Baseball Hall of Fame and the Crime Dog

It's Election Eve for the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, an annual event that brings together dissenting baseball fans, old school writers, new age metrics gurus, PED bashers, PED player supporters, Pete Rose bashers and Pete Rose fanboys like a smoldering pot of gumbo.  Unlike gumbo, however, these ingredients rarely compliment one another.  Instead, there is finger pointing, name calling and disagreement - basically all of the things that make sports great in America.

As a Braves fan, last year was a banner year for the HoF, and hopefully the run continues this year with Smoltz getting in as a first ballot guy.  I would also love to see Rock Raines somehow get in.  I have opinions on other guys too, but for this post, I want to focus on the Crime Dog, Fred McGriff.

McGriff has long been overlooked and undervalued in my humble opinion.  I checked Twitter earlier today and saw a tweet from a Tampa writer (see photo at top of post) that got my juices flowing.  Obviously, Mooney may be biased as McGriff is a Tampa, Florida product, but I too would vote for McGriff if I had a ballot.  Of course, his tweet incited multiple people to question Mooney's voting for McGriff over Bagwell.  I am not going to dive into the Crime Dog versus Bags comparison, but I do have something to offer in regards to McGriff as a standalone candidate.  I typed the following words on a Yahoo fantasy baseball message board back on August 8, 2014, and the words still ring true today:

Ok... Ok.... You guys making fun of Fred McGriff's tall, mesh-back cap and the kid throwing the ball in the trash can from center field has forced my hand. Here's the case for Fred McGriff:

Over a stellar 19 year career, the Crime Dog did the following:

• 2,490 hits for Fred. There are currently 18 HoF 1st basemen. 11 of them do not have as many hits as Fred McGriff. Notables include Harmon Killebrew - 2,086 and Willie McCovey - 2,211.
• 493 HR for Fred. I realize that 500 is the "magic number." He's only seven off that number so give me a break. McGriff hit 30 or more bombs in 10 of his 19 seasons and 20 or more in 15 of 19 seasons. He was a true model of consistency.
• 1,550 RBI for Fred. This is more than 10 of the current 18 HoF first basemen. Willie McCovey drove in 1,555 runs in his career, very comparable. Killebrew, a fabled HR hitter, drove in 1,584 for his career, again very comparable to McGriff.
• .284 BA for Fred. Harmon Killebrew hit the magic home run total with 573 dingers, but he hit a paltry .256 for his career. It's like he was an extra good Rob freakin' Deer.
• McGriff won 3 Silver Slugger Awards and was a 5 time All-Star. Had his contemporaries not been on the juice, these numbers would be enhanced.
• Fred McGriff played in 10 playoff series during his vaunted career (3 NLDS, 1 ALCS, 4 NLCS & 2 WS). His playoff totals are as follows: .303 BA, 10 HR, 37 RBI. In the 1995 NLCS, he hit a blistering .438 with 11 total bases in 19 plate appearances. He hit 2 HR in the WS that year as the Braves defeated the Cleveland Indians. He was a clutch performer.
• A 6+ WAR is considered to be a MVP candidate, and 5+ is considered to be a superstar (as rules of thumb). McGriff had two seasons of WAR above 6 and four seasons above 5. The two seasons above 6 are impressive. Anytime you have a 19 year career and are a MVP candidate (stats wise) in multiple seasons, it shows elite level play.

It's a shame that such a stellar player was overshadowed by the muscled up players from his era to a point that he's not even considered for the HoF in a serious manner.

I'm sure tomorrow will come and go without Fred McGriff gaining entry into Cooperstown.  I'll still be beating the McGriff drum just like that day the Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium press box caught on fire.