Worthy of the Hall?

Baseball fans will be making the annual pilgrimage to Cooperstown, New York next week to honor this year's Hall of Fame inductees. Kirby Puckett, Dave Winfield, Hilton Smith, and Bill Mazeroski will enter baseball's Hallowed Hall on Sunday, August 5.

For the second time this year, baseball fans will discuss whether or not certain players should be selected for this exceptional honor. Each January, members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) vote for players worthy of Hall of Fame status. As can be seen by the voting, not every writer has the same opinion of the eligible players.

But you know what they say about opinions -- everybody's got one.

Different writers have different criteria for selecting their candidates. Some will vote for players who have met certain milestones, such as 3,000 career hits or 500 career home runs. Others will choose players who were one of the top players of their time. And so it goes, and just as inevitably as winter changes to spring, the debate rages on.

Some of the worthy candidates for 2002 include Andre Dawson, Ozzie Smith, and Alan Trammell. Each of these three players has merits that permit their selection. But the question is: do all the writers see these merits, and if so, are they important enough to allow the writer's vote?

Andre Dawson had a strong career with the Expos, Cubs, Red Sox, and Marlins. "Hawk" played for 21 seasons and banged 438 home runs, stroked 2,774 base hits, stole 314 bases, and finished with a .279 batting average. Dawson, despite having creaky knees for much of his career, was an eight time All-Star, won the 1977 National League Rookie of the Year award, won the 1987 N.L. Most Valuable Player award, earned eight gold gloves in the outfield, and led the N.L. in homers and RBIs in his MVP campaign. A very solid career, but is Dawson worthy of H.O.F status?

Dawson ranks 42nd amongst players in career hits, ahead of Hall of Famers such as Ted Williams and Jimmie Foxx. Williams played 19 seasons and Foxx played in 20 campaigns, so the base hit numbers are certainly close enough for positive comparison.

The Hawk rates 27th on the all-time home run list, ahead of such great players as Johnny Bench and Orlando Cepeda. Dawson's numbers on this list arguably place him among baseball's elite.

Ozzie Smith played shortstop for San Diego and St. Louis for 19 seasons, and was certainly the best defensive shortstop EVER. He won 13 consecutive Gold Glove awards and holds many defensive records. Smith was no slouch on the offensive side, as he collected 2,460 hits and stole 580 bases. Ozzie was also an N.L. All-Star an amazing 15 times.

Writers will look at "The Wizard's" offensive numbers and say he doesn't belong. But when you factor in the often non-quantifiable defensive stats, Smith lands solidly in the Hall alongside defensive stalwarts such as Luis Aparicio and Rabbit Maranville.

But will enough of the BBWAA voters see and agree with this hypothesis? Check back next January.

Alan Trammell played shortstop for Detroit for 20 seasons, gathering 2,365 hits while compiling a .285 batting average. "Trams" was a six-time American League All-Star, won four Gold Gloves, and was World Series MVP in that magical Motown year of 1984.

Again, the question is: are the offensive and defensive numbers good enough to earn Trammell a ticket into the Hall?

As you can see, these three players are credible candidates for Cooperstown. Their fate depends on the voting of the 500 plus voters of the BBWAA. To further complicate matters, holdover players such as Gary Carter, Jim Rice, and Bruce Sutter et al. are thrown into the mix, often times detracting from the first year candidate's vote totals.

Is the current system of voting the best one?

Years ago, baseball stat guru Bill James constructed a "point system" for players, based upon career and yearly stats, awards, and the like. A player was awarded points for certain milestones, and if a player had amassed a firm career point total, he would be elected to the Hall of Fame. Of course, the baseball writers never took this system seriously, so it was quickly forgotten. As with many of James' ideas, however, this one might deserve further scrutiny. But then again, maybe not.

It would make things too easy, and it would take away one of the joys of the BBWAA: having the honor of selecting the players that are to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Enjoy the ceremonies next week, and don't be ashamed if your eyes well up when one of your favorite players takes center stage. After all, he deserves to be there, right?