I have mentioned that Gil Hodges got a raw deal being left out of baseball's Hall of Fame. He was among the best 1B at the time he played and when he retired, his numbers were among the best for 1B. The same could be said for longtime 1B Fred Mc Griff. He finished with the same amount of career HRs as Lou Gehrig (493) and currently ranks 26 in the history of the game. Only active players and ones implicated in the steroids scandal. He has been on the HOF ballot for the past three years, gaining 21.5, 17.9 and 23.9 %, respectively. But while a chance exists that McGriff can be elected, he has an improbable run to make it.
McGriff was originally drafted by the New York Yankees. He was traded in 1982 to the Toronto Blue Jays, probably because the Yankees had a 1B named Don Mattingly. This started a string of Mc Griff being traded multiple times; from the Blue Jays to the Padres, Padres to the Braves and the Devil Rays to the Cubs. He was also sold by the Braves to the Devil Rays. Very few players have had the success of McGriff and not spent more than 5 seasons with 1 team. He played 5 years for Toronto, Atlanta and Tampa Bay, 3 seasons for San Diego, almost 2 for the Chicago Cubs and less than a season for the LA Dodgers.
McGriff's numbers are HOF worthy, in my opinion. He finished with a .284 AVG, 2490 hits, 441 2B and 1550 RBI to go along with his nearly 500 HR. If he hit 7 more in 2004, when he was clearly finished, he would be in already. He was one of the few players in baseball history to lead both the American League (1989 with Toronto) and the National League (1992 with San Diego) in homeruns. While he drove in 100 + runs eight times in his career (with 4 different teams and 2 seasons he played for 2 teams), he had 94 RBI in 113 games in 1994 when the season ended due to the strike. He also had 93 RBIs in the incomplete season of 1995.
In spite of hitting 493 HRs, he did not hit more than 130 for any one team. He hit 84 for the Padres, 99 for Tampa Bay, 125 for Toronto and 130 for Atlanta; an amazing feat in itself. He also held his own in the postseason, hitting .303, 10, 37 in his five appearances (1 with Toronto and 4 with Atlanta).
Hopefully the baseball writers acknowledge Mc Griff for what he has done. In the days of steroids, it will become more difficult for a player like him to get in due to the inflated numbers. His numbers are HOF worthy, even if he spread them out over six teams. What hat should he wear? Despite starting his career with Toronto (5 seasons) and also having 5 seasons with Tampa Bay, he will probably go in as a Braves player. His numbers throughout the board are all slightly higher with the Braves, a place he seemed to spend just a little more time than his other locations.
McGriff was originally drafted by the New York Yankees. He was traded in 1982 to the Toronto Blue Jays, probably because the Yankees had a 1B named Don Mattingly. This started a string of Mc Griff being traded multiple times; from the Blue Jays to the Padres, Padres to the Braves and the Devil Rays to the Cubs. He was also sold by the Braves to the Devil Rays. Very few players have had the success of McGriff and not spent more than 5 seasons with 1 team. He played 5 years for Toronto, Atlanta and Tampa Bay, 3 seasons for San Diego, almost 2 for the Chicago Cubs and less than a season for the LA Dodgers.
McGriff's numbers are HOF worthy, in my opinion. He finished with a .284 AVG, 2490 hits, 441 2B and 1550 RBI to go along with his nearly 500 HR. If he hit 7 more in 2004, when he was clearly finished, he would be in already. He was one of the few players in baseball history to lead both the American League (1989 with Toronto) and the National League (1992 with San Diego) in homeruns. While he drove in 100 + runs eight times in his career (with 4 different teams and 2 seasons he played for 2 teams), he had 94 RBI in 113 games in 1994 when the season ended due to the strike. He also had 93 RBIs in the incomplete season of 1995.
In spite of hitting 493 HRs, he did not hit more than 130 for any one team. He hit 84 for the Padres, 99 for Tampa Bay, 125 for Toronto and 130 for Atlanta; an amazing feat in itself. He also held his own in the postseason, hitting .303, 10, 37 in his five appearances (1 with Toronto and 4 with Atlanta).
Hopefully the baseball writers acknowledge Mc Griff for what he has done. In the days of steroids, it will become more difficult for a player like him to get in due to the inflated numbers. His numbers are HOF worthy, even if he spread them out over six teams. What hat should he wear? Despite starting his career with Toronto (5 seasons) and also having 5 seasons with Tampa Bay, he will probably go in as a Braves player. His numbers throughout the board are all slightly higher with the Braves, a place he seemed to spend just a little more time than his other locations.
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