Baseball's Hall of Fame or Hall of Shame (13 page)
Let’s take a look at his numbers in 1949, which rank among the most productive ever amassed by a shortstop in a single season. That year, Stephens hit 39 home runs, led the league with 159 runs batted in, and batted .290. Of the 39 homers, 18 were hit on the road, and, of the 159 RBIs, 63 were compiled away from Fenway.
If Stephens’ career is looked at in more detail, one sees that he led the American League in runs batted in three times, home runs once, and fielding once. He hit more than 30 homers twice, drove in more than 100 runs four times, and scored more than 100 runs three times. In addition, he was selected to the All-Star Team eight times, and he finished in the top 10 in the MVP voting six times, placing in the top five on three occasions. Thus, his credentials appear to be more consistent with those of a typical Hall of Famer than those of Rizzuto, and, perhaps, even Reese. Yet Stephens has never even come close to being elected.
Why?
Because, unlike the other two players, he didn’t play in New York, didn’t play for winning teams, and didn’t have publicity campaigns run for him to get him elected. Frankly, I am not advocating that Stephens be elected; there are already too many borderline candidates who have been inducted. But, he certainly belongs in the Hall of Fame as much as Reese, and more than Rizzuto.
Joe Tinker
As was the case with his infield mates Frank Chance and Johnny Evers, Joe Tinker rode into the Hall of Fame on the heals of that famous poem written by that frustrated New York sportswriter. The fact is, though, he doesn’t belong there any more than they do. One look at his career numbers tells you that:
Particularly unimpressive were Tinker’s career batting average of .262, his .308 on-base percentage, and his .353 slugging percentage. He never finished any higher than fourth in the league in any major offensive category. The only time he batted over .300 was in 1913, when he hit .317 in only 382 at-bats. In addition, Tinker was never considered to be the best shortstop in the National League. During the first half of his career, he was rated far behind Honus Wagner; and George Davis was considered to be his superior as well. By the latter stages of Tinker’s career, Rabbit Maranville had established himself as the league’s best shortstop. Defensively, Tinker was solid but somewhat overrated since, as was mentioned earlier, the famous double-play combination of
Tinker-to-Evers-to-Chance
led the N.L. in double plays only once. It is, therefore, extremely difficult to justify Tinker’s selection.
Josh Gibson/Johnny Bench
Gibson, as the greatest catcher and hitter in Negro League history, and Bench, as the greatest catcher in major league history, are well deserving of their places in Cooperstown.
With the possible exception of Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson was the Negro Leagues’ greatest and most famous player for 17 seasons. Along with Paige, he was the league’s greatest drawing card, and he was rivaled only by Oscar Charleston as the league’s greatest all-around player. Although Roy Campanella spent several seasons in the Negro Leagues prior to signing with the Brooklyn Dodgers, he was always rated behind Gibson as the leagues’ top catcher. Campanella himself called Gibson, “Not only the greatest catcher, but the greatest ballplayer I ever saw.”
Had Gibson’s dream of playing in the major leagues been allowed to come true, he likely would have gone on to prove that he was the greatest catcher in baseball history. Although Negro League statistics are often not that reliable, Gibson is known to have averaged around 70 home runs a year. His career total is uncertain, but even the most conservative estimates place him somewhere between 800 and 950, albeit not against major league pitching. More than just a slugger, Gibson’s lifetime batting average is the highest in Negro League history, at .354, or .440, depending on the source. In 16 exhibition games against major league pitching, he hit .424 with five home runs. Defensively, although he occasionally struggled with pop-ups and was not a great handler of pitchers, few runners challenged him on the basepaths because of his powerful throwing arm.
Walter Johnson said of Gibson, “He hits the ball a mile. Throws like a rifle. Bill Dickey isn’t as good a catcher.”
Monte Irvin, who played against Gibson in the Negro Leagues and was later a teammate of Willie Mays on the New York Giants, said: “I played with Willie Mays and against Hank Aaron. They were tremendous players, but they were no Josh Gibson. You saw him hit, and you took your hat off.”
Johnny Bench is generally considered to be the greatest catcher in major league history. He was clearly the National League’s best catcher from 1968 to 1977, with the exception of the 1971 and 1976 seasons, when injuries caused him to perform at less than optimum proficiency. He was the best catcher in the game for virtually all of the other seasons during that period, being rivaled only by Bill Freehan in 1968, Thurman Munson in 1975, and Carlton Fisk in 1977. For much of that ten-year period, Bench was arguably one of the five or six best players in the game. He certainly was among the best in 1970, 1972, and 1974. In 1970, Bench won the N.L MVP Award for the first time by leading the league in both home runs (45) and runs batted in (148), while hitting a career high .293. He won the award a second time in 1972 when he once again led the league in homers (40) and RBIs (125). Two years later, in 1974, Bench led the league for the third and final time in RBIs, with 129, while hitting 33 homers and batting .280.
During his career, Bench finished in the top five in the MVP voting a total of four times, knocked in over 100 runs six times, was a perennial All-Star, and was perhaps the greatest defensive catcher the game has ever seen.
Yogi Berra/Bill Dickey/Mickey Cochrane/
Roy Campanella
These four players have been grouped together because a legitimate case could be made for any of them being among the five greatest catchers in the history of the game.
From 1948 to 1956, Yogi Berra was not only the best catcher in the American League but was arguably one of its five best players. During that period, he was selected to the All-Star Team each season, won three Most Valuable Player Awards, and was considered to be one of the best clutch hitters in the game. Over that nine-year stretch, Berra hit more than 20 home runs eight times, topping the 30-mark twice, knocked in more than 100 runs five times, and batted over .300 three times. He won the MVP Award in 1951, 1954, and 1955, and finished in the top five in the voting four other times during his career. Berra had his finest statistical season in 1950 when he finished second in the MVP balloting to teammate Phil Rizzuto. That year, Berra hit 28 home runs, knocked in 124 runs, and established career-highs in batting average (.322), doubles (30), hits (192), and runs scored (116), while striking out only 12 times in over 650 plate appearances.
During his career, Berra was selected to the A.L. All-Star Team 14 times and was named to
The Sporting News
team five times. Perhaps more than any of the individual accolades he earned, however, Berra will be remembered best for being a winner. In the 17 full seasons he spent with the Yankees, they won 14 pennants and 10 World Series, a record of success approached only by his Yankees teammate Joe DiMaggio, who played on ten pennant winners and nine world champions during his 13-year career.
Bill Dickey preceded Berra as the Yankees catcher, and as the best player in the American League at that position. From 1929 to 1935, Dickey was a very good player, rivaling Mickey Cochrane as the best catcher in the game, and hitting well over .300 in all but one of those seasons. He was selected to
The Sporting News
All-Star Team
, over Cochrane, in both 1932 and 1933. However, from 1936 to 1939, Dickey was truly exceptional, establishing himself clearly as the best catcher in the game. In each of those four seasons, he hit over 20 home runs, knocked in well over 100 runs, and batted well over .300. His two finest seasons came in 1936 and 1937. In the first of those years, Dickey hit 22 homers, drove in 107 runs, and batted .362, establishing an all-time record for catchers with more than 400 at-bats (later equaled by Mike Piazza). The following season, he reached career-highs in both home runs (29) and runs batted in (133), while batting .332.
During his career, Dickey was selected to the American League All-Star Team ten times, and was named to
The Sporting News
All-Star Team
six times. He finished with a .313 lifetime batting average, and was also considered to be the finest defensive catcher of his time, holding records for most putouts and highest fielding average by a catcher when he retired. In addition, he was a winner, playing for nine pennant-winners and eight world champions over his 17 big league seasons.
With the possible exception of Bill Dickey, Mickey Cochrane was the finest catcher to play in the major leagues during the first half of the 20th century. Although not as strong as Dickey defensively, Cochrane was considered to be the best hitting catcher in baseball during his career. His .320 batting average and .419 on-base percentage are both career records for catchers with more than 5,000 at-bats. He hit .300 or better nine times, scored more than 100 runs four times, and struck out only 217 times in just over 6,000 plate appearances.
Although he received stiff competition from Dickey during the second half of his 13-year career, Cochrane was clearly the American League’s best receiver from 1925 to 1931, during which time he topped the .330 mark five times, hitting a career-high .357 in 1930. He was the best catcher in the majors in each season from 1927 to 1929 and then again in 1931 and 1934. In two of those seasons, 1928 and 1934, Cochrane was voted the American League’s Most Valuable Player. He was also a team leader, leading the Philadelphia Athletics to pennants in 1929, 1930, and 1931, and to World Series victories in both ’29 and ’30. He was player/ manager for the Detroit Tigers when they won the pennant in both 1934 and 1935.
By the time he arrived in Brooklyn to be the Dodgers’ regular catcher for the next ten seasons, Roy Campanella was already 27 years old and had spent several seasons in the Negro Leagues (where he was a three-time All-Star). After joining the Dodgers, Campanella quickly established himself as the preeminent receiver in the National League, and, perhaps, in all of baseball, being rivaled only by the American League’s Yogi Berra.
From 1948 to 1957, Campanella was the cornerstone of Dodger teams that won five pennants in ten seasons. As such, he was selected the National League’s Most Valuable Player three times— in 1951, 1953, and 1955. In each of those seasons, Campanella hit more than 30 home runs, drove in over 100 runs, and batted over .300. His best season came in 1953 when hit 41 homers, led the league with 142 runs batted in, and batted .312.
In addition to being an offensive force and an outstanding team leader and handler of pitchers, Campanella was the finest defensive catcher of his time. He led National League catchers in putouts six times, and threw out two of every three runners that tried to steal against him.
Gabby Hartnett/Buck Ewing
Hartnett was the finest catcher in the National League during the first half of the 20th century, and Ewing was the game’s greatest receiver during the first 50 years of major league baseball. Therefore, both men most certainly earned their places in Cooperstown.
Prior to the appearance of Johnny Bench, many people considered Gabby Hartnett to be the greatest catcher in National League history. He was certainly that league’s finest receiver during the first half of the 20th century.
Although he was not a truly great player, possessing only borderline Hall of Fame numbers, Hartnett’s career statistics compare quite favorably to those of the other top catchers from that 50-year period. His 1,179 RBIs and 1,912 hits were surpassed only by Bill Dickey among catchers from that period, and his 236 home runs remained a record for catchers until Yogi Berra eventually surpassed him. His .489 slugging percentage is third all-time among major league catchers, behind only Mike Piazza and Roy Campanella.
From 1924 to 1935, with the exception of the 1926 and 1929 seasons, Hartnett was clearly the best catcher in the National League. He was the top catcher in the majors in 1924, 1925, 1930, and 1935. Hartnett was selected N.L. MVP in 1935 but had his finest season in 1930 when he hit 37 home runs, knocked in 122 runs, and batted .339 for the Chicago Cubs. During his career, the Cubs won four National League pennants. In all, Hartnett was selected to six All-Star teams and finished in the top 10 in the league MVP balloting a total of four times.