Three names, Hall of Fame, yay or nay?

[Dick Whitman]

1. Lance Berkman
2. Todd Helton
3. Jim Thome

I'd say: Yes, No, Yes.

Thoughts?

 

[YGBFKM]

No, no, yes.

 

[Hank_Scorpio]

No, no, yes.

(And that yes vote was painful to type. :D)

 

[spnited]

No. No. probably

 

[UPChip]

No, yes, yes for what he did to the Tigers alone.

 

[Piotr Rasputin]

Three No votes.

Not necessarily based on what I think, but rather based on how I think the voters will go.

 

[Guy_Incognito]

Close if he's done, could make it easier if he has some baseball in him.
No, though it's not really fair
Yes

 

[Dick Whitman]

Three No votes.

Not necessarily based on what I think, but rather based on how I think the voters will go.

DH thing for Thome?

 

[RickStain]

Should (off the very top of my head)? Yes, yes, yes.

Will? No, yes, yes.

 

[Piotr Rasputin]

http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/b/berkmla01.shtml

http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/h/heltoto01.shtml

http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/t/thomeji01.shtml

Numbers-wise, Thome is the closest to being a "yes/maybe." Has he been a nice guy to the press? Will some of the voters whine about, yes, the DH thing? Will they hold his lack of a championship against him?

Both Helton and Berkman - again, based on numbers - seem like the really good (at times great) player who had a nice decade in the majors, a couple of all-star appearances, a couple of top-five MVP finishes, but nothing that truly quickens the pulse. It would be very interesting to compare their power numbers to their contemporaries in this particular era.

 

[spnited]

The disparity between Helton's Coors Field numbers and his road numbers also will hurt him

 

[Dick Whitman]

The disparity between Helton's Coors Field numbers and his road numbers also will hurt him

That's what I was thinking.

.064 higher batting average at Coors.

More than .200 higher OPS.

 

[Steak Snabler]

The only way Lance Berkman becomes a Hall of Famer is if he gets traded to the Cardinals or Giants and then Frankie Frisch comes back from the grave and re-assumes control of the Veterans Committee.

Putting Berkman in the Hall of Fame would be like putting Chick Hafey Jim Bottomley George Kelly Bill Terry Hack Wilson Ross Youngs Travis Jackson Joe Medwick in the Hall of Fame.

Berkman's had a couple of monster years, but has never been consistently good enough to be a Hall of Famer, I don't think. Plus, he offered nothing as a defender or baserunner and his hitting stats should be diminished by playing in a cracker box ballpark in an era of inflated offenses.

 

[Hank_Scorpio]

I think you mean George Kell, since there isn't a baseball George Kelly.

 

[Steak Snabler]

I think you mean George Kell, since there isn't a baseball George Kelly.

Highpockets Kelly, Giants first baseman of the 1920s.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/k/kellyge01.shtml

 

[Hank_Scorpio]

I think you mean George Kell, since there isn't a baseball George Kelly.

Highpockets Kelly, Giants first baseman of the 1920s.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/k/kellyge01.shtml

Gotcha. I did a quick google and didn't see anything baseball related and had never heard of him (which I guess adds to your case that he's not a Hall of Famer, eh?)

 

[dooley_womack1]

No
No
I'll get back to you.

 

[Gator]

I agree with most: No, no, yes. I think Thome is in with ease. He's nearing 600 home runs.

 

[outofplace]

Berkman: No, but he's not done yet. He needs to bounce back and do more.
Helton: No
Thome: Without a doubt, yes. The man has 577 career home runs, good enough for 10th in major-league history. He needs 10 more to pass Frank Robinson into 8th place all-time. Thome's career batting average is only .277, but his on-base percentage is .404. He has tremendous discipline to go with his power.

It's not like he was a DH for most of his career. He played primarily in the field for the first 15 of his 20 seasons in the majors. He should be a lock.

 

[spnited]

I think you mean George Kell, since there isn't a baseball George Kelly.

Highpockets Kelly, Giants first baseman of the 1920s.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/k/kellyge01.shtml

Gotcha. I did a quick google and didn't see anything baseball related and had never heard of him (which I guess adds to your case that he's not a Hall of Famer, eh?)

Another awful Veterans Committee choice ... voted in 41 freaking years after he retired!