Lucky Hall of Famer Number 63 - Carlos Beltran (And a Word on the Sign-Stealing Scandal)

    The BBWAA's official voting criteria states that "[v]oting shall be based upon the player's record, playing ability, integrity, sportsmanship, character and contributions to the team(s) on which the player played." Using this as our guideline, I am willing to make the bold assertion Beltran's election to the Hall is unwarranted. 
    There is little doubting Beltran's record, but due to his involvement in the Houston Astros' infamous sign-stealing scandal, every other criterion (including playing ability) comes into question. Astros players and certain staff members would use the centerfield camera to pick up the opposing catcher's signs, decipher them with a computer monitor, and relay the signs to the batter using a series of signals, including banging on a trash can. Per the commissioner's report, this was in clear violation of MLB policy, and it resulted in a massive scandal when it came to light. For what it's worth, in what seems to have been a largely player-driven scheme, Beltran was the only player mentioned by name in the report. 
    By cheating to gain an advantage, not only did Beltran break the rules, but in my mind he forfeited all right to benefit from the integrity, sportsmanship, and character criteria, and I would be hard-pressed to find anyone making a convincing argument to the contrary. As for his playing ability, he could have benefited from similar schemes across his entire career. According to another source, he was the one who told the Astros that their sign-stealing tactics were "behind the times," conceivably suggesting that he had previous experience with sign-stealing methods of this kind, and had been using them before he even arrived in Houston. However this contributed to his overall record, it is difficult to consider his statistics untainted, and it is possible that they would be considerably worse had he never illegally stolen signs. As for contributions to the team(s) on which he played, Beltran's time with Houston brought them one championship (albeit a tainted one), but it also brought the club massive scandal, cost them draft picks, incurred the largest fine allowable by MLB, and incited opposing pitchers to relentlessly pelt Astros batters with pitches after the story broke. The infamy around his name was enough to cost him a managing job with the New York Mets in 2020. 
    The Hall of Fame is supposed to honor baseball's all-time greats who made a positive impact on the sport, including through excellent play. While Beltran's career accomplishments are comparable to those of many players in the Hall of Fame, I cannot confidently say that he had a positive impact on the sport. He brought upon the game one of the greatest scandals in its history, and through his role in the cheating, which affected championships and ruined careers, I consider him a disgrace to the game and unworthy to be immortalized in Cooperstown, where fans from every generation might look on his plaque with admiration. Any other player who had a role in the scandal, particularly a leadership role, is equally disgraceful to our National Pastime. The fact that the Hall would induct players who harmed the game so much is frankly disgusting to me. 

My opinion: Carlos Beltran does not deserve his Hall of Fame plaque. 

Lucky Hall of Famer Number 62 - Jim Leyland

I've complained about Leyland before, and with good reason. His career winning percentage of .506 is way too low to be considered Hall-worthy. Unless there is something remarkable to offset such a winning percentage, such as a considerable impact on baseball history or a plethora of World Championships, it simply isn't a number that should earn a manager a place among baseball's all-time greats. With 1,769 wins, three pennants, and one World Championship, I don't think Leyland did enough to make up for it. 

    Don't get me wrong - Leyland had his moments as a manager, but I don't think his results are enough to merit induction. I love the guy, but there's no way he's a Hall of Famer. 

My opinion: Jim Leyland is not a Hall of Famer. 

Guy Hecker

Guy Hecker is one of my favorite players of all time. While he only played parts of nine seasons, he achieved so many odd and incredible feats that an entire book could be written about him. As it is, Hecker is the first player to be featured twice on this blog, as I previously advocated his Hall of Fame case in 2020. While I must attribute that post largely to excitement over his bizarre career and not to merit, I nonetheless enjoyed writing it and am happy to go through his career again, as he should not be forgotten. 

    Guy Jackson Hecker (that was his real name) began his MLB career in 1882 as one of the founding members of the Louisville Eclipse, an American Association club that has connections to today's Pirates. He pitched 13 games that season, compiling a 1.30 ERA and topping the AA in several pitching categories. Hecker had his greatest season in 1884, when he captured a pitching Triple Crown and set American Association records for wins (52), innings pitched (670 2/3), starts (73), and complete games (72). Hecker had his enormous workload trimmed a bit in 1885, resulting in "only" 30 wins, and won 26 games in 1886. Incidentally, he led the AA in batting with a .341 average that year, becoming the only pitcher in history to win a Batting Title. 

    Hecker played his last game in 1890, but not before accomplishing a remarkable number of eyebrow-raising feats. In his very first Big League at bat, he smacked an inside-the-park home run. Still a rookie, Hecker tossed a 3-1 no-hitter against Allegheny City on September 19, 1882, which was the first no-hitter in history not to result in a shutout. Later, on August 15, 1886, he became the only player in AA history to hit three home runs in a game, scoring a Major League record seven runs against Baltimore. With that performance, he became the first of only three pitchers to hit three home runs in one game, the others being Jim Tobin and (surprise) Shohei Ohtani. As if all this weren't enough, he accomplished perhaps his wildest feat on October 9, 1887. In a game against Cincinnati, Hecker became the only man to play an entire game at first base without handling a single chance. 

    While Hecker's career was brief, he made an impressive impact on the history books. Out of all the players who ever reached the Majors, he is perhaps my favorite to research. While he is not a Hall of Famer, he was an exciting player whose career should not be forgotten. 

Lucky Hall of Famer Number 61 - Bid McPhee

Bid McPhee played second base for the Cincinnati franchise (later the Reds) in both the American Association and the National League from 1882 through 1899. A defensive wizard, McPhee was the last professional player not to wear a glove in the field, holding out until 1897. A quiet and unimposing man, McPhee was forgotten for over a century before the Veterans Committee inducted him into the Hall of Fame in 2000. 

    While McPhee was a truly stellar defender, his offense leaves a lot to be desired. His slash line was a fairly modest .272 / .355 / .373, good for an OPS+ of 107. While this number is usually no detriment for a second baseman, it is important to realize that second base was an offensive position until around 1920. Once the live-ball era kicked in, first base became an offensive position and second base a defensive one. 

    In addition, McPhee played the first eight years of his career in the American Association, which is typically considered inferior to the National League. He led the AA once in triples and once in home runs, but never led the NL in any offensive categories. 

My opinion: Bid McPhee is probably not a Hall of Famer. 

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Lucky Hall of Famer Number 60 - Larry Doby

It's hard to call any player from the Negro Leagues lucky. Despite Jackie Robinson having broken the color barrier before him, Doby still experienced his share of bigotry as the first black player in American League history in 1947. However, based on his baseball record alone, Doby can be considered lucky to have been chosen for the Hall of Fame. 

    While Major League Baseball declared the Negro Leagues Major Leagues in December of 2020, the quality of Negro League play is certainly questionable, and their records are very spotty. While Negro League statistics should not be ignored, they need to be taken with a grain of salt. 

    Even if we add Doby's existing Negro League numbers to his MLB totals, he nonetheless comes up short as a Hall of Fame candidate, in my opinion. His counting stats are still quite thin for an outfielder (1,697 hits, 1,080 runs, 1,099 RBI's) and he was finished at age 35. Considering Doby's high OPS+ and his historical significance as the first black player in the AL, I can live with his selection, but he is far from an ideal candidate. 

My opinion: Larry Doby is probably not a Hall of Famer. 

Lucky Hall of Famer Number 59 - Hal Newhouser

Hal Newhouser pitched for the Detroit Tigers and Cleveland Indians from 1939 through 1955. A six-time all-star, two-time MVP, and four-time 20-game winner, Newhouser finished with 207 wins and a 3.06 career ERA. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 1992. 

    Despite the accolades he earned, I believe Newhouser's career was a little short of the Hall's standards. Both of his MVP Awards (including his 1945 Triple Crown) came in the midst of World War II, when many of baseball's best players were serving overseas and inferior players were brought up to replace them. While these seasons are still valid, they need to be properly contextualized, which makes them appear more impressive at face value than they really were. Newhouser did have a spectacular season in 1946 (league-leading 26 wins and 1.94 ERA), but afterward lost effectiveness due to arm trouble. 

    Overall, while he was a fine pitcher, I think Newhouser's career lacks the volume required for the Hall of Fame. Due to his injuries, he was mostly finished by age 30, and he retired at 33 with fewer than 3,000 career innings. He struggled to gain traction with the BBWAA, but found luck with the VC. 

My opinion: Hal Newhouser is probably not a Hall of Famer.