2013 ChiSox How-To Guide To Last Place

 

What does last place look like? Obviously not very good. I think the picture above perfect illustrates, all in one shot, every single thing that has gone wrong this year for the Sox. On the play above, if you don't know, Reed got the last out of the game for a 4-3 Sox win over the Mets, except, players decided to go Benny Hill on it and run into each other to allow the tying run to score. The White Sox did win this game 5-4, but it was ridiculous that it came to this and that it completely robbed Chris Sale of a win in a 13-K performance.

So what do the numbers look like? Some look awful. Some don't look that bad. Here's just a short list of the numbers I think most look like a last place team:

Fielding. Errors: 69. Alexei Ramirez has made 17 errors and still has a chance for many more. What has happened to him? Last year he was a Gold Glove snub, this year he's messing up even the most routine of plays. I don't get it. Some of his errors have cost the Sox wins unequivocally. Nobody else on the team even has 10 errors. Gordon Beckham has quite at few (7) for a guy who hasn't even played half a season, so I'm looking in his direction as well. The 69 team error total is tied for 7th worst, but only 4 errors off the worst in MLB. Verdict: This team can't field.

Getting on base. OBP: .302. The team is 27th at OBP, 2nd to last in the AL. Breaking that number down into its' basic parts, you see that the Sox are 28th and last in the AL in walks (246) and only marginally higher at 22nd in MLB at hits (833). Here's a chart of how the top three players in hits for the team have gotten to their totals of 111, 105 and 103 over the course of the season.

 

There is some slight mark of consistency among these players, although the most consistent has been Alexei Ramirez. Rios has come on strong at times and fallen at others. De Aza has been another player with a mostly consistent season. After these three, however, nobody else on the team has more than 75 hits. Guess who that guy is? That's right, the future Hall Of Famer Jeff Keppinger.  

Another area the Sox have not been well at the plate is in the Home Run department, instant runs. The Sox haven't hit the HRs they usually hit; only 93 so far which is good for 19th in MLB. US Cellular Field is a launching pad, and the team should be built accordingly. On paper there's no reason the team shouldn't be hitting HRs, they have the right players. The problem here has been that various things have occurred this year that have hampered output. There have been a lot of younger players getting playing time, so they have to make adjustments. Paul Konerko is getting old at 37. I hate to see Paul decline, but it's been inevitable and it is occurring. Adam Dunn has 24 which is a solid total, but it takes the next two players combined to equal that total. Verdict: Can't get on base consistently enough to put team in position to score.

On the basepath.  Runs scored: 369. This is good for 2nd to last in MLB and last in the AL, yes, fewer than the Houston Disastros. Why can't the White Sox score runs? Well as mentioned previously, they can't get on base. You have to be on base to score a lot of runs. There's an old saying that solo home runs don't beat you, and I would agree with that. De Aza (58) leads the team as he should since he's the leadoff hitter. It's not a bad total, good for 23rd in all of MLB. The rest of the team is downhill from there. You don't score, you don't win games. It's pretty simple.

Why can't they plate runners? Well as also previously mentioned, if you aren't hitting, you're not knocking in the guys who do manage to get on base. The White Sox hits w/RISP (187) is 99 fewer than the team with the most in MLB, the STL Cardinals (286). However, in an odd statistical anomaly, the White Sox are 11th in MLB in RISP BA (.258), and FOURTH in RISP BA w/2 outs. It doesn't make sense. The only way this can make sense is the fact that the Sox just don't get on base to have enough chances to score. When they do reach 2nd or 3rd, they actually are getting the job done on a semi-consistent basis.

A good way to put yourself in scoring position is the stolen base. The White Sox are actually 10th in MLB in stolen bases (64). The best team record wise in MLB is dead last with only 25 stolen bases. Again, more statistical anomalies, for which baseball is known. So if the Sox could just reach base, which they can't with any kind of regularity, they could be getting the guys in. Apparently this team can only do well at the plate when a guy is on 2nd or 3rd. Suddenly everybody is Babe Ruth out there. The Sox are also only in the middle of MLB in strikeouts, so they are making contact. But again, remember that they are last in the AL in walks, so they aren't taking a lot of free bases.

Here's what it all boils down to, in one key statistic. The White Sox are 2nd to last in MLB in total plate appearances (3658). Without reaching base consistently, you don't get to be at the plate as often. Without being at the plate as often as other teams, you have less chances to score runs. Without scoring runs, you are definitely going to lose more games than you win. Verdict: The Sox are good at scoring runners, but don't get on base enough to give the team the chances to do so.

Pitching. The overall pitching this season hasn't been bad. The team is in the middle of Team ERA (3.99), and a whole bunch of runs have scored via the unearned variety (48) due to dismal fielding. Chris Sale has been stellar, compiling a 2.81 ERA and 1.023 WHIP with 142 Ks. Sadly, though, as a product of playing for a last place club, his record is only 6-9. He did win the All Star game however, with two perfect innings pitched. Without listing them all, just know that the White Sox are in the top half of MLB in almost all pitching statistics. 

Pitching has not main been the problem. Sale, Santiago, Quintana have been good enough that the Sox should have won a lot more games. They simply aren't given run support to work with, and have taken some hard losses. They are a combined 14-17, 3.19 ERA, 0.868 WHIP. That's the epitome of hard luck, and what comes with playing for a bad team. 

The bullpen has been hit or miss (no pun intended) as well. Crain has been excellent, while others have been not so excellent. The bullpen has definitely lost their fair share of games (21), and that number doesn't reflect any games that any one came in and "lost" for the starter. It also doesn't reflect the times when a guy like Omogrosso, Troncoso and Nate Jones have come in and given up 2-4 runs in games when the Sox were trailing by just one or two. People cheered for Thornton's departure, but the three I just named have been worse. For example, Omogrosso allowed more ER in 11.2 fewer IP than Matt Thornton; not to say I didn't think it was time to trade Thornton. Verdict: This team can pitch in their starts, but it all goes for naught as they don't score enough to win, make too many errors, and don't have a rock-solid bullpen to keep leads consistently or keep close games close.

So after analyzing all of these factors that go into a last place run, this is my final verdict: The team is actually decent, on some level, but they are extreme underachievers who make too many errors, don't get on base enough to score runs, and can't hold leads/keep games close. The starting pitching is good 1-4, but they only keep us in games as a way of making most of the losses even more agonizingly painful. The team just doesn't "jell" and should be sold off piece by piece for good returns. The hope will have to lie in building a team that can start contending by Opening Day 2015.

Seriously though, just watch this clip. It highlights the entire season in just one play.

The Meaning Of Life Is 42

 

I finally had a chance last weekend to see the film 42, which I had been anticipating for some time. Jackie Robinson has always been one of my favorite ball players, not only because he broke the color barrier, but because I believe he was one of the best players in history. I had read all the reviews, realizing that there really can't be spoilers for a story you already know.

In the 10th grade, I checked out two books from my local public library's main branch to use for a report on Jackie Robinson. Our assignment was to write a 1000 word report on a true American hero. I chose Jackie, because of my admiration for what he did for the game, and because baseball was my favorite sport. At this point in my life, I was not really inclined to read entire books, and these books were pretty long. One of the books was over 400 pages long, while the other was over 300 pages. Once I really got into the assignment, I began reading and found myself unable to put the books down. Jackie's story is one that draws you in, and captures a moment in time perfectly.

As I poured over the pages, I learned of when Jackie grew up in California, when his brother went to the Olympics, and when he himself lettered in high school sports and went on to play for two local colleges. Throughout the pages, you are taken through his time in World War II, before being court martialed over bus racism, and ending up back home in the Negro League. It didn't take long to realize I had already gone through a third of the book, something very uncommon for myself in the 10th grade on a night where I could have been doing a million other things. Jackie's story has that factor, it grabs on to your imagination.

Subsequently, I kept these books. I had meant to return them to the library, but never made it back with the books. I remember receiving a letter in the mail for a free return day with no fine, but I completely missed the date by accident. Less than a year later, they closed the main branch of our library, selling most of the books that weren't transferred to other branches. All fines for overdue books at this branch were absolved. Completely unintentionally, I became the now rightful owner of two great books on the legacy of Jackie Robinson, which I would recommend to any serious baseball fan. The better of the two is Jackie Robinson: A Biography by Arnold Rampersad. I highly recommend it.

In the film, we essentially begin with Jackie Robinson (Chadwick Boseman) already playing in the Negro League. At the time, he had no idea he was being scouted by Branch Rickey as a potential candidate to break the unwritten rule of the Gentlemen's Agreement.  Rickey selected Jackie because of his age, experience and temperament. Branch Rickey is portrayed by Harrison Ford in the film, who I feel did an excellent job of capturing the essence of the man. At points in the film, you forget entirely that you are watching Ford, and become lost in his spot-on identity theft of Branch.

Most know the story, so I won't spend too much time on the details. Jackie Robinson finds himself at Spring Training as the outsider. He isn't there to become one of the guys, but to fill one of the roster positions. He lands a contract with the Montreal Royals. To this day, you can buy a Jackie Robinson Montreal Royals jersey.

</center>Jackie endures racism at every stage of his ascent to the big leagues. Robinson's life is threatened multiple times, and he handles it with a cool temperament in situations that would break most men. Jackie marries his wife, Rachel and they have a child together. He is called up to the big leagues and takes heaps of abuse from fans on all sides, some from his own team's fan base. The players are no better. Certain players see Robinson as a threat, coming from an inferior breed of human being no less. Other players quickly take his side, most notably Pee Wee Reese.

Reese becomes Robinson's strongest ally on the team, and in the league. When Robinson steps out on the field in Cincinnati, Reese stands by Robinson at first base before taking his own position, telling Robinson that he was as welcome on the field as anybody. Reese also used this moment to make a statement to his family that he was accepting this change openly. 

Playing first base, Robinson took abuse from many players who reached, and some who did not. Robinson was spiked intentionally by Enos Slaughter, and this is portrayed in the film. Another moment portrayed in the film is when Fritz Ostermuller hits Jackie in the head with a pitch. This didn't happen. Although Jackie Robinson was hit by more pitches than any player in the league in 1947 and 1948, Ostermuller simply wasn't the villain the film turned him into. I think there are a few sketchy details in this film that really detract and paint unfair pictures.

When filming a historical event and using the real names and likenesses of people of that time, you must be careful in how you portray each event and person. People leaving the film will now have only one view of Fritz Ostermuller: villain. There were plenty of real villains to portray as such for the purposes of the effect of the film's stirring moments. There is no need to create villainy in moments where villainy didn't exist in actual history. We should remember that the film and reality are often and not parallel.

Ben Chapman becomes another villain in this film. Rightfully so, in this case. However, this may be another case of not portraying a person accurately. In the film, Ben Chapman is the very outspoken manager of the Philadelphia Phillies. Chapman showers Robinson with racial language until he is "shut up" in the later innings by a solid Robinson hit. He deserves to be portrayed as a villain, but his entire story is not on display.

Later in his life, Ben Chapman became a slightly different person. As reporter Allen Barra tells of his time with this older Ben Chapman, he never apologized for his attitudes but did seem to become a lot more comfortable with people of all races. Amazingly, during his interview with Chapman at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama, Chapman essentially stated the same word-for-word lines used in the film. Here's an excerpt from his article: "In 1979, having graduated the University of Alabama with no ambition more worthwhile than becoming a sportswriter, I had occasion to meet Ben Chapman—the "Alabama Flash," as we knew him—during a college baseball game at Rickwood Field in Birmingham.

"You ought to come over and interview me sometime," he said. "I'll tell ya some stories."

"I'll bet you could," I thought to myself. I knew Chapman only by reputation. He had been a pretty good ballplayer on the Ruth-Gehrig Yankees and then later with several other teams, but he was remembered for his savage heckling of Jackie Robinson in Robinson's first year in the major leagues, 1947, when Chapman was manager of the Philadelphia Phillies. Chapman was 71 and gray-haired when I met him, but he looked younger, and very fit—unlike most former big leaguers I've encountered over my career.

I took him up on his offer to talk, and we got together the following week. He was very gracious, always smiling. But when the talk turned to something he was uncomfortable with, the smile seemed to freeze and he bared his teeth. This happened about two minutes into our interview.
"Is it true," I wanted to know, "that you said those things to Jackie Robinson? You know, the names, the words, that everyone said you used?"

"Heck, yeah," Chapman said with a loud guffaw. "Sure I did. Everyone used those kind of words back then. Heck, we said the same things to Joe DiMaggio and Hank Greenberg."

I was puzzled. "You mean you called DiMaggio a ....?"

"We tried to rattle him by saying, 'Hey, Dago' or 'Hey, Wop.'"

What about Greenberg? "Oh, we called him 'Kike.' It was all part of the game back then. You said anything you had to say to get an edge. Believe me, being a southerner, I took a lot of abuse myself when I first played in New York. If you couldn't take it, it was a case of if you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen."

If you are familiar with the film, you will recognize this as the exact dialogue Ben Chapman's character speaks during most of his scenes, nearly word-for-word. Barra states that he quickly realizes after this interview, that Chapman must have told this exact same story many times, enough times that it was dialogue included in the film.

So there are grey areas when painting historical figures, and those grey areas should be addressed. I realize that 42 is a film about oppression, racism and hatred, and there must be heroes and villains. However, these shouldn't be created in such a way that there is no room for grey areas. Chapman earned his villain tag, but maybe somewhere within the man, he did evolve into a slightly less Batman-esque villain toward the end of his life.

Overall, I felt like the film was well acted. The characters bear mostly striking resemblances to the people which they portrayed. Not only do the people look the part, they play the parts very well. I was surprised by how well Dr. Cox from Scrubs hit on all the aspects of Red Barber. If you are unfamiliar with the real Red Barber, check out this clip. Boseman did an excellent job portraying Robinson.

There was one part of the film I did not like. I hated the ending. The film just, fades. We are left reading a bunch of "He went on to do this." and "They went on to do that." Then there's completely false information in this section. It is stated that Ben Chapman never coached in MLB again, but he did. He coached for the Cincinnati Reds in 1952.

On a side note, Jackie Robinson was elected to the Hall Of Fame on his first ballot in 1962. While he appeared on more than 75% of ballots to receive the honor, he only appeared on 77% of the ballots total. This was a sign of the still lingering racism against Robinson and what he had done for the game. (or to the game for some people) This was not portrayed or discussed in the film and could have been used to highlight how far or how little we may have come by that point in time. The fact that every other player who was elected first ballot around that time appeared on more than 90% of ballots attests to this fact. Robinson's 77% of ballots on his first year, is tied with Robin Yount for the lowest number of ballots received by any first-ballot inductee.

I felt that we missed out on the portrayal on screen of one of the greatest moments in Robinson's career. Instead of acting out or showing us the Dodgers winning the 1955 World Series, we are left reading about it instead. The film had a run time of just over 2 hours, and I feel like we should have been given a portrayal of Jackie's elation of winning it all. That could have been done without spending even five whole minutes more on the run time.

By giving a micro-focus on the year 1947, we miss a lot about Jackie. We never get to see him play second base at the big league level, where he spent almost all of his career. We never get to see Jackie go through the anguish of losing the World Series four times before reaching the ultimate pinnacle in 1955. By not portraying the 1955 World Series, we never get to see one of his best moments re-enacted: stealing home in the World Series.

While the acting is excellent, and the CGI creates a perfect representation of 1947, some created histories and a lack of a proper ending are what holds this film back. Also, the film seems to only portray his story at the surface level. We are not given any real in-depth look at what Robinson went through. While I realize that Robinson went through hell to get to the top, he wasn't the only person facing insurmountable odds, even in 1947. There is no mention of the THREE other players who entered MLB in 1947, one of whom was Hall Of Famer Larry Doby, who integrated the American League. (the others being Hank Thompson and Willard Brown, both for the St. Louis Browns)

Essentially, the film could have been better, and it could have been worse. It didn't quite miss the mark, but it didn't hit the bullseye either. This was not a documentary, and as such, did not have to stay completely true to all aspects of the story. That may hurt it for some, it may not be an issue at all for others who just want to see a good film about baseball.

For me, it just lands somewhere in the middle and scores a solid B.

Sources For Some Information In This Post:

http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2013/04/what-really-happened-to-ben-chapman-the-racist-baseball-player-in-i-42-i/274995/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/11/fritz-ostermueller-misrepresented-jackie-robinson-42_n_3259230.html

http://www.chasingthefrog.com/reelfaces/42-movie-jackie-robinson.php

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0453562/

http://www.thediamondangle.com/marasco/negleg/timeline.html

http://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/First_Ballot_Hall_of_Famer

Larry Doby: Integration In The Shadows

This weekend, the movie 42 is set to hit theaters. 42 is mostly the story of Jackie Robinson's first two years in MLB, and most of the reviews of this film are extremely positive. If the film gets a good reception from audiences, it could make a lot of money and catapult up the list of all-time great baseball movies. Most people know the story of Jackie, and what he went through integrating baseball for the Brooklyn Dodgers of the National League. He was a true man of courage and character, to be respected and admired for what he went through to play the game he loved when he was asked.

However, there's another story that often gets forgotten. This is the story of a man who integrated a league and faced most of the same challenges Jackie faced. He dealt with all of the same racism, and played in hostile environments daily. Jackie was first, but this man was not far behind in that summer of 1947, breaking into the American League on July 5th. His name was Larry Doby, and he broke with the Cleveland Indians.

Like Jackie, Larry had grown up a tremendous athlete, who excelled in several sports. He lettered in eleven different sports in high school. He spent time in the Pacific during the end of WWII loading and unloading ships for the Navy. Doby did the only thing he could do with baseball after the Navy, he went to play for a great Negro League club, the Newark Eagles. He lead the Eagles to the Negro League title with a .348 average in '46, and through the first part of '47 was hitting .458.

In 1946, Bill Veeck bought the Cleveland Indians. He had, supposedly, attempted to buy the Phillies back in 1943 with the intention of stocking them full of Negro League stars and once and for all ending the color barrier. Veeck's purchase was supposedly denied after his plans were discussed with Commissioner Kennesaw Mountain Landis. However, this story has been the point of controversy as to the authenticity of it all. Some say Veeck was lying about these events, while others say it was true. Whatever the case, in 1947 he had his chance to make history and signed Larry Doby. Doby made his debut on July 5th, 1947, and struggled. He hit .156 in 29 games, while only seeing 33 plate appearances.

The Indians were definitely intent on sticking with him for at least another season. In 1948, Doby found his stroke and put up solid numbers. He hit .301/14/66 and played superb center field. Doby became the first black player to win a World Series that year. Doby went on to have many more solid seasons, leading the league in key statistics like home runs, runs scored and RBI at different times over his playing career.

During the time of baseball integration, the National League integrated more quickly than the American League. The senior circuit seemed to have owners who realized the potential of the larger player pool over their own possible feelings toward African-Americans, more so than the American League owners. The National League clubs basically got free choice over the cream of the Negro League crop. Stars like Hank Aaron and Willie Mays were scooped by the Braves and Giants, while some American League clubs whiffed at the opportunity.

The Red Sox gave Jackie Robinson an early tryout in 1946, but with no intentions whatsoever of signing him. Reportedly, during this tryout, Robinson was the target of racial language from players and coaches alike. The Red Sox also missed a golden opportunity to sign Willie Mays, when owner Tom Yawkey let his bitter racism get the better of his business sense. It wasn't until 1959 that the Red Sox finally signed a black player, Pumpsie Green, becoming the last club to integrate.

Playing in the more divisive league was not easy for the early entries like Doby. Over the early seasons for Doby, most American League teams rarely saw a black player. Doby had to endure the same kind of animosity from players as well as fans that Jackie received. But, Jackie seemingly had more fans on his own team, like Pee Wee Reese, who were willing to stick up for him against the attacks. One of the main reasons we don't know a lot of the stories of players' racism toward Doby, is because Doby doesn't tell those stories. He stated numerous times that he holds no ill will toward anyone from his baseball career for anything they may have said to him or their actions. He carried with him a faith in God and a strong belief in forgiveness.

Larry Doby remarked in an interview with Fay Vincent, that he felt alone when he was called up. He stated that on that first day, he went out to play catch during warm ups. Nobody would acknowledge him. Finally, he said, Joe Gordon called over to him to throw the ball around. Once the other Indians players saw what Joe did, being a Yankee legend and former MVP, Doby felt he was more accepted by the other players.

After inexplicably being passed over for several years, Larry Doby was inducted into the Baseball Hall Of Fame in 1998 by the veteran's committee. One of the key votes came from Yogi Berra, who said Doby had every skill that makes a great player. After his playing career with the Indians and White Sox, he became manager of the White Sox in 1978. At that time, this made him only the second African-American manager in MLB history.

During his career, Doby saw as much or more racism than Robinson. Jackie played for a premiere club that protected him, but Doby played in a league that definitely wasn't as receptive to his "appearance" on the diamond. Certainly, I plan to see the film 42. I hope it is well-done, and I hope that it captures the spirit of the times for what they truly were. I also hope that somewhere, buried in the two hours of drama, they make a mention of Mr. Doby. He may have integrated in the shadows of Robinson, but he deserves his mention. Doby should be remembered for his career, for his talent, for his courage and his character, just like Jackie. He deserves that much.


Information for this blog post was collected from baseball-reference.com, Yahoo! Sports, Wikipedia and thediamondangle.com

What The Hall Happened Today?

Today, I witnessed one of the worst mistakes in the history of sports. Lots of things in sports are voted on: NCAA rankings, MVPs, Rookies of the Year. Hall Of Fame voting occurs once a year as well. Today was the day they released the list. These votes are usually controversial, but people on both sides can usually understand where the other side is coming from in the discussion.

I was pulling for a few guys over other guys. I figured that Bonds, Sosa, McGwire, Palmeiro and Clemens would be held accountable for the steroid era. I really wanted to see Biggio and Bagwell (The Killer Bs), but figured the best we could get this year was Biggio. As much as I disagreed with it, I assumed it was all but a done deal for Jack Morris' mugshot to appear on a plaque this year. Also, I assumed Tim Raines would edge closer, although I wanted him in ASAP as he was a great HOF leadoff hitter.

What never entered my mind, what shouldn't have entered anyone's mind, was what happened. What happened, was that no player appeared on the 75% of ballots necessary for induction. That is absolutely shameful. Every voter should lose their right to vote. It is gutless what these men, who never played baseball past 4th grade, did to some of the well deserved players on the list.

Craig Biggio ended up on the most ballots at a 68% clip. Biggio is the one player from the 1990s that I don't think was punished under the steroid specter, but that only shows another bad side of the vote this year. There's only two things that they could have been thinking when they sent in their votes this year: 1)Nobody on this list is a Hall Of Famer or 2)Some people on this list used steroids, so I will punish every player on the list for that. The first one is outright false, and for that stupidity alone, you should lose your vote. The second one, is so unfair and gutless, that you should not only lose your vote but be banned from ever being allowed to cover baseball ever again.

I understand, a lot of people saw this as the Roid Ballot. Many people, from fairweather to hardcore fandom wanted this vote to exclude players like Bonds and Sosa, who are fairly or unfairly linked so closely with steroid use, that they appear next to steroid in the dictionary. However, because some people are highly suspected to have used illegal substances to enhance their performance over the span of their careers, it is completely unfair and ridiculous to punish every player on the list. And I believe that is what many of the voters were doing.

Here's how the votes broke down:

Craig Biggio 388 (68.2%)
Jack Morris 385 (67.7%)
Jeff Bagwell 339 (59.6%)
Mike Piazza 329 (57.8%)
Tim Raines 297 (52.2%)
Lee Smith 272 (47.8%)
Curt Schilling 221 (38.8%)
Roger Clemens 214 (37.6%)
Barry Bonds 206 (36.2%)
Edgar Martinez 204 (35.9%)
Alan Trammell 191 (33.6%)
Larry Walker 123 (21.6%)
Fred McGriff 118 (20.7%)
Dale Murphy 106 (18.6%)
Mark McGwire 96 (16.9%)
Don Mattingly 75 (13.2%)
Sammy Sosa 71 (12.5%)
Rafael Palmeiro 50 (8.8%)

Some guys who fell off the eligibility list for next year include Kenny Lofton and Bernie Williams. These vote totals are a joke. On this list, appears the second best leadoff hitter of all time (Raines), the best offensive catcher of all time (Piazza), arguably the best DH of all time (Martinez) and one of the best 2nd basemen ever (Biggio). To say that none of those four are HOF-calibur in any ballot year, is to say that really, no one is HOF-calibur.

Apparently, there cannot be a first-ballot HOF anymore. Rickey Henderson was a 1st ballot Hall Of Famer. He is the best leadoff hitter of all time. Lou Brock was a first ballot hall of famer, and he is not the best, second best or third best leadoff hitter of all time. Tim Raines is the second best leadoff hitter of all time, and for another year (his 6th freaking ballot) he will not get to the Hall. What did he do to deserve this? Play in the shadow of Rickey Henderson for his whole career. That's all he ever did "wrong" in his career.

The biggest problem I have with putting no one in, besides the obvious fact that many of the people on the list were clean and certainly hall of fame quality, is that this sets a dangerous and upsetting precedent moving forward. Will ever player who played in the 90's be punished for steroids, even if they were never linked to steroid use in any way? What about next year, when the ballot includes first timers Frank Thomas, Tom Glavine and Greg Maddux, be punished for what others did?

These big three were never linked to steroid use. They are all cream of the crop players. Frank Thomas was an amazing player, an upstanding symbol for the league and a 500 home run hitter with a .300 career average. Greg Maddux posted the lowest ERA in a season since Bob Gibson, and won 350 games in his career, won four Cy Young awards in a row (Finished Top 5 Nine Times) and won a World Series ring and several Gold Gloves. Tom Glavine is one of five left-handed pitchers ever to win 300 games, he won two Cy Young Awards and a World Series ring in which he was named World Series MVP. All three did plenty to be first ballot guys, but will they be punished?

The voters have a chance to fix this injustice. Next year, they can put in those three, along with Craig Biggio, Mike Piazza, Jeff Bagwell and Jack Morris. But for this year, they have really screwed up badly. They not only robbed some of the best clean players ever from the Hall, but they set a dangerous precedent that cannot continue to exist. We cannot punish everyone. Remember when your teacher used to take recess away from all students because a few students had done something wrong? Well, we're not in elementary school anymore and in real life, people get rewarded for doing the right things in life. Let's reward the players who were clean, and have no specter of steroids surrounding their great careers.

This also, unfairly, gives a black eye to MLB. I know it is the Baseball Hall Of Fame, and not the MLB Hall Of Fame, but most people think of it as such. When the Hall voters do something like this, it brings back up all the steroid discussions that had begun to fade in recent seasons. Sure, MLB is at fault at some level for allowing steroid players to play in their league without enough checks to prevent such illegal activity. However, it is unfair at this stage, to say that the players MLB was trying to send to the Hall were all guilty by association.

Guilty by association; we don't live in that society. I still believe in innocent until proven guilty. When voters are voting this way, you can be sure that most 90's stars will be called out, even when it is completely unwarranted. I will wait for next year, and when it comes, if Frank Thomas does not get in on the first ballot, you can have fun reading my meltdown post. They better get their sh*t together next time.