It is very important to look at what just happened in
baseball. They did exactly what I was hoping for in my last post but there is
something that is important to look at. Who ever thought that Craig Biggio was
going to be the leading vote getter on the Hall Of Fame balloting today? The
Vegas line on Biggio to get in, as a first-time ballot option were 7-2, and me
as a numbers moron thinks that means he was a long shot. But it still stands
that Craig Biggio was an excellent player and an eventual hall of famer.
Here’s Craig by the numbers: .281 career hitter with 3000+
hits and 1000+ RBI. The dude slugged for most of his 20-year career in the
majors leading the Astros though what could potentially be called the golden
years of Astros Baseball. Biggio and Bagwell (another potential hall of famer) along
with Lance Berkman (add him too when he retires) were the three major players
in Houston’s “Killer B’s” which lead the team to some of the best records in
team history. Biggio was, by all accounts, a great player and a great clubhouse
guy and most importantly, a clean guy.
This is the problem with being a player in the 90’s. Everyone
is going to get the leery-eye from voters and fans alike (myself included) and
there are some guys who should have passed the sniff test when it comes to
voting. Personally for me, that’s a rather short list of Biggio, Julio Franco,
and Mike Piazza. Yes, Julio “I will play till my mid-40’s” Franco. In my
opinion Franco got lost in the shuffle with the list of heavy hitters and the specter
of PED’s looming inside the envelope that every ballot came in. Piazza is
without question the best offensive catcher that ever picked up a bat; yes I
could probably have stolen a base against him but good god could Mike Piazza
swing the lumber with the best of them.
So I guess I got my wish, as hypocritical as it may sound, I
don’t know if I’m happy about it. Did the guys that, in my opinion, shouldn’t
have made it in on the first ballot not make it? Yes, but overall do I think
that some very deserving guys miss the cut? Absolutely. But Curt Shilling (another
guy you could add to the snub list) made a great point and its what I’m hanging
my hat on, he said that being a first-ballot inductee is an honor beyond simply
making it into the Hall. He’s right; guys like Ripken, Puckett, Robinson and
Boggs were all first-ballot guys. Those players were men who completely changed
how the entire world saw Baseball. The lists of guys who have made it on their
first go-around are truly big cigars and are worthy of the honor. Overall, this
isn’t an awful decision but it is a sad day in sports because what else do you
play sports for other than to be immortalized?
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