WHY I THINK BERNIE WILLIAMS SHOULD BE IN COOPERSTOWN

 WHY I THINK BERNIE WILLIAMS SHOULD BE IN COOPERSTOWN

By- Damien 

Bernie Williams was one of the best clutch hitters of all time. He is mostly remembered as a hero in the postseason for the Yankees, as he won many important games with walk off home runs or clutch singles or great catches in centerfield. He won four World Series rings with the great New York teams under Joe Torre. As good as Williams was in the postseason, he was even better in the regular season. To his credit he has four Gold Gloves, a Silver Slugger, five seasons with over 100 RBI’s, five all-star selections, eight straight .300 seasons, and the AL batting title in 1998. Williams hit 30 home runs in 2000, over 20 on six other occasions, and was the best switch hitter of the 1990s and 2000s. Career long Yankee Bernie Williams started his career in 1991 for 85 games as a replacement for the injured Roberto Kelly. He was a regular by 1993 with a .268 average. Williams batted .289 in 1994 and started his streak of eight .300 years in a row in 1995, and batted over .330 three times during that span. He was the most consistent hitter in all of baseball until 2003, when he fell out of nowhere to .263. He hit 22 homers in 2004 at the age of 37 and wrapped up his career with a .281 season in 2006. Those last four seasons had brought his career batting average down to .297. At any rate, Williams is regarded as one of the all time Yankee greats and is honored with a plaque in Yankee Stadium’s Monument Park. Bernie Williams was a great clutch hitter and a fine defensive centerfielder. For all of his accomplishments both in the regular season and in the playoffs, Bernie Williams deserves a place in the Hall of Fame. 

LIFETIME STATISTICS

Games career: 2,076 season high: 158 in 1999 

At Bats career: 7,869 season high: 612 in 2002 

Hits career: 2,336 season high: 204 in 2002 

Doubles career: 449 season high: 38 in 2001 

Triples career: 55 season high: 9 in 1995 

Home Runs career: 287 season high: 30 in 2000 

Runs career: 1,366 season high: 116 in 1999 

Runs Batted In career: 1,257 season high: 121 in 2000 

Stolen Bases career: 147 season high: 17 in 1996 

Walks career: 1,069 season high: 100 in 1999 

Strikeouts career: 1,212 season high: 106 in 1993 

Batting Average career: .297 season high: .342 in 1999 led AL: .339 in 1998 

On Base Percentage career: .381 season high: .435 in 1999 

Slugging Percentage career: .477 season high: .575 in 1998 

Total Bases career: 3,756 season high: 317 in 1999 

Sacrifice Hits career: 12 season high: 2 in 1991, 1992 and 1995 

Fielding Percentage career: .990 season high: 1.000 in 2000 led AL CF: 1.000 in 2000 

Double Plays career: 18 season high: 3 in 1996 and 1999 

Putouts career: 4,710 season high: 432 in 1995 led AL CF: 432 in 1995 

Assists career: 65 season high: 10 in 1996 

DID YOU KNOW? 

-went 1-for-3 with two RBI’s on his MLB debut and 1-for-1 in his final big league game 

-scored 100 runs in a season seven times in a row (from 1996 through 2002) and eight times overall 

-led the AL in intentional walks in 1999 (17) 

-batted .275 with 22 homers, 80 RBI’s, 83 runs scored, 29 doubles, and 71 walks in 121 career postseason games (the RBI's the most in postseason history)

-has the most career postseason games, RBI’s, and extra-base hits (51) of any player in MLB history 

-won four career World Series rings (1996, 1998, 1999, and 2000) 

-hit a walk-off home run in Game 1 of the 1996 ALCS 

-was the 1996 ALCS MVP (.474 batting average, two home runs, six RBI’s, six runs scored, .947 slugging percentage) 

-in 1998, he became the first player ever to win a batting title, a Gold Glove award, and a World Series ring in the same season 

-finished seventh in the AL MVP in voting in 1998, tenth in 2002, 11th in 1999, 13th in 2000, and 17th in both 1996 and 1997 

-won two career Player of the Month awards and four Player of the Week awards 

-led AL centerfielders in games in 1995 (144) 

-also played four games in leftfield, 62 in rightfield, 129 as a DH, 56 as a pinch hitter, and three as a pinch runner 

-among MLB centerfielders, ranks 12th in career games, 44th in fielding percentage, and 15th in putouts 

-retired with the second most doubles in Yankee history, behind Lou Gehrig’s 534 

-his uniform number 51 was retired by the Yankees in 2015