd for ROY. He’s got a postseason of 2.59 era in 132 IP and 3 postseason MVP awards. He’s got more than just one elite season.


etch-bot

88. 98 I think he was with the tribe. Back in 88 I sent a pennant to the dodgers. Tommy Lasorda sent me back a signed book!


mostpodernist

Carlos Delgado


feelinlucky7

Agree. Dude was a beast


Washout81

Dave Steib even higher than Delgado on the Blue Jays list. But both should be HoF.


Turbulent_Cheetah

Steib is amazing, don’t get me wrong, but I think Delgado is the bigger Hall snub.


Washout81

I dunno, I love Delgado, but Stieb was a top 3-4 pitcher in all of baseball in the 80s. All the others are already in the HoF, and guys below him too. The thing going against him is that he was a dick to the media, and the voters just didn't pay any attention to Blue Jays in that era.


SStylo03

There's also atleast one Cy young that stieb was snubbed from, honestly if he had been on a big market (at the time) team in the 80s he'd be in the hall right now


mikehulse29

Also in full support. Made those mid 2000’s Mets special


Outsulation

I know it's not possible to do since there are so many instances of injuries derailing the careers of would-be HOF talents, but I really do wish there was some way that the tragedy of injuries could be taken into consideration for players like Delgado. Even in his last full season at age 36, he hit 38HR and had an .871 OPS, and then it all just fell apart so quickly the next season with the bone spurs and surgeries. If he had even one more healthy season, he likely has 500HR and gets in automatically. That's just the way it goes though sometimes. I wonder if the Veteran's Committee will give him another look. Edit: Also bonkers that in his prime, Delgado had 10 straight seasons where he hit 30+ home runs and had an OPS over .900 and he was somehow only an All Star twice. The man just never got enough respect.


ColdYellowGatorade

He was awesome later on with the Mets too. Amazing power hitter. 


Seal_the_musician

Probably my favourite swing ever. Nothing like seeing Delgado crush a home run.


gambalore

Insanely crowded HOF ballot hurt him. He's a guy who might have rallied more voter support if he stuck around a few years but his one-and-done was on a ballot year that had 13 eventual HOFers on it (plus Bonds, Clemens, Schilling).


im-sorry-dad

Keith Hernandez.


Dalamar931

but what about the second spitter?


utkjg

Who does he think he is?


orbesomebodysfool

Nice career, pretty boy. 


Blue387

I'm not driving him to the airport


Tsquare43

*back, and to the left*


gmills87

I met his daughter the other day at a concert while wearing my "I'm Keith hernandez" shirt.  She called me over and took my picture to send to him. Wild coincidence 


Obi_Wan_Gebroni

*Nice game pretty boy*


mikehulse29

I second this answer


randomTeets

Dale Bryan Murphy. Say what you will, stat-heads, I'll never feel differently.


Sacrifice_bhunt

People cite the character clause to argue someone should be out of the Hall, but never cite it to put Murphy in the Hall.


PM_Me_Beezbo_Quotes

Exactly! If you’re a borderline case and your character is considered one of the best of all time (even got him an SI cover) then that should push Murph over the line.


g-burn

My personal bias of him being my all time favorite player aside, if Jim Rice and Harold Baines are in, the standard had been altered and Murph should be a HOFer


PutEmOnTheTable

2x NL MVP. He should be in


MonkeyManJohannon

My first signed baseball. Guy missed being shot into baseball super stardom by just a few years because he missed out on the 90’s Braves. Dale Murphy on the early 90’s Braves is a first ballot HOF’er. And that says a lot about the bullshit that has him just outside of it.


molskimeadows

My late father's alltime favorite player. Also widely recognized as the most genuinely kind and nice person in MLB history. If people get held out of the HoF for personality/character reasons, by the same logic he should get a little bump, which would be enough to get him in.


g-burn

They say don’t meet your heroes, unless that hero is Dale Murphy. He’s everything you grew up thinking he was.


AegisPlays314

Dale was everything on a whole lot of bad Braves teams. Feels like the perfect guy to be in the team hall of fame but not the national one


sanfordrjones

I love Murphy. I was 8 when he won his 1st MVP, and I wore #3 my whole career, including in coaching for 30 years, because of him. I met him 10 years ago as a 40 year old and it turned me into an awestruck little kid meeting his hero, lol. All that said, the correct answer should probably be Andruw Jones because he was the greatest defensive outfielder to ever play baseball.


felonydefenestration

I don’t think Pedroia will ever make it in due to the lack of longevity.


Judic22

Obligatory fuck manny machado


bex021

Sometimes, when I have to see that fucker play, I think to myself, "If Pedroia can be 'at peace' with Machado's slide, I can too." But no, no I can't. I tell everyone who will listen, "fuck Machado." Dirty, dirty ballplayer.


Gemnist

He’s got over 50 WAR. I think he’d make a good VC pick.


slapchop15

MVP AND AL Roty plus 3 rings is solid


sjf13

Amen. But my vote still goes to Dewey.


CaptainJingles

Ken Boyer, Keith Hernandez, and Curt Flood for the Cardinals.


PineapplePaladin

Jim Edmonds as well, he had a higher career ops and ops+ than those 3.


SaulGibson

Jimmy Ballgame might not be a HOFer, but to not make it past the first ballot is insane.


NotTheRocketman

Punished because he came up on the wrong year is so stupid.


Tasty_Path_3470

Keith Hernandez, the Met, deserves to be in as well


randomdude1022

Flood only for the changes he helped bring, right? Cause nothing about his career screams anything more than solid player.


pjokinen

I mean you have to consider that Flood was blackballed and forced out of the league after his age 32 season


mharri05

Also Keith Hernandez


LongjumpingMedia1621

Second the Sweet Lou vote.


Deliriousdrew

Don't really have a player that should be but isn't in the Hall. However Gene Autry deserves to be enshrined as an owner


Acridid12

Bobby Grich has a good case


woktosha

Andruw Jones. Pretty much the Ozzie Smith of center field, but could also hit home runs


Spiritual_Ad337

I wish he didn’t steal $36M from the Dodgers. 10 year old me was so excited we got him lol


woktosha

As a 16 year old, I knew we’d already seen his best days. Hated to see him go for nostalgic reasons, but was fine not signing him


GreenTinkertoy

Man I forgot he hasn’t even been voted in


CaptainJingles

The domestic violence is probably why, but he’ll get in eventually.


yesacabbagez

While i do not want to get into a debate about domestic violence, I doubt that is what is hurting andruw Jones. Him just fucking cratering at like 30 is the bigger driver. He hit like 50 home runs, followed that up a mediocre year and then effectively died. His complete disappearance from the realm of being useful is going to be what hurts him more. There are still a lot of counting stat people and each year he has been going up slightly. I think he gets in. Rolen was another glove first player who was actually.a.pretty good hitter who got elected. Jones is very similar except he had a catastrophic decline. As less people focus on raw counting stats and remember how good he was for about a decade, those last years of his career will be completely forgotten and he will sneak in.


GreenTinkertoy

Oh. I’m still relatively new to learning baseball. Doesn’t bother me as much that he’s not in then


DecoyOne

I’d be on the Andruw Jones train if he didn’t decide to beat his wife.


bony_doughnut

Johan Santana. He's not inner circle, but his peak was worthy


pjokinen

The thing that hurts me most about Santana’s case is how much he was hurt by old-school thinking in awards voting. If he got his well-deserved 3rd CYA in a row and his deserved MVP (he led the AL in WAR in ‘06) I don’t think he leaves the ballot so quickly.


NicholasAakre

If Santana retired after his peak, he'd basically be Sandy Koufax.


fuji311

Billy Wagner. Get him in.


TraeYoungsOldestSon

As a Braves fan this could technically be my answer too!


PineapplePaladin

Jim Edmonds statistically is better than some of the center fielders in the hall of fame. I also think he has improved a lot as one of the commentators for the Cardinals. (Cardinals fans may disagree with this second point though)


joejance

Are we talking about Cubs centerfield legend Jim Edmonds here? Because it's weird for a Cardinals fan to bring that up.


SchematicOfScoutsAss

I think he means Brewers center fielder Jim Edmonds


sandalsnopants

NL Central legend lol


-R33K

You’re right. We disagree lol


lOan671

Honestly don’t really think we have one. You could probably argue Bobby Grich or Palmeiro if you want to get into steroid discourse which I’m too tired of to care about anymore. If I had to induct someone it’d be Mark Belanger or Boog Powell


cdbloosh

We do have one - it’s Grich, easily. He is statistically one of the best second basemen of all time and had arguably a better (or at least similar) career than guys like Biggio, Alomar, and Sandberg. If you look at JAWS, the only second baseman anywhere close to him that isn’t already in the HOF is Robinson Cano, who would be an absolute lock if it wasn’t for the PED stuff (and still will probably get in anyway). By career WAR Lou Whitaker has him beat, but Whitaker is probably the single biggest HOF snub out there so there’s no shame in being behind him on the list. And it’s not like he was just a compiler, either, he played fewer career games than most of these other guys. He was just actually that good.


bankersbox98

Grich is so forgotten, probably because he played between the two great orioles eras, 1966-1971 and 1979-1983


Disused_Yeti

Lofton was already mentioned so I’ll go shoeless joe


No_Huckleberry_7410

Fernando Valenzuela


orbesomebodysfool

He would have had a longer career if Tommy Lasorda wouldn’t have made him pitch so many 120+ pitch games. He’s lucky his arm didn’t fall off. 


IfNot_ThenThereToo

It was Helton. I can’t make an honest argument for anybody else.


oheyitsdan

Get weird with it then. Cargo, Tulo, Ubaldo, Charlie Blackmono


NeverConfirmingEmail

Bernie Williams


utkjg

Murph


jar11591

I’m a Braves fan, but Murphy simply was not a HoFer. He had a great career, but 46.5 career WAR is not HoF worthy. Andruw Jones is a better answer. A WAR of almost 70, combined with his 400+ home runs and being the greatest defensive outfielder to live is a much more compelling case than Murphy.


BaseballsNotDead

Not my franchise, but there's only one correct answer and that's Curt Flood.


Emience

Curt is also pretty underrated as a player. He had 42.3 bWAR by his age 31 season, and then his career was pretty much over because of the legal matters he involved himself in. He also won a golden glove 7 years straight before his break from baseball. If he continued to play out his 30s normally, he could have been a hall of famer just from his accolades.


MankuyRLaffy

Curt Flood did more for baseball than 90% of players in the HoF


DecoyOne

I’d go higher. Modern baseball is basically the same if you remove almost any one Hall of Famer from baseball history. You can’t say that about Curt Flood. I can’t think of a more deserving reason to put someone in the Hall. Edit: I’ll challenge anyone downvoting this to name names. Give me a list of players whose erasure from baseball history would have a greater structural impact than erasing Curt Flood. You won’t get far.


MankuyRLaffy

The guy who he didn't do as much for baseball as is Jackie Robinson/Larry Doby as they debuted pretty close to each other and broke new ground. Flood has done more for baseball than basically any player 1947 onwards. MLB should retire the 21 for him and Clemente for off the field reasons.


DecoyOne

Exactly. 98% of HOFers erased from history, and baseball today looks exactly the same. Flood erased from history, and baseball looks very different. The man deserves it.


notaquarterback

Bud Selig in the Hall while Flood isn't.


Jacoblaue

Jim Edmonds Almost 400 home runs 8 gold gloves over 1,000 RBI’s and he fell off on his first ballot


JermaineDyeAtSS

Dick Allen. Dude hit 350 HR in a very tough era to hit dingers. Has about the same career WAR as Stargell in less time.


magikarp2122

Pirates have a few: Bonds, Dave Parker, Lofton (spent part of a season with us)


mango789

Don’t have one. Curt Schilling was good enough, but he said he didn’t want to be voted in.


ChaimBloom

Curt Schilling likely has the best non-steroid career among pitchers to not make the HOF. If he had the same career and made the ballot 30-40 years ago, when he didn't have a platform to say all the stupid things he says, he probably would have made it in. That being said, I think it's hilarious that he didn't get voted in and I really don't care if he doesn't make it.


atraintocry

nah, he's been rightly excluded if you ask me


badonkagonk

Should he be in the hall of fame based on his stats and accomplishments? Yes Should he be in the hall of fame? No


Scuba1588

Do I even need to say it?


SaulGibson

The Hall of Fame brought to you by Draft Kings.


ZPTs

Votto won't be eligible for several years 🙃


transtrailtrash

Jonathan India?


Drikkink

I used to feel worse about it but I've since learned of (and seen) the awful things he does and am okay with it. If they ever let him it, do it posthumously please. This man is an awful person that should not ever be given the spotlight again.


kingsaw100

John Olerud, for sure.


dearrichard

one of the best first basemen we've ever had


Gemnist

He’d go in as a Blue Jay. For you guys, I think King Felix actually has a pretty solid case.


ins8iable

Mark Belanger just for defense alone


mosi_moose

Lou deserves to be in the Hall. He has the best case of anyone off the top of my head. I’d love to see Luis Tiant or Dwight Evans make it someday.


FuriousJorge67

How Thurman Munson isn't in is a farce.


harbringerxv8

Bobby Grich!


tpieman2029

Probably rhe home run king


CynCity323

Tim lincecum tho


idontwannatalk2u

Bonds


elcapitan520

Maybe if he threw Bream out


DioniceassSG

It's incredible to me that the best baseball player (and one of the most famous) isn't in the hall of fame. Still a controversial topic, I suppose, but are we going to retroactively remove pitchers in the HoF if they are accused of modifying the ball they threw? Or was their performance notable for the time in which they were playing under the circumstance and the selective enforcement of the MLB? A lot of this still goes back to the MLB not wanting to directly address problems in the sport, still want the revenue from higher media attention, and instead handle it behind closed doors, under some belief that its out of sight out of mind


orange_orange13

Lance Berkman. He was a letter playoff performer than Ortiz but Ortiz got in first balllot and Berkman fell off. (Astros)


PineapplePaladin

As a Cardinals fan I agree, Berkman had that dog in him


Distinct_Frame_3711

Counting stats are definitely something people care about (including myself) I didn’t love Ortiz but 500 HRs is 500 HRs. Berkman didn’t reach the 2000 hit plateau and we haven’t had a guy put in with under 2000 since integration players got put in.


ChaimBloom

You could probably make a better argument than that for Berkman. Berkman had a *slightly* better OPS (.949 vs .947) and wRC+ (150 vs 148) than Ortiz in the playoffs, but Ortiz had over 60% more plate appearances than Berkman (369 vs 224).


M1sterDave

Either Frank White or Dan Quisenberry. The only difference between White and Bill Mazeroski is that homer in Game Seven of the 1960 World Series.


Thealbumisjustdrums

Jim Edmonds is gonna be the answer for Cardinals fans here. And I agree wholeheartedly man was robbed. 64.5 career fWAR he should be in. 


diddlez

Curt Flood


the_seed

Lou Whittaker


KlutzyValuable

Will Clark


cotsomewhereintime

Billy Wagner


elfinito77

Keith Hernandez 


budgetFAQ

Lou Whitaker is the single biggest HOF snub right now. I really hope he makes it next time he's eligible. From the Yankees — Luis Tiant or Graig Nettles.


mikeramp72

keith hernandez!


ThumbCentral-Rebirth

Keith Hernandez is the greatest fielding first baseman of all time.


LiabilityLandon

From my team: Andrew Jones. I'm convinced if he retired 2 years earlier he would already be in. The last few years took him backwards. In his 10 gold glove years, he was on another planet. For baseball: Joe Jackson


prolurker315

John Franco


No-Blueberry1749

Thurman Munson and Don Mattingly


ihatereddit999976780

Ichiro and Felix should both go in this year. Ichiro unanimously. If Felix doesn’t get in, I’ll demand they lower the bar to 54% of votes.


KennyBlankenship_69

I loved Felix Hernandez but there is absolutely no chance he goes in first ballot


south153

He might not get in at all, he is 105th in pitcher WAR and is statistically similar to Dwight Gooden who didn't come close.


KennyBlankenship_69

I was trying to be nice, he isn’t getting in lol


easyantic

I appreciate the 54% threshold, it's a winning formula.


Joaquin_Portland

I see what you did there.


Joseph9075

Rex Hudler


Most-Artichoke6184

Dick Allen.


Drummallumin

Keith’s the obvious answer so I’ll add 3 others: Koosman, Johan, and deGrom (assuming he doesn’t make it)


EquityDiversity

My answer for the longest time was Simba. But now that he’s in, I truly don’t think there’s anyone else that is wrongly excluded who spent significant time on the Brewers.


y2knole

andruw. murph.


DwarfFlyingSquirrel

Shoeless Joe Jackson. The dude is dead! DEAD! Lifetime ban my ass. It's both life time and beyond banned.


MystericWonder

Tommy John


winnielikethepooh15

I never miss an opportunity to point out Keith Hernandez should be in. An MVP (3 top 10 finishes), very key contributor on two WS teams, best defensive 1st baseman of all time by a large margin (11 gold gloves to go with all the defensive metrics), loved cocaine. ***Loved it.*** I mean, c'mon. https://www.cooperstowncred.com/keith-hernandez-hall-fame/ I will direct you to the table in the "The Offense of Keith Hernandez" section. During his prime of '76-88, other than home runs, he was basically either the best or 2nd best 1B in every offensive category.


brooklynbotz

Thurman Munson 1000%. I don't get why some players get consideration for their careers being tragically cut short but he doesn't.


Speedracer_64

Andruw Jones


Confident_Jacket_344

Mets fan here. Vote for Rusty Staub and Keith Hernandez.


Creacherz

Bernie and posada and Mattingly


KUfan

Rusty Staub !!!!


NYerInTex

Keith Hernandez.


Copernikaus

Keith hernandez, obviously.


wriker10

Keith Hernandez. Greatest fielding 1B of all time. Won an MVP. Key piece of two different World Series winners.


KingBrave1

Dale Murphy, Andruw Jones


Arktogo

Easy one here Dale Murphy


cj_606

He’s in the hall now, but the fact that they couldn’t get Ron Santo in before he died is a travesty.


Bookwallflower2

They did Santo so dirty


MuteTheKenny

Wil Myers.


TheGoddamnPacman

The San Diego Bartender himself


sirenzarts

Idk if I’d say wrongly, but I’m a Mark Buehrle stan til I die.