Ron Santo was named to Baseball's Hall of Fame, being named on 15 of the writer's 16 ballots. 12 votes were needed to be inducted. Among those falling short were Jim Kaat (10 votes) and Gil Hodges. (9 votes)
Santo posted a career .277 average with 342 home runs and 1331 RBI. He also had 2254 hits playing his entire career in Chicago. ( His last year was with the White Sox. Numbers didn't define his impact on the game, as he was one of the best defensive third basemen of all time. Unfortunately, Santo, a long time Cubs broadcater, passed away in December of 2010 missing his opportunity to participate in the festivities.
The biggest exclusion once again was Hodges. Its hard to see what the majority of the writers are holding against Hodges, who was clearly one of the better power hitting first basemen of his time. He played before McCovey and Stargell and of course before McGwire and Pujols. His career stats do not get enough credit. A .273 hitter, he hit 370 HR and drove in 1274 runs in his career spent mostly with the Dodgers. I don't know if its a generation gap, but they fail to see the impact Hodges had on the game and where he ranked among 1B at the time he played, particularly in the National League. He was no Gehrig (493 HR) but who was? Hopefully the writers will put him and Jim Kaat back on the ballot next year being they were so close.
I am happy for Santo, though I would have liked to see him inducted two years ago when he was still alive. He had a tremendous career and in my mind, is a Hall of Famer. The same can be said for Hodges, but the question is when, and if, it will ever happen.
Santo posted a career .277 average with 342 home runs and 1331 RBI. He also had 2254 hits playing his entire career in Chicago. ( His last year was with the White Sox. Numbers didn't define his impact on the game, as he was one of the best defensive third basemen of all time. Unfortunately, Santo, a long time Cubs broadcater, passed away in December of 2010 missing his opportunity to participate in the festivities.
The biggest exclusion once again was Hodges. Its hard to see what the majority of the writers are holding against Hodges, who was clearly one of the better power hitting first basemen of his time. He played before McCovey and Stargell and of course before McGwire and Pujols. His career stats do not get enough credit. A .273 hitter, he hit 370 HR and drove in 1274 runs in his career spent mostly with the Dodgers. I don't know if its a generation gap, but they fail to see the impact Hodges had on the game and where he ranked among 1B at the time he played, particularly in the National League. He was no Gehrig (493 HR) but who was? Hopefully the writers will put him and Jim Kaat back on the ballot next year being they were so close.
I am happy for Santo, though I would have liked to see him inducted two years ago when he was still alive. He had a tremendous career and in my mind, is a Hall of Famer. The same can be said for Hodges, but the question is when, and if, it will ever happen.
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