Eli Cash - contributing reporter
Appears to be a small list than normal this season, hopefully that means we are weeding through who should and should not be allowed in the Cobbfather Hall of Fame. Let's dive right in....VOTE HERE.
For the new voters out there, be sure to skim past articles; particularly the primer for a detailed explanation of the three scoring system we use. As a quick reminder, a sure thing for a hitter is 60/130/500, for a starter its 60/130/420 and for a reliever (who doesn't use the Test Score) is 130/250. We are sticking with the format from the previous year as I liked how it compared similar position players rather than lumping them all together.
Players grouped by position. If you have a good retired player that I can include, please let me know.
C
C
Marshall Van Ostrand
A new member to the poll who ranks decently among all scores but well below others who have been on the ballot before. Maybe one day we'll get a Catcher worthy of the hall. For most it's because they transition to 1B or DH for more ABs than they had at C, and thus get classified at those positions. What stands out the most for Van Ostrand is how many games he caught behind the plate, likely a Cobbfather record. He averaged just 125 hits and 15 hr a season; pulling down 60ish runs/rbi. Having made 7 All-star appearances with 1 ring to his name. He had 4 seasons above .300 but not a single one over 40 hr, 100 runs, 100 rbi, or 35 doubles; though he does have a great BB/K rate.
Votes Last Season: First time on ballot
Cash vote: NO
Fritz Butcher
A Butcher who doesn't cut it? Though seven All-Star appearances, in only 11 seasons. Had he played another 4, we would most likely be talking about him in a different light. He averaged nearly 150 hits a season with 22 hr, and pulled down 75 runs/rbi combo but like Van Ostrand, no single season is outstanding.
Votes Last Season: 0
Cash vote: NO
1B
A Butcher who doesn't cut it? Though seven All-Star appearances, in only 11 seasons. Had he played another 4, we would most likely be talking about him in a different light. He averaged nearly 150 hits a season with 22 hr, and pulled down 75 runs/rbi combo but like Van Ostrand, no single season is outstanding.
Votes Last Season: 0
Cash vote: NO
1B
Birdie Kydd
Yes he hit over 500 home runs, and managed 8 seasons of 40+ HRs which helped he cross the 100 RBI a season 9 times; but he falls short of the RBI milestone. Compared to other Hall of Fame First Baseman or past eligible ones, does he stack up? One of the lowest OBPs and BB/K rate for any of them. Yes he won 2 Rings but it had a lot to do with the team around him. He was good, don't get me wrong; but does he belong in the Hall? That's for you to decide. And not that I'd hold it against him, but he was 8-48 in stolen base attempts. Maybe his 500 Cash Points and his 40 HR, 93 Run, 113 RBI career average convince you to get him in.
Votes Last Season: 1
Cash vote: NO
Benny Romano
Nearly the same amount of home runs as Birdie but in one less season. He was able to cross the 1,500 RBI mark in his final season. His OBP ranks in higher than Kydd but still not at the level of other Hall of Fame 1Bs. Romano had an even worse eye did Birdie but still managed 7 seasons of hitting over .300, had two less seasons of 40 HRs and didn't quite have the team behind him to help carry him to a Ring. Last season he had 3 votes, well short of the 17 required. His career averages are 176 Hits, 37 HR, 94 Runs, and 109 RBI. I'd be more inclined to include Benny than Birdie.
Votes Last Season: 0
Cash vote: NO
Lee Schlitter
Not your prototypical First Baseman, Schlitter relied more on his speed and ability to get on base than a power bat. A combo that hasn't done well in HoF voting. Schlitter well surpassed the 2500 Hit milestone as well as the milestones for Runs and Stolen Bases. Ending his career with a .380 OBP and nearly a walk per strikeout. In his 16 seasons he made the All-Star game an amazing 10 times. For 4 seasons he had more than 200 hits, and for an additional 3 he still hit above .300. 13 seasons of scoring more than 100 Runs, 9 seasons with 35+ Doubles and 1 Gold Glove. I love a good 1-2 lead off hitter and that's exactly what you had with him, he averaged 176 Hits, 24 HR, 39 SBs, 114 Runs, and 84 RBI. While I may not have voted him last year due to other names, he gets the vote this year.
Votes Last Season: 4
Cash vote: YES
2B
Votes Last Season: 1
Cash vote: NO
Benny Romano
Nearly the same amount of home runs as Birdie but in one less season. He was able to cross the 1,500 RBI mark in his final season. His OBP ranks in higher than Kydd but still not at the level of other Hall of Fame 1Bs. Romano had an even worse eye did Birdie but still managed 7 seasons of hitting over .300, had two less seasons of 40 HRs and didn't quite have the team behind him to help carry him to a Ring. Last season he had 3 votes, well short of the 17 required. His career averages are 176 Hits, 37 HR, 94 Runs, and 109 RBI. I'd be more inclined to include Benny than Birdie.
Votes Last Season: 0
Cash vote: NO
Lee Schlitter
Not your prototypical First Baseman, Schlitter relied more on his speed and ability to get on base than a power bat. A combo that hasn't done well in HoF voting. Schlitter well surpassed the 2500 Hit milestone as well as the milestones for Runs and Stolen Bases. Ending his career with a .380 OBP and nearly a walk per strikeout. In his 16 seasons he made the All-Star game an amazing 10 times. For 4 seasons he had more than 200 hits, and for an additional 3 he still hit above .300. 13 seasons of scoring more than 100 Runs, 9 seasons with 35+ Doubles and 1 Gold Glove. I love a good 1-2 lead off hitter and that's exactly what you had with him, he averaged 176 Hits, 24 HR, 39 SBs, 114 Runs, and 84 RBI. While I may not have voted him last year due to other names, he gets the vote this year.
Votes Last Season: 4
Cash vote: YES
2B
Jose Pizzaro
Averaged 158 Hits, 29 HR, 19 SBs, 84 Runs, and 96 RBI over his 15 seasons. Low Monitor Score with only a .332 OBP. 3 Seasons of .300 hitting with 3 All-Star appearances, an MVP, and 2 Gold Gloves. If Wandy Guillen, Vic Crowe, and Ernie 'I Miss Bert' McEnerney didn't make the Hall, Pizzaro doesn't deserve it either. Simple as that.
Votes Last Season: 1
Cash vote: NO
SS
Terrance Ricarrdi
There are no Shortstops in the Cobbfather Hall of Fame, but surely a few are deserving, but is Ricarrdi the right one to start with? 2 Gold Gloves, a .307 OBP, though he did have 2 of his 13 seasons with 40+ HR. He averaged 120 hits, 34 home runs, with 80 runs and 85 rbi a season, and 9 All-Star appearances. Still digging through the archives, but I have not seen another Shortstop with more appearances than Ricarrdi. With only two +/- more seasons he would have gotten to 500 home runs. On the downside, his .317 OBP is quite low for a HoF hopeful; even for a SS.
Votes Last Season: 0
Cash vote: NO
3B
Cookie Rodriguez
Cookie has the highest monitor score of all eligible 3Bs this season, and he rounded all four bases 544 times in his 15 year career, but to the tune of a .335 OBP and a .43 B/K rate. For 3Bs his numbers feel soft in comparison to those already in the Hall; but he did receive a single vote last season.
Votes Last Season: 0
Cash vote: NO
William Katou
Katou was a cops worst nightmare, speeding everywhere he went. He owns the 4th highest single season record at 125 but also the most career stolen bases at 957; 134 above second place. Voters have proved to prefer power over speed, but there's nobody that competes with Katou in terms of speed on the base paths. The downside and why hasn't he been voted in before this, since he hasn't played since season 18? A monitor score of 19 ranks near the bottom of all players archived by Cash. A .324 OBP is only slightly above average. Struck out more than twice the amount of times he took a free base. Averaged 127 hits, 14 hr, 64 sb, and 89 runs a season; making two all-star appearances.
Votes Last Season: First time on ballot
Cash vote: NO
RF
None
No Right Fielders on the ballot this year.
LF
LF
Omar Berroa
Yet another typical power hitter, 12 seasons of 40+ HR with 13 seasons of 100+ RBI. he ranks up there at the top of Left Fielders, but how does he fair with so many other deserving names, I don't know. he also crossed the 1500 RBI career mark by 9 RBI. 12 of his 13 seasons saw him hit more than 40 HR and surprisingly he was able to score 100+ RBI in every full season he played with 6 seasons above .300. Doubled his votes from S52 to S53; with another big improvement and less deserving names I think he gets it this season.
Votes Last Season: 12
Cash vote: YES
Yohan Mairena
Gregory Treinen
Votes Last Season: 12
Cash vote: YES
Yohan Mairena
Yohan falls below HoF Andres Candelaria on the Monitor Score and failed to cross any of the major barriers over the course of his 15 seasons; though he owns a .382 OBP; above all other LF HoF members and below players like Swann and Taylor who were not elected to the Hall. But he is also one of few years with 2+ MVPs - that's 4% of Cobbfather history. But does his Hall of Chance depend on those two great years he had when he was the league MVP, perhaps so.
Votes Last Season: 5
Cash vote: NO
Votes Last Season: 5
Cash vote: NO
Gregory Treinen
I sometimes feel like a broken record, yet another typical power hitter. This one failing to cross any other milestones and struggled to get on base, and while I think he deserves a look, there are plenty of names who fall in the season averages of 154 Hits, 44 HR, 87 Runs, and 106 RBI a season with a .261 average. He dropped from 3 votes to 2 votes last season, we'll see if he's able to keep those two or improve upon them.
Votes Last Season: 3
Cash vote: NO
Bryan Foster
Gregory Treinen-lite. Make use of your vote elsewhere.
Votes Last Season: 0
Cash vote: NO
CF
Votes Last Season: 3
Cash vote: NO
Bryan Foster
Gregory Treinen-lite. Make use of your vote elsewhere.
Votes Last Season: 0
Cash vote: NO
CF
Larry Brown
Brown definitely had his uses, winning 3 World Series rings and making 8 All-Star appearances, but not the best glove or bat. Are the Rings enough to get him in? The voters have proved that stolen bases alone won't help. He averaged 12 HR, 28 SBs, 81 Runs and only 52 RBIs. J.T. Constanza ranks lower by every ranking system but he has 5 Gold Gloves to show for himself as well.
Votes Last Season: 0
Cash vote: NO
DH
None
No Designated Hitters on the ballot this year.