Lucky Hall Of Famer Number 11 - Chick Hafey

    Chick Hafey was a truly great hitter. The problem is that his career was too short. He played from 1924 through 1937, but only played in over 100 games in seven seasons and 1,283 in his career. 

    Hafey batted .317/.372/.526 for an .898 OPS, which was 133% better than the average batter's in the heaviest hitting era in history, but his play wasn't without flaw. He was no great shakes as an outfielder, hardly walked very much, and batted .205 in four World Series. 

    The biggest excuse for Hafey's election is that he was one of the first MLB players to wear glasses on the field, and despite the fact that he was vision impaired, he was one of the best hitters of the era. Well, Hafey saw fine with his glasses on. My proof for this statement: Hitting is all about seeing the ball, and Hafey hit well. That he wore glasses shouldn't make a difference. 

    Some also point to his NL Batting Title in 1931. Well, one Batting Title doesn't make a Hall of Fame career. The only major offensive categories that Hafey led his league in were slugging percentage (.590) in 1927 and batting (.349) in 1931. 

My opinion: Chick Hafey wasn't around long enough to be a Hall of Famer.