One of the few loyal players that stayed with one team his whole career, moving from position to position, whatever was asked of him.
no one was selected, which ought to be the rule, rather than the exception.
flooding the hall of fame with, not to put too fine a point on it, very good, yet not truly great players simply cheapens the HoF.
Biggio deserves the HOF. I guess he didn’t play for the right team.
From an ESPN article this week by Tim Kurkjian:
Biggio had 3,060 hits, 21st most ever, more than Rod Carew. Biggo had more hits in the live-ball era (since 1920) than any player whose primary position was second base. Biggio had the fifth-most doubles, more than Hank Aaron. He had the 31st most extra-base hits, more than Willie McCovey, Willie Stargell, Al Kaline and Mickey Mantle. He scored the 14th-most runs, more than Ted Williams and Carl Yastrzemski. And Biggio’s 146 runs scored in 1997 are tied for the second most in a season in the expansion era (since 1961). He played in more winning games than George Brett. The list of players in history with 250 home runs and 400 stolen bases are Bonds, Bobby Bonds, Rickey Henderson, Joe Morgan and Biggio. That’s it. That’s the list. He is one of four infielders ever to have a 20-homer, 50-steal season.
Biggio’s career WAR of 62.1 is comparable to Alomar (62.9) and Sandberg (64.9), but Biggio accumulated it while playing three premium defensive positions: catcher, second base and center field. He and Tom Daly (1895; he threw under-handed on long throws from second base to first) are the only players to play a full season at second base and a full season behind the plate. Biggio is the only player to also have played a full season in center field; he is the only player in history to record 1,000 at-bats as a catcher, a second baseman and a center fielder. He won four consecutive Gold Gloves at second base. When he arrived in the major leagues as a catcher in 1988 at age 22, Nolan Ryan said he loved throwing to him because he knew he could bounce a two-strike curveball knowing that the maniacal little guy with a size 7 hat behind the plate would hurl his body in front of the ball.
and now the writers have had their ‘that’ll show em’ moment. We’ll see how long it takes for someone from the ‘rood era to be elected
It gets even harder next year. Greg Maddux will likely get in, and there are other first-time names next year who will draw a goodly number of votes.
Morris looks lose enough to make it next time or soon after.
The HOF won’t include the all-time hit king or the all-time homerun champion?
Hall is worthless until Charlie Hustle is included.
Biggio....will make it next year.
Of that bunch, Schilling and Biggio seem to be the best choices.
Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens shouldn’t worry too much, though. I’m sure their accomplishments will be properly memorialized in nearby dark alleys.
tune of Rice a Roni Jingle:
Bonds, the phony
The San Francisco cheat!
Kind of silly. Even if steroids never exited Bonds and Clemens would still have been two of the top 25 greatest players of all time. And the Hall is packed with players who were juiced on amphetamines for years. They’ll get in eventually, as they should. Pete Rose should too, btw, and it is an obscenity to the game that he isn’t already.
From my understanding, Bonds deserves to be in the Hall of Fame based on his pre-1999 record.
Everything I’ve heard indicates that Bonds did not start “bulking up” until 1999. I could be wrong, of course.
Bonds’ record through 1998 is truly great and easily HOF worthy. You could cut him off after 1995 and he would still be HOF worthy.
I don’t like this “not worthy of the first ballot” stuff you either belong in or you don’t. Even if you don’t put Bonds and Clemens in cause of the ‘riods there are several who should have got in. Right? Biggio? Raines? Piazza (riods?)?
Poor Ran Santo died before they let him in.
And even the best of the best players don’t get in unanimously, I think the closest was Tom Seaver but a couple idiots still voted no. Who do those sportswriters think they are? Presidential electors in 1820?
“Okay, so the 2013 Hall of Fame Inductee class goes to a restaurant, who pays the tab”
“Nobody”
“But Nobody was just inducted into the Hall of Fame!”
“That’s right.”
“Third base!”
Didn’t Sylvia Jane Kirby have a big hit with a song about this year’s HoF class?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OhrcmDFt02c